How Do I Love Thee? Let Me Count The Ways....

1.  You make me feel safe when I'm with you

2.  You are bright and shiny, like a new penny

3.  You are technologically advanced and fun to play with

4.  You are comfy

5.  You are easy to handle, even in tough conditions

6.  You are strong and rugged

7.  You are dependable

8.  You have great features

9.  You turn heads when we go places

10. You are well built and FORD tough

Although these things describe my Bubba, who I LOVE with all my heart, I'm actually talking about this:

 Our brand-spankin' new 2010 FORD F-150

Our poor old truck had enough and we had to let her go.  With no warranty and looking at a buch of $$$ in engine repairs that we couldn't do ourselves, we decided to trade her in for a new model while we still had good equity.  It was a cold and snowy night - much too cold to be walking around the car lot trying to find THE truck, so we drove off the lot with a demo truck and had it for a couple of days before taking it back, knowing that it wasn't the truck for us.  After a lot of looking, our salesman finally found the truck we wanted - or at least the closest thing to it.  We still had to pay for a chrome package that we didn't want, but we got a couple extras that we weren't expecting, so it made up for all that chrome.  Oh, and it's RED!  Happy Valentines Day!! 

Vacation Anyone?

 Check out this awesome blog and website AND possibly win a Seattle Vacation.  Who doesn't need a vacation? 

http://www.rachelthurston.com/blog/?p=1860

Mad Skills

I've now got mad ninja skills...with my brand-spankin'-new circular knitting needles - so watch out!  LOL   I finally made my first real foray into circular knitting and made a hat. I've been putting this off for months because of those EVIL double-pointed needles (DPNs) - yes, they ARE evil!!  Every time I tried to work with them I either made tons of mistakes or almost lost an eye from all those pointy ends sticking out.   I got so excited when I found out I didn't HAVE to use DPNs for knitting in the round E-V-E-R  (yay!!)   So, armed with two sets of circular needles, I was able to finish with no mistakes AND the hat actually fits!  cha-ching   Even Bubba was impressed and wants me to make a hat for him  :)

 

 

S-N-O-W is that four letter word I've been mumbling under my breath

I love the snow...under CERTAIN conditions.  Growing up in the desert, I did not have to shovel snow.  We could drive up a well maintained road to a mountain resort and enjoy the snow while not having to work with it.  Then, when we had our fill, we could drive back home to our warm, sunny spot in the desert valley.  That was nice and enjoyable.  Now we live in Iowa...it's a whole different story here.  Between the arctic temperatures, the strong winds blowing across the plains, freezing rain and a whole bunch of snow piling up in my driveway, I'm starting to re-think my love of snow.  Ok, not REALLY - I still love the snow...I'm just not liking Iowa so much right now.  What I AM rethinking is my wish-list for Santa.  This is my new wish list:  SNOW BLOWER.  That's all I want/need.  Why didn't I ask for this back in 2003 when we moved here?  or the next year?  or the next?  Why do I forget this one essential item?  Because we normally don't get slammed with snow until AFTER Christmas and the memory of such horrible, backbreaking days shoveling ice-snow is just an inkling of a nightmare long past.  So instead, I get to send Randy outside to chisel away the foot tall ice hump at the end of the driveway while I rest my aching back from shoveling the rest of the drive. 

While Randy studies for National Boards (part 3), I figured I would finally download the camera and update the blog...

Our last Iowa summer is coming to close, not that there was much of a summer. Other than about 2 weeks of HOT, the weather was relatively cool and pleasant and I'm glad that I won't leave here with fresh memories of a sauna-like summer. We ended up having a lot of fun in August, with a tractor ride through the country followed by a game of horseshoes with some friends, finally seeing a River Bandits game (who?!?), and ending with a spectacular 4 days in Wisconsin. I have no pictures of the first few events, but we did get pictures of our Wisconsin adventures.

Our friend Jason is from a small town outside of Milwaukee and he invited us up for some fishing. We love fishing, but we've never experienced BIG lake fishing and Lake Michigan is HUGE! We left his dad's house around 2:30 am on Friday and were in the boat heading towards open water by around 3:30. Apparently, the fish stop biting after the sun comes up, so we had to get an early start. Have I ever told you that I'm not a morning person? Yeah, I was not too happy about the lack of sleep, but excited to bring in some fish so I didn't complain too much.

Jason had checked the wave report before we left, and we were supposed to have 2 to 3 foot rolling waves. We made it past the break and into open water and found out the wave report LIED! We were hitting 3 to 5 foot waves (and I swear there were some bigger that that) and feeling every one of them. After going almost a mile we were ready to set up rigs. Unfortunately, Caroline (Jason's girlfriend) ended up feeling very ill from the waves. Poor girl - she looked absolutely miserable. Needless to say, we turned around to take her back so she could nap in the truck, then we headed back out again. All that travel on the water was really freaky...the waves were high and the sky was pitch black so I had to turn around and watch the Milwaukee skyline. Well, we got back out to the spot, set up the rigs and ended up catching three 8 lb fish - two king salmon and one rainbow trout. The fish stopped biting and we were freezing, so we headed back in. We did end up going back out that evening and the waves were pretty much gone, but so were the bigger fish. We caught seven, two of which we lost and three we released since they were really small. We kept the only decent sized fish - two more 8 lb king salmon. We had to cut it short as we watched a storm roll in and we didn't want to be caught out on the water. We finished getting the boat secured and the fish cleaned as the rain hit - perfect timing.









That evening, while we were on the lake, another couple from Palmer arrived at Jason's. They ended up heading out fishing Saturday morning. We decided to sleep, especially since the wave report was for 3 to 5 foot waves (which meant they were probably bigger) and I had my fill of that adventure. They ended up not even getting a bite - the storm must have scared all the fish away. We spent the rest of the day at Cabella's and the guys were in heaven (and so was I since there was a sale and I can't resist a good sale!)

We ended our weekend with a trip to Miller Park, home of the Milwaukee Brewers. It was Randy's first MLB game and we had so much fun! What a great way to end our last summer in the midwest!

I finally took the time to charge my camera batteries and take pictures of my recent creations.

I will start with my new knitting endeavor...my first ever knitted item - a ripple shawl. At this point I am about halfway through and it is easy enjoyable TV knitting, AS LONG AS I keep the light on (ask me HOW I know...LOL). I love the spring color - hoping it will bring some sunshine into an otherwise dull winter.


Now to earlier projects...

I found a local bead shop and learned to make beaded jewelry (thanks Louise for telling me about this shop!!). This is my first bracelet:


I took a silversmithing class and learned to design and create a pendant in sterling silver. I actually did the design, set the stone and did all the silver soldering. I had sooo much fun...now I just need to get some supplies to keep this up!


I also took a chainmaille class and learned to weave wire rings. I LOVE this art and I adore my first bracelet made from sterling silver:


I love making chainmaille jewely, and REALLY love it in sterling silver...unfortunately it's too expensive to play with. So I switched to copper just to learn and play around with. These are some of my copper creations:

European 6-in-1 weave

Mobius Flower Chain

Double to Single Strand Byzantine Watch

Fine gauge Byzantine

Chunky gauge Byzantine

Half-Persian Weave (close-up)

Half-Persian Weave

Linda's Favorite - Japanese 12-in-1

That's all I have for now...I need to order more supplies for all the ideas in my head

Enjoy Life TODAY

I received this in an email from my sister (in-law) and thought I'd share...

Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio

"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught

me. It is the most-requested column I've ever written.. My odometer

rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:"

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don't have to win every argument.? Agree to disagree.

7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone..

8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.

12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.

16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.

19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.

24. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

25. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ''In five years, will this matter?".

26. Always choose life.

27. Forgive everyone everything.

28. What other people think of you is none of your business.

29. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time.

30. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

31. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

32. Believe in miracles.

33. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.

34. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now..

35. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.

36. Your children get only one childhood.

37. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

38. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere..

39. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.

40. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

41. The best is yet to come.

42. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

43. Yield.

44. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.

Wouldn't the world be a better place if we all lived by these rules! Enjoy life today!