WIWW

Those of you that know me as in see me daily, weekly, or monthly. Know that I usually hang out in sweats or pj bottoms pretty much everyday. I mean, seriously, all I do is crochet and work around the house so whats the need to get dressed up? Well lately I'm feeling like a total slob. I have closet full of fun things and only wear them occasionally. And you know its bad when your Hubby points it out.

I need to change and I'm going to use one of my favorite bloggers to help me. Lindsey over at The Pleated Poppy came up with an amazing idea called "What I Wore Wednesday". Here is a recent post from her blog that helps explain:

hey friends!

welcome again to wiww (“what i wore wednesday”), where i use all of you to keep me accountable to getting out of my pj’s and getting dressed every day. i am honored that so many of you have taken the plunge with me in this adventure. if you’re a little leery of linking up, its hard at first but gets much easier as the weeks go by. same goes for taking self portraits. its amazing how embarrassed i can get all by myself! but it, too, gets easier. join in – you’ll find you will get a little more creative with your clothes, and you’ll feel better about yourself than if you stayed unshowered and undressed all day – i promise!

So, today, I am starting this challenge and every Wednesday I will post what I wore and then link up to The Pleated Poppy to show I participated. Hopefully this will help me be accountable to becoming more fashionista instead of frumpy momma.

Wish me luck and better yet join in the fun!!

Tuesday Tips

As soon as someone knows that I crochet the first thing they say is, "that is so hard". You know I used to be one of those people. I started crocheting, or what I thought was crocheting, when my Grandma Jacobson showed me how to chain around the age of 10. And you know what...I could chain with the best of them. I didn't realize til much later that there was a lot more to crocheting than I originally thought.

Wanting to actually make something (like hats) I knew I would have to learn how to crochet. One of the best resources I found was YouTube. There is nothing like a video to show you exactly what you need to be doing. Especially since my wonderfully talented Grandma is no longer around to show me.

Many years and video's later there are still some things that I struggle with. One was the "Magic Ring", "Adjustable Ring" or "Magic Loop". Have you ever fought and struggled and ripped and re-ripped both your yarn and hair, trying to make your starting round neat and tidy with a center hole as small as possible? Well I have. And maybe, just maybe, that unsightly center hole has even kept you from crocheting in the round at all. Well, no more. Now you will be armed with the trusty (some might even say magic) adjustable ring and you will be dancing circles around those circles.

Be forewarned—once you have made an adjustable ring, you will never be the same. You may never go back to other ways of making a ring. I know I haven’t. I found this video and it literally changed my life. It's short and to the point and will have you re-thinking the start of every "in the round" project.

Enjoy!!

Monday's Discoveries

Great Finds To Start Your Week

Monday, Monday it’s almost time, don't be late!

The dash is on to decorate!

Among other things.

Sorry but my rhyming skills are only good for two lines, lol
If Mondays are not usually your favorite day,
I thought I'd make them a little brighter.
Each Monday I post a great new find.
With the help of Etsy and my new addiction Pinterest, of course.

This Monday it’s....

Crayon Initials

What a fun little "frugal" project this is. It would be great as teachers gifts or would be super cute in a child's bedroom. You should definitely head over to the Frugal Life Project for all the details. I just love peoples creativity!!

Giddy up ya'll...let's dance!

The annual Dixie Round-up just happened to fall on Miss Maddie's Birthday this year and boy did she want one whopper of a present. She wanted to ride in the arena before the rodeo. She has heard many stories of me doing that when I was her age and so she was determined to see it happen for her as well. In the last couple of months she has been able to ride the horses on bridle. We are so very proud of her and must say she looks darn cute on a horse. Because she was so new to riding by herself, I didn't know if Papa J would go for it. I told her she was old enough to ask him so she took her big beautiful imploring eyes to Papa J and he was all in. Not without his trepidations, of course. Love his horses, but they aren't usually calm when it comes to things like this. He wanted to make sure I would be there and would help if I was needed. I did not want to ride in front of all the town, but for Maddie how could I say no. It was her 11th birthday after all, lol.

Needless to say all went as well as could be expected. They weren't able to stay out there long because of the horses becoming a bit to excited, but she was happy either way. She's already planning next year's ride and how she'll be able to stay out even longer, lol. Gotta love the young at heart!

Along with the Round-up comes the rodeo parade and for the first time we had someone actually in it. We made the hard decision to switch Jayna from Westside Ballet to Super Steppers and the consequences of that are endless performances. I don't mind to much, actually, because it suits her personality far better. Well first on the performance docket was the parade. They had the cutest theme and Jayna was just so excited. A little worried about not getting any candy, but after a lot of assurances that we would all share the spoils, she was more than willing to jump on the float.

As she passed us I took about 25 pictures and this is the only one that she actually was looking at the crowd. The older dancers were performing on the street behind the float and it was like they put her into a trance. No waving, no smiling, nothing. She could not stop staring at them. When I asked her about it afterwards she just said that they were just so cool and she couldn't wait to dance just like them. It was so cute and I can't wait for that either!!

Fun purchase

I have had a few ideas floating around in my head recently for some new products. The final step is searching for the perfect yarn do go along with them. Well, think I may have found them!

I'm thinking a few beanies and a couple of headbands are in the queue. I can't wait to get started and I'll be even more excited to see them photographed. The question remains...where will I put it. I have yarn tucked in every cranny of this house. Hopefully, it won't stay put for long, lol!

Fit Friday

I have been such a slacker lately, but I really want to get back to my Fit Friday posts. I recently made a new discovery while at Weight Watchers the other day. Yes I had a little too much fun this summer and have a bit of weight to lose. 10 lbs to be exact, yikes! When did that happen :(

Anyway, I'm back to the grind and back to Weight Watchers. Now on to my discovery. I wish I could take the credit, but nope it belongs to somebody else, but I am absolutely in love with it. It is a recipe for a 2 point cake. It is quick, it is easy, and it is delicious!! All you do is take one box of Angel food cake mix (off brand is best) and one box of any other flavor of cake mix. I have been using German Chocolate, but my friends have all tried other flavors ie lemon, strawberry, vanilla and say they're just as good. Mix the cakes together...dry, and pour the mixture into a container. This mix will last you awhile so make sure it shuts tight.

Now to make the cake you get a mug and spray it with Pam and then take 1/3 cup of the dry mix and 2 tbsp of water and mix them together right in the mug. Place the mug in the microwave and cook for 1 minute, done. That's all.

I usually put a little cool whip on top and if it's Sunday (my extra points day) I will add a 1/2 cup ice cream, yum!!