NaBloPoMo - DONE

it is the last day of November... I have 29 other posts over the last 29 days... This one makes thirty.

I am happy to say I completed NaBloPoMo - I'll be putting this badge on my sidebar shortly. NaBloPoMo DONE Badge

This also means that one of my 101 things in 1001 days has been completed.
I'll have to go update over there now.

Hope you all had a wonderful month... soon it will be another holiday! enjoy your December.

cross blogging now

I needed to message someone on Multiply.... so I had to create an account.

They let me pull in posts from other sites, so now parts of this blog (the stitchy ones) are up there as well.
Find me there at: www.purpletx.multiply.com.

TupperWave Stack Cooker....

So - we used our stack cooker tonight for the first time.

Adapted a bisquick recipe a while back & tried it in the microwave.

Will see how well it comes out. Will also post the adapted recipe later.

second best thing

aside from PIE -- I guess the second best thing is the leftovers.
We have frozen a couple of the side dishes, and now we can have them with NORMAL dinners for a while.

I am , of course. only discussing the best parts about the FOOD.... the family & friends gathering it the utmost important and best part of the ENTIRE holiday season. all the way thru to January.

Thanks for those of you who participated in IComLevWe. It was great getting to know some new blogs. I have added several to my reader. Not 100% about next month, but I am really thinking I should do it.

TAYLR!

BLACK FRIDAY

So I went out this morning. Got a coat & boots for each kid. They did not have the grown up coats we were looking for.
It is nice to get the kids taken care of though.

and the best part.... after tax, it was still under $50!!!!

TAYL

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

To all of you in the US.... Have an excellent Turkey Day.

We have Ham and Turkey for our dinners. (Yep, two meals at two locations.)
That also means TWO PIES!!

Talk at you tomorrow!

PIE!!!!

My ultimate favorite part of Thanksgiving will always be the pumpkin pie - with loads of whipped cream.

They must be baked no later than the night before. I have to be at work at 9... so the pies just exited the oven.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE.

NEW MOON (rate it)

OK, so I knew it would not be to the book, or to the standard of Harry Potter. BUT.... I definitely liked it. I'd give this one a 4.25 as well. I'm even willing to pay to see it in the theater again with hubby, if I can get him to go to a theater.

NEW MOON

so - I am actually getting to go see this today.... and yes I am going by myself!
I'll give you a star rating when I get home - I gave the first one 4.25 stars.

IComLevWe

I really enjoyed all the comments I got - thank you all....

It was an eye opening experience to read all of your blogs. I am looking forward to following several of you in my reader now. Hopefully I will pop back in and comment even after this week is over.


Well off to hit the grocery store (new Super WM near us) for those last minute Thanksgiving things.

TAYTR (Talk At You Tomorrow, Really)

swap I hosted...

So now I have actually completed a swap that I hosted, people exchanged & all... hope everyone sends like they should.... two more next week, we will see how that goes.

IComLevWe.... starts TODAY

It has been quite fun looking thru blogs I did not know about.

I am always amazed at the great writing and depth of subject that other people can put forth. It does however, make me feel a little inadequate with my posts.

Working on some swaps today & those ornies for the family too.

Have a great weekend.

Back to work (and swap update)

So I have to head back to work tonight after two days off (this almost never happens, I work six days a week for the most part)

It has been nice to have the time off. I got to finish the ornies for the SNOWMAN swap that I am now hostessing... Original host went AWOL (we are worried because this is very unlike her) before assigning partners.
I hope to finish a few more of the same ornie for other friends & as an angel for a swap that someone missed out on.

I also got my 10 of 10 list in the mail & have a few postcards that should go in the box tomorrow if all goes well.

Enjoying FB games today too.... new bejewled personal high score for this round.

TAYL!

See if Pics work today

so I have been dyeing & stitching some... let us see if I can get the pics to function today.

Monopoly Base Angle 1
This is the background for my Monopoly Board - it is a greyish blue. There is some subtle mottling in it.

Monopoly Base Angle 2
Another shot of it.


The two light blue strips for some family christmas gifts.


Beginning of those family gifts.

TAYL.

BTW: I missed Teaser Tuesday

Mostly because it is still the same book as last time.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HUBBY

Well my Husband has a Birthday today... finally turns 30.

No cake no presents... just FaceBook games. That is a fun night.

WOO HOO more work hours....

So I got a call this morning before I woke up, asking if I can come in early... I might miss dinner, but I get to go to work at 5:15 tonight.
I'm off at 12:15, so I finally get a long shift.

HAPPY VAN

So earlier this year (after moving to WA) hubby & I bought a used mini van, so that there was room for the kids in the car & the vehicle would be in decent running order.

The van is AWD, good for snow and ice as well as normal driving in the rain in WA.

Someone who had the van before had the DUMB idea to put 16" rims on the back & lower than requested profile tires on the front. -- We have now corrected that. It is on 15" rims with the required size tires again.

Bought a couple of used rims on Saturday & yesterday I got four BRAND NEW MATCHING tires. Best part is I can take the old rims back to the place I got the others & get some $$ for them.

It is nice to have the van sit level with the ground now and to not have any speed sensor issues, because all four wheels match.

stitch tired

Wow - I had never fallen asleep while stitching before...

It was interesting to starttle awake while sitting on the couch and be halfway through a stitch. Not moving, but frozen part way done.

I guess that means I need to get lunch done early so I can get the baby to nap... so I can have one too.

Ok - so this is like tweeting but without the actual twitter site. Posting directly from the cell phone. Knew I got that option. Now it is working. Woo-Hoo.

Projects

So with the dyeing done (I went an bought an Iron) then got the pics done - still need to upload....

I was asked about my dyeing - here is the best info on the knid of stuff that I do: http://www.pburch.net/dyeing.shtml - Paula Burch is the ultimate guru as far as I am concerned. Procion MX dyes as (usually) Low Water Immersion.

I am ready to start on my Monopoly board... just as soon as I finish the christmas ornie things at swap-bot.

Currently Embroidering & cross stitching some snowmen.

IComLeavWe & More

So I just learned about International Comment Leaving Week, thanks to an email I got from NaBloPoMo. Definitely something up there with the writing...

I shall attempt this for the month of November, if it is before the 21st you can still get in on this month... if not - aim for next month.

The full explanation is here: http://www.stirrup-queens.com/2009/11/icomleavwe-november-2/

Facebook has gotten more interesting for me (and more adictive) I now find myself having to log back in at set times, just to check on my: Restaurant, Farm, Fish, Sorority, Vampire Clan..... not to mention that I play Yacht and Bejeweled there.... -- so when am I going to have time to read all these blogs??

THANK YOU to all who have served

For 90 years, the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month has been a remembrance of those who served America in time of war.
I am the Daughter of a Veteran & Wife of a Veteran. Many others in the family have also served - I do not hesitate to say thank you to all I know who have served.
This year the holiday we call Veteran's Day has a bittersweet note to it. I lost my Grandfather within the past year. He was US Navy, ret. Totally a career man, and followed by his son into the service. Capt J.W. Sellers, I miss you!!!

And as I heard again this morning:

Freedom is not free! If you don't stand behind our troops, then feel free to stand in front of them!

Teaser Tuesday

Still in HP y7 Pg 517

"All I am saying," said Bill, setting his hand on the door back into the sitting room, " is to be very careful what you promise goblins, Harry. It would be less dangerous to break into Gringotts than to renege on a promise to a goblin."

Tired today

It is sad when you start to doze off while sitting up - in the middle of a game of Yhatzee on the PC.

I wish I could sleep when it was the right time to sleep.

Teaser tuesday will follow.

dyeing done

I need to take a picture of it now (with my new camera) it is a greyish blue - or a blueish grey.

Now I have to find the dang Iron so I can start on the project....

Quiet Today

It has been a nice weekend, SIL took the eldest for the weekend. I miss having the no fighting, no yelling, just chase the little one when it is a regular weekend.
What is it about the kids that individually they are great, but when you put them together they are at each other's throats every 15 minutes??
Maybe MOMMY just needs a week off. Anybody want a house guest for a week?? ;)
Well expect the big one home in the next couple of hours... so we need to eat lunch before then.
Make it a great week.

dyeing soon

Well, I am jumping back into the dyeing this weekend.

I have some aida cloth that I bought for my Monopply board. It is too white. I believe I am going for a mottled grey look with it. I still have not decided 100%. However I do have to go get Soda Ash today, or I will not be able to do anything...

I know there was other stuff I wanted to dye too, but I am not sure what it was, or where I hid it from myself.

Off to the store (and maybe the baby will nap in the car.)

Farmville

I have come to the realization that some of these new online games are quite addicting.

I find myself wondering if it is OK to ask every person you know in real life to join your farmville neighbors.

If you know me, and you play Farmville on facebook... you are welcome to send me a friend request for the only purpose of being my neighbor, so we can have bigger farms. See you there.

Sock Friends

Over the past couple of days I was going thru past posts of blogs I follow (with the no internet time there was a LOT to read) and I have discovered some GREAT things in the UK.

While looking thru The Toy Society I saw a toy drop that was a SOCK BUNNY. This lead me to the BUNNY BLOG and to the folksy store that has the bunnies.

I also was transported from there to some of their friends sites: HOTDOG, The Sock Gardener, and other sock friends that now get followed around with cameras.

I have come to the realization (again) that there are much more than Monkeys out there to be had with socks. Maybe soon I will branch out and actually MAKE a monkey. Then I have to adopt a bunny and a dog from the UK. (Or maybe do those in the other order.)

I also need to get my tush in gear and actually do a toy drop this year. I have lots of yarn & can do an Ami pretty quick. Besides with the cotton yarn, they are 100% washable.

Hope your week is going well.

I have realized...

I need a calendar on the wall in the computer area.
yesterday was TUESDAY. So my Teaser Tuesday is being posted on Wednesday.

Page 181.
He read the letter again, but could not take in any more meaning than he had done the first time, and was reduced to staring at the handwriting itself. SHe had made her "g"s the same way he did: He searched through the letter for every one of them, and each felt like a friendly little wave from behind a veil.
HPy7: And The Deathly Hallows

THANKS to Moo

With the new Tupperware venture came the need for business cards of some sort. I went with the mini-cards from Moo. They arrived yesterday.

I am super pleased with them. They are actually BETTER than I thought they would be.

I used an awesome picture from the Fourth of July. It came out in shades of purple and pink with some orange in it. See end of post. It is also the same picture I took my logo from.

The reverse has the contact info and my site location 'my.tupperware.com/akhagee' listed for shopping.

I did some copy and paste from the main Tupperware site and made a small back logo. It reads "What's better than getting Tupperware" **shamless plug: If you do NOT have a Tupperware consultant already, please keep me in mind.**

A day off

So today (or rather yesterday evening) I did not have to go into work. However I am finding that it is now past midnight and I am still not ready for bed.
I might just go lay on the couch & watch some on demand so that if I do fall asleep, I can go watch it later. I am finding that lately I sleep better on the couch anyway. Or in the center of the bed while the bed is empty. I believe that is a mattress issue.

Wow - November already

It is sometimes odd to get off work and find that even though you have not gone to bead, a day has changed without your having realized it.
It still seemed like Saturday night, until I sat down for two minutes to check my email before hitting the pillow. Now I have this big clock staring at me that says November 1st.
I also left my phone at home before I left for work. I clocked out a 3am, I stopped and got gas, and when I picked up my phone after walking in the door.... it reads 2:45am. I wish ALL the clocks were that easy to change for daylight savings.
Hope your candy gathering went well.... type at you tomorrow.

annoyed

sure I mis-spelled the title.... not even sure if it is a real word.... but here is the point.

Why can I not get my body on a set sleep schedule??
If I get off work at 1am, why can I not be tired when I get home. It is pushing 6am and I am still not ready to go to bed. I shall force myself SOON to just GO anyway.

Imported

So I went back and imported some of the posts from my other blogs - and now I am merged into one location!

FedEx

So why if you live in a multi unit setting will the home delivery (ground package) driver leave your box at the office, but the 2 day package gets left on your door step without so much as a knock on the door??
Is it not obvious that a 2 day package would contain important stuff that you do not want the neighborhood kids just running off with??

I just found "Teaser Tuesdays"

Here is the lady that started it all.

I like the idea of this and at least four times I will have a pre-planned post for NaBloPoMo with this.... Since it is officially Tuesday here, I shall go grab the book I have been trying to read for the past several months. Death of a Darkloard by Laurell K Hamilton.

Teaser from random page (#151):

"Why had the land brought in these new people? They stank of goodness. The smell of it attracted evil."

So mine is more than two sentences, but it looks so nice out of context.

NaBloPoMo

Well it is fast approaching NOVEMBER - the OFFICIAL NaBloPoMo month!
I listed completing the NaBloPoMo as one of my 101 things (see related blog) to complete.
I am going to attempt it for November this year. If I do not succeed I will have other months to finish, including the main month next year before my 11-11-11 end date arrives.

My Collection of Pocket Dragons

I joined an e-swap for showing off our collections. I am emailing these to my partners, but posting them as well. Both incase the pics do not show in the email, and so that if anyone else wants to see then they can.

THE WHOLE COLLECTION

Overview of the entire collection.

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A Very Good Sign

Figure that is also the display sign.

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MY FAVORITE TWO

These are my favorite two.
Lollipop is the first one I ever saw that made me want them. I was finally able to buy it this past year.
Purple is very self explanatory.

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My Favorite Set

I love this set.
They remind me of the "no evil" monkeys. They were actually designed as three separate pieces & sold in different years.

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Hope you enjoyed a peak into my stuff.....

As to other things I collect that are not pictured:
Menus - yes real ones from going out to eat.
Shot Glasses - my grandpa built me a cabinet for them, I am still trying to fill it.
Fabric - what good little quilter girl does not try to build a huge stash.

Basket of Biscornu

So I have found a NEW challenge - just what I needed, right??

Through a link from another blog I was reading I found this challenge blog: Basket of Biscornu on Tuesday Jan 27th.

Since I have been thinking of doing one of these little "pillows" for about a month, I decided "What the heck... I can do that." and I sent in my request for an invite.

The challence is to do one biscornu a month & have yourself a nice "basket" full of them by the end of the year. So.... that left me until Saturday to get one made, take the pic & post the pic... Well I made it.

Bought the floss on Tuesday - Started designing the pattern that night & started the main outline stitching that night.
I finished it today!!
My pic is also posted over there already.

Here it is...
My January Biscornu

I decided against a button for now. If it starts screaming for one, I'll go find it one. (well two, really)

I decided to take the pic of it on a mirror, so that more of the back could be seen. I am not too happy with the back, as the hearts are too far under & I messed up on my plan. The front and back hearts were to have opposed, not been the same. The quarter is there for a size comparison.

funny thing

I was searching thru the swaps today & found this swap here

I followed the link to the quiz & here is my score:
How quirkyalone are you?
Your score was 83. Somewhat quirkyalone (otherwise known as quirkytogether):
You are probably part of a mysterious group of people, the quirkytogethers. You share many of our quirky qualities, but you manage to find yourself, on a regular basis, in a coupled situation. Interesting.

--- So now my suspicions are confirmed.... I am a loner at heart, even though I am happily married....

crafty update

So over the past few weeks I have been working away on my swaps.
Made a few amis, made a couple of stuffies, made a Poo & Toilet Paper - yep REALLY!!
I also made three or four Dotee dolls.

Most of the items are up on my Flickr so they are imortalized (for now) online.

Today I created a Crochet Hook Roll for a swap - I got the one partner I really wanted to get, so I was overly happy about that. I really hope she likes what I made.

Big kids 7th B-Day is next Friday - however, we are NOT having a party. I know.... we are scaring her for life by not letting her have a mass of kids here, but we are NOT going to pay for all that crap. She is going to have ONE kid here for a sleep over. It will be the first full over-night sleep over she has EVER had with another kid, so we are kind of worried about how it will go. She can get bossy, and that is one of my biggest concerns.

I have to do cupcakes for her at school, 23 kids (plus teacher or two & any parents that might be there) I'll just propbably take thirty & extras can go to the office ladies.

Well.... as it is a quarter til 12 now - It is about time for me to wonder off to bed.... wish I could get some sleep while I was there. Hopefully I will make it to bed soon.

We love Cheryl

one of the awesome people on Swap-Bot has a stage IV cancer that we have recently found out is spreading worse. CherylLaVon is amazing with her strength & I finally found the words to tell her.
I posted this in one of the threads in the public forums here.

*********

Cheryl.
I wanted to say thank you for helping me enjoy my swap-bot time. - I love that I've gotten to meet someone as wonderful as you.
I was not able to go back to Texas earlier this month for my grandfather's service and you helped me be strong by just being strong yourself.
My heart got added to my hand last night, thanks to one of the random swapbot tagged flicker pics. I had not found this thread yet. I have now read thru all of it & you have made me cry twice with your lovely posts.
I am glad for you that you get to have Polly come, though sad that it was needed for you to have a hospice nurse at all. - I always wish everyone could have as good an outcome as I did.
I do not really pray, but you have reminded me to be strong when I need to & reminded me that laughter is the best medicine. It definitely helped me get thru my Crap when I was younger.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING A PART OF SWAP-BOT FOR AS LONG AS YOU CAN!

copy to be posted on my blog - because I want to be able to find it later. :) -- Amanda

List to Inspire or Admire

There is a swap I joined at swap-bot. It was about the following list. I would rather post my list than just email it to my one partner. It makes the list feel more real that way.

---

The goal was to Bold if DONE then it was suggested to use two other colors as accents - one for NEVER GONNA HAPPEN - one for COOL - I'D LIKE TO TRY THAT.


01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said “I love you” and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby’s diaper (Mommy to two, so this is a given)
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne (can not stand champagne so this will never happen - gotten drunk on a few other alcoholic drinks though)
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run (I don't play, so this is not possible)
36. Danced like a fool and didn’t care who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day (I just can not keep it going for a whole day - I've done a few hours, but that was my limit)
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 50 states (this is one of the things on my "life list" so I am working on it all the time)
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your CDs
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Played touch football
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater (got to find one first)
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken (Don't plan on falling in love again & I have had issues with this love, so no plans for this one) - I am glad to have found that broken hearts CAN be mended.
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight (I've actually never played it)
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced (I've since re-married too)
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo (actually, I have five)
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an “expert”
83. Gotten flowers for no reason (someone telling you they loved you is a reason... now I have GIVEN them for no reason, to my Mom)
84. Performed on stage (I think we all had some performance in elementary school, right?)
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark (too bad it is a seasonal item - cause it is DANG GOOD)
88. Kissed on the first date
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house (and had it foreclosed on too)
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one/both of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror (performed AT Rocky Horrer.... audience participation is a MUST!)
96. Raised children (working on it RIGHT NOW)
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
98. Passed out cold
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over (That is how we came to be in Colorado now)
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking
103. Had plastic surgery (I want a tummy tuck - but need to be done having kids first)
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds (I'm not sure if cumulative counts... but I have not consecutively done it)
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback (and had someone hold me while I had one)
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Touched a stingray
110. Broken someone’s heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours (sick with Mono as a child - slept almost all 48 of the 48)
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper (at the age of 14)
129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school (too bad it did not last that time either)
131. Parasailed
132. Touched a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey
135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146. Dyed your hair
147. Been a DJ
148. Shaved your head
149. Caused a car accident
150. Saved someone’s life (when someone tells you that the thought of you being hurt by their death kept them from ending it - I say that counts)