So, new years resolutions already a bust...

One of my resolutions has already been slashed.. nope, make that 2.. but it is for a good reason!

I have gotten so much business in my baby shower boutique with custom orders, I have not had the chance to post a blog update, or to knit/crochet any charity hats.

Remember this?

I am making 2 of these sets for boys this week, is that a good reason to have NOT kept my end of the blogger resolutions?

Guess I'll need to do a few extras this week... or maybe next week, because.... drum-roll...............................



I am moving!

Again...

This time it is for the better, though I had to find homes for my feline friends and one of my super fluffy adorable puppies..... but it is for the best, and when I move again to a larger house, I can get them back, a very good friend from high school is fostering them until hubby gets into National Guard, and/or gets hired soon by ANY Oregon police department.

As for the crafty side... I love being able to multi-task.

Tonight, our Criminal Justice Club hosted a "Cop Movie Night" where we watched The Expendables.

Not as bad as I expected, in fact, much better than I expected. But seeing as I had budgeted for that time to be spent making a hat to match a blanket I have already finished, I still chose to crochet through the movie... while watching it most of the time. It is rather difficult to rip out a project with boucle yarn in the dark and pick back up to finish it......

That is a rant for another time though. Here is what I got finished at the movie:

Okay, so the blanket I finished while waiting for a yarn store to open up so I could get some yarn for a charity hat drive they were hosting... do those hats count toward my charity work?

Now, these are Sensations Boucle, and don't really follow ANY sort of official pattern. The blanket is crocheted with a J hook, in a basic granny square, the tonal yarn self stripes, and the hat closest to the blanket is made the same way, it is a 3 round granny square, then I started doing the rounds without the increases at the corners. So rather than "3dbl, ch 1, 3 dbl in corner space", it is just a "3 dbl in corner space."

The second hat, which is still a work in progress, is just a plain circle, worked in dbl then once I got to 4 rounds, I stopped increasing. This is a basic bucket hat but because of the drape of the hat, it will form better to the baby head.

Tomorrow I am doing feather hair extensions at the local Indoor Market, and then the rest of the weekend and into the week I am packing for the big move. While we may need to commute 4 days a week, the money we are saving in rent and laundry will MORE than pay for cost of gas.

I am also working through my scraps to get a decent stock of baby goods to toss up on my Etsy.. I have neglected it so much... whoops.

Do you ever get so bogged down that you have to prioritize your obligations?

A New Year with New Goals

I haven't been the best blogger this year, and I want to change that. Even if I don't have many readers, I want to chronicle my creative and crafty ideas, projects, and completions.

I figure if I put my goals up here, then I will be able to better account for my actions towards my goals. Now, I have plenty of non-tangible goals: removing neagtive energy from my life, going after more healthy habits and lifestyle choices, etc., but I do have plenty of tangible goals too.

Last week, I miscalculated my bank account, and didnt have enough on my card to get gas. the employee had already pumped the gas, and I was starting to panic! The lady in front of my in line offered to pay for my gas as well as her own. She asked only that I pay it forward when I could.


Now, paying it forward is usually thought of as a monetary thing, you are given a bit of money or something is bought for you, so you buy a cup of coffee for the next guy in the diner, or you leave $5.00 with the teller at the grocery store to pay for part of the next guys groceries...but what about paying it forward with your skills, rather than your wallet.

I have set for myself a goal, or a few goals, rather. a few goals.

In light of the loss of a friend from our local knitting group, I have started to look into donating to charities that accept handmade creations, hats, scarves, blankets, etc.

I want to make at least 1 hat every week until December 1, 2011 when I will donate them all to the regional FAN (Family Access Network) office to be distributed to students who need warm clothes from our local school districts.

I also want to make at least 1 baby blanket each month to donate to Grandma's House of Bend, a non-profit organization in my local area that works to shelter and educate teen parents and their children who have been made homeless by their situation.

I am also planning on getting a clientele set up for my baby shower boutique business, and lining up vendor accounts at local baby stores.

On the blog front, I want to make at least 1 post per week, even if it is just a picture, and a hello.

I am in my final year of school before I graduate, so I want to make certain that I stay on track. Last term I made Dean's List, which is an honor awarded only to those who take more than 12 credits per term and maintain a steady 3.60 or above GPA. I want to keep that up.

Regarding post: Boxing Day

So in regard to hoping to get the goals accomplished before teh new year, I was mostly successful.

Achieving 8.5 of 15.

Now, still need to get a few more done, but I got a lot out of the way. On to a new year and new adventure!

So...Boxing Day!

Okay, so American version???fighting crowd in the Wal-mart to make exchanges and return the ugly stuff your family bought you. Not that my family bought me anything ugly, or anything at all. But that is perfectly fine because we gave to charity instead. I love Karmic Christmas! It's a family tradition!

So now, for my goals before the 1st! I want to have my house clean and organized to start out the new year.

Here are the steps I am taking.

Hubby didn't have to work tonight, so we started our list tonight.

1. Fix the dryer so I have access to my back door again.--Done
2. Organize my yarn into boxes and put on shelves in the back section of the garage (my fiber work studio)
3. Claim back my work table in the garage (beading and decoupage)
4. Put all completed projects into plastic totes for storage until they are sold online or taken to craft shows--Done
5. Set up book case in office with ALL of my books and binders--Done
6. Organize rat accessories and new cage onto new stand in Office--Almost Done
7. Set up reading corner for office
8. Clear out old clothes into boxes for Goodwill and Homeless shelters
9. Build padded bench out of old coffee table for extra seating
10. Shampoo carpets-- Done
11. Mop kitchen, bathroom and dining room floors--Done
12. Catch up on ALL laundry and Dishes--Done
13. catch up on our bills so that we can get ahead with our financial aid for school.--Done
14. clean out all old food from fridge so that we can get a full pantry when we go shopping the beginning of the next month.--Done
15. Move Large work desk into office to replace the very small desk I currently have in there.


After the 1st of the year, I will be replacing hubby's desk with one like mine, they will come to meet in the middle of the back wall in the office, I can put a slab of decorative wood or marble (imitation) between the ends to make a solid piece, so we can share the printer.

As for Holiday gifts, I should have taken pictures before I gave them, but I was silly and wrapped them before I took pics, and then forgot the camera on Christmas.

Aunt Holly= Blue/gray homespun long cowl (loom knit)
Aunt Robin= Red/burgundy rib stitch hat (loom knit)
Mom-in-law Sandy= Denim scarf (loom knit)
Cousin Haley= Blue block scarf (loom knit)
Cousin Jenni= Purple block scarf (loom knit)
Cousin Kindle= Green and White scarf (crochet)
Cousin Skyler= Camo and black hat (loom knit)
Cousin Robert= Blue and gray hat (loom knit)
Cousin John= Back and blue hat (loom knit)
Cousin Stephen= Blue multi-colored hat (loom knit)
Cousin Gabe= Red and black hat (loom knit)
2nd Cousin Noah= Blue and orange hat (loom knit)

Sister Shelly= Blue black and turquoise scarf (crochet)
Sister Shadow= Blue and brown hat (loom knit)
Mom Rita= white and pastel scarf (loom knit), painting (acrylic on cotton fabric framed with embroidery hoop) fuzzy socks (store bought)
Niece Brooklin= twin size blanket in black and blue with white polka-dots (sewn)
Nephew's girlfriend Haily= blue and turquoise scarf (crochet)

Still need to make (late gifts)
Cousin Jamie= blue scarf (crochet)
2nd Cousin Jacob= blue and black striped hat (loom knit)
2nd cousin Josh= turqoise and black striped hat (loom knit)
Cousin KaSondra= scarf in pink and black (crochet)
Dad Ken= Orange and camo hat (loom knit)


As for me... for Christmas I got:

The Harry Potter box set with the first 5 movies, Fuzzy snowflake pajamas, and leather slippers lined with fuzzies from Hubby.
A plug in griddle from Mom and Dad
A TON of bead from my sister Shelly.

The rest of the family donated to charity or cooked for the holidays.
I had a very good holiday, and I hope that everyone else did too!

Now maybe as I finish my to do list regarding crafts, I'll remember to post pics. until I get them finished... Have a great night.

Also, I am making a cowl for myself. I gave away all my warm scarves and cowls for Christmas gifts. Hmm... yay...more crafting for me!