Back on the Horse

 

I picked up the knitting needles again.  

Admittedly, I needed a couple YouTube tutorials to refresh my memory.

I do however, remember why I prefer crochet. I get so nervous that I'll mess up or the needles will fall out and I'll have no idea how to fix it.  I already have two mistakes on this 3 inch thing.  

Scored another great yarn.  This one is Organic Cotton...so soft.

As much as I'm enjoying this...I have so many things partially done.  

This pic above.

The little dream in silk bamboo.

A gift for a baby born last year.

PJ pants for my boys, fabric washed and ready since October.

Owl Purse, just needs the zipper.

Another purse base, just waiting for a strap and a ______.

Large work in progress that I started on my last plane trip.

Another white hat on knitting needles (may rip that one out, too tight and tiny).

Eight.

Eight items in progress.

and yet I still spend my time on the computer.

A List

When I dream of the future, I think of things I could do.  I'm sure we all have lists like this.  The "if I had the time" type lists.  They really aren't items that cost all that much, other than paint, but heavy on time.  The most precious cost.

1.  I so very much want to paint our existing chandelier in the dining room.  I'm thinking of taking it to black.  Changing out the gold findings with silver, maybe adding back the rest of the crystals.

2.  Sand and paint our kitchen table, find some chairs to mix and match and paint them, also.

3.  Paint the trim in the living room and family room (it is still boy's locker room blue).

4.  Heck, let's paint the rest of the house:  front hall, kitchen, stairwell, master bedroom.

5.  Volunteer at the kids' school and our church.

6.  Go to every single rummage sale in town, and out of town.

7. Clean out my closet and the upstairs hall closet.

8.  Move the air hockey table out of my studio and make my studio more efficient.

9.  Add molding to my dining room wall to create a couple panels on the wall.

10.  Be the perfect, always present Mom and Wife.

Okay, let's be honest.  I'll never get 10 done, but I can try.

Do you have a list?  What is your number one?

Handmade Portraits: StellarQuilts

Very cool, uncommon 'meet the artist' video.

Check it out!

Snow Play

 Playing in the snow is fun, but eating the snow is much more fun!

My kids love being in the snow.  They are exploring a whole new world with infinite possibilities.

As much fun it is to watch them play, I love to see the remnants of play after a fresh snowfall. 

We had a heatwave (40 degrees) today and it has been raining.  Tomorrow morning will most likely see frozen roads and sliding cars.

The Puff

 Perhaps we need no text.

Except that they are Gluten Free.  Yes.

Puff Paste - Again 
from Jessie (that's all I have on my printed email from 12/15/2006)

1 cup water
1/4 c butter
1 tsp sugar
1/2 cup white rice flour
2 eggs

Sift flour and sugar together and put in small bowl.  Heat water and butter in saucepan to boiling point.  Using a wooden spoon quickly stir in the flour and sugar all at once. Remove from heat and continue to stir briskly to make a smooth paste.

It will look like mashed potatoes that need more milk.

Let cool slightly and put in food processor with steel blade.  With processor running ad the eggs one at a time.  Process for several seconds until paste is smooth and shiny.

Set oven for 425 degrees.  Place high spoonfuls on sprayed pan or parchment.  Bake at 425 for 20 minutes.

Remove puffs from oven and turn down to 375.  With sharp knife make a horizontal one inch slit in the side of each puff.  Put back in oven immediately and bake for 10 minutes or so, until lightly brown and crusty.

Remove from oven and let cool on a rack.  Cut tops off and scrape out and discard any uncooked batter.

These are delicate, so be careful.

Fill with whipped cream (or vanilla pudding) and put the top back on each puff.  I pipe chocolate frosting on the tops - Jessie suggest drizzling with hot fudge sauce.

 Then hide them.

The Shot

I'm thinking of every so often, just posting a picture simply because there is something about it that I enjoy.  It isn't the print worthy type...just has something about it that makes me want to look and look again.

Here is my first in my (potentially) series "The Shot"

Family on the Couch

Our favorite thing to do lately is to borrow a couple books on CD from the library and pile on the couch in our Snuggies.  This is my original Snuggie.  The boys got some from Grandma and Papa and Tom has the honor of having a 'homemade with love' snuggie.

I wanted to show you something I've been working on, but I don't want to show TOO much, wink wink.  I will say that this yarn is a dream.  Not so much to work with, but to touch and to hold.  If only this yarn came in bigger spools.  It is Silk and Bamboo. 

I have been trying to explain this, sitting here, typing, deleting.  It's so hard to think of a comparison. 

Baby Bottom
Rose Petal
Cloud
Dove wings


Oh, I've got it!  If feels like the fur of a Samoyed Dog that just won best of show at Westminster.  It's that lovely.

Humoring Me

Tom recently had a full beard.  His 'finals' beard.

I love the look, hate the feel on my face at each kiss.

I think he grows a beard just to have fun trimming it into odd looking configurations.  Two trims prior to this was the "Rent is Too Damn High" beard.

Then he moved on to the weird mustached man that hangs out at the corner store admiring all the teenagers.

And then, was this.  The half on, half off.

This one didn't last very long, thank goodness.

Now...freshly shaved in preparation for classes to begin next Tuesday.

For those playing along at home, 3 more semesters for him.

Sixteen Months for me!

Sickee

This is the better side of the sickee.

I came home from an office meeting on Saturday night to find a little boy with a high fever.  That night got worse and Sunday was a whole lot of this.

It completely amazes me how little this child does when sick.  He barely even spoke on Sunday.  Monday was better, a little iffy at times, but I think we are back to normal for tomorrow.

I'm looking forward to a quiet day at work, but I'm going to miss this little guy that's been glued to me for 64 hours straight.

Get well, little dude.

Did You Miss Me? Did You Even Know I Left?

I delayed posting because I didn't feel like I had the right photo.  I got a new toy for Christmas, so you'd think I'd have something cool to post.  I do have some nice photos, but nothing that really pulled me to show you.

Problem is that this season can get a little monotonous.  The gray sky.  The cold air.  The same pink rug. Frankly, I'm a little bored.

I was blessed to have saved enough vacation days to take two weeks off before and after Christmas.  This is when I really got sick of the pink rug.

My days were spent with my kids, preparing for Christmas, attending Holiday concerts, last minute shopping, a noontime matinee and a couple batches of gluten free cookies.  I realized with two weeks away from work how much I miss out with my boys.  I miss the everyday lunches.  I miss the quick trips to the book store.  I miss the "we have the whole day to do whatever we want" days without feeling guilty about not working.

I'm not sure why I use the word "miss".  I never had those days to miss them.

So while I was away, I thought about my future.  I haven't really done this in a long time because I was afraid.  Afraid that future would never come and I'd be stuck in this rut of work.  This need to be the bread winner, the holder of health insurance, the payer of bills.  I don't wish that burden on anyone.

I planned out our summer.  I tentatively scheduled camping trips and day camp weeks.  I thought about how this scheduling might be different in 2012.  I started looking to the future.

And my friends, it looks bright.  I have options.  I have hope.

Hope.

And a big ass party.

The Season

 I have been enjoying my time away from work and my blog.  It's nice to not feel any daily pressure to get things done.  Yesterday we stayed in our pj's all day.  I did take a shower, and put on clean pajamas.  It was fantastic.

My boys had mixed emotions about the Christmas Pageant this year.  I'm not sure they will take part next year.  Little Man, was the cutest most lovely boy angel I have ever seen.  He didn't want to wear my white shirt as his costume, but never complained about the headband/halo or the fairy-like wings.

 

Big Boy on the other hand...let's just say his costume was an unfortunate size for him.  He really is one tall boy.  The hat was more like a yarmulke.  After I snapped this photo I heard, "Stop it Mom".

And the folks in two row radius also heard my adoring son.

Although Christmas Pageants aren't BN's cup of tea, gems are.

I didn't need to do any adjusting on this photo above...my new flash is the most wonderful piece of equipment.  I love it!

I have been working on some cute little boy hats, a scarf for an old high school/church friend, and hope to clean the fish tank and my bedroom in the next couple days.  Oh, as promised, here is one more star/snowflake that I made in between my blogging absence, it's a little large, but it is very pretty.

All of us here at WeaverGirlGuz (me) wish you the happiest New Year!

My Lunch Date

It's hard to work when this guy keeps staring at me.

A little clutch for the shop.  I hope to list it over the weekend.  And I'll ship Priority if you know someone that needs a hoot for the holiday.

Paper Snowflake Tutorial

 This is not your grade school snowflake.  I wanted to make a special Shout Out to the gals at Park Creek...thanks for teaching my mom this technique.  And Mom, you were a great teacher, thanks!

Ready?  Here we go...

Step One and Two:  Get a square piece of paper.  Regular copy paper works just fine and is what I'm using in this tutorial.  Fold your square into a triangle.  Fold again into a smaller triangle.

 

Step Three:  While holding the triangle with the folded side down, cut along the longest side, evenly spaced and not all the way to the top (don't cut your paper in pieces).  You are going to make three cuts, which will give you four strips all attached at top.

Open it up and you get this.

Step Four:  Put a dab of glue stick on one corner of the inside square and glue to the other side of the inside square.

Step Five:  Turn your paper over, so that the first folded square is on the bottom.  Repeat glue for next inner square.  Turn your paper over again, and glue the second outermost square together.

 

  

Step Six:  Repeat for final outside square.   

Step Seven:  Repeat Steps One through Six 5 more times, for a total of six of these "arms".

Step Eight:  Glue three arms together at the points.  If you take the center and add glue to each side of the point, you can easily add the two others-one to each side.  Repeat with remaining 3 arms.
Step Nine:  Glue the center points of each of your three armed segment to each other.  I used glue and paper clipped the two points together until the glue dried.  Tape would work here, too.


Step Ten:  The final frontier...this may not seem necessary at first, but it helps immensely with stability.

See my stubby finger?  Those two cross sections need to be glued together.  Repeat all the way around the snowflake/star.

You are done!  Stick it on your tree, hang it from the ceiling, give as a hostess gift.  I just remembered as I'm writing this that I bought spray glitter!!!!  Oh, I hate when I forget that I have things.  I'll make another and spray it to show you.

I tried different papers, too.  This one is scrapbook paper.

And this is copy paper...just like the one you made!

Now, stop looking and go get flaking!