I won! I won! I really really won!

I'm a little late in posting this, but better late than never. Looky at what Foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains sent me. All for just saying "howdy" -- isn't this just the greatest?

It's a needle wrap, hummingbird note cards, and handmade soap.

This is a peek at the outside and the inside of the needle wrap. I love them all!

Goofing off

This is just fun. Here's what to do if you want to play along:

a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
b. Using only the first page, pick an image.
c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into fd's mosaic maker.

The Questions:

1. What is your first name?
2. What is your favorite food?
3. What high school did you go to?
4. What is your favorite color?
5. Who is your celebrity crush?
6. Favorite drink?
7. Dream vacation?
8. Favorite dessert?
9. What you want to be when you grow up?
10. What do you love most in life?
11. One Word to describe you.
12. Your flickr name. (kid version: favorite animal?)


1. leann (iv), 2. 14th August 2007 / Day 226, 3. Old Male High School, 4. tulip, 5. Daniel Craig's looking at me, and I don't think he's happy, 6. a cosmopolitan trinity, 7. the cliffs, 8. Flickr meltdown, 9. The Writer, 10. evening James River sky, 11. 335/365 Knitting: not just for nerds anymore, 12. Knitwit

Tag

Found this on http://furryadventures.wordpress.com and decided to play along.

Rules: You must answer the questions using only one word & tag four others.

1. Where is your cell phone? somewhere
2. Your significant other? funny
3. Your hair? messy
4. Your mother? prompt
5. Your father? dependable
6. Your favorite thing? chocolate
7. Your dream last night? yummy
8. Your favorite drink? Cosmo
9. Your dream/goal? retirement
10. The room you’re in? noisy
11. Your hobby? knitting
12. Your fear? bridges
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? home
14. What you’re not? organized
15. Muffins? bland
16. One of your wish list items? flooring
17. Where you grew up? Kentucky
18. The last thing you did? ate
19. What are you wearing? nightshirt
20. Favorite gadget? iPod
21. Your pets? dawgs
22. Your computer? on
23. Your mood? frazzled
24. Missing someone? family
25. Your car? black
26. Something you’re not wearing? shoes
27. Favorite store? Haus
28. Like someone? mostly
29. Your favorite color? pink
30. When is the last time you laughed? yesterday
31. Last time you cried? Thursday

Procrastination, Vexation, Irritation, Excavation, Fumigation

Procrastination
Good morning. Here I sit with 5 hours before I have to leave to pick up my daughter's friends for her birthday party, and what am I doing? Why, blogging, of course! Makes perfect sense to me. If I am staring at the screen, I don't have to look around and see all that I still have to do.

Vexation
But then, I look up and . . . yikes! My knitting has taken over my dining table. I still need to vacuum the living room, sweep the kitchen, and give the bathroom a once-over. I am in the middle of a week's work of laundry. I am still in my nightshirt and in need of a shower. (TMI?)

Irritation
And now I'm just plain irritated. If I have to pick up one more pair of shoes or socks that my H, D#1, D#2 leaves in the middle of the floor, I think I'm gonna have a "come apart" -- don't you love that that very Tennessee phrase -- very descriptive.

Excavation
So, in a few minutes, I'll begin the excavation of the living room and the dining table.

Fumigation
Hopefully, once I see what's under all the clutter, there will be no need for fumigation.

Wish me luck today. These things usually end up collapsing together at the last minute and everything turns out fine. Any other procrastinators out there?

BTW - I did work on D#2's afghan a little this morning. Her actual birthday is Wednesday and I'd love to have this done by then. So I am a little productive while I'm procrastinating.

Gone, but not forgotten . . .

Our friend from work, Jason, passed away on Sunday morning after a 2 year battle with metastacized melanoma. He was the kind of young man that everyone liked and he always had a warm greeting and a bright smile for anyone that crossed his path. He always exhibited a "can do" attitude, even when he was feeling unwell.

Visitation was tonight in Nashville and the funeral itself is tomorrow in his hometown. His beautiful girlfriend, Tish, greeted everyone this evening with a smile and a hug. Although she is my co-worker, I don't know her well, but I can tell that she has been a tower of strength for Jason. I pray for God's comfort and peace to envelop her, especially through these next few days, weeks, months.

We were all blessed to know Jason and will miss him. But I rejoice that he is now completely healed, completely pain-free, and in the presence of our Father.

A is for August - and A-Fairing, A-Camping, A-Hiking, A-Knitting

August 16 marked our annual pilgrimage to Lebanon, TN for the Wilson County Fair. This year, our oldest TN friends, The U Family, met us there for lots of fun, sweat, motion-sickness, fried food, and lightening of wallets to win stuffed animals for all our kids. A great time was had by all, but all were exhausted -- all except Daughter #1, who could whoop the Energizer Bunny on his best day.

We also managed to squeeze in a weekend at Girl Scout camp. Here's Daughter #2's and friend's maiden voyage in their canoe. Great job, girls!

And now we witness a camel refilling her hump having scrambled up the TN version of Mt. Everest along with the mountain goat (er . . . I mean Girl Scout) troop. Camels weren't meant for mountainous terrain. Give me the desert anytime!


After a fun-filled weekend, we bid adieu to GS camp and headed home. You will notice that my knitting bag made the journey with us. That's it posing prettily in pink.

Did I mention knitting? Yes, I have been slogging along on the After Dark Robe in emerald green bamboo. I finished the back, but I won't bore you with photos, since it's just one long rectangle at this point. But I have . . .

finished the Fair Isle Baby Sweater, except for sewing on buttons:


And I've begun another Moderne Log Cabin blanket for Daughter #2 with her choice of colors - turquoise, lime green, and purple. This is the project that stowed away in my pink bag at GS camp. The colors don't come through very well in these pictures. I'll try to post more later after I've tried different lighting.


Here's Daughter #2 trying to break my fingers at the park. Ain't she just the sweetest little thang?

Finally, Daughter #1 was trying to hold down lunch all the while saying "Faster, Daddy, faster!".