Stay.See.Make.Do.

Goodbye, November

The weather turned stormy again this afternoon, but as long as my husband makes it home safely (he's driving through it) and the power stays on (knock on wood) I'm set. I know what I'm making for supper, I have a new knitting project lined up, and the kids are actually motivated to help me tidy up the house so that we can start putting up our Christmas decorations. We had a fun, super-easy snack that I'll share with you tomorrow, and now the kids are playing nicely together as the day winds down, so I have just this little minute to reflect on November.

Whew.

I made it through NaBloPoMo. Not a perfect record, but I gave it a good run. I don't feel like I actually got a whole lot done around the house, but nothing fell apart too badly so I figure I came out ahead. I made some new friends. I did some important thinking. I got some shopping taken care of.

And now, with Advent here and Christmas coming into view, I have some fun projects planned. With a new camera due to arrive next week you're sure to see me back here soon. 

Thanks for following along.

Like I Needed the Reminder

Apparently I'm going crazy. Wait. Make that crazier.

I was sure I wrote a post yesterday.

Obviously, I didn't.

I took care of two other appointments and remembered that I have to go to the dentist today. So... three things and my brain is full now? What is up with that?

Ow! My head hurts!

Someday I'll get a new iPod or smartphone and set alarms for myself on it. (Will it make things better or worse?) But honestly, right now that just sounds like ONE MORE THING to add to the stupid To Do list. Which is what I do not want.

Also, since I remembered today's dentist appointment yesterday, does it count toward today's three? Or do I get to carry it over, like a remainder? No wonder my brain is full if it insists on toting cluttering questions like this around. I can hear my germanic genes warring with my impracticality already. But my courage will not fail. Not This Day.

So now I'm off to check my calendar. And to put a pencil and notebook in my pocket, 'cause I'm sure to need to remember something later when my brain is already to capacity. And in this war, the pen is mightier than the sword.

Uncle Buck?

Every year I think someone is going to get this guy, and yet he keeps coming back. He did have a bigger brother or cousin that used to sit by our back door that I haven't seen for a year (or two?) but this one was definitely eating out of the bird feeder last year. This morning he was browsing the millet that the birds disdain.

Pardon the blur, but this was taken through the window. He was about 10 feet away.

Lucky for him the only thing I was shooting with was my camera.

One Purple Candle

It's the first Sunday of Advent.

Hear that whooshing sound? It's Christmas rushing to meet us. Hang on! Here we go!

Kids Taking Pictures

I'm buying a new camera and will be passing down my old ones for my kids to use. I hope to teach them a few basics and then let them have fun. So far, with very little coaching ("Just don't drop it!" and "Here's the ON and how to zoom.") the eldest has given me shots like these:

Um...???

Hello there, dear.

I will lift up mine eyes?

I have hope for the future of this project. This kid's gonna love macro.

Stuck

The weather has us stuck at home, my supplies I need for making some of my Christmas gifts are stuck at the Post Office so I am stuck looking for another project, I tried to shop online today and got stuck trying to make a decision so I didn't buy anything, the power and the internet service have us stuck guessing if they will be on or off, and I am stuck for a topic for today's post. I'm going to bed and try again tomorrow.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I have a theory about how people end up eating so much on Thanksgiving. It goes like this: There's just so much good food!

Yup. Brilliant, I know.

On the album Whaddaya Think of That, this song is sung as a round. (I love rounds. A lot. Something about doing your own thing and still sounding nice while others do their own thing. And yet, you're all doing the same thing. Deep, right? And fun!)

Today we are home with ourselves. A few of the kids still have a cough, so no company this year. Sure is nice having a big family - eight of us around the table and it's always a party!

And the leftovers don't last too long, either.

I hope you all are having a wonderful day.

We Gather Together

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day. I've seen so many blog, facebook, and forum posts not to mention tweets about how thankful people are and what they're thankful for. Nothing wrong with that, except... Funny how so many people never stop to think, "Who am I thanking?"

Whatever Works

Don't have a tiny closet/wardrobe for your princesses? Well, an egg carton will fit the bill in a pinch.

I don't know if I would have ever thought of that. I'm glad my "make do" philosophy is being passed down to my kids. In this case, they're passing it back to me.

Look around your house. What can you re-purpose?

Down to the Wire

Recently I finished knitting another one of these:

This is the Rubber Ducky face cloth (free Ravelry download).

And I'm working on a set of potholders like this one for a friend's birthday:

These are crocheted with a special "thermal" stitch that makes the fabric double thickness. You can see a video tutorial here. I learned this stitch from my mother and my dad's cousin.

As the friend's birthday is tomorrow, I need to go and finish it up. Pictures later so watch this space.