I love my major

I get to write a research paper on the clothing of the ancient Greeks, probably with a focus on the clothing that was sacrificed to the gods. How cool is that!

I never got to write on such cool stuff the first time I was in college.

The bad part is that my back pack weighted about 50 pounds after my trip to the library this afternoon.

Souvenir

I took the girls to see a local Civil War battlefield. We came away with a souvenir.

Not a blue or gray cap. Not a Confederate or Union flag. No, we got a cat.

I think it was dropped off by someone. It wasn't at all shy about people like you would expect from a "wild" cat. It was living in an old (Civil War era) abandoned (of course) shack. We looked for Mama but there was no sign of her or any other kitties. A lot of traffic goes by there, so it would be easy for someone to leave an unwanted kitty, OR easy for Mama to not quite make it across the street.

The girls decided to name her Arwen (they just saw Fellowship of the Ring) but after our first visit to the vet this afternoon we have changed the name to Pippin. It seems more appropriate for him.

Pippin was checked put today for feline leukemia and worms (both negative) and got his first vaccination. His only trouble seems to be that he is a little on the scrawny side and has fleas. The scrawny shouldn't be too hard to fix, and I am sure we'll do ok with ditching the fleas too. (It helps that our entire floor is tile, no carpet for fleas to hide in.)

The vet says he looks to be about 5 weeks old. He is white with tabby spots. You can especially see the stripes in his head, or you could if I could get a decent picture of him. The little guy won't stay still long enough to get any kind of good shot.

Birthday Chaos

Getting ready for the party tomorrow. Too busy to blog. Pics when I get a chance, promise.

Beautiful Stash

I had the lack of good sense yesterday to visit our local (and sadly soon closing) yarn shop.

I couldn't help myself. 40% off! I bought sock yarn (I am determined to learn to knit socks.) and needles (I have many needles already.) These are NEEDLES! Wooden needles. Wooden Needles. Indian Rosewood and Vietnamese Palmwood to be specific. They are beautiful, especially the shorter set of size 10.5 rosewood needles that have thee lovely little knobs on the ends. Wow

I just feel all giggly. I have bought EXPENSIVE wooden knitting needles, and they weren't expensive, since they were on sale. now, what to knit on them? They seem to call for something important and lovely. I'll have to think.

I don't have any yarn worthy of these incredible needles. I need to go back to the shop tomorrow.

Unfortunately, they didn't have any size 2 double points, which the sock pattern I have calls for. So, the girls and I had to trip over to Hobby Lobby and buy a set of plain old aluminum size 2 doubles. And you know (or can guess) what happens when I go into a Hobby Lobby...I bought more than knitting needles.

I am just heady with the possibility of it all. Wooden needles, wow.

Ice Cream

If you are blessed enough to have a Baskin Robbins in your area go see if they have Baseball Nut. Dang! That is good! (but sadly, I have the feeling it is limited time only :( )

One Word

Nabbed this off of Suz.
I love these things, so sue me.

Respond with One word.

1. Where is your Cellphone? - charging
2. Relationship? - incredible
3. Your Hair? - grey
4. Work? - home
5. Your sister? - censored
6. Your favorite thing? - roleplaying
7. Your dream last night? - bureaucratic
8. Your favorite drink? - Pepsi
9. Your dream car? - Saturn
10. The room you’re in? - living
11. Your shoes? - sneakers
12. Your fears? - falling
13. What do you want to be in 10 years? - archaeologist
14. Who did you hang out with this weekend? - hubby
15. What are you not good at? - confrontation
16. Muffin? - banana
17. One of your wish list items? - laptop
18. Where you grew up? - military
19. Last thing you did? - teach
20. What are you wearing? - jeans
21. What aren’t you wearing? - hat
22. Your pet? - fish
23. Your computer? - slow
24. Your life? - busy
25. Your mood? - content
26. Missing? - pendant
27. What are you thinking about right now? - stitching
28. Your car? - SUV
29. Your kitchen? - dirty
30. Your summer? - finished
31. Your favorite color? - purple
32. Last time you laughed? - now
33. Last time you cried? - yesterday
34. School? - soon
35. Love? - forever

A Little Teaching

DD6 was sitting alone in the livingroom with me. (I was reading blogs.) Her sisters and Daddy are in the other room watching Jurassic Park, which she is not allowed to watch yet. A bit of inspiration hit and I asked if she wanted me to teach her something, knitting or criss stitch, or whatever. She piped right in with "chaining" (meaning crochet). My DD8 can make a chain and nothing else, but she sits for hours sometimes to present me with yards of chained yarn. She doesn't do any other stitches.

So, I taught DD6 how to make a chain. It is interesting to try to explain to a child exactly where all of her fingers need to be to perform this basic stitch. it is so natural to me after all this time that I have to actually be holding the hook and yarn to see where they go. 10 minutes later and she is happily sitting over on the coush chaining away.

I tried to teach her a single crochet stitch, baiting the hook (haha) with "Even DD8 can't do this, but after watching me do 3 singles she decided to just chain for a while. I can respect that.

Our Christmas tree is going to be so covered with yarn this year...

Photo Hunt 69- Funky

I couldn't think of anything to photograph for this, so I decided to peruse my files.

This shot makes my middle hurt just looking at it. This is my 8 yr old DD's winning Twister move. It really looks funky to me how her shoulders are turned almost 180 degrees from her hips. I don't remember ever being that flexible.

I have a DATE!

Yay! Woohoo! Yahoo! We set up a sitter and DH and I are off on a night of whatever we want. (I'm thinking Outback, but who knows?) Dinner, of course, maybe a movie, some shopping, spending some alone time; this is going to be great!

What should I wear? My new jeans and a nice shirt. What nice shirt? Maybe the white one...

Simpsonize Me

TWCOE

That stands for Teresa Wentzler Christmas Ornament Exchange. (see here)

I saw some of the ornaments that went around last year. They were really lovely. Unfortunately, I was way too late to join in. This year I plan to get an early start and take part in the fun. I have already gone through my TW patterns to find what could be used as ornaments.
There are ornament patterns in her Christmas collection book. Those will do for a start, I think. After that I think I will look into using the corner pieces from the various borders of hers that I have.

I figure if I take what I need for an ornament every Monday when I go to class (the bulletin board encourages working on a TW every Monday) I could have quite a few done by the deadline in November. I'll keep you posted.

blah blah blah

I have been meaning to blog ever since we got back from Kentucky...over a week ago! but well...stuff happens.

Homeschooling is going well. The girls really enjoy Story of the World, so we have been focusing on history for a while 9and math when I need a break) DD8 says she wants an Ancient Egypt themed birthday party. That sounds like fun, I think we'll do that.

We went to the city pool Monday. We all had lots of fun.

I feel like I am coming down with an ear infection. Unfortunately, I am in that phase of "if I ignore it it will get better." Once I fully realize that it won't, I will go to the doctor.

I have been enjoying a renewed vigor in my motivation to cross stitch. This is because of two things. #1- July is over. If I am going to give this as a Christmas gift I need to get cracking. Unfortunately that didn't motivate me much during April, May, or June. #2- I took the piece (Smokey Mountain Christmas) with me to Kentucky to work on if I got bored. I did a few times and got the chance to work on it. That got the juices flowing and it has continued even after we got home. I finally finished those blasted bears. I didn't want to start the sleigh so I am working on the forest behind Santa.
The snow on the largest tree calls for pearl blending filament. I am almost certain I bought some but I cannot find it. I'll just go without for now and stitch it over later if I need to. White alone looks alright, but I think the pearl would give it some extra sparkle. We'll see.

Photo Hunt 67 - Tiny

This topic has been plaguing me for a couple of days. It is so open and yet...I don't know. Anyway, I was taking my medicines this morning and, swallow after swallow, I was annoyed with how huge and glucky the pills are. Thank You, Claritin, for being Tiny!

Too bad I don't have any prenatal vitamins around here. Those would have really made the Claritin look small. Those things would choke a horse! On second thought...I am glad I didn't have any of those around to add to the photo.

Scattergories

Choose an answer to each category. It must begin with the first letter of your name.

Your Name: - Kim
1. Famous singer/band: KISS
2. 4 letter word: Kiss
3. Street name: Kennedy
4. Color: khaki
5. Gifts/Presents: Koala stuffed doll
6. Vehicle: Kia
7. Things in a souvenir shop: Keepsake
8. Boy name: Kevin
9. Girl name: Kay
10. Movie title: Killing Fields, The
11. Drink: Kool-Aid
12. Occupation: King
13. Flower: Kansas Feather (had to look that one up)
14. Celebrity: Kennedy, Jamie
15. Magazine: Kingdom Magazine
16. U.S. city: Kalamazoo
17. Pro sports teams: Kansas City Chiefs
18. Fruit/vegetable: kiwi
19. Reason late for work: King Kong attacked the city
20. Something you throw away: Kleenex
21. Things you shout: Keep off the grass!
22. Cartoon character: Kanga

8 Random Things

8 Random Things - The Rules

1. Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves
2. People who are tagged write a blog post about their own 8 random things and post these rules.
3. At the end of your blog you need to tag 8 people and post their names
4. Don't forget to leave them a comment and tell them they're tagged, and to read your blog.

1. I may be getting a laptop soon.

2. The laptop is going to cost me more than money.

3. Pears feel gritty when I eat them, but otherwise they are ok.

4. I just hit my funny bone and my elbow and lower arm are tingly.

5. I have too many hobbies.

6. I FINALLY graduate from college in May! (only 12 years late)

7. I have no plans for a career after college.

8. Learning to read ancient Greek is fun but not easy.

I am not going to tag anyone.

Take 2

I was out and about the web this afternoon. I must have read about 50 blogs. Here is one of the meme's I ran across.

Two names you go by:
1. Kim
2. Mommy

Two things you are wearing right now:
1. earphones
2. wedding ring

Two things you want (or have) in a relationship:
1. patience
2. friendship

Two of your favorite things to do:
1. surf the web
2. read

Two things you want very badly at the moment:
1. a laptop
2. cookie

Two people who will fill this out:
1. Can't say
2. Everyone who might pretty much already has

Two things you did last night:
1. Role played with DH
2. None of your business ;)

Two things you ate today (right, by 6am?):
1. PB&J
2. pizza

Two people you last talked to:
1. DH
2. DD6

Things you're doing this week/weekend:
1. Hopefully finally see HP5
2. Visit the in-laws, try not to think about not being home to get my HP7 in the mail

Two longest car rides:
1. When? Recently? 8 hours from MS to KY
2. Ever? CA to MS (in 1986. Took for-frickin-ever)

Two favorite holidays:
1. Christmas
2. Thanksgiving

July 14 - Photo Hunt 66 Shadow(s)

Shadow - This was one Christmas Eve morning st my in-laws'. It has the tendency to snow AFTER we get there when we go up in the winter.

Photo Theme - Fake

This one was not easy. I don't generally take photos of things that are "fake." Fake seems to have a bad connotation. Too bad. I couldn't find anything like that in my photos. I decided to ignore that connotation and just find a pic of something that isn't real.

Believe it or not, that it NOT a real butterfly there by my DD9 (then 4.)

Sweet

I knew Sweet was coming eventually, from reading the blog I found Photo Hunt on in the first place. And, while looking for other photos for other categories, I spotted this one and knew it would work nicely here, better than pics of birthday cakes, even if I did frost and decorate them.

4th of July a few weeks ago; my DD8 here has just shoved a toasted marshmallow into her mouth.

Shiny

I couldn't decide between this and a very nice shot of the pond at Big Spring Park in Huntsville, AL. The sun was shining very nicely on the water. Since I don't really want to be a part of a flood of Christmas ornaments in December, I'll post mine here and now.

Hair

I have some photos of the girls after they hacked each others' hair, but since I used one of those for Broken and I didn't want to repeat, I had to dig deeper.

This is DD6 just before Halloween 2002. She was two years old. Her sisters were being Disney Princesses, complete with wigs. She was jealous that they got to wear the hair, so I took her pic with the Snow White wig on.

June 9 Theme- Shoes

Shoes? Sheesh, you have got to be kidding me!

Well, I thought for a bit, looked through my images, etc. Then I got an idea of a photo I knew. I had to hunt for it. Photo Hunt, literally!

This is DD8. She is under 2 in this shot. She loved to put grown-up shoes on and tromp around the house. Here she has Daddy's shoes on her hands.

She has them on her hands because she has another pair on her feet and that wasn't enough for the shoe-loving mood she was in.

June 2 Photot Theme - Art

This is at my in-laws' home, in the kitchen. DD6 (She looks to be about 3 or 4 here.) is going to town with the temperas. This is one of their favorite parts about going up there. Having retired elementary school teachers as grandparents has its benefits.

Colorful

This is the quilt top I made for DD6 for her 7th birthday. The top is almost done, then I need to quilt and finish it. I hope I get it done in time for her birthday next month.

Cooked/Cooking

This one was easy, after finding all these other pics, I have a pretty good idea of what is hiding in my image files.

This is my wonderful hubby this past 4th of July. He did a great job with the burgers and dogs. Yummy!!!

Photo Theme - Five

Five seems like a very random theme to me. I had a couple of things come to mind. Foremost was my sister, who has 5 kids. Here is a picture taken at the church dedication for the youngest.

My sister (in blue) is holding her baby daughter. Her oldest son (age 11 or 12) is speaking with her. My other niece is behind him. She was about 4 here. My other nephew is behind her, closest to the podium. He was about 6 or 7 here. My mom, in red, is holding my other other nephew, age 2.

Five kids, Heaven help her

Childhood

This one was very hard. Not because I don't have any to fit, but because I have too many! With 3 daughters all under 10 (for now) I have a lot of pics of childhood.

This is one of my favorites. I love the way she (DD6 - then 3/4) is staring off into the beyond. Childhood is like that.

Rare

This one was hard.

I have pics of rare animals from the Memphis Zoo, my favorite being the pandas, but TKDChick posted pandas for her pic this (that) week and I would feel like I was copying, so I looked for something else.

In this shot we are at Mesker Park Zoo in Evansville, IN (I love taking pics at zoos.) They have peacocks walking loose around the park. One got very close to us on the path. My DD8 (then 3) said she was going to pet him.

I was a little worried he would peck her, but decided not to play overprotective Mommy and let whatever happened happen. She got right up to him and almost did manage to pet him. At the last foot or so he turned around and dashed off.

Funny thing about turning around when you have a tail like that, it swings around too. DD got a swat right on her tushi, right when I snapped the pic of her "petting" the peacock.

The shot is "Rare" because I almost never make it right as an action shot needs to go. My shutter speed is slow, and my reflexes too, I guess. I am always getting pics of just after something happened.

April 21 Steps

The Johnson Commons building on the quad at Ole Miss. Ironically, I named this shot "Steps" so it seems fitting for this weeks theme. Upstairs is a ballroom. (I had class there once when our regular class needed emergency repairs.) Downstairs is Human Resources, I think.

April 14 Hobby

Hobby- Hmmm...I have more than I need, knitting, sewing, cross stitch, reading, writing, photography... Here is a shot from one of the most expensive (of mine, anyway. I realize there are more expensive hobbies (rebuilding cars or something like that) but I have sunk plenty of $$$ into these tanks.(and the 20 others we have around here)

I took this shot to show off the tank stand for some of my aquarium club buddies. The kid in front is DD6, about a year and a half ago.

The big fish is Hagrid, our oscar.

April 7 Clean

I almost used this for the last theme (Water). I am glad I didn't. It fits pretty well here.

March 31 Water

This beautiful fountain is just insode the entrance of the Memphis Zoo. The "river" flows from a small fountain, along a winding stream until it gets to this wider section you see here.

The statues are of a couple who were instrumental in the zoo getting going.

March 24 Empty

What is more fun when you are 2 years old than an empty box? DD6 (now) turned this one into a space ship, a car, a zoo, and then a bed.

Drink

This is DD9 way back in the day. This was taken in 1999, I believe.

Architecture Photo Hunt

Since I used a building on the Ole Miss campus already, AND I have been hitting the Memphis Zoo pretty hard this one wasn't as easy as it could have been.

Here is DD6 (although, in this pic she looks to be about 3. I can't remember how long ago we took this.) peeking out the window at my in-laws' place in KY.

March 3 Salty

SALT water tank a the Memphis Zoo Aquarium. I love the lionfish, so beautiful.

Feb 24 Soft

This was a toss-up between this and the Alpaca farm pics. I like this though, figuring that most people would be posting pics of animals.

In case you don't know, this is good ole fashioned cotton, King of the South.

Photo Hunt Feb 17, Antique

Ventress Hall on the Ole Miss Campus, built ca 1910

The girls call this the Castle Building.

Photo Hunt 2/10/07 Broken

Broken

I kind of wish I had some of the pics my brother took after Dad's wreck. That must have been spectacular.

Since I don't have those AND I don't generally take pictures of broken things, I settled for this.

This is DD8, just after her sister decided to cut 7 inches off her hair while I was sleeping. I still haven't fully calmed down from this.

Photo Hunt Feb 3 Gross

The theme is gross. I don't usually take pictures of things that are gross.

I like turtles myself, but I wouldn't want to run into this fellow. This is the alligator snapping turtle at the Memphis Zoo.

Photo Hunt Jan 27

The theme for the photo hunt on Jan 27 was Silver. That took me a minute, but then I knew what it had to be. My new silver baby! This was my Christmas present last year, so it is even appropriate for January.

Photo Hunt Jan 20

This week's (a few months ago) theme was Wild.

This was taken at the Fall Festival of the girls' daycare center in 2001. DD9 is just turned 4 and DD8 is not yet (but VERY close to) 3. DD9 is a ballerina and DD8 is a princess (Her crown was removed before joinging the bouncing.) DD6 was a bunny. Nothing very WILD, but you should have seen that bounce house with 15 preschoolers on it. Definitely wild.

Photo Hunt Jan 13

Theme- Technology

About a year ago we took the girls to Huntsville, AL to visit friends and the U.S. Space and Rocket Center. They really enjoyed seeing the museum displays of things we had been studying in science/history. Here is a full-size display of the Lunar lander.

The parts that look like foil are foil (though stronger than the kitchen variety, I would suspect)

Photo Hunt

from Jan 5, 2007
Theme- Memory

I will never forget this day we played in the snow in Kentucky. The girls had so much fun!

It always tends to snow AFTER we arrive in the winter. That's better than BEFORE we arrive!

More Than Meets the Eye

DH and I went to see the late show of Transformers last night (no kids, few adults I love late shows.)

It was great! Definitely better than I had expected. Much better than what anyone would expect from a movie based on a 1980's cartoon. They really went out of the way to make the story good aside from the effects. And the effects were amazing!

One thing I noticed right off was the wonderful portrayal of the US Armed Forces. They could have gone with "the entire government is stupid idiots or trigger happy war mongers" but chose instead to show the amazing courage and skill that the soldiers in our military have everyday, and especially when they fight giant alien robot monsters.

It'll take magic...

to get the new Harry Potter book, at least for me.

I placed the pre-order with Walmart.com in February. The book comes out in July. My credit card expired in May. Do you see the problem here? Apparently, Walmart doesn't process the orders until it is actually TIME. So, I got an email last week saying "You paid with an expired card..." >:( I could not use the link they provided to fix the problem and no other way of accessing their site would allow me to edit a past purchase, even though the purchase wasn't really past.

I thought maybe I could cancel the original order and re-order. Nope, sorry, wrong! The book lists as Out-Of-Stock on the website. (for PRE order?) I guess things are too close to the wire.

I called Customer Service Saturday afternoon. I didn't realize it was Saturday (That happens when DH works his regular hours.) The nice associate said there was nothing she could do. I had to talk to Finance, she said. The Finance Office wouldn't be open until Monday morning at 8.

The email I got Friday said I had 3 days to fix the problem or my order would be cancelled. (Friday Saturday Sunday...)

So, hoping the computers at Walmart.com would not hatchet my book on a Sunday, I called early this morning to try to head things off. The nice associate said the order had already been cancelled. Great But, she asked if I wanted to re-order. I told her it had said "Out-of-Stock." She checked anyway and it let her process the order (with the new card)

I am keeping my fingers crossed. I guess I'll know for sure in a couple of weeks whether everything is ok. I am not trusting the Walmart.com Order Confirmation email. I got one of those in February too.

I get the feeling that the only reason the book wasn't out of stock was because they had cancelled my order. Like I bought my own book.

More wisdom from DD6

ME- "Why are you putting your cape on? I told you to get ready to go so we could get going, not play super heroes!"

DD6- "Well...the bank is on fire."

Guests

We have some "guests" staying in our garden. They seem to be enjoying our fennel plant. For "pests" I might try to get rid of them, but who could do such a thing to baby butterflies?

I first spotted the pair (I would guess they are probably brothers.) on the 4th, while we were outside in the evening. Two days have passed and they have just about doubled in size!

I checked on the web and I am pretty sure we have the caterpillars of Anise Swallowtail butterflies. The pictures pretty well match, we have seen adults that match the pics online AND...well...they are eating anise.

Bad dream

I woke up at about 3 am this morning after a harsh dream.

It wasn't a nightmare per se. The events were not horror movie fodder. The emotions that accompanied it were what kept me awake after.

I was assigned to kill someone. (Why? I do not know. But it did not seem odd to me in the dream.) I had a way to do it from a distance that could never be traced to me. (Some kind of radio gizmo...DREAM remember) Anyway, the target turned out to be judging a mock trial sort of affair. I know they were the judge, but I also know that the court was not real. For some reason my daughters were there. It was sort of a Vacation Bible School Mock Trial thing. (DREAM...)

My youngest came in WITH THE JUDGE! She said something like, "Look, Mommy. I get to sit here in front!" She was very happy and excited. I knew that my radio gizmo was not going to get anybody else, but the thought of her being RIGHT THERE while this person (a woman, I think) was killed horrified me. I asked her to come sit in the audience with me. She gladly complied and we went to sit.

I realized in the dream that she would still witness the killing and did not want that so I asked if she wanted to go outside to play with me. She did and we left. We walked past the banks or reporters to the outside yard. The trial was being held in a church auditorium. Why there were lawyers, I don't know. Maybe the judge was somebody important.

While my daughter and I are playing (though I am distracted by the murder that is about to take place) I hear my other two daughters call out that they love me, from inside the auditorium. I realize that there is nothing I can do (time too short) to stop them from witnessing the killing I have set in motion. That is when I woke up.

I have been trying to interpret the dream without much success. I know it has to have something to do with fears about being a good mother. What the more precise meaning are for the false trial held in a church, the judge (who I felt was a good person in the dream, not a villain), the reporters, the murder...all that I haven't interpreted yet.

I couldn't get back to sleep. I have had more restful dreams about being chased by monsters.

Crane Progress

I have 102 cranes folded now. I stayed up all night one night last week, listening to something on the internet while I folded.

That brings me to 10% of my goal finished. I am trying not to think about how many are left to go. The 1001 days are just getting started though, so there is certainly no need to panic.

No need to stay up all night folding, either, but that is beside the point.

Swimming

We went to the home of one of the other homeschooling families here in town. They have an in-ground pool. (Color me jealous.)
The girls had a lot of fun. I stayed on the sidelines. Next time we go I believe I will join in on the water fun.
DD9 practiced holding her breath and swimming underwater so she could go off the diving board. She got pretty good, for someone who always went in feet first while holding her nose. Well, progress is progress.
DD8 and DD6 both also had a really good time, though I didn't let either of them go off the board. DD8 wanted to but she is not a good enough swimmer. YET...next time, who knows?

Dad's OK

I got a call from my mom yesterday evening saying Dad had been in a wreck and she was at the hospital but didn't know how bad it was. DH watched the girls while my DB28 and I drove for an hour to get to the ER where they were. They were just finishing up stitching his arm when we got there. He is fine except for some scrapes and bruises and, like I said, a few stitches in his arm.

If he hadn't been wearing his seat belt he'd be dead. If anyone had been riding with him, seat belt or no they would be dead. His pick-up flipped over and flew for a short distance, then landed upside down. The passenger side is scrunched in. The aluminum camper top on the back was folded like a tin can. The driver's side is the only part not turned into roadside origami.

That seat belt habit is a nice one to have. I am glad he has insisted on us all wearing belts all our lives.

Quilt Tops

The pinwheels are for DD6. Her birthday is in August. I had to tear out and turn one of the blocks 90 degrees and sew it back in. it looks just fine. The whole thing is a little small, so I think I will be adding a border, maybe two. I still have A LOT of that fabric left. (enough for a border, a matching pillow, and probably another quilt.)



The framed pictures in DD8's quilt are Disney fairies, as are some of the fabric motifs in the frames. Others are just bright fabric that I thought enhanced the look. The picture doesn't do it justice. These colors are very bright. In that quilt I messed up the frames a bit on the last two pictures, but it is hard to detect unless you know it is there. I decided to leave them and not do a repair. It would have been much more complicated than fixing the turned pinwheel.

Sock Mopping

We focussed on the Kitchen today. Much more fun than the living room was yesterday. The girls are in there sock mopping right now.

I included it in our Camp Rainbow plans just because it sounded like so much fun. BUT...it is also remarkably effective. AND...I can let THEM do it.

I'll have to help with the final clean-up of the soapy water, but it is nice to let them have fun and take a break for myself.

This morning that floor was covered with dirty laundry and garbage, Kool Aid stains, broken spaghetti noodles, crumbs, etc. This has certainly been a productive day.

In the future I think I'll be able to use the possibility of Sock Mopping to get the girls to help clean the kitchen.

Camp Rainbow

Today is the first day of Camp Rainbow. (see flylady.net and the section on Camp Gonnawannafly) We are focusing on the dining room. Weirdly, I chose it for first because it needs the most work. It is looking much better. The girls have helped out. DD6 won Junk Pile Bingo. Laura scored an Empty Dishwasher race time of 2:01.

Oops, I just promised extra camp points if they work together and load the dishes without fighting. I had better come up with what Camp Points are. WHatever they are I'll give Sadira some for winning Bingo and Laura some for running the Empty Race (the winner will get more later)

I am taking a much needed break right now. When I get back to it I am going to hit the teaching/sewing table area. When the floor is clear we are gong to Sock Mop. The girls are really looking forward to this.

I'll also post an After pic of the dining room. Sorry, but I forgot to take a Before pic. It was really something!

Re-sewing

I got the quilt square removed and repaired from my stupidity. Now I am sewing it back into position on the quilt top.

I deicded to do it by hand. I just had a fit trying to decide the best way to maneuver that thing one 3 sides with the machine.

I would provide pics, but my battery is dead after our trip to the zoo a couple weeks ago. Maybe later.

Kim WW

Tying the Knot

I had no idea that DD6 did not know how to tie her shoes. That's what sandals, mocassins, and two older sisters will get you.

We sat down and had our first lesson this evening. It'll take some review, but I think she's got it.

Herbs

I told my husband last year that I wanted to be a Ranger. No, not joining the army, but neing one of those woodsy people who know all about animals and the outdoors and stuff. Sort of an uberBoyScout. Anyway, there is no way that is really going to fit into my lifestyle. However, I did enjoy starting to learn about herbs, in cooking and medicine, and found a cool site for beginners that you might like.

http://www.learningherbs.com/index.html

He approaches herbalism and such from the point of view that you probably don't already know all about it. That was very helpful to me.

Now I have my own small herb garden and have really enjoyed using God's medicine when I or my family get sick.

Later

Old News

Certainly these health risks of being fat are things most of us have heard before. I hate hearing about them, mainly because they hit too close to home. I don't want to read it, but I make myself to it to drive the point home a little bit more.

http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/how-fat-kills-the-impact-of-weight-on-your-body?ecd=wnl_wct_061107

I do believe I am going to make a few changes what I do the grocery shopping next week. Time to peak back in at my Body Clutter menu mailer subscription, which I have been ignoring.

http://www.savingdinner.com/

Real Love

Check this story out.

This man in Poland was in a coma for 19 years! It is truly heartwarming to know that there are people like his wife out there who will care for a loved one no matter what.

20 years, I can't imagine. I hope I never have to face it, but if anything happens to DH I hope I would have the strength to be such a caregiver.

http://www.local6.com/family/13436116/detail.html

Frogging

Rip-it Rip-it

Have you ever been sitting quietly, ripping out a square from a quilt top because you sewed it turned 90 degrees from how it should have been, minding your own business, when the thought occurs to you that it is a good thing you aren't ripping the wrong seam?

No? Well, count yourself lucky. Because in my world that thought is inevitably followed by, "Well, I HOPE I am not ripping the wrong seam." Which is of course followed by checking to make sure I am not ripping wrong seam. And, if you are me, that is usually followed by "Oh, for crying out loud!"

At least it was only a few inches and will sew back easily enough.

Sheesh!

Well, I have moved along on fixing and finishing DD6's quilt.

I have also folded 20 paper cranes since I made the list. That is 2% of 1000.

Now that I have the offending quilt square out, I need to go sew it back in, the right way.

Later, Kim

More ideas

1000 yrd Solar System experiement with the girls

bake and decorate a wedding cake, though not necessarily for a wedding

visit Seaworld with the girls

Walt Disney World

New Ideas

Here are a few of my new ideas. I haven't fit them into the list vacancies yet.

Attend an Ole Miss football game. I don't like football, but it is an experience I would like to have had.
Same for a basketball game.

I would love to hang glide someday, but I don't know if it will be possible before March of 2010.
It depends a lot on how much weight I can lose. Fat don't fly

Complete my Star Trek DVD collection. This one is a bit frivolous and may fall prey to the Saving for a House thing. It couldn't hurt to try.

Put together a scrapbook with all our photos I have stashed in a box.

Attend a Classics lecture

That's all I can come up with right now. That is 6 things.

Goals

Ok, first the good news. Since I made the list of goals I have worked quite a bit on my SMokey Mountain Christmas cross stitch work. I haven't touched it since March, so that is something. I worked on it almost all day Wednesday while I was sick in bed. The bears are almost done.

Also, I folded 10 paper cranes. 1 a day would get the goal acomplished, but Iwould rather have some breathing room.

And the bad news...
I went back over the list of 101 things and found quite a few that cannot be "quantified and measured" as specified by the terms I found on Belinda's blog. So, I deleted most of them and need to find new ones. (I had a hard enough time thinking up the first 101.)

This does not mean that I should eat fried foods whenever.

Here is my preliminarily altered list (the bad items have been removed but no new ones added yet.)

1 Lose 100 lbs 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
2 Lose another 100 lbs 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
3
4
5 Learn CPR
6 Take the girls to the dentist 1 2 3 4 5
7 Take the girls to the doctor 1 2 3 4 5
8 Get eyes checked 1 2
9 Grow herb garden, keep alive, use
10 Finish herbalism course
11 Walk to Rivendell
12 Walk from Rivendell to Lorien
13 Walk to Brie
14
15
16 Clean all the aquariums (this is a big job)
17 Keep aquariums clean and topped off
18 Buy 2 show bettas and breed
19 Design and keep green tank
20 Design paludarium
21 Declutter fish supplies
22 finish baby quilt for Sonya (3rd)
23 finish baby quilt for Jen (1st)
24 finish baby quilt for Amanda (2nd)
25 finish Smokey Mountain Christmas
26 finish English Garden Welcome
27 Finish Castle Sampler Tapestry
28 attempt Koolaid dying of wool yarn, knit something cool with it
29 Sew Chinese Jacket, in satin
30 Sew Indian jacket, in silk
31 Sew tunic, in green linen (embroidery too)
32 Sew Jacket in Black w/red lining
33 Sew Jacket in beige tapestry
34 Sew quilt for Ma
35 Sew quilt for Shonda
36 Finish quilt for Naya
37 Finish quilt for Sadira
38 Finish quilt for Laura
39 Finish quilt for my own bed
40 Design greek cross stitch design
41 Sew Greek Cross stitch design
42 Knit a pair of socks
43 Declutter sewing area
44 Stitch Sweetheart Tree Simply Romantic sampler
45 Design quilt from Cross stitch chart
46 Stitch The Holly and The Ivy (for 2008)
47 Art quilt
48 Sew family Christmas stockings
49 complete floss stash (DMC)
50 learn to batik
51 SG:1 Super Marathon, every episode, all 10 seasons
52 SG: Atlantis Marathon, all 3 seasons
53 Fold 1000 paper cranes
54 Learn to turn clay
55 Finish painting of Mom's wedding
56 Fold 100 Christmas ornaments
57 Write out one of my stories
58
59 Learn 1 of the languages on my language disk
60 Learn another language from the disk
61
62 Find some way to tastefully and beautifully display chopstick collection
63 Don't start any new collections
64 Learn Standard Rose origami
65 Learn Ink painting
66 Clean and declutter closet
67
68
69
70 Declutter desk
71
72
73
74 Declutter books
75 Set up a defined classroom area
76 Make wooden Yard holiday decorations
77 Take down Christmas lights when appropriate 1 2 3
78 Polish brass vases
79 Fix porch swing
80 graduate from Ole Miss
81 PEAK field trip to Memphis Zoo
82
83
84 Visit large aquarium
85 Visit University Museum whenever there is a new display
86 Research Keenum heritage
87 Visit Mammaw once a month, at least
88 Visit friends once a week
89 read Bible all the way through
90 read New Testament in Greek
91 read Harry Potter: SS in Latin
92
93 Visit Atlanta Zoo
94 Visit Devery in Kansas
95 Visit Joe and Karla in Houston
96 Visit Pat in Joliet
97
98
99 Buy a house (save for dp)
100 Take out life insurance policy
101 Visit Williamston, SC

I may take this oportunity to be frivolous, though I know some of these already are.

XAIPETE,
Kim

The Glass Menagerie

I hate this play. I had to read it in high school and now again in college and I just hate it. It is so depressing. I know that is the point, but still...sheesh!

We have to collaborate on a group presentation to write an essay about how to write an essay about "The Glass Menagerie" by Tennessee Williams which focuses on the historical contect of the play.

It is due tonight at midnight. It is finished for the most part.

I hate doing group projects. I would much rather do the work myself. At least this professor said that we should not go overboard picking up others' slack. If they should write a paragraph but don't we can simply write something like "Insert paragraph about ____ here"

I worked on the thing for about 5 hours this afternoon. I set an alarm to go back and see what suggestions the others have made or submitted later, and then another one closer to midnight to make final revisions and submit.

I will be glad when it is over.

Sick Sick Sick

I finally got the cold that has been torturing the girls for a couple of weeks. Bah! I hate being sick.

While I was wallowing in bed yesterday it occurred to me that I did not do the 101 things correctly. Many of them violate the "must be quantifiable or measurable" part. So, I'll soon be posting a revised list.

This DOES NOT mean I do not have to clean my kitchen and keep it clean.

Later

In Progress List

Of my 101 things I have these in progress:

Grow Herb Garden- The drought has killed my fennel. It is doing a number on the creeping thyme as well (and it was doing so well!). The rosemary seems very hardy, hard to kill even. The mints are growing like weeds, which mints are except that they are wanted. The Greek oregano is taking over its pot again. Time to harvest.
The old harvest has dried nicely and soon will be a good time to put it into jars.

Design and keep green tank- I feel a little guilty putting this one as "in progress." My current planted tank is horribly overgrown, mostly with algae. Still...

Finish Baby Quilt for Jen- light blue fabric with a stars and moon theme bought. I haven't chosen a pattern yet though.

Finish Smokey Mountain Christmas- I was doing so well up until this March. I am about half done, maybe a little less.

Finish Castle Sampler Tapestry- I really can't afford to give this one any attention until Smokey Mountain is done. It is "in progress" though, so it is listed.

Finish Quilt for Naya- The top is pieced. It has a mistake in the pattern, but the whole thing is so busy it is not very glaring. I am going to leave it as is. I need to chose a backing fabric and quilt it all. Deadline, Nov 3, 2007.

Finish Quilt for Sadira- The top is pieced. it has a mistake that messes up the whole pinwheel scheme. I need to rip one section off and reposition. Then I need to get a backing fabric (might already have something) and quilt it all. Deadline, Aug 17, 2007

Complete Floss Stash- I would really love to have every DMC color. I have a few hundred. It has been a while since I counted.

Finish Painting of Mom's Wedding- This would make a nice anniversary gift. It I cannot make that deadline then it can be for Christmas or her birthday in January. The painting is about half done, maybe more.

Write out one of my stories- I have some scribblings saved to computer but nothing anywhere near done. This is low priority.

Don't start any new Collections- Doing OK on this one. I hope it keeps up.

Graduate from Ole Miss- Junior year finished with 4.0. I am taking one online class over the summer. 15 hours in the Fall, ALL Classics.

Save for a House- This one is hard. I like to spend money on frivolities. I need to try to back that off. Maybe I could put restaurant money into the Savings instead of eating out.

Keep Blog up to date- We'll see how this one keeps up. I need to write myself a reminder.

Xaipe,
Kim

101 Things in 1001 Days

Tomorrow I turn 34 1/2. I am going to make some changes in my life. I need to set some goals and really work to attain them.

I have been inspired by Belinda's 101 Things in 1001 days. http://www.clioratha.net/101things.html

She explains it like this:

The Mission: Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria: Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days? Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as new year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.

So, I think I will do this. Here goes...
Starting Date 6/13/2007
Ending Date 3/10/2010

In Progress
Completed
XXXNo Longer PossibleXXX

1 Lose 100 lbs 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
2 Lose another 100 lbs 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
3 Drink 64 oz water daily
4 No fried foods (Heaven help me)
5 Learn CPR
6 Take the girls to the dentist 1 2 3 4 5
7 Take the girls to the doctor 1 2 3 4 5
8 Get eyes checked 1 2
9 Grow herb garden, keep alive, use
10 Finish herbalism course
11 Walk to Rivendell
12 Walk from Rivendell to Lorien
13 Walk to Brie
14 Cook
15 Cook once a week w/ Saving Dinner
16 Clean all the aquariums (this is a big job)
17 Keep aquariums clean and topped off
18 Buy 2 show bettas and breed
19 Design and keep green tank
20 Design paludarium
21 Declutter fish supplies
22 finish baby quilt for Sonya (3rd)
23 finish baby quilt for Jen (1st)
24 finish baby quilt for Amanda (2nd)
25 finish Smokey Mountain Christmas
26 finish English Garden Welcome
27 Finish Castle Sampler Tapestry
28 attempt Koolaid dying of wool yarn, knit something cool with it
29 Sew Chinese Jacket, in satin
30 Sew Indian jacket, in silk
31 Sew tunic, in green linen (embroidery too)
32 Sew Jacket in Black w/red lining
33 Sew Jacket in beige tapestry
34 Sew quilt for Ma
35 Sew quilt for Shonda
36 Finish quilt for Naya
37 Finish quilt for Sadira
38 Finish quilt for Laura
39 Finish quilt for my own bed
40 Design greek cross stitch design
41 Sew Greek Cross stitch design
42 Knit a pair of socks
43 Declutter sewing area
44 Stitch Sweetheart Tree Simply Romantic sampler
45 Design quilt from Cross stitch chart
46 Stitch The Holly and The Ivy (for 2008)
47 Art quilt
48 Sew family Christmas stockings
49 complete floss stash (DMC)
50 learn to batik
51 SG:1 Super Marathon, every episode, all 10 seasons
52 SG: Atlantis Marathon, all 3 seasons
53 Fold 1000 paper cranes
54 Learn to turn clay
55 Finish painting of Mom's wedding
56 Fold 100 Christmas ornaments
57 Write out one of my stories
58 Run for JD once a month (at least)
59 Learn 1 of the languages on my language disk
60 Learn another language from the disk
61 Reread all 7 Harry Potter books
62 Find some way to tastefully and beautifully display chopstick collection
63 Don't start any new collections
64 Learn Standard Rose origami
65 Learn Ink painting
66 Clean and declutter closet
67 Do Flylady missions everyday
68 Keep Shiny sink
69 27 Fling boogie 1/week
70 Declutter desk
71 Keep Desk clutter free
72 Clean kitchen
73 Keep kitchen clean
74 Declutter books
75 Set up a defined classroom area
76 Make wooden Yard holiday decorations
77 Take down Christmas lights when appropriate 1 2 3
78 Polish brass vases
79 Fix porch swing
80 graduate from Ole Miss
81 PEAK field trip to Memphis Zoo
82 Keep Lunar journal with Laura
83 Teach Sadira to read
84 Visit large aquarium
85 Visit University Museum whenever there is a new display
86 Research Keenum heritage
87 Visit Mammaw once a month, at least
88 Visit friends once a week
89 read Bible all the way through
90 read New Testament in Greek
91 read Harry Potter: SS in Latin
92 Keep blog up to date
93 Visit Atlanta Zoo
94 Visit Devery in Kansas
95 Visit Joe and Karla in Houston
96 Visit Pat in Joliet
97 Write 1 letter a week
98 Go to church regularly
99 Buy a house (save for dp)
100 Take out life insurance policy
101 Visit Williamston, SC

Palai Eboulethen

That is Ancient Greek for I made a Wish Long Ago.

My name is Kimberly. I am a 34 year old, very happily married, full time college student, homeschooling mother of 3 lovely girls. I enjoy crochet, knitting, cross stitch, quilting, sewing, reading, writing, movies (some), TV (some), origami, keeping aquariums, and learning foreign languages.

People ask me how I manage to get everything done. Well, honestly, I don't always. But when I must then it is a matter of prioritizing.

I have the tendency to procrastinate. That's when things get nasty.

I have Adult ADD. My mind bops from topic to topic without asking my permission. I have the tendency to have many projects going at once and tend to leave off without finishing.

I loved to role play when I was in college (the first time). It helped hone my taste for the fantastic and magical. I don't get much chance to play these days except when my wonderful hubby dusts off his GM cap just for me.

I enjoy some computer games, but not of the role playing variety. I love puzzle games like Bejewelled, Bookworm, Alchemy, and Big Money.

I am a senior Classics (Ancient Greek and Latin) major at the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) I went to the University of alabama at huntsville when I got out of high school, but thigns didn't go well. I am much happier now and doing much better after my 10 years hiatus from college life.

That's all for now, Talk to You Later,

XAIPE,
Kim