Shalom Cardigan is Finished :(

It's done. But. It's too big.  :((((   I am so discouraged. I did a gauge swatch, I don't know what I did wrong?...  Unless, it's because I switched to circular needles, and maybe that's why. I know I didn't re-check my gauge after I switched.  Sigh.  I guess I will have to find someone to give it to. Although I don't know what size it is..  Ugh. 

Well... After my failure with the Shalom Cardigan, what did I do? Dug out my Central Park Hoodie to work on.  I must be crazy. lol.  I sewed the shoulder seams, but then decided I am going to have to re-block it before I do anything else.  Then I dug out my Earl Grey socks and worked on those.  I must be a glutton for punishment, eh? :P  The Earl Grey socks are not that hard, it's just a couple parts of the "Clock" that are completely confusing..  The rest is just straight knitting. (I am still on the sock part..  Haven't gotten to the heel yet..)

And, Another Card...

This one I got the idea from "Paper Crafts" magazine. There aren't any online directions for this card on the website, but there are other fun downloads. I didn't do mine "exactly" like the one in the magazine. (Even though I wanted to.) I got a hole punch (?) that I thought was going to be big enough, on sale and with my JoAnns coupon it was super cheap. But not big enough...  I still used it to do the pink parts.  I still think it turned out kind of nice. I've already written in it and have it waiting to go to it's recipient. :D  I'm waiting until Monday or later next week, to avoid the insanity at the post office right now; though...

My Card (Updated)

Well I decided to add some little tiny gems; like the bird is "singing". :)   I think it's done now.. 

This is our road~ flooded. Can you see the lake the SUV is driving through? Our yard was all smushy, you could feel yourself sinking a little in the mud. It was kind of scary there for a while. It's stopped raining for now. But it's been raining for about three days straight. They just showed on the news that a house went into the Virgin River in Mesquite, Nevada. Yikes!  

Here's another view, closer to the road. All the water in the ditch, and you can see the small pond forming, just before that car.  I guess they didn't prepare for lots of rain here in the desert...  Not very good drainage in a lot of places. Roads will flood over (like this).   Well I have to get dinner out of the oven. So... Til next time~~  :)

Another Card I Finished...

Remember this? I didn't know what to do with it..  I kept putting things by it (flowers, bird stamp...)  I still really don't know what to do with it, but... 

I just did something, anyway..  This is what I came up with. What do you think? Lame-O? Or what?...  I kind of want to do "more" on the top. But don't know "what"... I was thinking, maybe some tiny gem dots in a swirly motion coming out of the birds' mouth? Like the bird is "singing hello"?..   Well, that's two cards I have done for the January Card Swap.  I have a few ideas for another one..   I "kind of" cleaned my kitchen table off/organized some more.  I will finish cleaning it off later. (Going to try and make another card~ Or at least start one..)  I think my husband is getting fed up with my clutter.  It's not that bad. Just the kitchen table was really bad...   I keep telling him, "If I had a craft room... "  :/  I have too many hobbies.  And with the kids and all their messes..     Sigh. 

"Ugly Blanket" Progress...

Well since Blogger is being (somewhat) cooperative today I thought I would press my luck and try a second post...  This is my "Ugly Blanket" progress.  I think it is close to being done. Maybe a couple more feet.  I do kind of think this afghan is ugly. But it is super warm.  I'll probably keep it for an extra blanket or to use in the Travel Trailer...  My husband keeps bugging me "When are you going to finish my blanket?"  Sigh...  (I have another (baby) afghan I am trying to finish up besides this Ugly Blanket.  He said "How come you're working on these afghans when my afghan isn't done yet?" He was just joking around but...  Now I should probably finish his too.  0.o  (By the way, I am a lot farther on his blanket than what I was in that picture.. I have taken it out a few times and worked on it... ~~  Those cookies look yummy...  I was kind of in the mood to make cookies yesterday. Maybe I will today, now.)  :D

More Slippers...

Are you getting sick of slippers yet? You would think I would be sick of making them by now; and completely burnt out from them.... Surpisingly, I'm not.   Although, I think I may be getting close.  All these are going to Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. It's not a "Challenge" or anything, it's just something I am doing on my own.  I have squares (the burgundy/pink/yellow) enough for two more pairs of slippers, just like these.  These turned out too big for my feet, so they are probably a size 8?

These are ones I tried to make like the ones her cousin bought/brought from Georgia. The pink is not bright enough, though; I don't think. I still think they are different and cool looking. I didn't do the extra sc around the edges on these and they fit my feet perfect (I wear a 7 if you are wondering.. :P). So I'll have to remember that for future reference.

These, I actually started for Eon. He wanted a pair in red, blue, and yellow. I said "Superman colors?" and he said "No, I just want them red, blue and yellow..."   ;P   They look dark here. I used royal blue, plain old red, and bright yellow.  I used an F hook, and skipped the extra sc on the edge again. They're too small. Grr.  So, I will have to do some with a G hook I guess..  So, I'll send these to Pine Ridge... :)   All these slippers are the Granny Square Slipper pattern at the Purl Bee. :)

Another Coffee Cup Card...

A Blue/Brown version of the Coffee Cup card I did previously. I think I like this one better than the original one I did.  I was just messing around making cards last night; since my husband had to work 17 hours yesterday. :/   I tried to organize all my card making stuff a little. Pssshhh...    I will definitely be saving this one to use for the January Just Because Greeting Card Swap.  I used my brown calligraphy marker to write "Hello", and then punched it out. I had a punch out already done, but the calligraphy I did on that one didn't turn out too good. So I did it the other way.

And, here is a close-up (but kind of blurry?) picture of the bear, Paula. :D   It's from a tea box, "Candy Cane Lane" holiday tea.  I was trying different things to make cards with...

More "Hello" Cards...

Well, for something to blog about...  :)  I have been making some cards lately. (Well, a couple, anyway.) I finished this one a few days ago. I call it "Hello Peppermint Bear".  The bear oval is from a Candy Cane Lane tea box. :P  The "hello" letter/envelope stamp is one I won on Ebay.   I have been trying different ideas, like the Coffee Cup Card I made..

This one I call "Hello Snowflake". I screwed up on the top part. Makes me so mad.  I got it all taped on the back and went to put it on the card. It stuck too fast, before I was ready. I couldn't get it up and it got all crinkled. GRRRR.  Maybe the person who gets this card won't be too critical of it.  You can barely see the snowflake (that's a semi-new stamp, too~ I got it a long time ago but this is the first time I've used it..); I used embossing powder & pigment ink.  And a pigment pen (one side is calligraphy) to write "hello". Also with embossing powder. And foamies, a button, a sticky gem, ribbon...   I have enough of the papers to do another one of these. (Or two or more..)  I'm trying to get stocked up for January's card swap.  I don't know if I will use either of these cards for it though. Maybe the bear one.  I like just simple "hello" cards.

I Am Crocheting a Snuggie... (Sigh...)

I started one of these last November (the only reason I know that is because I put it on my Ravelry page). I vaguely remember ripping it out and using the yarn for something else. But for some reason (probably because my 8 year old keeps reminding me that he wants a "Suggie"; "Which I am supposed to be crocheting him.."  :/   He isn't demanding for an 8 year old, is he?  I figured, in another year he probably won't want one, so...  I will crochet it for him.   I'm doing it in HDC's instead of DC's though, since it looked too loose.  I'll try to find the link to this pattern as soon as I can.
 
Well I should head off to bed. I've had a headache all day that won't go away even with Tylenol. Tomorrow is my first "official" day of volunteering at my son's school. I was supposed to do it last week, but he was sick. (But, I technically did do it last week, the day before. So...)  Wish me luck.  :/  (It won't be bad at all, I just dread everything the month/week/night before..) 

Slippers...

Holy Guacamole (however you spell it..)! Is it just me or is Blogger having issues lately? Sheesh! This is the fourth time (today) I have tried to post to my blog..  I tried a few days ago, too and it was the same thing.  I almost was afraid to post all the pictures I wanted to...   I have been working on slippers lately.  It's that time of year, I guess...  And I like crocheting slippers. Especially this pattern. Ruby's Slippers. One of my favorite patterns to crochet.  This pair I made a size 8 to send to the 15 year old girl I send things to on PR.  I put some goodies inside the slippers. <3  Fun!... :P

And, I made Eon a pair since he just skipped like TWO shoe sizes in the last month and the slippers that fit him last year are WAY too small... :0  They still look brand new. (I think I will send them to PR.) These are a tad bit big on him; but the way he keeps growing, that's a good thing. :P  I told him I am going to have to stop feeding him. Then he won't grow anymore. :P

And, a third pair I finished (I still have one more pair of these started, too..)  I did these with an F hook and sport weight yarn. They are probably a 9 or 10 childs size. They measure 6 inches long.  All the kids sized slippers, I am sending to a person on PR who distributes things. All the adult size ones I get done, I am sending to Pass Creek Eldery Center. 

Like these.  This one is a pattern from an old Crafting Traditions magazine. It's another one of my fave easy slipper patterns. 

And, this is the Granny Squares Slippers pattern I have talked about, from The Purl Bee. I love these slippers. Obviously I have to finish the other one. :P   I'm gonna put goodies in all of them. For the kids, Candy Cane Cocoa (or any other single pouch thingys I can find.. They have some at Smith's I think.)  Chapsticks, little animal pencil topper/erasers (in the first picture there is one~inside the little plastic ball)...   For boys, Hot Wheels or any little toy; maybe some Silly Band Bracelets...    Well I should get dinner started early today so I better get off here and hope it will post!..

:0 !!! I got Fudge from Frankenmuth in the Mail!!!

I still am in shock. Last night I went out to check the mail after dinner, thinking "Maybe that yarn came that I ordered".  I opened the mailbox and there was a box in there. I thought, "What's this?"  Well it was dark out so I couldn't see who it was from until I got into the house. I recognized the sender's name because she had just sent me a card in the Just Because Greeting Cards swap for November.  I thought "Aaaaw, she sent me a box, too?".  My jaw fell open when I saw what was inside!! FUDGE from Frankenmuth, Michigan!!  I had mentioned something (in my card I had sent her) about had she ever gone to Frankenmuth, my family went there a lot and I missed it (fuge~ yummy!).  She wrote that the next time she went to Frankenmuth she would get me some fudge.  :0   (That was fast!!)  Her daughter went there, and she asked her daughter to get me some fudge.  THANK YOU Becky and daughter!!  This means so much to me. I actually started to cry.  I kept thinking "I hope Steve doesn't come in here and see me crying over fudge... He already probably thinks I've lost it"..  lol    I let the kids have a piece last night,  but I am HIDING it!! (They will inhale it in one hour, the way they go through food... And they won't appreciate it like I do.)  ;)    <3  ~~THANK YOU, BECKY!!!~~ <3    She also sent me some snowflakes from Michigan! :D  (I had sent her some "Palm Trees from Las Vegas" lol (Little hole punchy things...) I almost sent her snowflakes, but I was thinking she probably didn't want snowflakes.. living in Michigan she probably wants something warm! 

I helped out in my son's classroom on Wednesday. I was so excited to find out we were going to be making Thumbprint Turkeys!! (No, I'm not an overgrown kid or anything...)  Someone on the JBGC thread had mentioned something about a "thumbprint card" someone had made them/sent them. Well I started thinking "I wonder if that's anything like the thumbodies I do" (a few pictures down)  I googled it, and that's exactly what it is. (Just one site, but a lot of good ideas on it..)  But you make cards with them.  So the very same week, I got to help a bunch of kids make Thumbprint Turkeys. How cool is that?!  I still haven't made one myself. We used fingerpaints in the classroom. This is my son's. :D  I think he did an awesome job!! (Some of the kids got either way too much paint on their thumb, or not enough... I think Eon did his just right..  Of course, he's done this before, but... Not with finger paints, though. ;P) 

This is an art project (?) we did a couple nights ago, me and Eon.  Crayon cakes. :P  He kept asking me for some twisty crayons or something at Walmart (he has Sliders already at home, which are almost the same) and said he wanted to do an art project... So. I thought this might get something out of his system. It's crayons, and an art project..  We've done this before.http://timelesscreations.blogspot.com/2008/02/crayon-muffins.html  Just took all the broken crayons out of his crayone box, and put them in muffin tins @ 250 for about 10 minutes.   The ones toward the bottom of the picture are Eons'. Mine are at the top.  :P

Here are the ones I did, after...   I took a picture of the ones Eon did, too. They kind of all blended in together though.  And, I forgot how to get them out and ended up kind of wrecking his. But, later I thought "Well duh... Why not just put them back in the pan & melt them again?"  So it all turned out good. The trick to getting them out, is put the pan in the freezer.  Then they will just fall out (eventually) of the pan when you turn it over. 

They turned out so cool!!  The one in the middle on the top is one of Eons. (This was before I put them back in the oven, and that one is actually broke in half. I just stuck it back together to take a picture..)  Anyway, he still hasn't colored with them. I said "Well what are you going to do with them? They're to color with..." He said he's just going to collect them. (Sigh..) 

Coffee Cup Card

Well, I did buy a new expensive tool to make cards with... The scalloped oval punch. I got a 10% off coupon from JoAnns. But you could only use it online. (By the time I paid for shipping, I wonder if it was even worth it?... Sigh. Oh well.)  I couldn't find any other size scalloped oval punch. The brown is supposed to be scalloped, just a quarter inch or so smaller than the white. Oh. Well!!  I just cut one out by hand. You can tell, I know. I wanted to glue something, rick rack or something. Around the edge of the brown to "hide" my uneven edges...  Oh well. I am sending this one to my friend; and I don't think she will immediately text me and say "Your edges are uneven on the brown oval on your card. How could you even send that to me like that?!!"  :P     The middle white oval was a punch out from a package of punch outs I got. (A book, really; assorted colors...)  I am grounding myself from spending any more money on card making stuff!! Unless it's a one dollar stamp; or something from the dollar store.  lol   (The tan flowers on this card are from there.)  We (my friend I am sending this card to, and I) used to make cards together sometimes. (Or crochet.)   :(((    I got the idea for this card from a magazine in Walmart. I think I posted about it a couple posts back.   :)    Well that's all the crafty news for today. I ordered Red Heart yarn (can you believe it?). I could not find "Cornmeal" anywhere. I went all the way to JoAnns and they didn't have it. Went to the Walmart in another town, they didn't have it... Sheesh. So, I just ordered it online. (To finish my slippers. Okay, well I never posted about those yet. But I thought I did. I guess I can save that for a different post. Give me something to blog about lol....)  Well that's about it. I guess I'm going to go see if my glue is done drying on my card yet...    ~~** Have a Great Week!!**~~   :D

Finally Catching My Breath...

This has been a kinda crazy week. I don't really know why. We just had two half days & conferences at our two youngest son's schools. Tuesday the elementary schooler had a half day, and his conference was only a half hour later so that wasn't too bad. Then Wednesday was the middle schooler.  It just messed me up somehow.  But... I still managed to finish an afghan. lol  Not all in one day though. :P  I actually started this in December of 2009. It's for a teenaged girl I send things to ("sponsor"?) on Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.  I think she's 15.  I took this picture last night,; so the picture is kinda dark.

Here's a little better one. It's the "Pressed Flowers" pattern by Kelly Robinson. From "The Ultimate Book of Scrap Afghans".  This is the second one I have done. I really like this pattern; and I want to start another one, but I know I reeeeeeeeeeaaaaaally don't need to..    :/    My only rules with this afghan, were: no black or white. But, I did use "Aran Fleck" for a couple rows.   I want to do one with "no rules". Whatever color next...  A total scrapghan.  

I bought some fabric today at Walmart. I got some pretty cool fabric for $2 a yard. It's yellow/green and has coffee cups and "Mellow Out" and what looks like marshmallows (so maybe they are hot chocolate cups?). I thought it was cute.  And,  I got some fabric to make my 8 year old some pajama pants, (orange w/ basketballs & stuff) for  $3.97 a yard.  :0  I can't believe I bought that. But still, I bought 2 yards... so... that will be less than $8 for a pair of pants. Which is still pretty expensive for me. But maybe I will have enough to do more than just the pants with it. Which will bring the cost down more.  They have hardly nothing cool in the $1.50 a yard section for pajama pants..  They did have some material I would have been able to use, but it was so ugly (for pajama pants).  Oh well.  My husband is going to ban me from going shopping alone...  :/      Today was "Pajama & bring a stuffed animal to school Day" for the 8 year old.  :D  He just wore a white t-shirt and his pajama pants. And a big white teddy bear.  So much fun. I want to be a kid again, and have pajama day at school.. :P   I just wonder if most of the kids are wearing the pajamas they slept in? (Eeeeeewwww....) :P

Playing Catch Up...

I am still here...  And I have proof. :P  Lots of pictures..  It seems like I haven't blogged in forever. But I guess it's only been a few days.  This is my 3SUB progress..  It's 39 inches wide now. I still have no idea who it will be for.  Or what color I should do next..

And, another hot pad I finished yesterday. Actually, started and finished yesterday.  It's called "Pine Tree Hot Pad". It's in an out of print magazine called "Crafting Traditions".  I had never made one of these.  This will go to LuAnne for the CFAC webstore. All the proceeds go to the Propand Fund to help heat different families homes in the winter.

I made these for the store, too. Turkey coasters.  LOTS of ends to weave in. But cute. Pattern: Gobble Coasters

And, a slipper. :P  I have all the ends wove in and the pom-pom sewn on this. Just need to do the second one. I'll probably send this to PR, too..

And, more cards. This one I already sent in the mail. Pretty simple but I like it. It was in one of my card making magazines. I can't seem to find it now.  You can see some of the mess on my table in the next picture, so... That's why... :/ (I swear I had the whole table cleaned off a week ago!!~ I need a craft room!...)

This is a card I am in the process of making (it is in a card making magazine somewhere... I took a picture of it in the store~ shhhh!...).  This is how it will be layed out. I don't have all the tools (story of my life~ lol, but really~ How many new expensive $20 tools do you need to buy to "save money" making your own cards?.. It's getting ridiculous..)  Okay anyway, I don't have a stencil or hole puncher thingy to do an oval with. And, I need three different sizes to do it the way in the picture (I mean, magazine..).  So I had the brown punch out already. Then I traced around a Batman magnet we have. :P And used my Fiskar scissors. But...  It's not perfect. :(  And, I still need another white oval to go in the brown one w/ a saying on it. The one in the magazine says "You're the cream in my coffee". But, I don't have that stamp, either. So I will try to figure something else out.   I have another card that is in the works. But I couldn't find the picture on my puter...  It's with this. (Second picture down.)  I just glued that part (all trimmed and square-ish) to a card.  I have no idea what else to do with it though.. I will try and find the picture and post it here. Maybe some of you have some ideas? :D
I hope everyone is having a good weekend so far.   

Sometimes You Are Forced to Relax...

I finished this Turkey hotpad today.  Each pattern in this book says, "Do not use to take hot items out of the oven"...  ??? Okay... ??? (Because of the eyes/fur you have to use in the patterns, I suppose..) Well... I was trying to make a few hotpads/potholders~ Whatever you want to call them~ for the Crafting for a Cause webstore. I already sent some stuff in, but wanted to make a couple/few more hotpads.  There's not many turkey hotpad patterns out there and I think I have about three. I liked this one the best of them all.  My back almost went out today (I should be in bed right now, I have a muscle relaxer waiting for me..) So, I finished this and started a Tulip Stitch dishcloth (with the variegated yarn from the Turkey hotpad). (I figured out what I was doing wrong on the first one I did, btw..)  I ran out of yarn, though. So I didn't want to start anything else.       I was just bending over picking up laundry to put in the washer, when my back went "Crrraauughh".  Okay it didn't make that noise at all. But that's what it felt like. I said "Uh oh". I just walked over to my bed, propped my pillows up; and sat there and crocheted...  I took a bath, hoping that might help.  It doesn't hurt *as* bad as it did earlier, but it still hurts... I think I'll go to bed now..   :/

Scalloped Owl Card

I've been in the mood to make cards again..  :P  This one is from the September/October 2010 issue of Paper Crafts magazine.  You can download the pattern free at http://www.papercraftsmag.com/. Not sure how long it will be up but it's probably still up now...   Mine looks *almost* identical to the one in the magazine..  I didn't have the stamps to do the stomach part. So I used some patterned card stock instead.  Eon wants me to make him one now. (Sigh... :P)  I am trying to get some made for a card swap I am in. I have another one going, that should be simple.

I also wrote the "Wise-Eyed Owl" poem inside.  Hopefully no one in the card swap reads my blog..  lol  I went to a Craft Show/ garage sale today. The only thing I found that I really wanted was a box (with lid~ Which I washed up and am going to give to Eon for his legos. He's been wanting one) with a bunch of cards in it.  And envelopes. I'm going to use one of the envelopes for this card. (It's red.)  I'm always needing envelopes for some reason. (Maybe cuz I use too many up for lunch money...)

My First Towel Topper Ever.. :P

:

Well I started and finished this today. I started out with Mimi's tutorial. But decided I *had* to try making one like the two I bought.  I didn't get it exactly like it, but pretty close. The towel is also way too long. Oh well. It's my first time. :P  I think it's cute.

So much for the 5 day weekend being fun... Our 8 year old has a fever of 103. I hope it doesn't get any higher. :/  He says his throat hurts, too. Our 13 year old had something less than a week ago. 24 hours and it was gone.  He's still eating a little. He'll get up and try to play for a while then come and lay back down. I finally gave him some Tylenol. They say a fever is trying to fight an infection so you shouldn't give them Tylenol. But 103 is getting kind of high...  Going to Google some more..  Have a Nice Weekend Everyone.  :)

Paula, You're A Genius :)

I got my towel out this morning that I bought a while ago to make Mimi's towel topper with. (I wanted to do it last night but I was just too tired..)  I just grabbed the only steel hook that was on my night stand~ which happened to be a size 5.  I poked it through, then thought "Why not pull the whole hook through, to make the hole even a little bigger?" So I pulled it through, and kind of pushed and pulled, and wiggled it where the hook is the widest. It worked.  

See? :D  But after I did a couple holes, when I went back to see where they were, they must have closed up. Sooo... I thought I should put some kind of marker in each hole. (The little yarn pieces... lol) 

I don't know how many little yarn pieces I have there. Kind of a pain. But, if I keep them in a special place I will have them for next time. :D  And I won't have to cut a bunch of pieces again...  Now to finally try Mimi's towel topper!! Yay! Thank you Paula, and Thank you, Mimi for the pattern, too.   (Who needs special tools, eh? That's what I love about being crafty...) 

Thrift Store Finds

I went to the Thrift Store today. By myself (yay!!~~ Me time~~)  I'm always looking for cool coffee cups, cuz we seem to lose half of ours (I need to make a "Rule~ None of my nice coffee cups can go to work w/ the hubby"~ grr...). Or they get broken. I saw some pretty cool ones a few weeks ago, but I never got them. Now they are gone. (Of course.) I saw these today, and got them. Only a buck each. There's four. A whole "set". They don't match my white plates. But, I am okay with it. (I want a new set of plates anyway...Half of those were also broken.)

And two roosters for my kitchen. :D  I saw the white-ish one first. Picked it up, put it down. Walked around more. Saw the black tailed one... Picked it up...  Put it down. Ended up getting both of them. :P

And, I did the same thing with this cat. The cat towards the back is one I got a few weeks ago (same Thrift store).  I guess I'm collecting cats now.  ? I just thought they were cute. I was actually in line to pay, and I went back to get this cat. :P  I'm so incdecisive. :/  It would have been gone if I had gone back even tomorrow...

I didn't get these at the Thrift store. But I thought they were so cute. (And, I want to make one... :D)  I NEED an Edgerydoo!! I bought a towel a couple months ago to make Mimi's towel topper. Tried to poke holes in it myself. Did not work. :(    I got these at the "Local Yarn Store."

Ugly Blanket Progress & Blueberries.. :P

Well just so you all know I am still here... :P This is my progess so far. After I finished Gary, I don't want to work on anything much lately... (On a side note, I wish I never posted a picture of him & Spongebob on FB~ Now everyone is asking me to make them one. Ugh!!...)  The only thing I want to work on is my Ugly Blanket.

I was just curious, how big this thing is. So I put it on our bed. (The Ugly Blanket, on my Ugly Comforter :P) It hangs down even farther than our comforter!! :0  I don't know if I will have it go vertical or horizontal. I guess I'll have to see how long it is on a twin bed. I still don't know who it will be for. It doesn't "go" in any part of my house, that's for sure. Except maybe in one of the kids' rooms. 

And here is the "Blueberries" I was talking about..  Blueberry Stuffed French Toast. I made this for breakfast Sunday morning. It was soooo yummy. But, it made me so sick, all day. (I am violently lactose intolerant. And there's two 8 oz. pckgs of cream cheese in this.. Plus, a dozen eggs. My stomach doesn't handle eggs very well, either.) It was yummy, though.  I accidentally got blackberries for the filling. (There is also a Blueberry Sauce you make~ for the syrup. Which, you can obviously see in the picture... :P) It still turned out good. My sister made this for us, when I went to Michigan a couple years ago. I got the recipe from her.  :D    I gave each of the hamsters a blackberry today, from the bottom of the pan. They all loved them.   I cleaned out three hamster cages today. (Uuuuugh!! Don't ask me why, when they are supposed to be the kids' pets?... Okay, I'll tell you, because they STINK!)  And, the two I cleaned out (the third I just "helped" the 8 yr old~ cuz I am making him start taking care of his hamsters by himself~ But, the cages is/are a little big/heavy for him to carry and lift up to the dumpster.) Anyway, the two I cleaned out weren't just glass aquariums, they are "Super Critter" cages, with all kinds of tubes and wheels and compartments and SUCH a pain to put back together (they were both given to us). The fourth hamster cage is an aquarium, and our 13 yr old just cleaned it out this week.  I tried luring the hamsters out with the blackberries. But it didn't work with Wickett (he is the most skittish of them all).  I did a lot today, I can't believe I'm not in bed right now. Especially when the kids went to bed a half an hour early (what's up with that?) You probably don't want to hear a boring, detailed account of my busy day, though.. :P    Well, til next time~~ Happy Monday.  Lol

I Got Mail!!!

I entered a giveaway on Paula's blog, a while back; and I couldn't believe I actually won. Well today my prize came in the mail. And Paula sent a bunch of little goodies with it. A card with pictures of where she lives, and her house, too. How cool! I love it. :D   And, she sent a postcard of Niagara Falls- but my 8 year old was looking at it, while I took this picture. I have never been to Niagara Falls, It looks amazing. The closest I got to Niagara Falls was Wilkes-Barre PA. (For my brother's wedding. And he doesn't even live there anymore..)  I love the potholder/hot pad! It's so cushy and soft. I don't want to ruin it by using it. Paula sent a little dryer sheet in with it so it would smell nice. (It wasn't too overpowering for me, but I just got done with dinner so I had food smells in my nose... lol)  Thank you Paula!!! :D  You are so sweet.