Scrabble is a post from: me being crafty

Me, JW, Ree, Alice

I got to meet Ree Drummond, AKA the Pioneer Woman! I was reading what others experiences were on facebook, under PW’s fan page, about how they wanted to say something but when they finally got through the line all intelligent thought left their head. Well, the same thing happened to me.

All of us went, the three kids, Chris and myself, and the wait was LONG. We got to Third Place Books for her cookbook signing at about 3:30PM and didn’t get to Ree until 9pm! I knew it was going to be a popular signing, but honestly didn’t think it would be nearly as crowded. I got a ticket for the “F” line – and they started with A. Luckily for us (I mean Chris and the kids) there were five restaurants to pick from and a lot of tables for space. The bookstore was great, the kids area had a large chair that JW and I sat in while the kids read or played.

Jake on the maze mat showing me the route he would take, if he had thought to bring cars inside with him.

We read books, ate dinner and visited with others who were also there for the signing. I was sort of surprised at how many people were talking about their favorite recipes or how the cookbook stayed out all the time. I mean sure I’m a fan, I think Ree’s hilarious, but I don’t keep my cookbooks out on the counter (I don’t have much space) and I generally don’t use a cookbook unless I’m baking, otherwise I’ve memorized my favorites. Okay, I suppose these recipes are basically new to many, many people so of course they would be out. Maybe its that I was caught off guard by people asking what my favorite recipe was, they all knew what theirs was and what their kids liked, what others said was good, etc.

The long wait – totally worth it. I love author signings. Ree was nice, Alice and JW were the only ones with me because Chris went to buy our books so we could leave right after I was done (we did have a two hour drive to come home) and Jake went with him. Alice was eating an ice cream and asked what she should do with the very bottom part because we were next. I said just eat it – I didn’t mean immediately, I just meant don’t throw it away. But what does Alice do, she shoves the entire thing in her mouth. So she’s standing on the other side of Ree not talking because her mouth is full. Ree talked to JW, who just stared at her, admired Alice’s soccer jersey and asked how to say my name.

I wanted to take a few minutes and tell her how much I enjoy her writing, how funny she is, how I know so many people living her life but not writing about it. I grew up on the plains, surrounded by cowboys, heck I thought I’d marry a cowboy someday. I wanted to say more then how to say my name and where it comes from. But I didn’t.

I can’t imagine having conversations like that with everyone either. I was in “F”, 50 people were in each letter, and the last letter I knew someone was in was J. That’s 500 people! The signing was supposed to go til 9 and I’m not sure how long she stayed, but wow, that was a very long night for her. Oh and I saw her daughter walk by – I’m not sure how old she is but she was a good five or six inches taller then me! It’s not hard to be taller then me, but I was still surprised.

I loved seeing her daughter too, tall, hair in  ponytail, and she looked like a country girl. It’s something easy to describe but even easier if you just saw. She looks like some of the girls I grew up with.

The cookbook is great – its full of stories and pictures – and I made the cinnamon rolls. SO good! They were great. I made half a batch and ended up doing it a little wrong – I put them in a cake pan, spread apart like cookies, so they spread like cookies – but they still tasted delicious! I’m going to make another batch this weekend. I highly recommend her cookbook! I also grabbed a copy for my friend Holly, now if I can find my way to the post office sooner then later…

Pioneer Woman Book Signing is a post from: me being crafty

Sweet, sleeping baby

I should check twitter on tweetdeck – instead of my blackberry. I should play on facebook – instead of playing on my blackberry with limited access to everything on fb. I should check my email in a place I’m way more comfortable checking it (ie other then my blackberry). Don’t get me wrong, without my BB, I’d be LOST. I’d have nothing.

I’d have a phone sure, but the amount of time I’d have to stay in contact with the outside world would drop drastically. When JW is nursing, I’m on fb or texting or on twitter. And sure maybe I’m only there for five minutes of however long the nursing lasts, but at least I was there. I have way too many favorites saved on twitter – I’ve taken to saving them so I can look again later. Isn’t twitter supposed to be a now and in the moment thing? Not exactly for me.

Or I should do laundry or dishes or put clothes away from the laundry I already did.

So I rush around the house doing seventeen things at once. Luckily starting the laundry and dishes is super easy, so getting to my email is do-able. Blogging, fallen to the sidelines, revamping a few websites, not even close to having time for that.

I have no idea what I was thinking! My older kids are older – 8 and 6 years right now – and they basically take care of themselves. They are in school now so gone most of the day. They help clean up, have chores, have things to do, etc. But a newborn – they require you 24/7 – unless they are sleeping. And even when they are sleeping you are (more then likely) checking them every 15-20 minutes, unless they are right next to you, so you know they are still breathing. Even with my third baby, I’m still checking him when he naps.

He likes to visit with his friends, the butterfly, ladybug, and snail.

Oh and I haven’t mentioned that he’s a napper. So he usually sleeps for 15-20 minutes, while I run around doing whatever. Lately he’s a napper because he’s teething – not a surprise since Alice and Jake both got teeth early, a surprise because neither of them had teething issues. I just looked and all of a sudden they had teeth!

I should be lucky he likes the bouncy chair, and talking to his friends – as well as the sling I have for him and a bumbo chair a friend recently sent. I do get more time then, but it seems I enjoy just sitting on the couch. Yes, I’m also amazed at how tired I can be at the end of the day. I know, I know, quit being amazed with all of this right! Not like it should be new.

But I have a lot planned, I have been able to do a bit of sewing, and even made a rosary for my step-dad’s mom. Soccer season started and the weather is getting nicer every day. But blog posting, well I started this post yesterday at lunch time…so we can see how quick I’m able to be! Maybe I need to get back to just blurting things out.

Stealing Moments is a post from: me being crafty

I did good in my classes for the quarter – I did end up with a C in Algebra, which I was disappointed in. My teacher said if I got a C on the final, I’d end up with a B for a final grade – so after seeing the C, I figure I bombed the final. I knew I didn’t do that great, but I didn’t think I did that bad! But a C is passing and I got two A’s, so my GPA is good (not like that matters too much since I’m transferring the classes out anyway!). The next quarter starts in a couple of weeks and since the baby is going to be here shortly after that, I am taking two classes but they are art classes and will be easy to keep up with, or catch up with anyway. I’m taking the second beadwork class, with the same teacher from the first one, and then a drum making class. I’m excited about both! I am not sure what projects I want to work on for the beadwork class, but she said she lets us pick whatever we want since we know how to bead from the first class (or in my case, I’ve known since I was like 11 years old).

Chris is still gone – which is annoying but that’s how it goes I suppose – but he did get to come back for a few weeks at Christmas. He’ll actually be back in a few weeks because he gets baby leave. I just found a great ticket for him last night actually! He is going to fly into Vancouver vs Seattle – we are about 45 minutes from the Vancouver Int’l Airport, vs being two and a half hours away from Seattle. So I can just leave a little before his flight will be there to pick him up vs driving hours or having him ride the shuttle (so a small amount of savings) and then when he leaves we don’t have to stay overnight, we can just drive up, which saves on a hotel room. Oh and he doesn’t have to pay for a hotel over in Japan because of when his flight leaves. Even better, the price difference between the ticket to Seattle and to Vancouver is $130. Figuring in all the savings, it’s cheaper for him to fly there. How awesome is that!

Today we are not doing much, we all stayed up very late of course. I’ve been very crafty for the past few months and will start posting some pictures as an update. I hope your new years eve celebration was fun and all that you wanted it to be! Here’s to a fantastic 2010!

End of 2009 is a post from: me being crafty

We Can’t Afford To Wait is a post from: me being crafty

I signed up for a few college classes for the fall. I’ve been taking college classes since I was a junior in high school due to an agreement the local tribal college and the school district had that allowed hs students to take college classes for dual credit. My senior year of high school I only took a few classes at the school and worked every afternoon, taking college classes in the afternoon or evening. I remember I took my (required) health class independent study since my schedule didn’t allow for me to be at school when the class was. Understanding teachers are the best!

I’m taking three classes – Algebra (after all these years, I still need this class!), Beadwork (which will just be too fun) and History of Federal Indian Policy. I am slightly nervous about going back to school, but it’ll be fine I know.

When I was a kid, ie fourth/fifth grade, I wanted to be a lawyer. Goals change and move over the years and now I’m at the point of just wanting to be done. I’ve been in college for too long to not be done.

My new goal is to be done with my undergrad degree by the time Chris is ready to go to shore duty (shore is basically in an office vs sea duty being on a ship/sub/boat) because it’s possible for him to get stationed with an ROTC unit at a university – thus we could be stationed somewhere long enough for me to get my Masters. But, no grad school without undergrad already finished.

This is step one, part of it anyway.

I’m also thinking about how I work online, about what I need to do to get back to being fully active in the websites I have. I also need to be better about staying connected with the couple of military wife forums I am a part of and maintaining friendships I have. It’s easy to settle into being so happy to be around my Mom again, that other things end up slipping.

Changing Goals is a post from: me being crafty

What brand and model do you have? Brother Innovis NX-450

How long have you had it? since December 2008

How much does that machine cost (approximately)? Mine cost approximately $700 from a Singer Sewing Center, I didn’t look anywhere else to compare prices. The price included a year warranty through the store as well as a free cleaning within a year of purchase.

What types of things do you sew (i.e. quilting, clothing, handbags, home dec projects, etc.)? So far I have sewn quilt tops as well at machine quilted a few quilts and I’ve made a couple of purses. I’m working on mainly blankets and quilts for a family event so that’ll be what I make for the next few months.

How much do you sew? How much wear and tear does the machine get? I sew at least every other day. There will be times when I sew every day and then times when I don’t sew at all (during our vacation). I did use it just about every day for three months getting the secret quilt projects ready. Since we were moving I wanted to take advantage of the free cleaning from the store I purchased it from, who said since I only had it for a few months it wasn’t necessary. However, the needle threader quit working so I had them look at that and do the cleaning. It was an easy fix (which I didn’t pay for) and they also did the cleaning. I do notice when something happens with the thread you need to take the bobbin out and put it back in, and since I do so much sewing I do change the needle fairly often. 

Do you like/love/hate your machine? Are you ambivalent? Passionate? Does she have a name? I really like my machine! I’m sure I will love it once I use more of the functions. I have used some of the decorative stitches when I do the edge of the quilt (just decorative on the binding) but I really haven’t done a lot of them. I really want to use more of the stitches just because they are so cute! I also have a couple of styles of the alphabet available and want to use them for something. Maybe the signing of a quilt! Definitely passionate about it! And no, no name yet.

What features does your machine have that work well for you? I do love the needle threader as well as the cutting function – okay the cutting function is awesome! The machine just in general works really well. I also love how quiet it is.

Is there anything that drives you nuts about your machine? It can be annoying when I am starting sewing something and the beginning edge of that fabric is pulled down into the – whatever that area is called that the needle goes into. But it doesn’t happen too often.

Do you have a great story to share about your machine (i.e., Found it under the Christmas tree? Dropped it on the kitchen floor? Sewed your fingernail to your zipper?, Got it from your Great Grandma?, etc.!)? We want to hear it! When I got this machine I walked into the store and looked at three models before picking this one. It was our anniversary and we were heading off to dinner! I needed a new machine desperately because I had so many projects I was working on. I didn’t take too long to buy this and despite not having done any research beforehand, I am very happy with it. It took me maybe 15 minutes to pick it out and purchase, we got to the store right before it was closing that evening.

Would you recommend the machine to others? Why? I would! I think this is a great machine because it is about mid-level as far as pricing. I think you do need to spend a little more so you will get a machine that will last. I had my previous two machines for a very short amount of time before they broke.

What factors do you think are important to consider when looking for a new machine? Functions – if you use a certain thing over and over or are used to having it, your new machine would need this function as well. The price of course. How heavy it is can be a deciding factor for some people.

Do you have a dream machine? At this point, I don’t. I am happy with my machine!

Sew Mama Sew – Sewing Machine Meme is a post from: me being crafty

Living in a hotel room makes me realize how much trash tv there is! Oh how I miss my DVR.

• Rock of Love Bus – Seriously? I didn’t realize this was time number 3 as I don’t watch the show. I like that they are showing the preview of him saying he’s tired of this and that’s why he has a ring. I’ve only seen two (maybe three) episodes of this but I hope he picks Mindy. I felt bad for the girl who ended up being the third girl, I can’t remember her name. She was sort of crying and saying she loved him and he dumped her on tv but she hoped they could be friends and hang out. Weird.

• For the Love of Ray J – Um, okay. Well I’m not sure who I hope he picks. The girls seem nice enough but damn catty to each other. Why would you want a woman who is that rude! That’s crazy to me. You can’t say oh it’s a game when the outcome is supposed to be a relationship. Sure it’s tv and whatever relationship comes out of it probably isn’t going to last, but at least try to be real, just a little. And if they are that catty and rude even off the show, dang. Actually I hope he picks Cocktail, real name Joanna.

• I Love Money 2 – Okay this show is hilarious. I never watched the Flavor of Love shows or whatever else the rest of the cast came from, but putting them all together to fight for money does get good laughs. The lady who only ever wears a bikini and loves the pretty boy – funny! It’s funny watching it because you know what is being said and you know what is going to happen, but in the moment the people don’t. There are a lot of people left so I can’t say who I want to win.

I think the Rock of Love Bus finale is tonight, but the others have a bit to go. I’m sure I’ll catch who won on a rerun!

Trashy TV is a post from: me being crafty

I’m reading Indian Killer right now. I’ve had the book for years and had to have read it before, but in reading it I’m not recognizing, so it’s new to me. Which is just sad, Sherman Alexie is such a fantastic author. I read The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian recently too.

I’m trying to save my books for when we are on the road but it’s not working. I devoured the Sookie Stackhouse series (True Blood is based on these books) in a matter of days, while we were still in base housing even! If you are interested in … *thinking what Chris’ BFF called them*… erotic vampire writing (haha, but it’s true) then they are good books. I like her writing actually – I appreciate an author who doesn’t repeat a bunch from the previous book to remind me the characters or setting or whatever like so many others do *cough* P.C. Cast *cough*. I’ve had my fill of books meant for teenager – though in the PC Cast ones it is a girl/young woman as the main character and I do like her.

Sidenote: I wonder why so many of the vampire stories also have Native American ties? In the Twilight books Natives are prominant, in the PC Cast books the girl’s Grandma is Native (thus she is too), in the Sookie books I don’t remember anything like it but her characters are a whole mess of craziness. Maybe I should write a book about Native Americans and see what I could tie in that you wouldn’t think of. Haha

Chris and I get along so great now I am worried about what being apart for who knows how long will be. Sure it isn’t like when we were on submarines and had zero communication for two months, or one month, or however long it went til we could get a piece of mail (no email or phone calls). Now they’ll have the internet and email and the phone and more then likely even will have video chat capabilities. And I’ll be able to maybe visit during a port call. But I’m still worried.

I wonder how the kids will react this time. He hasn’t been on deployment in so long. Jake was going through a thing when we were still in South Carolina where he would be upset about Chris being on the night shift, and when we got here he was upset when Chris had duty. I’m hoping being with my Mom will help. I’m looking into schools for them now and like what I’m finding, we just need to decide if private school now is the way to go. We are going to end up moving so often…

Jon Stewart can make just about anything better, so enjoy!

Books, Thinking & Jon Stewart is a post from: me being crafty

• Speaking of vacation – I think we are going to have an awesome time! I’d like to stop in Albuqurque and Las Vegas before going to San Diego. I think a day in each area would be so fun. I love the southwest and haven’t been to New Mexico in about seven years. And we have the chance to meet an online friend there and an old friend in Vegas. It’s always fun when you can hang out with someone you know along the way.

• We’ll probably have a really busy schedule in San Diego. I’ve never been to SD before so I’d like to do a few things and we have family there who we’d like to (and need to!) visit.

• We hung out at Barnes & Noble for a few hours the other day and it was fantastic. I browsed and found some great books, found an instant wedding planner for my niece, grabbed a new magazine and had a snack at the Starbucks they have smack in the middle of it. I actually thought “hhmm, I wouldn’t mind working at Barnes & Noble” – course, my second thought was “I wonder what the discount would be?”

• No Easter plans for us! I’m sure restaurants are open but we don’t have that many around here. It’s sad not to have an easter egg hunt or a big meal with family or friends. I don’t even have the kids Easter baskets as those are now in storage!

• Speaking of storage – phase one of moving is finished! Our stuff is now in a storage unit and waiting. I’m both nervous and excited about moving in with my Mom.

• I really want the kids to go to a Montessori school. Which is basically a private school. Which means cha-ching. Or more like CHA-ching. Yeah, it’s that rough. Getting a good education is really important to Chris so I know he will find a way for it to work, but I don’t know. I actually don’t feel bad about it and am sure it’ll work out. I need to do more research.

• I also need to finish planning our vacation so I better end here or my random thoughts may seriously never end.

Random Tuesday Thoughts is a post from: me being crafty

I have a lot of magazines to go through. I want to take the time to read them so I’m debating taking them with me or packing them to be dropped off at the house (vs being in storage). Actually, dropping them at the house sounds like a fantastic idea.

The rental truck is reserved, we have movers hired to help us load it up, still need to find a hotel to stay at but that won’t take but a few minutes. I have plenty of boxes to pack the house and if I need more, they are but a short car ride away at Barnes and Noble.

I’m so ready to be out of housing. Our experience here has not been the best by far. What started off good quickly went downhill with just a few choice words. After not letting one person ruin my time here, things have been better, but I’m still ready to be gone.

I managed to talk housing into letting me leave early! Okay it’s only a day, but that makes a difference when you are making plans.

Out of Housing Soon is a post from: me being crafty

Here’s how our plans went – the most recent ones anyway. We were to move in month A to place A. But no, we’d move in month B to place A. Then it was moving to place B but we don’t know when. Then it went back to place A and we weren’t sure when. That one lasted for a bit longer then the rest. Next it was moving to place A in month D, for sure. For sure!

Then within the past few weeks it’s been place A, for real this time, in month E. Last minute changes due to noones fault – well someones fault but noone immediately close to us – changed it to month F, which is before month E. Confusing? Just a little.

But our plans in the bigger pictures – unchanged. Our move dates were not affected, it actually worked out a little better. Oh and wives and families are all moving to places somewhere else on the alphabet. Kids and I, back to living with Mom – which I seriously love. I’m very close with my Mom, we have a wonderful relationship and I don’t have any issues of living with her. We lived with my Dad last spring and it went really well too.

Maybe in month K or L we’ll be able to move to place A, hopefully we can! I’m interested in moving there and I always say I didn’t sign up to raise my kids alone.

So as of today, we leave in about a month – with the last week or even two spent in one of those hotels where you can stay for a week and it has a kitchenette, what are those called? – and Chris gets to take leave which means we get a family vacation! I’m so excited about that! We’ve never done a family vacation – and growing up we went somewhere for two weeks every summer so you can imagine how hard it’s been to think of moving as your vacation. Nevermind fighting to get to take leave. This time, we do it right. We are going to plan where we want to go and luckily for us, we’ll have family at almost every stop of the way to stay with!

Today though, we have a soccer game to get to. Jake’s was called off cause the littlest kids don’t like to play outside when it’s cold and rainy. I’m not sure if Alice’s will get canceled and if it does we’ll just be able to get that much more done around the house. Oh, while not touching DH and washing clothes because he got a vaccine. Fun.

What are your weekend plans?

Latest on The Move is a post from: me being crafty

The week started off fairly slow with friends coming over and soccer practice – then each day got more and more busy. I got a haircut (love it, mostly), did a preinspection with housing so we can move out in a month, had dinner out with friends, went to a family readiness group (FRG) meeting, more soccer practice, quilt class (so fun!), hail/farewell (when an officer leaves or comes to the ship this is done), then more friends visiting.

It’s not like when friends come over we are sitting around doing nothing – we’ve all been working on secret projects! One friend just started hers today and got everything done to move on to the next step, another  friend is almost done with the entire thing, I am on the final lap for mine. We are movng right along! The project was supposed to be bigger but it didn’t end up that way so it’s okay.

Soccer practice is still fun – Alice’s coach has been challenging them more each week and I love when he does that. The kids seem scared to kick the ball really hard during a game, and actually during practice too. Alice isn’t afraid to get in there and get the ball moving, which I love about her. Jake’s team is all so tiny – I think he’s the only five year old on the team, the rest are four and tiny four year olds at that! Their games are really cute to watch. Once Jake kicked the ball at the start – he kicked it from the center of the field all the way into the goal.

We have the second to last soccer games in the morning – it’s fairly cold here right now, in the 40s/50s and raining so I’m not sure if we’ll actually have the games. Next week is spring break for the local schools and though we homeschool I have a free week too. It’s definitely welcome – I plan on working on the quilt I started in class yesterday and packing more!

How was your week?

An Overwhelming Week is a post from: me being crafty

Now when I turn the camera on I have to set the date and time. And if I give the camera to the kids to take a picture of me, it either turns off of the screen gets a bunch of lines on it and won’t take a picture.

So now what. Now I have to figure out a new camera to buy. And of course this happens when the kids are in soccer and I want/need pictures of them playing! Plus with the move I’d like some pictures of this place, not that many but a few.

I’ve asked a couple of friends what they use – I’d like a DSLR but not right now. Right now I want (need!) a point and click camera. I want one that will focus quickly/easily and works well indoors. With the camera I was using, there were many, many times it wouldn’t focus. I’d push the button half down and it would beep madly at me and I’d have to try again. You just can’t have that when you want to take pictures of kids that move all the time!

What is your recommendation? I also need a camera for Chris to take with him and we’ll either buy two of the same or two different, whatever works.

Another Camera Down is a post from: me being crafty

What she sent me literally had me so excited I dropped my camera. Haha! Really I took a couple of pictures then dropped it on the floor – picking it up I noticed it rattled and now it’s broken and not working very well at all.

But my excitement!

I *love* the teapot she gave me! I never did tell this story ~My Dad asked what I wanted for Christmas back in November or December. I usually say I don’t know (because I really don’t) and he sends something for the kids. This year he asked more then once and I said “I’d really like a Kitchen Aid mixer but they are expensive – so I want a teapot.” My Dad is the king of pawn/thrift store shopping so I figured he’d find me some cool antique teapot.

Then he asks which Kitchen Aid I wanted. And we talked about the price of them, the colors, and how it would get to me. Then one day I got a call for him wanting my address because he was Fed Ex’ing me the mixer.

It took me a while to pick my jaw up off the floor.

Of course this meant I didn’t have a teapot. Until Sam sent me one. And it’s perfect because it is just for me! Noone else in my house drinks tea, well maybe the kids would but I don’t make it for them, and this has a cool drop in tea holder.

She also sent me this great little book (blank pages to take notes), a note on a cute card, tea, perfume samples (oh my gosh I love perfume samples, I’m indecisive that way) and a pocket zen reader. The blank book and zen reader went into my purse immediately and I’ve jotted a few things down.

I love participating in swaps and hope to again, after we move of course. Unless you want to swap moving boxes for something I have, I’m all over that!

Valentine’s Day Swap is a post from: me being crafty

Mariska Hartigay, Olivia on Law & Order SVU

picture copyright by someone else, not me.

I love having short hair. LOVE it. I cut my hair when I was around 18 and didn’t look back. Except that time when I was pregnant with Alice, my hair was past my shoulders then, and then now. Now it’s touching my shoulders and at the point where I can’t fix it at all and it’s really annoying me.

And it’s been a few years since I’ve had highlights. I blame the military. We have to move so often, I can’t find a hair stylist, or I find one I love and then they move. Or I move and then wait months to find a new one. I finally stopped someone in a store the other day and asked where she got hers cut so I could do something with mine.

And here are the results.

Close to Mariska’s? Close’ish.

Looking back on it I wonder how I’ll feel about the highlights being *so* blond? I was thinking more of a caramel color, which is what I’ll do next time! I do love the cut, it’s short but not super short. And the wings I can see in this pic are odd, but looked so good in person! Overall I’m very happy with the cut.

Oh and the salon! The haircut was $12. You read that right. I haven’t paid $12 for a cut in, geez I can’t even remember when! The highlights were more of course but not nearly what they would have been if we lived in South Carolina or Washington still. The stylist was so great too – I definitely look forward to going back to her again!

A New Do is a post from: me being crafty

I’m not exactly sure what we should be doing. We got a list today saying to have batteries, a first aid kid and food, among other things, but other then that what – pack? We went to the hardware store to find out how to cover our windows in case one gets broken. I’m worried one or more will break and the water that comes inside will ruin our things. Plus if a window breaks, that just makes it easier for people to come in and take things.

I am annoyed that *we* have to be the ones to cover the windows, we don’t own this house yet we have to pay for the supplies! Sure we have our things inside, but I still don’t agree. If the window breaks we won’t be the ones to pay for it so you would think the management company would want to take precautions.

We do have water and lots of food in the pantry, I have a huge cooler and will go get ice in case electricity goes out. I need to move a few more things around from the garage to inside the house and also figure what to take with us if we leave. I’m thinking laptop, jewelry, pictures and clothes. Everything else we have can be replaced if it comes down to it.

Really it comes down to just waiting. Wait and see when we should leave, I know we should be ready, it’s just a matter of when and were we will go.

Hurricane Ike is a post from: me being crafty

Checking out the dolphins

My fault we stayed walking around the craft store for so long – we got to the aquarium too late to see any of the events, the dolphin training or bird show. But now that we know when the shows are we are planning on a trip back already. Jake hasn’t decided what he wants to do for his birthday so a stop then is still up in the air. We did get to walk around and see everything, I think, and grabbed a few pictures of the kids with the dolphins and a few of the other animals.

Hurry Mom, it’s hot

There are a couple of statues around that you can stand by or sit by, the kids wanted to sit on this one. It was very windy out (as usual around here) and we had a good time. On one hand I’m slightly disappointed because if we did see everything it means the place is small – on other hand it’s small so easy to stop in and check it all out again. I have a few homeschool plans that will be centered around the aquarium. It looks like we are going to be a very busy family during our time here!

Going Along with Experiences is a post from: me being crafty

We walked around the mall, stopping to buy perfume for me (and scored a free gift – which I think I’ll send to a friend of mine) and giving the kids a ride on the carousel that is inside the mall. For some reason I thought it would be at least five bucks a kid (I think the only other carousel like this I’ve seen in San Francisco – so I was definitely expecting a high price) so when it was $1.75 each, I was pleasantly surprised. Other then my baby growing up, today was a first for Jake too. He rode the carousel by himself. Sure he’s almost five and very athletic and handles himself well, but Mom was reluctant to let go until today. He was inches above the ‘you have to be this tall’ sign so I let him go alone.

I need a new digital camera – though this picture looks pretty dang awesome!

And what a great time he had! With no Mom or Dad standing up next to him just in case. He did have a belt on so I felt better, though I didn’t notice that and it was the woman in charge who put it on him.

Alice looked alternately like she was having a great time and looking bored. She opted to sit in a chair, she sat facing backward – she had a view of Jake and the whole thing rocked so she had fun. She’s definitely the more cautious kid.

Slightly Bored

Hanging on because man this thing goes fast

Okay it’s cool

They loved the carousel and we definitely plan on doing it again. I was surprised at how busy it was considering the mall just opened within an hour of us being there.

The rule in our family is your birthday = you get to pick what we do, where we eat, what we eat, etc. We started the day with pictures and a carousel ride, moved on to shopping and the aquarium and ended with a movie. We did buy a few things at the craft store and grabbed something from the aquarium, but technically no gifts were given. We are doing experiences this year and Alice declared that today was “the best” so mission accomplished.

Alice’s Day is a post from: me being crafty

I still haven’t finished college and I really want to. I still want to go to grad school. I still want the things I wanted when I was 16 and had my life planned out.

So what is it going to take to get there? One thing that holds me back from finishing college is algebra. Yep, one lousy algebra class! I’ve never loved math so I took the math classes I figured I would need back when I first started college. Then I transferred to the Univ of Wyoming and they wouldn’t accept the credits which meant I had to take algebra. Nevermind that I also took other math classes at UW – algebra seemed to be holding me back. I ignored that for the two years I was there and took other classes that did count. Well that and going to school online, that holds me back too. That’s tough for me since it is just way too easy to get distracted. But I can’t imagine what it would be like to be in a class!

So then I transferred again – and I still needed algebra. I still need algebra. I’m looking to take it independent study so I can just get it out of the way – not from the school I will graduate from but from a community college, to save on cash. Yep, paying out of pocket for college does change things! Once I get that class done I will get back to school and just do it. We are moving again in the spring so I could be left in the dark and not be able to get started until the summer but at this point I’m going to try to start in the spring.

Plus my brother is going through lots of life changes and he’s going back to school. He’s two years younger then me and the program he’s going to do will have him done in two years. He’s excited and school for him starts in a few weeks. And I’m so close to being done I’ve already said I need to graduate before him.

And working online is changing for me. I have some decisions to make and need to be consistent now that one big problem has been knocked out of the water. It’s amazing how one thing can trip you up so bad for so long!

I hung up all of our family pictures yesterday. I it made me smile to wake up and see familiar faces staring back at me. Today feels like one of those days when you say “once this is done, then I’ll do that” – when really, “that” is what should be done first and it’s just avoidance.

I’m going to hang one more thing and get to work. The “that” needs to be taken care of today.

Questioning Everything is a post from: me being crafty

We are in military housing this time around and it’s nice. We have a fenced in yard, really nice neighbors and a pool! The community center has a work out area and more, but we haven’t checked it out beyond the pool. We have a four bedroom that is quite a bit smaller then our last home and, it has to be said, if I complain about a large home and how much it takes to clean it up – remind me not to.

While Chris was in school and we were in Montana for all those months all of our stuff were in storage. When Chris and a friend went to pack everything up, in the biggest moving truck we could get, we ended up leaving a lot of stuff. We had to leave a shelving unit we used in the garage, one I had in the closet in the craft room, a big desk of Chris’ (we had it for at least four years), a ladder we only owned for a couple of months and maybe I forgot something else. I can’t believe we had to leave that desk! It was huge though and very heavy – and after unloading the truck there was no way we could have kept it. There was some settling in the truck, like boxes got squished and such, but the stuff we left would have never fit.

I’m over having left all of that stuff now – but when we first got to TX I was very upset. We just bought that ladder! We used it only to paint the house and that was it. And the shelves – okay the garage ones, fine, but the ones I used in the closet! Those were a gift from my Dad a few years ago. I even cut them to make them fit. They are sold at any hardware store but if we couldn’t pack them before, is it worth buying again?

That’s the trouble with the military and moving yourself – you have to pack it all up and hope it all fits. I guess we just assumed all of it would. And not only would it not fit in the moving truck but this new place doesn’t have the right layout for a few things – the desk, no idea where that would have gone! Hindsight- I should have gone through our stuff before moving. I could have donated more then we did, we could have left something (the ladder and shelves!) at the house to stay with the house. At least then we could have still owned it. As it was everything was left in the storage unit which meant the owners got to sell or use the items for themselves.

We are mostly unpacked, just have four or five boxes still in the garage, but still need to hang things on the walls and finish rearranging. I moved a bookcase, the couch and coffee table yesterday. Chris is gone again at a school so I have a couple of weeks to get things finished up. My goal is to have every room basically done, the kitchen better organized (I do miss all the cupboards I had!), and at least one room will have pictures hung up. Once I get a room done I’ll share pictures.

Moving & a New House is a post from: me being crafty

Kelly posted a Blog Reader Challenge and one of the questions is:

How often do you like to change the look of your blog?

Once I find a theme I like, I tend to stick with it for quite a long while. The problem I have is the code and being able to do the technical work by myself. I have a test blog that is loaded with all the free themes I like to use, then once I decide on one I’ll tweak it until I am satisfied. Of course considering I’ve been working on tweaking a theme for a few months now, I know it’s easier on me to find someone else to do a theme for me.

The current theme I have was done by Shannon at PHAT Mommy Designs. I don’t think she is taking any clients at this time, but I love what she did. I sent her a photo from istockphotos and told her what I wanted, and that was that! She also did the theme I am using over at my weight loss blog. I love that theme, I can see myself using that for a long time. When I was pregnant last year, Shannon changed the header to say “gaining” – it was a cute header and she did it very quickly.

The theme at my craft podcast was tweaked by FreshNets. I really love the magazine style theme for that site. I was walked through the customization and was also taught how to tweak various things on the blog. I love how easy it was to learn and how comfortable I feel making changes. I won’t be changing that theme any time soon!

I’ve been working on changing a free theme for this blog for a few months now. It’s the polaroid theme – yep, the very popular polaroid theme. The one that once I had been tweaking it for a month or so, I was seeing everywhere. It’s like when you like a certain kind of car or a friend gets pregnant – suddenly everyone is pregnant and driving that car! I stopped tweaking that theme and am going to look for a designer to work with soon.

Changing Blog Theme is a post from: me being crafty

My brother figured we would meet about halfway – he drove through Wyoming and Colorado while I drove through Texas. Yeah, this is a huge state. He went farther then I did though so his halfway was off a bit. Yesterday my kids and I made it home in one day – we didn’t stop as often as the other two days and I was so glad to get home.

I have a lot to do now – other then the standard cleaning up and laundry, we have two birthdays coming up, Chris is traveling for his job, homeschool starting and we still need to finish unpacking and putting the house together. I’m hoping to get a lot done while Chris is gone – I’d like the rooms finished and pictures hung up. But for now, let’s start with today.

photo credit: bobu

Home Again is a post from: me being crafty

I wasn’t planning on continuing to homeschool. I looked up the public schools here and figured it was okay to send the kids. Alice (2nd grade this fall) went to school for a couple of days to my Aunt’s class, back in South Dakota, and loved it. Jake went with her, sure he’s only four but since he can read and write my Aunt figured second grade would be a piece of cake for him. They both loved school – and I think if we lived at home, I wouldn’t hesitate to send them. I know everyone there, the families, the teachers. So yeah, I was planning on sending them to school.

Until we got here and realized we wouldn’t be here through the entire school year. And military kids transfer schools over and over again, and make new friends everywhere they go, and start over at school a lot. But Alice is barely going to be 7 and I don’t look forward to that kind of lifestyle for her. I’d rather she remember our neighbors and friends, the people at the library and her Dad’s coworkers kids – vs the kids she was in school with for a couple/few months. Jake will just now be 5! I don’t want his entire educational career to be a move from school to school to school. Plus I didn’t look forward to having to add transferring schools to the list of things to do while moving.

So we will homeschool again. I’ve gone from thinking we have to get Alice tested to enter public school to searching through my boxes to find what homeschooling supplies we have, researching Texas laws/rules and looking for just a couple more homeschooling blogs to read. Do you have any recommendations? So far here are the ones on my list – and it’s a short list so really – recommend please!

• Mother Crone’s Homeschool – her children are older then mine and she’s been homeschooling for years, I appreciate her wisdom
• A Typical Life blog – I also follow Andrea on twitter and embarrassingly just this weekend realized her husband writes a homeschool blog on another blog A Typical Homeschool
• Handmade Homeschool ~ I just like reading this one

Listed edited to add a few more I found in my blog reader!

• Dr Mommy Homeschool Tips
• Mom Is Teaching – Summer isn’t authoring anymore, but great read – and check out the blogroll for more blogs
• Relaxed Homeschooling

I am looking for more and I like a variety of things from a homeschool blog – ideas, tips, words of wisdom. I have a couple of others on my list but I just found them so it’ll take a bit for me to decide if they are permanent fixtures on my list.

And if only my bookcase looked as organized as the picture! As it is, we have almost three bookcases worth of books crammed into two bookcases. We’d like to buy a couple more but are having a time finding any.

photo credit: Darren and Brad

Homeschool Revisited is a post from: me being crafty

You know, the little things.

I’m sad about leaving but trying to not be too sad. It helps to be excited about everything that is coming up – seeing my Grandma for a few days, hanging out with my best friend before moving, swimming in hotels, arriving in Texas with a house ready for us. And of course being with Chris again. He left Rhode Island today and is stopping in Virginia before continuing on. He has a long few days ahead of him since he has to drive down the coast, pack up the storage units and then drive some more. He jumps right into work a few days after getting there too. But I know he’s excited about a lot of things so hopefully that excitement will help him on the drive!

Have you seen this time lapse video? LA to NY in four minutes. Very cool. Too bad it couldn’t really happen, I’d have to only drive for two minutes.

Click here to view the embedded video.

And We’re Done is a post from: me being crafty

photo credit: jgodsey

• Clean out closet and move other things in
• Move one dresser out and the bed to another room ~ Changed: the dresser will stay and the bed will get moved after I leave
• Move my things in boxes to the garage
• Stay caught up with laundry ~ so far so good!
• Finish at least half of the tasks list on my phone
• Rent truck for Chris to drive our things over
• Finish travel budget
• Publish craft podcast
• Read Real Simple ~ my Mom accidentally took this with her!

I love crossing things off of lists. I cleaned up my notebook earlier and took pleasure in realizing it’s almost out of pages – I already have a replacement and I get excited knowing I get to use it soon! Of course since I put all my craft supplies away I have an itch to do something. We’ve been cooking out a lot so playing outside with the kids helps but I really want to embroider. I already have an address for where we will be living but don’t want to buy anything online on the off chance it falls through. Plus it’s not technically ours for another week or so, I’d hate to have mail show up and get tossed or sent back!

And so back to the list! I need to finish laundry before bed.

Long Day is a post from: me being crafty

photo credit: Eleaf

It’s late Monday, but technically still the day. This week is the start of a very busy one for me. We are leaving here on Saturday, we have to pack, do laundry, clean out the van and do a mini travel budget. We have to still carry on during the week with regular meals and playing outside, as well as keeping the house clean and moving my brother and his kids in. The majority of his things are over here, we just need to rearrange some rooms and figure where things will go.

And so I will have done by Thursday:

• Clean out closet and move other things in
• Move one dresser out and the bed to another room
• Move my things in boxes to the garage
• Stay caught up with laundry
• Finish at least half of the tasks list on my phone
• Rent truck for Chris to drive our things over
• Finish travel budget
• Publish craft podcast
• Read Real Simple

Friday will be all the last minute things and then we drive away on Saturday!

Monday Motivation is a post from: me being crafty

My current crafty space is so much smaller then I am used to! As you can see from my picture yesterday we have student desks set up and my boxes of card making supplies around it. This set up is in the living room and the student desks are what the kids use when they want to sit and do school work. My Dad bought them for the kids and I have to say, they love them. I’ve been sitting at the biggest desk and making cards. It is a small work area so I have to be careful what I work on and how many tools I have out. I have perfected working in an assembly line fashion and that does help.

The supplies have been out for a week and they are getting put away today. We are starting a family dinner night and since that is Thursdays, I need the stuff out of the way so my nephews little hands don’t get into my things! Of course the kids will either all want to play outside or play the Wii and I doubt my crafty stuff will even be of interest to them.

Tell Me Thursday – Crafty Space is a post from: me being crafty

WW – Current Craft Space is a post from: me being crafty

Did you branch out to something new? Take advantage of any sales craft stores held?

I didn’t finish any of the projects I am working on. I still have a few things I really need to finish, but for some reason finding the motivation to do so is hard! I did finally get my card making supplies out and made cards for the swap I am in – which felt really good considering I took the past few months off since the supplies were with my Dad while I was in another state.

My one yarn needle broke and I have yet to replace it which means the fingerless gloves I was so happy to make for Alice still aren’t finished.

Since I didn’t buy a yarn needle that proves I didn’t get to a craft store. I admit it – it is hard to walk into a Joann that is so small. I don’t think I’ve seen a Joann store as small as the one here! I can’t even think of what to compare it to since stores are so oversized now. I haven’t found Michaels yet – but it seems like every store is on the other side of town! I rarely complain about having to drive somewhere for something – I grew up in a town where you had to drive two hours to the mall, one hour to the movies, etc. But seriously, all of the stores I enjoy (Joann, Barnes & Noble, Michaels, the mall, Hobby Lobby) are at least 15-20 minutes away, longer unless I can hit green lights. And driving over there not knowing what I want will be there, not fun. In fact I’m looking for a  punch and am going to call the stores before I leave. I’d rather order online then drive across town just to see – the price of gas seems to be going up a few cents every three days!

Maybe some of my lack of crafting motivation has come from my serious motivation to work out – check out my baby weight blog at Losing My Baby Weight. I’ve been working hard the past week!

National Craft Month is Over is a post from: me being crafty