Thursday Doings - Creeping Crud & Dye

The Creeping Crud came to our house!
Started with the Jaybird and then decided to hit me... Poor Jaybird thought she'd been hit by a truck and we knew that she was seriously sick because she actually stayed home! For three days! (She rarely ever stays home, and never for more than a day.) Another way I knew that she was really sick was when I offered her "something" to help - the man in the house will take a wide variety of OTC's when the ManFlu hits - however the Bird refuses any type of medication knowing "it will only prolong the symptoms of sickness by masking them." (Her words, not mine.) However, this time she actually decided to read the labels on each box and decided to try one. I believe she took it only because she HAD Chemisty and Lab and God forbid she miss that. I told her not to breathe anywhere in my direction, but due to the fact that we were in the same car for all of 15 minutes the Crud tried to overtake me. I didn't get it as bad as she did, most likely because I don't kiss her sick boyfriend who is the one who started all of this. However, when I do get sick and it has any type of body ache included you can be pretty sure I am going lay in bed and do nothing. Between my fibromyalgia and flu symptoms you might as well just consider me down for the count because it feel like I've ran into several kangaroos well trained in the finer arts of boxing!

However, there was a bright spot in the midst of disease. Barry, our mailman, dropped a box off at the front door. How he knew not to ring the doorbell I don't know... maybe there was a green mist surrounding the house? Of course, I get excited about any box especially if it has my name on it, because it might have yarn in it. I knew that this time it would not have yarn but something pretty exciting all the same - Hair Color!

Yes, I do, don't act all shocked. The Curly RED head is actually the Curly Grey head... has been for 20 some years. Now if you think that you could care less about hair color there is one thing that I thought was really great - it was 100% FREE! And I love FREE! I had seen an ad for E-Salon - they would send you Hair Color for free - (of course, after that they want you to pay for it.) But I was willing to try it because I am always willing to try anything that has to do with my hair. I've colored my own hair for years and years. Actually, I've trained the Man into putting it on the back of my hair because I can't hold my arms up that long without crying or dying - or both. When I opened the box from E-Salon I ran to get my camera and said to the Man, "I'm putting this on my blog! Look at it! Wow! Look at all the free stuff they sent and this stuff is not cheap!"

He was glad to see me excited about something other than knitting. 

Look what's inside! Two bottles of Haircolor & Developer. A mixing bowl & brush, a really nice cape (so I don't get color all over my classic t-shirts), some really cool duckbill clips (which I'll use all the time!) and the best thing - a timer! And they even sent a battery for the timer! All of this for Free!   I was excited!!

Of course, I'll wait till I feel a little better to color my hair but in the meantime I wanted you to see what they sent me! I'll let you know more about the product and how it goes - if I like the color and if I'll continue to get it from E-Salon or not. 

Thought for today:

“Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.”

Friday Doings - Life in all it's glory

Some of us are just trying to get through the day, without falling apart.

I read this story about a month ago - and it has stayed with me... perhaps because it seems our family has had more than it's share of struggles throughout the years.  I know what it's like to try to hold it all together and to appear to the world at large that everything is just peachy keen - when it's not. These days I watch my daughter do this now - hold it all together with the grace and strength of a woman who truly loves her husband. And as her husband is in the hospital, once again, I thought of this story.  It's posted on the Brave Girls Club - which is a really nice site! Perhaps you'll take a few minutes to read it.You'll be able to relate to it - we all can. It is a little long but SO very worth it!!

We Must See Past What it Seems…..

From - We Must See Past What it Seems - Brave Girls Club

Tuesday Doings - Clutter Busters

This is the year when I really get rid of CLUTTER! Our family lost virtually everything we owned in a fire several years ago and I swore then that I would never again have "stuff" in my house... unfortunately it seems we have more "stuff" than we did at that time. How can that be?

Todays Clutter Busting Tip: Phone Books! 

One of the things I think a lot of us struggle with is The Phone Book. I always hear Steve Martin saying - "the new phone book is here, the new phone book is here" whenever I think of the phone book. While our family will look things up on the computer 90% of the time there are times the phone book does come in handy - however, we only need one of them and it always seems like we have way way more than that! They are like tribbles - they multiply... So here are a few ideas that I came across recently that will help us all do something with these huge yellow books...

Never want to get another Phone Book delivered to your house? Take your name off of the list!! Go here and take action! http://www.yellowpagesoptout.com/
You do have to register an actual working email address as they send you a link to opt out from. (Probably so no one registers friends and enemies.) Sometimes there are more than one company delivering phone books in your area, there are in mine - so you can register for every single phone book that is delivered in your zip code! "Pretty Cool" as Miley Cyrus would say!

Want to find out how to recycle your phone books? Enter your zip code at www.Earth911.com and you'll find all kinds of recycling centers in your area. Earth911 is a fantastic site about all things recyling so take a look if you never have before!

I thought this was a great idea! Since it's nearly impossible to find a phone booth, let alone a phone booth with a phone book in it -  carry a phone book in the trunk of your car to use while you are out and about, if you don't have an I-phone to look things up online. And if you end up someplace you need a step stool or a booster seat - you got one in the trunk!

And if you're interested in doing some crafting with your phone book - check this out! On the 3R's Blog they show you how to take your phone book and make it into a votive candle holder! I'd use  battery operated candles - but I've had a fire before! If you've never been to the 3R's Blog you might want to take a look at some of the other crafty recycling ideas they have!

On the recycling side of life I found out that I can take my disposable razors and other #5 plastics to Whole Foods and they have a recycle box for them! Check out Preserve Gimme 5 for more places you can take disposable razors, yogurt cups, butter containers - anything with a #5 on them! I hate throwing items away when they can be recycled. So now I'll put another small recycle tub in the laundry room to collect #5's and drop them off at Whole Foods. Less junk in the landfills!

The Recipe for today -  Chocolate Chip Cookies with Candied Bacon! You heard that right! These sound AWESOME!! A cookie for my dreams! I would not feel guilty at all for eating these at breakfast because there is bacon in them!! These surely are not a 1 point or even a 2 point food - but I do think they would be worth the extra points this week. I'll just have to do a lot more walking!! I'll let you know what I think after I make them. If you're interested in baking some for yourself visit the Primal Palate for the recipe.

Thought for Today

Those who can't forget are worse of than those who can't remember.

Sunday Doings - Letter to my Birthmom

To my Birthmother:


It's my Birthday!! So I just wanted to say Thank you! Thank you for making that extremely hard decision to let me go. I know that you tried really hard to keep me. I can only imagine what it was like to be 18, alone and with a baby who was only a month or so old. I can only imagine what it was that got you arrested and me taken away from you. Were you trying to steal diapers or formula?


I can only imagine how many tears you cried when that happened. How desperate you must have felt…How alone you must have been. Did you call your parents only to be turned away? Did they tell you that there was no way to help you and that it was time to let me go?? Or did you just try to figure it all out – on your own? I can’t imagine how you made that decision. I can’t imagine how you felt when you signed the papers and came to kiss me good-by that final time… I really can’t and so I cry… for you… for me…for us.


It wasn’t what you planned – you wanted to keep me, you tried – and I know in my heart that you tried your best. But it just didn’t work out. So please, please do not feel guilty. I hope that you have had a good life and that you have been happy. I love you. I miss you. Oh how I wish that I knew you. Really.

I spent years looking for you but you did your best to make sure you wouldn’t be found. I know you weren’t hiding from me, it was from someone else – maybe your parents? Or the guy who got you pregnant? I wish that you knew how much I wish I could tell you – it all worked out ok, and I don’t hate you. I don’t want to ruin your life or to uncover any secrets if your current family has no idea I exist…I just wanted to tell you – Thank you. I forgive you and I’m ok… and if you ever want to look for me – I’m right here. So Happy Birthday - thanks for having me!!


Love Glorya Jean

Friday Doings

Now that the wind has died down I can actually take stuff out of the craft room, put it on the porch and go through it! I really am trying to get rid of stuff that I don't really need or won't ever get to. I just need to figure out what to do with some of it. Of course, I'll donate a lot of things, but there are crafty goods that I just can't bring myself to donate... so I'll need to find someone who wants it!

Tomorrow I am going to be making Mini Pot Pies with Puff Pastry Crust for the family!! Love homemade pot pie!! I have a recipe that I'll post when I have a bit more time but here are two that looks pretty good and really simple!
Chicken Pot Pies
Chicken Pot Pie with Puff Pastry

And I think that on Sunday I am going to make these delicious Cinnamon Rolls! They are super easy and do not require any yeast - so they are fast to make - and delicious! Did I say that already?

One of the other things I've been hooked on is watching the Phoebe Allens Web Cam and waiting for the baby hummingbirds to fly! If you've never watched hummingbirds you really want to check this site out!! You can watch them go from Egg to Flying in just a few weeks and it's really awesome!

As for knitting - I've been working on the Ethereal Shawl and it's going really well. It's a Free pattern and if you are on Ravelry check it out!

I am off to work on cleaning the craft room!! Remember this:

In the book of life, the answers aren’t in the back.
… Charlie Brown

Tuesday Doings

Besides making this blog - which really came out of some sort of procrastination... I had planned on cleaning out and organizing my craft room today. Put it this way - it's a shambles! The room could be featured on Hoarders Craft edition - if there was such a thing. However, for some reason I thought today would be the perfect day to start this blog. Perhaps it's because the winds are gusting about outside and blowing everything all over the place. It's not like I could put all my crafty goodness outside while I go through it all and organize it like they do on the TV shows. Everything would have blown all over the neighborhood by now, but perhaps that would be a very quick way to get rid of things!

So: besides cleaning and organizing today (which I really will begin today!) here are the things I would love to do this happy Tuesday!

I think I'll cook this today! Delicious Chicken & Spinach Stuffed Shells!  You can find this recipe on Haute Apple Pie - this site has some fantastic recipes! Check them out!!

The other thing I will be doing today is continuing to knit my gorgeous lace scarf out of some fantastic Silk Lace from Sundara Yarns. The yarn I'm using is called Naples but it's kind of Rootbeer color... with various shades of Rootbeer Brown and Beige... gorgeous!! I'll try to put up a picture and some details about this lace project - because so far it's been a comedy of errors!! In the meantime here is a picture my skien of Sundara's Silk Lace - fantastic isn't it??

See you tomorrow!