I'll finish her this time!

Last summer I ordered the Halloween Fairy limited edition kit from Mirabilia along with a couple of stitching gal pals of mine. We decided to have a SAL every week and had planned on having her finished for last Halloween. For those of you who don't stitch, SAL means stitch-a-long. We pick a piece to stitch and then we all decide on a day of the week to stitch it. In this case Rachel liked the sound of Fairy Fridays so Friday it was...lol. We all got distracted with other things though so she didn't finished. We decided to get her finished up for this Halloween so last night was the first night we picked her up again. I didn't get a ton done on her but I did stitch on her for a little while. Here's what she's looking like thus far. The other girls decided to toss the fabric that came in the kit and use something hand dyed that they already had in their stash. I didn't really have anything that would work, and since I like natural fabric anyway, I decided to stick with it. I was wanting something hand dyed that had shades of orange in it. I've heard from several people that there's not enough of the green in the kit to stitch her wings. I'll have to order another skein which is a bit annoying considering this is a $50 kit! I really like this fairy but seriously doubt that I'll buy another one of these kits. I think they're far too pricey for what they are. I do however hope to order one of their new Pixie charts to stitch for my mom for Christmas. I'm leaning towards Ivy- http://www.stitchesnthings.com/detail.cfm?ID=18330 Isn't she pretty? She's not as big as those other Mirabilia pieces and I don't think she'd take too terribly long to stitch. I've packed my fairy away until next Friday and plan to stitch on that Checkered Liberty kit that Rachel sent me tonight.

I didn't steal them, I saved them!

So we spent the evening out and on our way back home tonight we stopped off at my parent's house for a few minutes. When we were leaving my dad walked us out. He always walks out with us when we come over. Their neighbors have a pretty little apple tree in the front yard right by my parent's driveway. This tree had hundreds of pretty green apples on it and tons more that were on the ground. These people have lived there for a couple of years and I've never seen them pick apples. Actually, I've only seen them a few times. I think they're hermits. Anyway, my dad was talking about how most of the apples just fall to the ground and rot because they don't pick them. I'm surprised really because apples aren't cheap. When we left, we were driving along and I mentioned what a shame it was that all of those apples would go to waste. When Mike got to the end of the street I asked him to turn around and go back to parents house. He asked me why and I told him I needed some of those apples....LOL! See, I wasn't stealing the apples, I was saving the apples from their unfortunate demise should they be left there to fall to the ground and rot or worse be eaten by some ugly bugs. It was already dark out so nobody would see me anyway. Or at least that's what I thought until I noticed the flash from a camera! My husband was taking pictures of me "saving" the apples! Can you believe that?! He insisted I put it on my blog or he was going to. Lord knows what he would have typed up to go with it so here it is....lol. Thank goodness it's dark....I can't be indentified...lol!It's not like I saved that many...only 9. I didn't have a bag so I loaded them up in my purse. If I would've been wearing a dress I could've been like Julia Robert's in Sleeping with the Enemy...lol! Apparently while I was apple picking my kids were in the car laughing hysterically for whatever reason....lol. Apparently they got a huge kick out of me stuffing the apples in my purse and an even bigger kick out of Mike taking pictures of the whole thing. I explained to them that I was only picking apples from the branches that were hanging over in to their grandparents yard, technically making the apples my parents apples and they said I could have them. That wasn't entirely accurate but I'd never want them to think I was stealing something because I wasn't. I maintain that I was saving them..LOL.

I don't know if many of you have watched the national news lately but we've gotten TONS of rain over the past few weeks. We've had some serious problems with flooding. I was actually worried for a couple of days that the water was going to make it's way inside the house. We had very heavy rain at at one point our back yard disappearead. It looked like a lake. There are several areas in town that have had to be evacuated. There are some very expensive houses located in low areas and the water is swallowing them up. We went out looking this evening and couldn't get down in to that are but we did go by the Wichita River and you wouldn't believe it! They said the river is going to continue to rise until Sunday morning. Not good! I took all of these pictures between 7 & 8 tonight. The water is just fixing to come up on Interstate 44. It's just crazy! I'm betting if they've not closed it by now they're fixing too. Look at that overpass! That water is covering alot of street area! Talk about scary! Now this hotel here is located right by the river...well...now I guess it's in the river :0. We saw them evacuating people by little boats. The van you see here is in the higher level of the hotel parking lot. There's supposed to be an on ramp in this last picture but the river swallowed that up too. :o. I can't believe how much it's rained the past several weeks! And I really can't believe a lot of people are losing their homes because of it. The bad thing is we have very good chances of rain for the next few days. Luckily we don't live anywhere near the river. We did see several houses along one end of the river and the river was literally in their backyards. It reminds me of some of those pictures I saw on TV of Hurricane Katrina. According to the news, a state of emergency has been declared for Wichita Falls. If you want to see aerial photos, you can see them on my fav. local TV stations site here: http://www.kauz.com/ Enough of the depressing stuff, I'm off now to see if I can make a pie or something out of the apples I saved...LOL!

Cruising around town

The kids and I spent most of the day out running around. It poured rain nearly the entire day yesterday so we were stuck inside. I still can't believe how much rain we've been getting! And I really can't beleive it's almost July and it hasn't reached 100 yet! I'm really glad but surprised! It's only in the 80's today :). We stopped by Mike's work this morning and took him doughnuts. He forgot his coffee when he went to work so we were gonna take it to him and figured we'd might as well get him doughnuts to go along with it :). After we left the post office, we headed for the library. The kids have been wanting to check out some books and I found a couple that I needed. See my previous post for the subject I was looking for...lol. I found some really great books. One of which was very age appropriate for Cassie and we can read it together. There are some very inappropriate books out there in my opinion!! They say this book is for ages 4-8 and Cassie's 9 1/2..BULL! LOL! I don't recommend this book...I know...I read most of the book at the library with what I'm sure was a sheer look of terror on my face....a woman that worked at the library even asked me if I was doing ok. No....no I'm not doing ok...lol. http://www.amazon.com/Where-Did-Come-Peter-Mayle/dp/0818402539/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/102-0363963-2632114?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1182982085&sr=1-1

They had this at the library and OMG! LOL! It's illustrated like a kids book with cartoonish looking illustrations and goes in to explicit detail (and pictures!) of where you came from and how you got there....not good! LOL! It had the mom and dad in the bath tub, in the bed, said what they were doing in the bed, and excuse me I have a problem with this one....it described feelings while having sex...even an orgasm...what?!?!?!?!?. They don't need to know that! In fact, if they must know anything they need to think it's horrible so they won't want to do it! Ever! LOL! Crazy book/author/illustrator...LOL! I felt like the book encouraged sex. I thought it was gonna give general information...sheesh...lol. After we left the library I took them to McDonald's for lunch. After that we went to rent a movie for them and then we went to the bookstore. I was emailing a friend of mine the other day and she reminded me of the Judy Blume books most of us read when were younger. In particular a book called "Are you there God? It's me Margaret". I had completly forgotten about that book but remembered how much I loved Judy Blume's books. I picked it up for Cassie while we were at the bookstore. I guess I could have checked it out but the only copy they had at the library was falling apart and I thought this would be a good book to keep. I got Joshua a new phonics book to help with his reading. We had a couple of other errands to run and then came back home a bit ago.

I've decided that I need to learn how to either knit or crochet. Some of my stitching friends knit and have been talking about it quite a bit lately and it's driving me nuts that I don't know how. I don't know why...lol. We have a yarn shop here called The Yarn Palette. I called them a few minutes ago and they offer classes. I'm thinking I just may have to sign up for one. I want to learn to make some scarves and ponchos. It just looks so darn complicated.

I'm off to figure out what we're having for dinner...

Oh no! He did not just say that!!

Ugggggggggggggggghhhhhhhh.....oh no...no no no no no....I just got back from taking the kids for their annual check-ups. They're both growing like weeds and will be a lot taller than me..lol. They get that from my dad and brother. So we're sitting there and...ugghhhhhh....I don't know if I even want to replay it in my head again....anyway, when Cassie's exam was about over he brought up periods. Well I quickly pointed out that we haven't had that discussion yet so he wouldn't say anything else and I could do it at my earliest (or not! LOL) convenience. He pointed out that I should soon because he thinks her "time" may not be too far off. He couldn't just let it go...nnnnooooooo....he looked at Cassie and said something to the effect of "When little girls get older their bodies change and they start to have a period (OMG!) and your mom will talk to you about all of that soon". OH NO! He did not just say that!!!! Thanks for nothin doc! You dingbat! Don't you know when you plant something in a kids head like that they're gonna bug the crap out of me until I explain it?! I was hoping for a little more time here! You are so coming off my Christmas card list..LOL! I did order a book on half.com a few months ago about how to have "the discussion" so my intentions are good I just didn't think it was necessary quite yet! I was just telling my friend Jodi while I was in Chicago that I bought the book and needed to read it. She & I were browsing at the American Girl store when I found a book for girls about their bodies but I didn't get it because I didn't think it was needed yet! Thanks a lot doc! Ever since we left your office I've been asked questions like "So when you grow hair in places which parts do you shave and which parts do you not?" OMG!!! Thanks so much for turning my nice pleasant uneventful day in to a super freaked out eventful one! Like the whole bra incident wasn't enough for one year.....Oh my head......I don't think I'm gonna be able to stitch for a while...I guess I need to read that book....ugggghhhhhhhhhhh. I do love their doctor though...he's been our pediatrician since Cassie was born. I just don't like him a whole lot today...LOL! And just to top the visit off Joshua was due for his second dose of that Hep. A vaccine. I always try to take them out to pick out a little something special after they have shots. I don't really know if I'm doing it for them or to make me feel better...lol. He had been saving his money up for a new Webkinz and was just about $2 short so I gave him the rest and took him to pick one out afterwards. He cried all the way to the shop but he somehow miraculously recovered after he saw the display filled with new Webkinz. I think he was milking it a bit, whatcha think? LOL :). I've got to run...Mike gets off work in a half hour and he's taking us out to dinner. I'm too distraught to cook....hehehehe.

I know what I want for my birthday!

Usually every year my family asks me what I want for my birthday and Christmas. I always rack my brain but rarely ever come up with anything as I don't really need anything. Well, I know what I want this year! I plan (hope) to make 2 flights next year so the perfect gift for me would be American Airlines gift cards! What better gift could you give me than the gift of travel?! ROFLOL!!! You can find them at- www.aa.com Click on products & gifts and then click on gift cards. It's as easy as pie! LOL! Moving along...lol.

We went to church this morning and I bumped in to someone that I was friends with in junior high. That was really neat. I can't believe she'd recognize me after so many years but she did. I didn't recognize her at all until she told me her name. We exchanged phone numbers so hopefully I'll get to chat with her more soon. Speaking of phones...I'm pretty annoyed. Our phone hasn't been working since Thursday. I called SBC and they tested the line and said they'd need to send someone out to repair it. I thought for sure they'd do that by the weekend! They'd better be here tomorrow or I'm gonna have to put on my angry eyes. There's no excuse for them taking so long to get here. Tomorrow will be the 5th day I've been without a phone. I'm calling them back tomorrow and am insisting that they credit my account for the days I didn't have service. MY DSL is working fine so I'm betting something's loose in the main box or something. I don't really care what it is I just wish they'd hurry up and fix it. Back to church, I still don't know what I think of that one. The kids love it & they have a really great children's program. It's the biggest church in town though and thousands of people go there. So, I wonder if we should still go there since the kids love it, or go somewhere smaller where the children's program isn't as great...hmmm....

The kids both have their yearly check-ups tomorrow afternoon. I'm not sure but I *think* Joshua has to have a second round of a vaccination he had last time. I really hate that! There didn't use to be 2 doses...Cassie only had 1 but for some reason someone in Texas decided there needed to be a second dose....*sigh*. I think it's unnecessary..I mean if Cassie only needed one and every other kid in 2nd grade and up only needed 1, then why the heck do they need 2 now? Maybe they'll forget...lol.

Mike and I watched Freedom Writers tonight. Really great movie! I highly recommend it. We watched Ghost Riders the other night...I wasn't too impressed with that one. I should head to bed I guess....I decided today that I wanna lose 10 pounds so I'm really in the mood to run....lol.

Shopping

I'm happy to report that I don't feel blah today like I was feeling the rest of the week. I went out this morning by myself and did a little shopping. That always makes a girl feel better :). I found the cutest shirt at Khol's and picked it up. Isn't it great? I love that little pink belt that it came with. Too cute! They had it in 2 other colors so I'm really proud of myself that I only bought this one. I have a really bad habit of finding a style of a shirt that I really like and buying it in every color...LOL! I haven't done that in a while so I am getting better. I'd say it's been a good..I don't know, 3 months or so since I've done that...lol. (I take that back...I did do it this morning but with a different top..I'll get to that in a minute..lol.) It's only because I have a hard time finding tops that I really really like. Well, I take that back....I'm sure a few of you have encountered this a time or two...you find a top somewhere that looks fantastic on the hanger but when you try it on...ewwwwww......lol. It's rather annoying. I don't ever buy a clothing item without trying it on. I just can't. Different brands fit differently. Like let's take New York & Co. I like shopping there because their clothes run bigger so I can buy a smaller size..LOL! Same with Old Navy. I could go somewhere else like Sears or Penney's though and wear a whole different size. It's really screwy. And if I buy a button up shirt I have to buy an even bigger size to get it buttoned over my chest. And I don't think my chest is all that big, I just think they don't make these button up shirts very roomy up top. I also found a cute denim skirt that was on sale for 70% off....I didn't really need another denim skirt but it was so darn cheap..lol. I also picked up a really cute dark blue top...I'm ashamed to say I have the same top in black with white polka dots and red with white polka dots...lol. You would've bought it too though! It was 80% off so I got it for $4.00. I really do need to try to make an effort to not buy the same shirt in multiple colors...lol. I think I had a really good shopping trip..I got the denim skirt, the blue top, and the brown polka dotted top with the pink belt up top, all for $35.00. Gosh, I love Khol's....lol.

I think I'm slowly climbing out of my stitching slump too. I started that Checkered Liberty kit last night that I received from Rachel yesterday. This is the first time I've had the pleasure of stitching on gingham fabric. It's gonna look really great once it's finished! I'm hoping to finish it this week so I can display it for this 4th of July. I'll most likely make it in to a flat fold. Boy I bet ya didn't see that coming, did ya? LOL!

Great mail day!

I participated in an exchange in one of my yahoo groups and received my exchange package from Rachel today! She stitched a wonderful Bent Creek Patriotic piece for me and framed it! I love the piece and am thrilled to have it as this is the only patriotic piece I have to display for the 4th. I hated to email her to tell her I had received it because I had to tell her the glass she had mounted the stitching on was shattered so I was gonna have to re-mount it on mat board. She had that thing wrapped very very well so I'm really surprised that it was broken. I'm betting at some point on it's journey it ended up underneath some heavy packages and got crushed. I'm still surprised though because she had it wrapped so well. She was telling me a while back that she mounts her stitching on the glass that comes in the frames instead of matboard. She does this so she won't have to cut mat board for it and she doesn't like glass covering her stitched pieces anyway so she'd might as well put the glass to good use :). Luckily I have plenty of mat board on hand so I was able to re-mount it and frame it quickly. I love the red frame she picked out for it! She stitched this piece on 40 ct. fabric. My poor sad eyes would never let me stitch on a count so small...LOL! Besides the wonderful stitched piece she sent me, she also sent me a wonderful kit from M Designs called Checkered Liberty...this is a really great kit! I plan to start it soon...I LOVE the gingham fabric that it came with and am really looking forward to stitching it :). She also sent me a skein of Weeks in Independance Day and Old Glory...really great colors! I especially like the Old Glory :). She also made me a wonderful pair of patriotic earrings! Rachel's in to beading and is very very good at it! I love long earrings and they're perfect! They have a pretty red star on them with 3 blue crystals dangling from them. Thanks so much for such a wonderful package, Rachel! My new framed flag is proudly being displayed in the living room :).

Her package came on a really good day. I've been feeling blah since I got back from Chicago. Mike's been applying for jobs when he has time for a while now. Unfortunately the hiring process for things he's been applying for take a really long time. I really wish it would just be done. I was actually a little depressed to be coming back to Texas after my trip. I've lived here since I was 5 and I'm just ready to go somewhere else. Don't get me wrong, I'd never want to live in Chicago, it's just that I've been to several different places and well....Texas is just Texas to me these days. I'm still hoping that whatever he gets will be close to the ocean. I'd be happy as a pig in slop if I lived near the ocean :). I hated to leave Florida last summer because I love the ocean so much and I hated to leave Chicago because Lake Michigan reminded me of the ocean. Of course all of this feeling blah could totally be related to PMS and I may be all better in a few days...LOL!

We're not going on a vacation together this summer because we're saving up for a big one next summer. Our tentative plan is to go on a cruise. I REALLY want to go on that Disney cruise but it's pretty expensive. I guess it's not so bad to do the 3 or 4 day cruise but when you take in to account that we have to fly in to Orlando it is. After the 23 hour drive from hell to Orlando last summer, that'll NEVER happen again...LOL! I wish Mike could take time off in December! You can cruise really cheap in November and December! Postal employees here (or could be anywhere for that matter, I'm not sure) aren't allowed to take any time off in December. If he could, we could go when the kids are out for winter break. We're hoping to cruise to Mexico I think. Wherever we do decide to cruise to, the plan is to leave from Port Canaveral so we can spend a night on Cocoa Beach again. My heart belongs to the ocean...I hope when we're old we can retire at Cocoa Beach :).

I've got to finish folding the laundry. When Mike gets home from work we're gonna watch Ghost Rider :).