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Monday, December 07, 2009

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 20:46:43 GMT

We have snow!

And it was icy and slippery on the roads this morning. I was about 3/4 the way to work and I encountered a line of stopped cars. Turns out the bridge over the highway had iced and there was an accident on the bridge. It would have taken a fair bit of backtracking to get around, and I figured the accident would be sorted out quickly, so I waited. Of course, my wait took 40 minutes and I was late for work. <sigh> But I called to let them know and I just worked a bit later in the afternoon.

It is snowing a bit now too. And we learned that our chickens are afraid of snow. They won't even come out of the coop! Very. Very. Silly. <shakes head>

And speaking of chickens, dh snapped this picture of them the other day.

That was the day dh finished up the nesting box too.

To put in this spot on the coop.

Mind you, I don't have a picture of it installed, but let me assure you, it is done. And I am sure the chickens are appreciative!

Sunday, December 06, 2009

Sun, 06 Dec 2009 11:19:39 GMT

Last night, I got together with a friend who noted that I had not blogged recently. As a matter of fact, she knew exactly the date that I had last blogged and urged me to blog more. Luckily, I respond to pressure and here I am.

I had promised pictures of us getting our tree in the rain....

We always get our tree the day after Thanksgiving. It is a nice family tradition and we like to have our routines here chez Craftymomma. So, despite a steady bit of light rain, we made our way to the Christmas tree farm.

I have to say, the tree farm has almost too many trees to choose from!

There are literally thousands of trees there. If I was to hazard a guess, I'd say they have 15 acres of land planted with trees. It is fun and overwhelming. With so many to choose on, finding just the right tree is a process.

And we spend lots of time going back and forth among the trees.

I will say though, the rain was okay. Some years we have done this and just been sooooo cold. <shiver> It was milder, I think about 50 when we went tree hunting. It gave us more time to browse!

And finally, we found the right tree.

Of course, the amusing thing is after traipsing around the tree farm for 45 minutes, going back and forth and up and down the paths, the tree we found was actually about 6 trees down from the car. Not that I'm complaining!!! I just appreciate the irony of it.

I am nearly done my holiday shopping. Nature Boy is shopped for. I know what I want to get dh. I have my relatives all set too at this point. I must say, the ability to get most of my shopping done at Amazon is great! I don't like shopping in crowds with all that jostling and hustle-bustle. Shopping at home on the couch in my jammies is right up my alley!!!

In other news....I appear to have done something to my back and it is very sore. Or to quote Dr. Smith from Lost in Space, "My back is very delicate today." It started Thursday afternoon at work and I am really moving quite gingerly right now. I even got a substitute for me for the UU preschool class there is no way I can work with the kidlets today.

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 12:29:03 GMT

Our department at work does Secret Santa every year. We actually drew names the week after Halloween...People are that excited about it!!! I think we have about two weeks before we do the gift exchanges. Basically, every day for a week, you give your person a small gift and then we have a party on Friday where people try to guess who gave the gift and there is one more present that day too.

I have lots of ideas of what to make and give for my person...I have been looking online too and thought I would share some links to some crafty Christmas ornament ideas I have found. None appear to be super hard, but just may take some time and attention to details.

Here's a place with paper, felt and knitted ornaments.

Some knitter glass ball ornaments. And some here too.

I love the paper trees one here. (Scroll to bottom)

And another knitting one.

Fun stuff! I am going to make the last one for sure, and maybe some of the paper ornaments from the first one...And I may make some of those paper trees from the third one for Christmasland.

I love being crafty!!!

Saturday, November 28, 2009

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 11:46:21 GMT

No snow.

Just rain and lots of it.

However, we had never cut down a tree in the rain before, so it was a new experience! Nature Boy is very excited about having the tree and wanted to decorate it with simple glass-ball type ornaments. We went out to Joann's last night as I had seen some there that I really liked and we picked up a few boxes of glass ornaments. Then we rounded the corner to the next aisle and NB saw a box of 70 plastic-but-look-like-glass ornaments that was on sale for $11.99. So, he chose the silver themed box and now we will be decorating the tree with those. I am game, it will be different from how we usually do our tree and I think it will be fun!

We are already up this morning and have our decorations out. NB is working on setting up Christmasland. (All our porcelain houses we have gotten from Joann's through the years.) We have 5 houses now. This year NB picked the giant cathedral to add to the collection. There wasn't one that really caught my eye this year...But that means I will get to pick next year.

K....I am going to help decorate the tree. And don't worry, I have cutting-down-the-tree pictures, I will get them off the camera to share tomorrow!

Friday, November 27, 2009

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 09:50:59 GMT

Squee!

The National Weather Service in Burlington has issued a Winter
Weather Advisory for snow across higher elevations of eastern
Vermont and the western slopes of the Green Mountains... which is
in effect from 1 PM this afternoon to 11 am EST Saturday.

Total snow accumulations of 3 to 7 inches are possible across the
higher terrain... generally above 1000 feet. The mountain summits
could receive higher amounts.

It will be the first real snowfall of the season!!! Today is our day to get our tree too....Mind you, I have to work first, but it will be lovely to have our tree and gets some festive weather too!

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 19:37:03 GMT

Let's see...How about a list of my seating area jobs to do and things I want....Mind you this will not all get done in one fell swoop, but will take some time and planning.

Get rug for floor
Get futon couch
Purge shelves
Reorganize what is left after shelf purge
Get a tv
Get plants for under window
Get baskets for storing bird supplies
Get a cd player or other musical playing device (or repurpose something we have already)
Secure bird cage to wall
Make cage cover for night
Make curtains
Get a lamp
Arrange seating area with futon, knitting bassinet, etc

That'll probably do for a list.

So...In other news. I really like my job. It is going well and keeps me busy. Next week will be my 90 day review week. I have learned a lot in the past three months! I will have a review with my manager where we will discuss how I am doing so far and make goals for the next year. So far, I know I want to learn more about self-feeding, edema management, strokes.....And likely lots more.

And...I just love my little finches! They make me happy!!!!

Monday, November 23, 2009

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:00:35 GMT

By popular request.....Or at least responding to the three people have said they want more blogging ......I am here!

It's been a heckuva couple of months around here. I guess when you see a huge lapse in my blogging you can assume that there's a heckuva something going on!

I think dh's flu two weeks ago was the last straw for me. I got sick too with a sinus cold and felt pretty crummy for a few days. You know those sinus colds when you can still breathe through your nose, but you have so much sinus pressure your teeth hurt? It was pretty bad. Plus I had this strange cough, mostly at night, but quite pesky. Mind you, I wasn't anywhere as sick as dh......and I am thankful for that, but it was a hard week here that week.

However, I learned something. I can not balance all the plates I have spinning right now. Or at least, I need to take some time to myself to recharge if I am to keep the plates spinning. This has led to two changes. The first is that starting last week, I am hyper-diligent about leaving work on time. I am making sure to be home after school for Nature Boy and because I need the time too.

And the second change is my Big Project.

K....So we have this huge bedroom. It is double the size we need for a bedroom, but it is just the way it was carved out of this old farmhouse that makes it so big. In the past we have used half for our bedroom and half for my sewing area....Or more realistically, a catchall area for laundry, books, yarn, etc. That half of the bedroom never seems to stay tidy.

I have had this idea for years to turn half the room into an adult sitting room...i.e. a parental retreat. And since we have one main living space downstairs (just the living room, no family room or den) sometimes I just want an escape from the Wii, the TV, etc. So......I decided to do it.

Now, my sequence of doing things may seem a bit odd....But I knew that I wanted a seating area, plants, a focal point, and a TV (well...yeah....then I can watch my shows ). Last week, I started by doing some tidying and picking up and discussing with dh the lay out I had in mind. Then one night, we flipped our Bedroom side of the room and the Seating Area side. This makes more sense terms of the door, the lighting and even road noise.

Then, I got my focal point. I wanted to be able to sit and relax and knit and listen to music and......watch birds. I have always enjoyed birds and have in the past had parakeets. At work, there are some Zebra Finches and I just love them. They are sweet and cute and busy! So, I plotted and schemed and ran the idea by dh and now.....

We have birds.

Loverly little finches.

I wanted to get a very big cage, and we did get a large one to start, but then dh and Nature Boy really thought we should get a bigger cage....and I certainly didn't mind. We ended up getting a second of the same cage and then doing a bit of disassembly and reassembly magic, we now have very large, very nice cage!

And it cost almost half the price as if we had gotten a cage that was just plain this big to start. Clever and thrifty. I love it!

And the birds love it too.

Now, I am still working on other aspects of the Seating Area. For one, you can see the shelves under the cage and beside the cage are pretty cluttered. I haven't finished moving stuff around and doing a shelf purge (well, I haven't even started the shelf purge) but it's okay, I am getting there bit by bit.

I also don't have proper seating set up yet. We were keeping an eye out on Craig's list for a love seat, but then my mom offered us a futon couch she has and doesn't have room for anymore. So, we are happily going to take that for the seating. For now, I have a rocking chair up there and can sit and enjoy the birds. I am happy though, I am already enjoying my adult oasis.

I have lots more to do to make is just how I want it, but I am enjoying the process as much as I will enjoy the oasis. And I figure this counts a lot as a way to be taking care of myself and it is nice to be doing it!

Thursday, November 05, 2009

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:11:40 GMT

Saw this on Spinnermom's blog....As a born and bred northerner....Let's see how I fair.....

YOU JUST MIGHT BE A BLUENECK IF...

- Instead of referring to two or more people as "Y'all," you call them "you guys," even if both of them are women.
True....I even remember when Nature Boy was a tot and looking for us he would say, "Guys? Where are you, guys?"

- You think barbecue is a verb meaning "to cook outside." Well, yeah.

- You think Heinz Ketchup is REALLY SPICY. Now...that's not true. I have a relatively high spicy tolerance (for a Northerner) and can take some more spice than Heinz Ketchup.

- You would never stop to buy something somebody was cooking on the side of the road. Nope, would not.

- You don't have any problems pronouncing "Worcestershire sauce" correctly. Correct.

- You don't know what a moon pie is. Is it the same as a whoopie pie? I love real and properly made whoopie pies. <drool>

- You've never had an RC Cola. Correct.

- You've never, ever eaten okra -- fried, boiled, or pickled. Ha! I have had okra.

- You eat fried chicken with a knife and fork. Yeah, I think I have.

- You've never seen a live chicken, and the only cows you've seen are on road trips. <eye roll> Have chickens, grew up on a farm, 'nuf said.

- You have no idea what a polecat is. A skunk, right?

- You don't see anything wrong with putting a sweater on your dog. Puhleeze. I do see much wrong with sweaters on dogs and doggie wardrobes.

- You don't have bangs. Yes, I do.

- You would rather have your son become a lawyer than grow up to get his own TV fishing show. I just want my kid to be happy and financially secure.

- You've never eaten and don't know how to make a tomato sandwich. Like a sandwich with tomato, mayo on bread? Love them...<drooling again>

- You think more money should go to important scientific research at your university than to pay the salary of the head football coach. Correct.

- You don't even have one can of WD-40 somewhere around the house. Seriously? Of course we do.

- You don't have any hats in your closet that advertise feed stores. True.

- You don't know anyone with at least two first names (i.e., Joe Bob, Faye Ellen, Billy Ray, Mary Jo, Bubba Dean, Joe Dan, Mary Alice) Hmmm....Bobbi Jo, Mary Jo, Cathy Sue.....Yup, I do know some.

- You don't know any women with male names (i.e., Tommie, Bobbie, Johnnie, Jimmie) I know a Bobbie. But that pretty much does it.

- None of your fur coats are homemade. Correct.

So...you pick. Am I a blueneck or not?

Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:08:02 GMT

Frosty mornings these days....

This is one smart kitty. The hot air from the furnace comes out underneath that shelf. The cat was cold and crammed as much of herself as she could fit under the shelf too!

Sunday, November 01, 2009

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 10:51:40 GMT

Are you aware that today is a special day?

Yup, it's Hello Kitty's birthday!!!! She is 35.

So, today would be the day to invest in some of that Hello Kitty memorabilia you might want to buy.....

The Hello Kitty Sewing Machine. (Seriously, I want this!)

The ever popular Hello Kitty toaster.

The Hello Kitty AK 47.

Or perhaps something more benign, like Hello Kitty barrettes.

And here's a bit more about Hello Kitty from the Sanrio website:

Celebrate Hello Kitty’s 35th Anniversary and Fill Your Heart and the World with Color!

Who knew what began in Japan 1974 on a coin purse would blossom into a global Hello Kitty phenomenon?

Believe it or not, 2009 marks Hello Kitty’s 35th Anniversary. To celebrate, Sanrio will offer a full slate of activities, festivities, exclusive products, and tons of fun surprises just for you!

The worldwide theme for this 35th Anniversary is Hello Kitty Colors, which conveys the very essence of Hello Kitty that has made her so special to fans and friends for so long: red for friendship, pink for cute, yellow for heartful, green for wish and lavender for sweet. The message of each color is reflected in Hello Kitty’s trademark bow, which has become super-sized for the occasion.

Happy Birthday, Hello Kitty!