YARN!

Hmm... my first post since the 30th of July.
What a very bad girl I am!
Ah well, sorry for abandoning my blog for such a very long time. :)

To make up for it, here is the post that I promised several months ago!
My STASH!!
Every knitter has one, however small/large. (Crocheters as well I assume!)
So post your stash... if you aren't too embarrased! (We yarn lovers must be related to packrats!) ;)

Some strait forward, brown and black. These are great for making my super easy fingerless gloves. If you can knit a scarf (or sort of knit a scarf) then you can knit these gloves!! All you do is knit a rectangle, and then sew it up around your arm and hand, leaving a hole for the thumb! It is truely that easy. :)

Some scratchy burgundy yarn I use for washcloths
Also in green... :)

Navy and silver Simply Soft. Don't EVER, and I mean EVER buy Simply Soft. I have spent over 8 hours collectively untangleing Simply Soft yarn. (I was knitting these two colors together as a scarf for my brother Austin. And I'm a very determined person!!)

Variegated shades of navy sock yarn. (No, I can't knit socks... and don't ask me what I was trying to accomplish here. It's to painful to recall. Lol.)

Some nifty green novelty yarn

Nifty BLUE novelty yarn. :)

AND in PURPLE!!

I know what you're thinking. "Ya didn't learn your lesson the first time did ya?" Bought more Simply Soft eh? Well no. I did however learn ANOTHER lesson. Never buy more than you need for ONE project of any one certain brand of yarn. Because you might not like it. And then you're stuck with skeins and skeins of it. I bought enough all at once for a scarf for my brother, mother, and father. That's six skeins of the evil stuff. Bleh.

Some pretty Boulce that my dear cousin Madison gave me for Christmas. This is just the remains... I already knit a scarf out of it! :)

Some super soft baby yarn. And no, I didn't really learn that whole lesson about buying too much yarn all at once. I bought two pink and two blue skeins of this yarn, and while I love it, at the time, I didn't realize how much it cost. (I thought it was on sale when I picked it up.) It was $8 a skein. Haha. Yeah. So I payed $32 for 4 skeins of yarn. I have learned my lesson. (The reason I didn't realize at the register, was that my mother was paying for everything at once, and I was to pay her back for my things. She had many other purchases, and didn't notice the huge amount difference!)

Some of the same type of baby yarn given to me, once again by my wonderful cousin Madison!

A hogpoge of yarns... the blue chinelle was the first yarn I ever bought. Yet another stupid mistake... I absoluetly DESPISE chinelle! (Thus it never being used...) The purple is the remains of the Klutz yarn that came with the book. (I highly recommend the Klutz knitting kit. It's got everything you need, and the instructions are very good.) (Of course, my aunt taught me, but this helped when she wasn't around to lend me a hand!) And the smokey grey/black is from the bear I knit! (See next picture.)

Smokey the bear!! I STILL haven't stuffed him though. Sorry for the bad lighting.

Smokey's face. (Minus the eyes... still haven't gotten around to those!)

Smokey's cute lil' ear. These are so much fun to make!! If you ever need a good ear pattern for anything, ask me!


Yeaaah... so that's about half of my stash. Some of my yarn is hidden in the depths of my house somewhere, (Terrible, unruely yarn... shame on it!) and the rest I didn't bother to photograph because it was so much like some of these, or I just forgot.

So, tell me... am I the only one? Or are there others like me out there?

Lazy Summer

Hi all! I must apologize for not posting much these last few weeks. I've been having a rather lazy summer, so I've been a bit lax in things like blogging, music, and knitting. With school soon to resume, I'm beginning to work a bit harder in these areas. I keep telling myself that the reason I haven't been blogging is because I have nothing to blog about... but that's not true! I still have yet to post good pictures of my square foot garden, my knitting stash, and I hardly ever post about music! So, dear reader, I have my work cut out for me this week! I'll start with something easy however. Here's a Simple Woman's Daybook.




For Today: July 29th, 2009.

Outside my window: Hmm... I can't see outside... the blinds are closed! :) But I do know that it is all pretty and wet outside because it has just finished raining.

I am thinking: About how oatmeal is really hard to scrub off of things after it hardens. Yeah... don't ask. :)

I am thankful for: Rugs. :D

I am wearing: My pink and brown hat that says "Ireland", and my long-sleeved pink and brown bunny shirt (haha, yes I was trying to match!), and jeans.

I am reading: A fictional series by Karen Hancock called Legends of the Guardian King. The books are *hrm* a little more romantically inclined than I would like, but they are wonderful allegories.

I am hoping: That autumn will come soon.

I am creating: A baby blankey. :)

I am hearing: My brother Austin smacking while eating a PB&J while fiddling with his new Mac computer. (He's headed off to college in two weeks.)

Around the house: Mom's out counseling someone, daddy's at work, and Austin, as I just stated is eating a PB&J while on his Mac computer.

One of my favorite things: Rain... and being cold. :) I'm tired of summer and heat. I want fall to come so I can be chilly, and then go snuggle up in a blanket.

What I accomplished since last week: I finished a dragonfly dishcloth that I had been knitting, I started my Greek back, I've aaaalmost finished my biology study guide, and I tried out for my church's youth praise band. We actually have three youth bands, and I was chosen to play piano for the *worst* one. SIGH. I wanted them to use me as a fiddle player more than piano, and I DIDN'T want to be in the Sunday night band. But if that's where the Lord wants me... that's where I'll stay. *Lord, please give me patience and humility to bear being a band that I feel is a waste of my talent!!*

A few plans for the rest of the week: Our family is headed up to Athens and the mountains this weekend. Austin is going to UGA in two weeks, so we're going up there once again to check it out.

Here is the picture I am sharing with you:

This is my silly/handsome/gorgeous/nutty precious fluff named Jeremiah. I LOVES him to DEATH!!

Camp!

Hey all, Madison and I are back from camp! It was just as wonderful as I expected it to be, and we had lots of fun meeting new friends. Here are some pictures of camp! (My camera died half way through, and I had forgotten my charger...) :'(


Pretty mountains...


Rose and Jessica in friendship bracelet making.


Picture of me with a funny story... we were outside playing tether ball, and we were COMPLETELY covered in sweat, and I was all like "Nooo... don't take my picture!!" but Madison did anyways, and I ended up loving this picture! Yay!


Games in the Crows Nest


Beautiful camp flower... it was soooo tiny too! I had to use macro setting, and get really close. (It was for photography!)


Funny angle/great picture that Madison took of me in photography.


Ok, I'm posting 5 pictures starting with this one, showing JUST the path from the Planetarium down to the guys cabins that we had to walk up and down at LEAST twice a day.


1st flight of stairs...
Turn right, and you see -->

And from here you keeeep waaaalking....


Around this bend......


Over the concrete......


And down the second flight of steps!

Yay! Now try running up and down all that twice, and then walking twice that length at least 8 other times throughout the day. AND playing ultamite frisbee/vollyball/floor hockey/dodgeball AND having an active class like canoeing or obstical corse.

That IS camp. Walking. Sore musles. Being tired. PULLING musles. That's what camp is all about. And it was fun!

But I'm really, really glad to be back.

No, really.

Beds and long showers were sorely missed!

And I'm getting tired just thinking about bed.
Goooood night all.

Off to camp!

Yes, I'm off to camp today, with my good cousin Madison! I'm so excited!! We leave after church, and the car ride to camp shall be very interesting. :P I have a very fun car game called Rubberneckers. It is interesting. Camp is going to be fun as well. :~) I love the hymns and the swimming and the hiking and food and the camp store... it's all so wonderful! This is my second year, but Madison's first. Please pray that we'll have a safe drive up there, and that all the campers have a good time, and stay safe! I've been shopping and packing like a mad woman to get ready. I'm bringing my camera, so be sure to check my blog once I'm back. There will be pictures. Lots of pictures. TONS OF PICTURES!!*Slightly evil chuckle* Mwahahaaa. Tehee. *Giggle* :~)

On another note, here are some terrible pictures of my new Square Foot Garden! (Yes, I took them at night... and I hate using flash... and they are all really dark.)

Hey, I know! It can be a game! Try and guess what is in each picture.

1.


2.(This one might be hard)


3.


4.



Now some pictures that you CAN see. :) (I grudgingly used the flash on these...)
(By the way, it wasn't THAT dark outside when I took these. I was still walking around barefoot. [something that I'm terrified of doing in the dark] My camera just makes everything look like it is 1 A.M.)



My WONDERFUL WATERMELON! I am so excited at how it's growing! Last year we planted a watermelon plant, and it grew a watermelon the size of a (rather small) fist. And then it stopped growing. This watermelon is already bigger, and growing, and grrrowing, and GROWING! Yay!

Wonderful random news!

I've been pretty busy lately with no time to post! Our family had a blast on the 4th, when we traveled out to my aunt's house to swim and eat good food. (As you've probably already read on my cousin Madison's blog.) Madison and I are headed to a camp soon, and that will be AWESOME! We are both really excited!! And still more exciting information, is that my father just read Mel Bartholomew's book Square Foot Gardening, and the very next day took me to Lowes to buy all the material's for building a square foot garden! He (my father) was raised a farm boy, son of a county extension officer (someone who helps farmers with bug/disease/varmint problems). He has tons of experience with gardening/farming. It's what he majored in at colledge. He read the book, and immeadiently wanted to try it out! There are so many benefits to square foot gardening! A sfg is easily protected from deer/other varmints, you don't have to walk on the soil that covers the plant's roots (that harms the root system), you don't have to plant or cull so much, it's a portable garden, there are virturally no weeds, and there are many, many other benefits. Check out Mel Bartholomew's website here. We've finished building the first frame, I can't wait to plant my seeds!

Already Another Simple Woman's Daybook

Hmm... I can't get the picture to paste...

For Today: June 29th, 2009.

Outside my window: The crickets are serenading me. :~)

I am thinking: I can't wait for the 4th! Going swimming with my favorite cousin at my aunt's house! :P Tehee.

I am thankful for: Cream soda! It's absolutely delicious!

I am wearing: A cute summer dress that I got at Walmart.

I am reading: Brian Jacques's Castaways of the Flying Dutchman. (I love pirate books!) (I have an older brother to thank for that...)

I am hoping: My foot will stop hurting! (Bee sting! See post below.)

I am creating: Mass chaos and widespread panic. *Giggles* I thought a baby blanket would sound boring...

I am hearing: The garbage disposal gurgling again. *Sigh* Yet another thing that needs fixing around the house.

Around the house: Asleep? I think... methinks they are at least all abed.

One of my favorite things: Countryside magazines!

What I accomplished since last week: Picking, shelling, and cooking a whole pot of purple hull peas and pole beans!

A few plans for the rest of the week: Going to swim with Madison on the 4th, and hopefully meeting my new little sister. Tehee, no, we don't have another child in the house. It's just me and my brother. Our church has some of the more committed high-schoolers "adopting" an 8th grader that is coming into high-school. We have to meet with them and tell them about our highschool ministry. 'Twill be fun. I've never had a little sib before!

Here is a picture I am sharing with you:

This was my SCRUMPTIOUS blueberry banana parfait that I made for an afternoon snack! I had no granola, so I substituted some yummy maple cereal. Being the chocoholic that I am, I just had to add the chocolate chips and chocolate syrup!
Here are some other pictures of it. (It was too pretty to pass up taking pictures of it!!)

Peas and Bees

Interesting news today.
The nice news, is that I was able to harvest my pole beans and cow peas yesterday, and they made MORE than enough for dinner. We even have enough for lunch tomorrow! I was so excited, because I've read that peas take so much work to grow and shell and cook, with so little gain, that they aren't really worth growing. Some of the peas I got were a little under-developed and green, but they were all right. (Just REALLY hard to shell.) Anyhoo, they tasted wonderful, and we had a great meal.










(All the scraps!)

The not so nice news, is that I stepped on a bee or yellowjacket this morning and got stung on my foot. I was watering my herbs, and I decided to remove the little bitty mamosa tree that was trying to grow in my dill planter. Being so kind hearted towards plants, instead of just ripping it out and throwing it away, I gingerly dug it out, planning to replant it in a heap of old potting soil behind our house. A few feet away from it, practically before my foot even hit the ground, I pulled it away with a yelp. I immediently hobbled away crying, so I never got a look at what stung me.
I've been stung by yellow jackets before, but never a bee, hornet or wasp so I don't even know what those feel like. My mum gave me a Benadryl right after it happened, and I kept an ice pack on it for a while, so the swelling isn't TOO bad. There wasn't a stinger, so I didn't have to worry about that, but my foot did swell up enough that I can't walk on it right. I've been an invalid all day, which is kind of fun! :P Hehe, I'm just kidding of course, I've still been helping around with what chores I can. I would post a picture of my foot for you... ... ... tehehe... but it looks a little... erm, well... FAT. :P Hehe. I told my mum, "If this is what it feels like to have fat feet, I'm surely never gonna be fat!!" The few times I've tried walking flat footed, it's felt *really* weird. And it hurts, so I don't really try.

Hope Chest

As you might have read on my cousin Madison's blog, we went yard-saleing today! It was a good morning. :) Before I write about today however, I must tell what I got yesterday for my hope chest! I got this precious set of a throw and pillows from Cracker Barrel's outdoor sale for $20. (And the cute/adorable/elegant little bird - it was $2 even on sale, but I HAD to get it!)





I didn't want to take the throw out of the case, but it matches the pillows. They were all 60% off, or else I wouldn't have dreamed of getting a set like that from Cracker Barrel. I looove Cracker Barrel, but everything is sooo expensive! (Like the *gorgeous* patriotic quilt I drooled over for 10 minutes that was $60 alone.)

Now for today's buys.

Firstly, I got this "set" of plates for... well, I can't remember how much it all came out to be, but I think they were under $10? None of my pictures are very good, because I was taking pictures of them in my lap in the car! :)



All the salad plates have different plants on them, and they all have names of herbs written in calligraphy on the edges.






(The purple flowers are my favorite!)


They are SO me, and I love them all! There were only three dinner plates, and one was badly chipped, so I only got two, and I plan to hang them up on a wall with salad plates in the middle. I got all 4 of the salad plates because they are so pretty and unique!

And lastly for today, the biggest and most important purchase...


...


...


...


AN ACTUAL CHEST!!



I've been saving stuff for my hope chest for a while, but until now, I've had no where to put it.
We got this wicker chest, that is huge, light, and in good condition, for $20. The chest was labeled at $25, and my mom only had a $20 bill with her, so we were praying that the man would take $20 for it. And of course, as God is so wonderful at doing, He allowed the man to very lenient, and even glad for our offer. He even helped us load it in our van! :) I am so happy, and God is so good!

I love the etching on the metal. I didn't notice it this morning.