A year later and a bunch of yarn

Yes, it has taken a year but I finally got this afghan done. It has been a long time in coming. I couldn't even tell you how many skeins of yarn it took - I quit counting after 8. What projects have taken you at least a year to complete. I would love to hear about them.

Are you prepared ?

With all the recent natural disasters recently, it has got me thinking, am I prepared? Don't think so. I decided that this was the year to do something about it. One place to turn to for just that thing is Emergency Essentials. A Utah based company that has everything from water bottles to dried food to sleeping bags. They have everything you need to be prepared. I have been in their stores and they are to die for (ok not literally but you get my point).

The last time I was in there I took one of their catalogs and you should see all the "dog-eared" pages and the "X"s and items marked in red. I can't wait to get started. First on my list: a grain mill. I think they are just the coolest thing. Then I think I might just start on the dried foods and flours and wheats - they come in those great #10 cans. You name it, they have it. And they ship out of state - yeah.

If you are ever in Utah stop by one of their locations. You will love it. They have one in the Utah County area and two in the Salt Lake County area. I would say "tell them I sent you" but they would have no idea who I was :-)

One more thing, check out their website at beprepared.com or click on the button on the left hand column. You'll be glad you did.

Words of Wisdom...

I received this wonderufl e-mail and thought it was a good reminder for all. I'm sure you've probably heard this before but it's a good thought to review.


A frail old man went to live with his son, daughter-in-law, and four-year-old grandson. The old man's hands trembled, his eyesight was blurred, and his step faltered The family ate together at the table. But the elderly grandfather's shaky hands and failing sight made eating difficult. Peas rolled off his spoon onto the floor. When he grasped the glass, milk spilled on the tablecloth. The son and daughter-in-law became irritated with the mess. 'We must do something about father,' said the son. 'I've had enough of his spilled milk, noisy eating, and food on the floor.' So the husband and wife set a small table in the corner.

There, Grandfather ate alone while the rest of the family enjoyed dinner. Since Grandfather had broken a dish or two, his food was served in a wooden bowl. When the family glanced in Grandfather's direction, sometimes he had a tear in his eye as he sat alone. Still, the only words the couple had for him were sharp admonitions when he dropped a fork or spilled food. The four-year-old watched it all in silence.

One evening before supper, the father noticed his son playing with wood scraps on the floor. He asked the child sweetly, 'What are you making?' Just as sweetly, the boy responded, 'Oh, I am making a little bowl for you and Mama to eat your food in when I grow up. ' The four-year-old smiled and went back to work. The words so struck the parents so that they were speechless. Then tears started to stream down their cheeks.

Though no word was spoken, both knew what must be done. That evening the husband took Grandfather's hand and gently led him back to the family table. For the remainder of his days he ate every meal with the family. And for some reason, neither husband nor wife seemed to care any longer when a fork was dropped, milk spilled, or the tablecloth soiled.

On a positive note, I've learned that, no matter what happens, how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.

I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles four things: a rainy day, the elderly, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.

I've learned that, regardless of your relationship with your parents, you'll miss them when they're gone from your life.

I've learned that making a 'living' is not the same thing as making a 'life.'

I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance.

I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands. You need to be able to throw something back sometimes.

I've learned that if you pursue happiness, it will elude you. But, if you focus on your family, your friends, the needs of others, your work and doing the very best you can, happiness will find you.

I've learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision.

I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one. I've learned that every day, you should reach out and touch someone.

People love that human touch -- holding hands, a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back.

I've learned that I still have a lot to learn.

On to our next project

I thought we were done painting but no such luck. Sierra has decided that it is time to give her bedroom a face lift. After all she will be turning 16 pretty soon and thinks she needs a more "grown-up" room. So we emptied it out and are on our way to a makeover (I have ever mentioned that I love makeovers?)

This is what we have started with. Yes the walls used to be purple and white with lime green trim - don't ask.

Check back to see the results.

My favorite toy and a theme

Ok, can adults have a favorite toy... I sure hope so because I do. This is my favorite:

This is my Cricut machine or "my big bug" (I have a smaller version too aka "little bug") as it is so affectionately called. With this machine I can cut out shapes and letters on paper, material, vinyl and oh so much more. This machine and I spend a lot of time together. We have made scrapbook pages, cards, school projects and most recently, the theme for my hobby room.

I had some vinyl that I found at Lowes, and cut out this saying:

I think this says it all. I plan to make this my motto for this year.

Homemade art work

I'm still in the process of working on my hobby room. It really needs some things on the walls to make it look complete. I went looking through stuff that I already had to try and come up with something new. I found three artist canvases that I had bought sometime along the way but never did anything with them (don't even remember what they were for). I dusted the cobwebs off my "filing cabinet upstairs" and came up with this:

(I know they are crooked but they are acutally just laying on the counter)

I did have to go to the craft store and buy some wood cutouts to put on them - the other circles are just stamps that I had. Of course I already had the paint so this was actually a pretty inexpensive project. Total cost: (not including canvases) $3.00

These kind of match my new curtains. They are red with black and white polka dots. I told my kids that my room is starting to look like Mickey and Minnie Mouse. But that's ok because I love it.