It's Friday!

Well I made it through my 'birthday lunch' - (thanks for all the early birthday cheers)! My lovely boss made sure that the lovely folks at Montana's knew it was my birthday - so I was totally humiliated as I wore the big hat with horns and had happy birthday sang to me...all this and I got a lousy baby dish of vanilla ice cream(1 tbsp) and reddi whip and some cookie crumbs. Oh well, it sure made the staff happy to see me with that goofy hat on!

In brighter news I ordered a bed ensemble from Sears and I finally got it on my bed yesterday. Our bedroom walls are blue and I didn't want all blue so when we hung curtains to close our open closet, I used bright green panels with big silver grommets - I pulled it together with a memory board in a similar green. I have been searching for an comforter that would match and I was browsing a sale flyer and there it was 'the perfect green bed ensemble' - the whole shebang for $99 smackeroos! Of course I had decided to order it.

Had a lovely lunch with my DH - we went to Subway as I've got some coupons. I was thrilled to find out that you can get their 6" subs as a salad....so healthy! I even chose one of their non-fat dressings. It was very tasty. We went to the park and enjoyed the beautiful 20C balmy weather. I would have liked to sit there all afternoon and knit as I watched the ducks bobbing around in the lake - but alas I had to come back to work.

I was crazy busy yesterday so I just got around to visiting all my TT comments, I've got to spend some more time visiting some of you new people, there are some great blogs to add to my hobby addiction. Have a great weekend!

Thursday Thirteen #25 - My Birthday!

It's not my birthday - not at all, in fact my birthday will be here again in just 3 months. Why then are we talking about my birthday? Well at my office we have a policy of treating each of the staff to lunch on their birthday. Life happened there have been illnesses and other conflicts that have prevented us from celebrating my December birthday until now. With a birthday near to Christmas things happen. So today I am finally going out for my much belated birthday lunch. To celebrate, here are some interesting trivia bits about my birthdays in the past.

1. I was supposed to be born at the end of November. I guess I wasn't ready, I waited a full 3 weeks later(and no my mom wasn't impressed, every day she went late people would say oh you're still pregnant)! When the time came for me to be born, I came in a flash - the head nurse had to deliver me, the doctor who lived right across the street from the hospital couldn't make it there in time.

2. When I was six my mom baked quarters and dimes into my cake. I was so excited to get one of those shiny pieces of tinfoil - I never did get a piece and boy was I mad! Later mom explained she had done that on purpose as I was already getting gifts - but at six I was horrified by the experience.

3. One of my birthday parties was a tobogganing party - it started blizzarding and only two of my friends could come due to Christmas holidays.

4. My DH surprised me one year with a birthday party. We had asked people over for cake and everyone had other plans. I completly fell for it and I was pouting like a little kid - he sent me to the store for cream for coffee and when I got back the house was filled with our family. I was so surprised!

5. I remember getting a nightgown that had a glow in the dark picture on it. I had to run and try it on and all my friends had to pile into the bathroom to see it. That was the coolest nightgown ever. A few years ago my mom bought me one in the Arctic with a polar bear on front and it glows - I love that!

6. My mom once made the mistake of buying me the most beautiful Christmas themed birthday cake ever. Looking back on it now, I can see how wonderful it was - but as a child I was pretty cheesed off at my birthday having anything to do with Christmas. This included wrapping paper etc. I no longer care about it and I generally use it for my DH's if that is all we have around.

7. Each year we decorate the church for Christmas and it always falls on my birthday - one year after the decorating we had a bit of Christmas cheer and one of the ladies on the committee made me a cake.....I was so embarassed at them fussing about it all - but it was nice.

8. I didn't go out for an evening for my birthday until 2 years ago. Every other year we've either had family over or we've been busy at the church or broke. It was quite a treat to go to dinner and a movie on my birthday.

9. I like simple things for my birthday - things to pamper myself like bubble baths, pj's a good book etc.

10. I never made a huge deal out of my birthday until I met my DH. They always had family over and celebrated with cake. I was so surprised the first time I went there for a birthday. They know how to celebrate!

11. When I was ten that was a big birthday. Everyone kept saying 'now you're in the double digits'. My granny made me a cake and for my birthday I got a record of K-Tel stories. I loved listening to all of them especially Rumplestiltskin(is that how you spell it)?

12. I learned to crochet the year my mom bought me a basket filled with yarn and a crochet hook for my 22nd birthday. We sat there and before long she had me working on a granny square.

13. I had an allergic reaction to the soap they used so with my red patchy skin and my shocking red hair I was brought to my mom with a red bow in my hair and I was in a Christmas stocking. She always loves telling me this story.

Leave a Comment and I'll visit your TT!

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Wordless Wednesday

I was going to show you both my MIL's shawl and my mother's IHS, but I've since frogged her scarf as using the LionBrand Homespun to cable with, wasn't much fun! She's getting a different scarf and I'll show pics after I get more done on it.

For now this is the shawl I'm making for my MIL! Two shots one is a close up so you can see the detail. So far I am very happy with this pattern and the yarn is nice and soft. I chose Bernat Satin Sport as I couldn't get LionBrand Microspun at any of my LYS or box stores.

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Make sure to leave a comment and I'll pop by and visit your WW!

General Ramblings of a Mad Woman

Caution - reading the following post may cause you to shake your head and go WHAT THE!

-Why is it that no one in the house except for me knows how to put the roll of toilet paper on the holder?

-Why do the kids always leave their clothes, towels and other junk piled on the bathroom floor?

-Having a teenage daughter in the house causing enough stress to make me cry every other day - why is that fair? I hope I'm not alone in this.

-I'm willing to do strenuous exercises to lose weight, but I'm still eating blue chips and salsa once a week......why?

-Why did I rake my leaves on Saturday - I now have a whole new pile to rake again!

-Why didn't I just finish reading the latest book I borrowed (6 Rainier Dr.), now the new one is in and for a 2 week loan only. I'm going to have to buy them now - I can't read 2 books in two weeks.

-Why is it no matter what time I wake up in the morning I am always rushed when it comes time to leave the house?

-Why do I allow how others see me to make a difference - it's only their opinion!

-Why does fear have such a stronghold on people?

-How do they make variegated yarn? Seriously, I want to know!

-Why is it that I can hardly get to my regular blogs lately? This is one thing I hate about fall.

-Why haven't I done any Christmas shopping?

-Why do I choose to make more projects than I keep up with - bake more than I need for Christmas, make the complicated dishes for Thanksgiving - do I like to torture myself?

-Why are donuts so appealing to me?

-Can an old cat and a new dog ever learn to like each other?

Gee, what a random list - just a bunch of things in my head on a Tuesday morning in September!

Drooling Across the Border

I am so drooling, sorry if your monitor is wet, can't help it - I know there are items we have here in Canada that aren't available in the U.S. I grin every time I partake of some delicious Hickory Sticks or having a bowl of my President's Choice White Cheddar macaroni...mmmmmmmm goood or some delicious Clodhoppers(trust me they are the best)!

Then today I was reading at a blog titled Half of Me she has been on an amazing weight loss journey today she mentioned one of her favorite things about the fall....it's Jell-O pumpkin pudding. Ok now this is it - you get delicious pumpkin pudding - egads!

Now I'm left wondering what other delicious treats you are holding out on - can we just blur the border for a bit so a meek little TeaMouse can hop over and purchase some tasty treats? Hmmmm, pretty please, with some Canadian Back Bacon on top!

Projects Galore

Well every year I say it to myself (don't take on too many projects) and every year I feel compelled to take them on anyway. Last year I knit my nieces each a poncho and one of my nephews a sweater for Christmas. Of course I started in August just to make sure I'd get everything done. Thankfully I did - even though there were times when I thought I'd be knitting on Christmas Eve....lol!

This year I've decided to knit for some of the adults in our family - my mom is getting the Irish Hiking Scarf in Candy Apple red - she is a Red Hat and one of her favorite colours is red. For my mother-in-law I am knitting a lovely ripple shawl in a nice sport weight yarn. It's absolutely beautiful but it will take me some time to finish as it's on 4mm needles. I'll be posting pics for my Wordless Wednesday and you can see what they're like.

I don't want to leave the men out so I'm going to knit a scarf for my Father-in-law and my Mom's husband - I haven't decided if I should do Irish Hiking Scarf(is it masculine enough) or just a nice simple seed stitch. I am making them to be more of a gentlemen scarf so it will fit nicely under their winter coats to keep their necks warm.

I'm hoping I can get them all done by Christmas - please oh please! This being said I don't think I can start another project yet and I had thought of a Christmas dish cloth give-a-way. I'm thinking of instead going with a dish cloth a month for a year contest - what do you think? This would mean I would mail one lucky person one cloth a month for a year starting in December. I'd love to make more but I'm running out of time to knit.

Even though my new mantra is 'I'd Rather Be Knitting', I still can't find all the time I need to keep up with the ideas that pop into my mind.

Oh, did I mention I am still finishing my son's afghan - which is also for Christmas? It's in crochet in a ripple, but lately when I crochet my wrist hurts - so knitting is getting more of my attention.

You Be the Judge

** Sticky Post ** Scroll down for my current posts **

Shelly at This Eclectic Life had a 'Dear Abby' writing contest - of course I had to enter and I am excited to be one of the people who made her 'Top Ten'! I have to say I got so much enjoyment from reading the other entries and Shelly's responses. Shelly and her spousal unit(her words) are very witty.

Do you need a good laugh - pop on over and read her 'Top Ten' and while you're there you can vote for whichever one you think should win - now I am not about to bribe ask you to vote for me - pick which one you think is the funniest, if you think that's me then give me a vote but there are so many good entries to choose from it will be hard to decide. You can vote every day, once a day from now until next Wednesday. If you do pop over let Shelly know that I sent you over.

Thursday Thirteen #24 - All About Fall

I have to say that Fall is my absolute favorite season - just look at those beautiful colours! Here are some reasons why I love Fall!

1. I really do love the colours of fall - the bright yellows, oranges and reds. I'd love to see Vermont in the Fall. I'm really glad that I get to experience all the seasons and enjoy all the beauty they each have to offer.

2. Although Fall is when my life gets more hectic it's also a time where life slows down - I know it doesn't make sense, but it's true. When the weather gets colder we spend more time indoors doing calm quiet activities. I love those evenings when we're curled up on the couch watching dvd's and sipping hot tea.

3. Crisp Autumn air and crisp fall leaves - pure and simple joy! I love to walk in the leaves and hear them crunching under my feet. Our dog Oliver loves to race through the leaves and he looks so cute with leaves flying all around him.

4. Food - this is my weakness. I love fall type foods. In the fall is when I begin to think of baking those wonderful apple crisps and making delicious hardy soups and casseroles and scrumptious breads.

5. Knitting is much more enjoyable in the fall. It's nice to curl up with my hot tea and a knitting project and just relax.

6. Pumpkins and gourds of all types to decorate the house.
7. Burning lovely Cinnamon and pumpkin scented candles are a little treat that I really enjoy in the fall.

8. As Fall gets chillier it's a nice time to enjoy those relaxing bubble baths while reading a good book.

9. All the new T.V. shows start up again so there is more to enjoy while knitting or exercising.

10. Christmas shopping - yes I do start early - it's nice to do it now when the rush isn't on.

11. Halloween is a nice fun day - I like to see the wee lil' ones come to the door in their cute costumes. Of course it's always fun to rent a spooky movie or two to set the mood.

12. I can usually find my favorite tea when fall begins - It is Celestial Seasonings 'Nutcracker Sweet' tea, it's like having a cookie but without all the calories - a real treat in a mug! If I am being overly indulgent I'll replace my low fat milk with evaporated milk. This is my favorite fall treat!!

13. Thanksgiving is a wonderful part of fall that I treasure. I love the big dinner with family and all the cooking and fussing that goes with it. I've got my turkey on order and I'm planning the menu - it's only three weeks away here in Canada.

Leave me a comment and I'll come by and comment on your TT!

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Wordless Wednesday - the wonder of self striping yarn

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Leave a Comment and I will pop by to visit your WW or daily post!

Time Management - Don't put Everything off until later...

There are some days when it feels like I am treading water, just barely getting by and then I realize that I've actually been managing quite well. When I look back at my week and see all the tasks completed that I set out for myself, I am a little amazed and I have a small feeling of victory.

The question then is how do I manage it all, a full-time job, volunteer work, housework, exercise, meals and my wonderful hobbies of knitting and crochet. It all seems amazing considering how many knitting projects I decide to tackle at one time.

I used to feel bad that my house didn't look like my sister-in-law's which is immaculate even though she has 3 children under 7! I had some ladies over for a tupperware party and afterward some comments came back to me about my house. Instead of hearing about the layer of dust or the cluttered kitchen I was told that the person felt ‘at home' in my house. For me that was a wonderful compliment. I try to keep certain things like the bathroom and kitchen clean, but the clutter is what makes our house a home. You may see a bit of dust occasionally and you'll probably see stuff piled on top of the fridge no matter how many times I say I'll never put stuff there again - but come in sit down and visit - you'll never be terrified that someone will spill a drink or put fingerprints on a mirror. So rather than spend all week cleaning frantically I save the chores for Saturday. I take time to wake up with a nice cup of tea and after that everyone pitches in to get the laundry, vacumming and general tidying done that week. It's nice to see the house clutter free for a day or so - and then we're back to our normal cluttered but cozy home. We then have Saturday evening and Sunday to relax.

There are days where meals do consist of some drive-thru fare. We were doing this a lot one year and the cost of it was really adding up. Even when we just stopped at the store to get ‘something quick' the costs were rising on our grocery budget by leaps and bounds. We then decided to get ourselves a slow cooker. This started to help us a bit, but we still had times when we just got a quick meal because we didn't plan ahead enough. The next step took a bit more time but really helped with our grocery budget - we started to meal plan. I don't meal plan each day, but we wrote down any slow cooker and quick meal ideas that we had and made up an ingredient list so that we would have the right food on hand to make meals without having to get take-out or hit a drive thru. This is a huge life saver during the Fall/Winter when my DH has a lot of early evening meetings and not much time to have supper prepared before he is off again for work.

This all helps to save time for all the fun extracurricular activities including my many knitting projects and even time to exercise - at least they can both be enjoyed while watching t.v. or a good DVD or on the commute to work(thank goodness DH can do the driving)!

At work I am very efficient and I get the week's jobs done early - I don't work well on tight deadlines - doing things as soon as they need to be done will generally leave me with more leisure time at work to both blog and read blogs. The weeks where I try to do blogging and other non-work things first generally leave me feeling of being rushed. I generally find with all my chores and duties that if I do them right away I have plenty of time for the good things in life!

Things that make my life easier: Slow Cooker, Dishwasher(huge life/time saver), Front loading washer(drastically reduces the time it takes to do laundry) and a wonderful DH who pitches in with all of the household chores including the cooking!

Submitted to the Group Writing Project on Time Management at Inspiration Bit

Warm the Globe

Vic Grace has started something wonderful, and Jolene from the Middling Monettes has passed the warmth along to me ;-)

"As we are all aware, blogging does give us the opportunity to reach out and yes, "touch someone" by our words, pictures, links in our blogs and by our comments to fellow bloggers as well.

Think about this - in a world today that is too often filled with news of wars all over the world, fears about terrorism, following newspaper and tv news reports about crime, gangs, and you name it of all the bad things we hear about everyday, wouldn't it be a wonderful thing if we, each of us blogging in our own little space, could actually spread the word through friendship and help, through that little bit of effort, to bring people together, united in a common goal of international friendship?"

All you have to do is copy this post with the list of links below. Combine the previous links with my tags. Add some tags of your own. As others do the same we get the word out about a lot of great blogs. Eventually we may circumnavigate the globe.

Previous Links
Debo Blue at "A Blue State of Mind"
Sasha at "A Day in the Life of Sasha Stinerova"
Maddie at "Whitterer on Autism"
Singing Owl at "Pastorette Ponderings"
Barb at "Skittles Place"
Mau at "It's About Time"
Jen at "Creatif"
The Meloncutter at "Meloncutter's Musings"
Sognatrice in Calabria, Italy at "Bleeding Espresso"
Keith at "10 Years Running Blind"
Dave at "Rather Than Working"
Linda at "Are We There Yet?"
Dorothy at "Overthehill Boomer Chick"
Patois at "Whee! All The Way Home"
Stine at "Mother's Home"
Smalltown RN at "A Place I Call Home"
Shelby at "Time With Shelby"
Any Apples
BoggyWoggy's Cache
Erika Jean
My Dogs Keep Me Sane
Rambling Shan
Random Autumness
The Turtle Parade
JameeForever
The Middling Monettes
Twist & Skewer
A Day In The Life of Elle
Tea Time Ramblings
Bubba's Sis

My tags(and anyone else who wants to participate - and if you aren't interested....np)

Single Parents Unite
J's Thoughts & Musings
A Spot of T

Vacation Money and more

I've recently decided to try PayPerPost after reading a comment on J's Thoughts and Musings where she asked her readers what they thought of it. Karen of Mommy of Three told of how in just six weeks she had made over $500! I thought about this for a few days and I made a decision to check it out and see what they have to offer me. I realized that this wasn't an opportunity that I wanted to pass on. Christmas is just around the corner in just 98 days! This will not only give me money to stash away for that perfect vacation, but some Christmas fun money too!

What I like about it best - besides being paid to blog...lol, is the fact that you get to look through the job opportunities and see what you'd like to write about. There are opportunities for every blogger, no matter what your blog is about. That puts the control back into my blog content as I will be choosing websites and products that I think will interest my readers. My goal will be to choose products and sites that both are informative and save money. I'm looking forward to joining this great community of bloggers!


blog marketing

Irish Hiking Scarf

Well I think it' s time to make another Irish Hiking Scarf - I made mine in ivory to go with my chocolate brown coat, but I'm so excited to do another one in a bright colour, probably for my DD. I've been visiting the members of the Fall into Autumn Dishcloth Swap and some of them are doing the IHS and the pictures have me excited to do it again. I love this pattern and working the cables - it seems to knit up in no time, it's really relaxing to do.

Seeing as DH is away and on a 'silent retreat' shhhhhhhhh, I guess he can't say don't buy more yarn right?

I am so jealous of all the great yarn I see people on the swap using - I only have one LYS shop here and Michael's or Wal-Mart so the choices are slim and the hours for the LYS are such that it's hard to get there. I'm going to pop in tomorrow since they finally have Saturday hours. My swap pal likes a yarn that I haven't been able to find so far - wish me good luck.

Anyone have a preference to Peaches and Cream rather than Sugar and Cream? I am not sure if I can get Peaches and Cream here yet or not, but someone recommended it and I just saw the shipping and went YOINKS!


Well I finally finished my scarf - it was a lot of fun to work on and I think I'll be making some as gifts next year. I love working on a patterned scarf like that as it seems to go by fast when you are counting rows etc.

I would definitely recommend this KAL to anyone who loves to do cables or for anyone who wants to learn them for the first time.

Frogging and More

I've been trying to keep busy - I do have the kids at home, but teenagers have their own things to do to occupy their time. My son called yesterday morning and asked me to come home at lunch for no other reason than he missed me *awwww* that was nice! He works at 5 most nights so I generally don't see him until he gets home from work.

I have done some knitting for my secret pal for the Autumn Dishcloth Swap - I was working on it the other night and then DH called and I got so distracted I forgot what row I was on. I took a guess, and yes it was wrong - so I frogged it out. Thankfully I had only done about 3 rows of the pattern. It's a bit of a lace pattern so it requires me to pay attention. Last night I was working on it after frogging it and I finally had to put it down as I was getting sleepy and starting to almost make mistakes....yikes!

I recently did this pattern that is on the Bernat and Lily labels - the Tulip and Bud cloth - talk about changes - this one had me doing a double take at the pattern - maybe I need to have them typed out in a super giant font. I got through it with no problems, thankfully - but it requires so much attention that this is only the third time I've made it, too bad it turns out so nice.Tonight we have my niece coming for a sleep over, that will keep the DD out of trouble and occupied and having extra people will help the time to pass. It's odd not having DH around - we do so much together that I feel weird when he's not home like this. Yesterday I took Oliver for a nice long walk and I don't know if it was the grey dreary day or what but I just didn't enjoy it at all.

Well I'll do more knitting tonight and maybe I'll start posting pics of my dishcloths and projects more!

Thursday Thirteen - Home Alone

So my DH has to be away for a few nights. I have to say I've never been home alone in all our married life...all 18 years of it. It is a new experience for me. I've had to go away and he's been at home, but I've never been the one at home. Here are 13 things that I will do to pass the time.

1. Movies, movies and more movies. The few times I've had to leave town my DH went to the video store and rented all the gorey movies he knows I have no desire to watch. So it's going to be girl movie time. Any suggestions of great chick flicks?

2. I'll con my mom into playing Hardwood Hearts with me online. We'll have a ton of fun and I'll laugh as she takes cards very seriously and gets aggravated easily, good times!

3. I am not sure yet if Oliver will be able to sleep in the 'big people' bed, but even if he doesn't we'll have lot's of snuggle and walk time.

4. I'll be doing my Jillian Michael's exercises alone - hopefully I don't get stuck in some weird position for if I do surely the kids will just laugh and leave me there.

5. Knit! I am still working on my Einstein sweater and a dishcloth for my Fall Into Autumn DishCloth Swap. I'm having a ton of fun working on that cloth. I still want to make one more to send to Mommy of Three, who won my last give-a-way contest.

6. Shop, yes indeed! I need to do some shopping for my secret Pal. I have some good ideas in mind and I want to take the time to put together a nice surprise for her.

7. Sleep, I'm going to seriously HOG the bed. I may even sleep diagonally......lol! Pass the blankets and extra pillows.

8. Watch the finale of BigBrother 8. I have huge issues on this years show and some horrifying things I've heard about one of the contestants and what he has put the others through. I'm sure glad I'm not on a reality t.v. show. I had always wanted to be on Big Brother, but alas it's an American Game...my second choice but should be my first is the Amazing Race - now that is a show.

9. Bubble baths and girl time - manicure's and pedicure's the works, time to pamper myself.

10. I'm really going to try not to do this one, but drown my sorrows in ice cream! When I get stressed out I eat and that isn't a good thing as I have a weight loss goal to get to. If I do indulge it would have to be Nestle Real Dairy French Vanilla.....drool!

11. Crochet on my DS's afghan. I am making him a rippled afghan and I'm about 1/4 of the way there so I can take some of this alone time to get some major progress made on it.

12. Call my sister and set up a coffee date - getting out of the house will make me forget that DH is away. What a suck - yeah I know, but what can I say we're very, very close.

13. Clean the house - ok, that wasn't even funny who took over my keyboard. Ohhhhhh the mouse is looking a little shifty. Well I may do some but, come on let's be reasonable this is alone time we're talking about here.

Leave me a comment and I'll come by and comment on your TT!

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Fall Into Autumn DishCloth Swap Topic Week #1

The topic for this week is:

Topic
Now that in some geographic locations the weather is starting to turn cooler, do you change the type of yarn(s) you knit/crochet with? If so, what do you now knit/crochet with instead and why? If not, why do you not switch and what do you knit/crochet with?

I don't think I change my yarn too much. I still work with crochet cotton for my dishcloths as I like to have small travelling projects. The biggest change is probably the projects that I take on. I am more likely to work on an afghan in the fall than any other time of the year. I'm currently working on a Christmas gift that is an afghan and I finished one at the end of August.

So it's not so much what yarn I work with, but that I do much more knitting and crocheting during the fall/winter months. I spend more time indoors as it gets colder and I love to knit/crochet while I watch t.v.

I have contacted my secret pal and have been contacted by mine as well. This is my first ever swap and I'm so excited!!!!

Wordless Wednesday - DS's afghan my WIP

More Wordless Here

Leave a comment and I'll pop by and visit you and comment on your WW or daily post!

Dear Abby

Shelly at This Eclectic Life is doing a Dear Abby contest...do you have a good Dear Abby post in you? Go here to check it out, make sure to tell Shelly I sent you over.

Here is my brilliant entry - how can you tell it's late on a Monday night...lol! If you can do better make sure to enter and leave me a comment so I can come and have a good laugh!

Dear Abby,

I have two wretched step sisters and an evil step-mom. I
have to help them with their beauty regime, including much waxing!
I won a ticket to the MTV video awards! I'd love to go, but I have nothing to wear and Prince will be there.

What should I do?

All Plucked Out

Five Best Night's Meme

JennyMcB from J's Thoughts and Musings tagged me with a new meme and I needed a bit of fodder to help jump start my week so here goes:

The rules:
List the 5 best nights
that you can recall and then
tag four other people
and see if the meme can continue.

1. The night I met my DH. It was literally love at first sight - well mostly, as we fell in love very quickly. If you want to read more about our meeting check out this post.

2. It was 18 years ago on a warm May evening at 7:00 p.m. when I said I do to the wonderful man I fell in love with so quickly. It had rained every day for a week prior to our wedding day. That day we woke up to a bright sunny day and our wedding was perfect. The evening couldn't have been more wonderful!

3. When I was pregnant with my DS he tried to come early around 7mos or so. I spent many nights in the hospital on an IV to stop premature labor. Then one morning I got up with DH and had my morning shower. I was drying off when I noticed my leg was still wet - my water broke. I was 8 mos pregnant at that time. We scooted off to the hospital - it was a long weekend and then nothing happened. I was just lying around doing nothing. Finally at around 10pm they settled me in a room in mom ward and sent my DH home for some much needed sleep. I was to be induced the next morning. I was terrified of being induced and I no sooner got settled in my bed that I began to have contractions. They called my DH who had just fallen asleep and told him to come down, but no rush. That was at about 11pm and my DS was born just after 2am all 5lbs 8oz of him. I'm happy to say today he's huge and his dad jokingly calls him the Mutant Giant. Today my Mutant Giant is 18 and he's off for his drivers road test...*wishing him good luck*!

4. When my DD signed up for school band in Grade 6, I thought like most parents - how long will this last. I'll never forget sitting for her first performance a couple months after school started and hearing/watching her play her flute! I have always been amazed at how quickly she picked it up. Unfortunately she didn't want to be forever tagged as a band geek and she stopped playing this year when she started high school.

5. Our DS graduated from high school this past June and it was such an emotional time. Watching him graduate I was flooded with all the memories - the day he was born, family time when he was small, kindergarten and all the special times along the way. I couldn't have been any more proud! I was so glad that I wasn't the only mom who was moved to tears. Now he may be going into the Navy - that will be huge for me if he does, but I think it will be amazing for him and he'll turn out to be quite the young man. I'm always proud of him he's never been a follower and because of this he has been content to spend a Friday night alone with his video games because he didn't want to get drunk like some of his friends.....what a sweetie!

P.S.
My DD was born in the afternoon, so it didn't qualify for this meme, but the day was my 3rd special one of all time.

Now I get to tag 4 more people, this is tricky as there are some who I know don't do meme's. If I tag you and you don't want to participate just let me know. If you do the meme just leave a comment and I'll pop by and visit!

Colours of Dawn
A Spot of T
Middling Monnettes
Mommy of Three

Knitted Give-A-Way Winner...

...before I announce the winner I want to take time to thank you all for entering this contest. I had a grand total of 55 entries!!! I met some great people, found more blogs to read and found a Dishcloth Exchange to join - it has been a blast. It has been so much fun that I can gurantee that I will be doing another one soon. Check back often for updates about new give-a-ways!

Well this afternoon I numbered all of the entries and while on MSN chat with my sis I had asked her to pick a number from 1 - 55, I thought this was the easiest way to do a random drawing as she doesn't know the participants and she thought it was fun to help me out.

A big congratulations to Karen of Mommy of Three of being the lucky winner of this give-a-way!!! I've emailed Karen with the good news, perhaps Karen will post a pic of her prize when she receives it ;)! If you get a chance stop by and congratulate Karen on her win!

Remember there will be more contest fun in the near future - I may be doing a Christmas themed dishcloth contest next. What are your thoughts? Does a 1/2 dozen of Christmas colored dishcloths sound good? Check back for details coming soon!

Fall Into Autumn Dishcloth Exchange Questionnaire

Fall Into Autumn Dishcloth Swap

When registering, please post your questionnaire and answers on your blog. Once registration closes on September 8th, if your questionnaire is not posted, we'll assume you don't wish to participate - so be sure to get 'em up there! You're welcome to post it now, as well, just be sure to post a link on your sidebar or in a post once matches go out so your pal can find it!

1. Do you knit or crochet? How long have you been doing it? I knit and crochet. My mom taught me to crochet about 13 years ago. I took to that quite well and about 5 years later I managed to teach myself to knit with a bit of help from books and my Granny.

2. Have you made dischloths before? Do you use them yourself, give them as gifts, or both? I make dishcloths all the time, it's all I use at home and I love to give them as gifts as they are always very well received. My sister and her husband have a standing order for them every Christmas.

3. What's your favorite cotton to make cloths from? What cotton would you like to try that you haven't before ? I've only used Bernat and Lily Sugar and Cream so any others would be great to try. My yarn selection in my city is not that great.

4. If you knit, do you prefer circular or straight needles? For all, do you prefer wooden, metal, or plastic needles? I haven't done a lot with circular needles, for some reason I am nervous to use them so I prefer straight. I love to use wooden or metal needles.

5. What are your favorite colors? Any colors you don't like much? I love all colours. My kitchen is in blues and yellows, but I make my dishcloths in all colours from the brightest brights to the naturals.

6. What do you like best about Autumn? The colours. I love to see the leaves turn colour and the feel of the cool autumn air.

7. Pies: Pumpkin? Apple? Pecan? All of em? or No Thanks! Pumpkin pie is my all time favorite pie but I would like any of those pies....pecan would be my last choice as it's very sweet.

8. When you were a kid, were you the one who couldn't wait to get started with school , or the one who overslept on the 1st day? I couldn't wait to get started. I loved the new school supplies and the brand new outfit. It was all about the school supplies for me, I love stationery products.

9. Do you celebrate Halloween? (The real key here guys is especially knowing if you have an aversion to the holiday or little goodies/decorations associated with it, given the timeframe of the swap) Yes I celebrate halloween, give out candy decorate the yard and the whole bit.

10. If you had to choose just 3 edible 'goodies' to eat for a full year, what 3 would you choose? Werthers Hard Candies, Starburst and Salt n' vinegar chips.

11. Do you have any pets? Kids? Husbands who seem like kids? ;) I have a cat and a dog, 2 kids 18 and 14 and a husband who mostly seems like an adult...lol!

12. If you were to describe a particular yarn that shares traits of your personality, what would it be and why? Probably Bernat or Lily Sugar n' cream cotton. I'm easy going and relaxed. *what a tough question to answer* Phew!

13. Do you use your cloths mostly for dishcloths, or as facecloths? Dishcloths.

14. Favorite Fall Holiday: Halloween or Thanksgiving and why? (Feel free to share another fall memory if you do not celebrate either of these holidays) Thanksgiving. It's a wonderful time of the year - the colours are vibrant and I love the preparing of the Thanksgiving meal and decorating the house with gourds and mini pumpkins.

15. Do you have any allergies or aversions your pal should know about? I am allergic to wool - everything else is a go. I have no food allergies that I know of.

Knitted Give-A-Way Contest II

CONTEST is now CLOSED - the winner was Karen from Mommy of Three!
Didn't win this time? Check back soon as I will be beginning a new contest soon with a whole month to enter. The prize will be Christmas coloured dishcloths 1/2 dozen of them!!!! The next contest will have referral bonus entries so you'll want to spread the word!

It's Baaaack! Yes, that's right I am doing the knitted dishcloth give-a-way once again. Our last winner was Shelly from This Eclectic Life. This give-a-way will consist of 5 knitted dishcloths in various colours and patterns.

The contest will be open until September 7, 2007 at 12:00 PM Central Standar Time. A random draw will be made from all entries.

To Enter: Leave a comment below, then post about the contest on your blog. I will pop by your blog to check out your post and enter you automatically! How easy is that?

Update: I have received a few comments from people who don't have a blog, but they still want to enter. As they are readers of the blog - I thought I would allow them to enter. If you don't have a blog but want to enter - email me at mrs_tea_mouse at hotmail dot com and I will add you to the drawing.

Thursday Thirteen - What I want

Here are a few of the items on my wish list - I figure it the kids can dream why not me. What about you, what are you saving up for are wanting for Christmas?

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Are you in need of some good TT's to read check this out:

A Spot of T - This post had me laughing out loud!

Wordless Wednesday - Big Appetite

More Wordless

Leave a comment and I'll stop by and comment on your WW!

Fall Time Dance Begins - Awards

It's that time once again to do the Fall Time Dance. The hurried mornings where toast is popping and I find myself eating on the run. I have to admit at home my time management skills are seriously lacking. I don't know if it's because at work I am so organized that when I get home I just jump into relaxation mode or what.

DH and I sat down with our slow cooker cookbook and started thinking of meals that we can make. During the school year he is at meetings a few nights a week and with such a short turn- around time we need quick stuff so that we're not tempted to stop by a drive-thru on the way home.

It was really interesting to look at new recipes and plan different menu ideas. A slow cooker can be a life saver this time of the year. So far my favorite slowcooker meal is Stroganoff. What kinds of recipes do you make when time is of the essence? Do you prepare ahead and freeze meals later for warming.

I'm always looking for different ways to have quick dinner time meals that don't take a lot of fuss.

We'll enjoy our last week of non-rushed meals and we'll kick it off with the Taco Skillet recipe. This is a delicious quick alternative to making tacos.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * AWARDS AHEAD * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * **

I am a Blogging Star - yes it's true! Or at least that's what Jolene from the Middling Monettes thinks. Thanks so much for these awards.


So I am honored to pass these on to some of my favorite bloggers - some of you I have been reading for some time now and others I have just met but I've found your blog through my contest and I like what I see! So in no particular order here they are:

Single Parent's Unite - I love this blog! She never fails to entertain or provide a good recipe and at the same time she has a lot of money saving tips and other good advice that anyone can appreciate - plus she makes me smile and for that she is a Blogging Star!

Penny Purls and Kitty Knits - I just read this post as I went to see her blog after she left a comment entering my knitted-give-away. What can I say I am hooked! I want to check this blog out often.

J's Thoughts and Musings - I don't even remember how long I've been reading Jenny's blog, but I feel like it's been forever and that is a good thing. She's very knowledgeable when it comes to blogger - I still haven't figured out the label cloud that she proudly displays. She also has older boys and she knows what I'm going through as my oldest just turned 18 this summer.

A Spot of T - I stumbled upon this blog a few months back. I love her sense of humor and the way she looks at life.

Colours of Dawn - I met Dawn through Joy's site and I really enjoy reading her blog. She has great recipes and more. It's nice to have a few Canadian blog friends.

This Eclectic Life - I don't even know how long I've been visiting her, probably since early winter or so. She's a great gal from Texas with a heart of gold. She got me hooked up with her Share-A-Square program for making afghans for kids with cancer. She's also a great story teller and I'm glad to call her friend.

Adventures in Hand-Knitting - She just left a comment on my give-a-way post and I've popped over to her blog. I love her excitement at meeting new people. I think this will be a great blog to pop by during coffee breaks.

Congratulations to all of you!