So, a lot has been going on… November 16, 2009

I’ve been a bit MIA recently, and I feel like I owe an explanation for that.

Over the past five months, we have gone through the ringer trying to qualify for a mortgage.  Our previous apartment complex tried to screw us for a good sum of money we didn’t feel we owed and in the end succeeded.  At the end of this long battle we were lighter in the pockets, but finally qualified for the mortgage we wanted.

After about three weeks of searching, we found a house!  We made some sacrifices (only one bathroom, not two), but in the end we got the best of all the worlds we could have asked for.  I would post pictures, but we don’t close for six days (so close!).

I also knit up a cute top for a friend’s baby girl, but I haven’t had much time to photograph it – lots of packing going on.

Stanley, the five month old German Shepard we adopted, is growing like a weed!  He is the sweetest boy and we love him dearly.

Hopefully, I will have some pictures to share after we move in and get settled – not to mention more knitting!

Catch y’all on the flip side!

 

 

 

 

An exciting find… September 28, 2009

When I’m not knitting, I run a full service design business and work full-time in Association Management.  At my management job, we do a lot of printing for the different events that we organize.  This includes signage, rack card, pamphlets, booklets….you name it.  We do much of this in house, but when it came down to our October event, we had a special need we could not meet for ourselves in-house.  We set out to find a printer that could accomodate our needs for a good price and with a fast turn around.  Google saved us.  We stumbled upon this great site called www.48hourprint.com.

This company is fantastic for the person who does not have much experience in the publishing world.  They are kind enough to provide you with a Microsoft Publisher template that you can use to build your publication.  In our case, we needed a small booklet printed.  This template was invaluable for providing dimensions, “safe zones” for text and explaining “bleed”  – a concept I knew nothing about.

When it came time to upload the file to get published, they give you step-by-step instructions for formatting the file and uploading it to their site.  You can view and approve your proofs online with their easy system.  Once they are approved, the time to print is literally 2 days!

The quality of the finished product is excellent – we could not have been happier.  We will definitely be using them again at work and I will be using them to get my business cards printed as well!  What an excellent find!

No, I didn’t die… August 22, 2009

Well, it dawned on my I haven’t posted since May and I figured I would update all of my readers as to the state of affairs in the knitting/sewing/personal world.

Well, for starters, as I was getting some bitchin’ progress done on a crocheted scarf (I didn’t know I could crochet, but I can!!) and ready to post some awesome pics, we were robbed in June.  That’s right.  Someone kicked in our door and stole everything in our living room – including my laptop.  This means that I had no way to blog or do much else.

Well, as a result of this wonderful burglary, I have yet to get all my pictures off my iPhone (luckily hubby put ALL my pictures on my new phone right before my computer was stolen).  So, I will keep this post brief as there are no pretty pictures to share.

After that, knitting fell to the wayside and I haven’t knit a stitch since.  I’ve been reading a lot, but that’s about all.

We are looking to buy a house since our landlord was pretty ambivalent about the robbery.

Other than that, as soon as I get my pictures off of my phone, I will write a real post.

A non-sensical update for the hell of it…. May 8, 2009

TEN random things you might not know about me.
1: I have always wanted to be a dancer or gymnast.
2: I like to ride horses, but I am terrified to go faster than a trot.
3: I don’t really drink…to the point I am considered the boring one.
4: I am extremely controlling about how my house is cleaned.
5: The only other person I allow to clean it is my wonderful mother.
6: I love to run, but I am scared to outside for fear of being abducted – therefore I do not run regularly.
7: I am very old fashioned in all things.
8: I would LOVE to be able to play piano so I could play Ben Folds’ music.
9: I am extremely stubborn, sometimes to my detriment.
10: I am Christian, but think I was Jewish in another life.

NINE places I’ve visited
1: Virginia
2: Illinois
3: Massachusetts
4: Florida
5: Tennesee
6: New York
7: Wisconsin
8: Michigan
9: Ohio

EIGHT ways to win my heart
1: Be honest and accept honesty
2: Have a high degree of integrity
3: Strive to be better than your previous self
4: Love animals
5: be self-reliant
6: be spontaneous
7: enjoy the outdoors
8. love

SEVEN things I want to do before I die
1: become a mommy
2: move to a farm
3: start an organization that helps the homeless become educated/find jobs/become self relient
4: finally learn to play the piano
5: become fluent in Spanish by visiting a Spanish speaking country
6: visit Europe/Australia
7: Spend the rest of my time with my hubby

SIX things I’m afraid of
1: someone breaking into my home while I sleep
2: drowning
3: dying in a car accident
4: losing someone close to me
5: falling
6: not being the best

FIVE things I don’t like
1: anything other than bananas that is banana flavored
2: people without integrity
3: people who take advantage of others
4: change
5: cherry ice cream

FOUR ways to turn me off
1: lie to me
2: talking more than doing (this is a biggie)
3: bad breath
4: make dumb choices (and yes, I can turn myself off…lol)

THREE things I do everyday
1: tell my husband I love him
2: love on/care for my furbabies
3: smile

TWO things that make me happy
1: feeling the love
2: taking care of others

ONE thing on my mind right now
1: there are other things to do, but this is more fun.

Just a little update… May 4, 2009

Okay, so I really will update soon. I have been crazy busy with stuff and blogging is the thing that has fallen to the wayside.

I have some great pics of my MacGyver’d ball of yarn, my fat loot from Knit Picks, the beginnings of my Debbie Bliss Bolero, and much more.

Stay tuned as I have a to do list this week and a proper blog post is on it!

Protected: Introspective… April 29, 2009

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Site and Knitting News April 15, 2009

So, hopefully over the next few weeks (possibly sooner) I plan to redesign the site.  In addition to redesigning the site, my plan is to make a foray into podcasting.  That’s right folks, you can listen to me speak on whatever topics I deem interesting relating to knitting, sewing, crafting, or finance.

In other news, I’m working on designing a logo.  It’s something that has been going on passively for quite a while, but I’ve recently felt a new urgency for it.  If anyone has any ideas for designing logos, please comment and share.  I’m pretty stumped with the whole process.  I’ve done lots of research, but perhaps that has made the cloudy mind worse….ugh!

I cannot wait to get my yarn!  Russell got it on the right track, but unfortunately it was too late for the shoes.  I emailed the company about his error (I cannot believe he did it with BOTH shipments), but they said I have to return the shoes to get a refund.  How am I supposed to track down shoes that got delivered to whoever lives in our old apartment?  Someone got some free $70 shoes out of this…but it wasn’t me!

My birthday was fun.  I got some neat stuff…mainly Barbies.  My mom and dad decided it was a good year to enhance my collection…and who am I to complain.  If I have a daughter, I plan to take my dear friend Holly’s advice and pass one on to her every year for special holidays.

Here are some cute pics of the baby playing around on my birthday.

He’s so cute.  He’s turning into such a great little boy.

Anyways, that’s all for today.

Poopy Internet Merchants – UPDATE April 11, 2009

Since my last post, we have uncovered the mystery of the missing yarn/Sperry’s – clerical error.  My DH (bless his heart) put in our old address as the shipping address (quite frankly I’m schocked his debit card was approved).  Knit Picks, being all wonderful, contacted him by email to let him know that the package was returned.

So far, he’s managed to get them on the right track.   Can’t wait to get my yarn!!!

Sahara – Thou art my nemesis! March 13, 2009

Following in the Yarn Harlot’s footsteps, this pattern is beating me down!  I have had to frog not ONE, but BOTH fronts of this stupid thing!  First, I miscounted the # of stitches I needed for the size I was making – knit the 3″ of stockinette, realized it at the end (of course), then had to frog it all out.  Normally I am not this anal (I’m pretty good at fudging stuff), but I love this pattern so much it had to be right.  So, once that mess was frogged out, I proceeded to start the other front (double checked my # of stitches), got about 2″ done and noticed that somehow 3 stitches had fallen off about .5″ back.  Frogged again.

I WILL beat this.

New Archives March 9, 2009

I know that seems like an oxymoron, but I felt the need to explain the random appearance of posts from way back in 2003.  Way back in the day (all of 6 years ago), DH and I decided to start LJ’s when we were in the long distance phase of our relationship.  This is way before my knitting days (although there is some crafty stuff mentioned) and serves more as our memories than anything.  If you read them, beware of 18yo angst and growing pains – don’t complain because I warned you…lol.

Bottom line: If you want to learn something about my DH and I, feel free to browse the archives.  Other than that, they are there so we didn’t lose them.