It was so nice to have a date with hubby last night.  We went out to a new Italian eatery.  It was very nice.  It was slow getting a seat but I think it being new in town and word getting out about them spurred that on.  Once we sat down we were served quickly.  The owner came around and apologized for the wait to be seated and then explained that all the food is made fresh to order and there is no pot of sauce simmering on the stove etc.  They were nice.  I see it being a hit.  We were going to head to a movie called Facing the Giants after dinner, but alas, it’s not playing anywhere in our area.  Phooey.  So instead, we headed to Starbucks for some coffee and hubby wanted some decadent dessert type thing.  Well…the coffee we could do, but believe it or not, they only had “healthy” dessert type things.  The nerve!  I did catch (and stare) at the lady knitting a pair of socks my favorite way…toe up, two at a time, on one circ.  Of course, me being the shy person that I am (SERIOUSLY!!) I didn’t even try to talk to her.  I kept coming up with ways in my mind to approach her, but I never did.  What a missed opportunity.  Perhaps, if I am lucky, you are a loyal blog reader of mine.  If so, please contact me. Come on, don’t be shy (like me).

 My daddy is on his way here.  He’s about an hour into the trip.  Woo hoo.  We should see him by tomorrow afternoon if not earlier depending on the time he makes.  I can’t wait!!!!

The “ball shawl” is halfway on the loom.  Just gotta thread the heddles for about 6 more inches and we will be good to go.  Should be weaving by this afternoon if all goes according to plan.  But now, I must get off this computer, do room inspections before the beloved Saturday morning cartoons are turned on, get dressed, clean up a bit, go out to the dye pot, and then back to the loom.  Oh must also get the boys hair cut sometime today along with more bread baking, and hubby is pulling duty this weekend so he won’t be home much.

 1. You’re arranging to move. If money were no object, would you hire movers to come in and pack your belongings as well as drive them, or would you prefer to do the packing yourself? 

Since we are military we can let them move us.  We did let that happen for the first time last year on our move out here to OK.  It was wonderful.  They came in on a Tuesday, packed the house up, Wednesday they loaded it on a very large truck.  We said good bye to our stuff and away it went.  Didn’t even think about it until 2 weeks later when they delivered it to the house and unloaded it all.  Now, we could have chosen the option to have them UNPACK it and assemble the beds as well.  We didn’t do that, but it was nice to know we COULD have that happen.  In years past when hubby and I would move to a new duty station, he would go to work, and by the time he got home at the end of his shift, the houst would be completely packed up and ready to load on a truck thanks to me, but now with 5 kids, 3 cats, and a dog, it was nice to have someone else do it all. 

2. Of the new shows that have premiered so far this season, which were you most looking forward to seeing?

Umm…well…I don’t watch much TV and haven’t seen any of the new shows.

3. Did the show live up to your expectations?

sure…I watched nothing and expected nothing (ha ha)

4. Take the quiz: What type of lunatic are you?

Thank goodness I scored a “normal” on this test.  whew….

5. What habit of yours would you say is the craziest?

oh ick…do I have to admit it?  No I think not. (can’t ruin that normal test score now can I?)

6. What do you own more of: VHS Tapes, CDs, DVDs or Books?

Books

JUST SHOWING OFF

Here’s the 2nd wrap I had on my loom this week.  It’s 100% cotton. I liked making this one too.

and a close up

This sort of reminded me of a painted desert with the golds, greens, and blues.  Today I MUST warp the wrap for the Ball….commonly called around here the MP Ball Shawl.

KIDS CRAFTING CORNER

I bought the kids a straight loom the other day while at Hobby Lobby since they love the round looms so much.  Cass took to it right away and came up with a wrap for herself.  It took her two days to make it and a skein of yarn.

JUST A CUTE PICTURE

And I will leave you with this…since Kiki is always posting pictures of her cutie sleeping, I thought I would post this one Jim took last night.  She went into her room to start getting ready for bed.  I guess Bear-Kat looked inviting and they both curled up together and fell asleep before it was officially bed time.

A DATE???

The hubster and I actually have a date night planned.  It’s a rare occurance to actually get a baby sitter to agree to watch all 5 at once, but this time we actually had someone VOLUNTEER to do the job.  Gotta love another Army wife who is prepared for battle. :)  We are thinking of dinner and a movie….an actual sit in the theater movie. 

THE COUNTDOWN CLOCK

The kids have reminded me all week just how many days til grandpa gets here.  Several times a day if need be.  Today our official count is at 2.  We all can’t wait.

1. What is your absolute favorite piece of furniture you have and why?

** I guess my loom wouldn’t count, eh?  Ok…my rocking chair.  I had always dreamed of rocking my babies to sleep.  After we adopted Josh Jim bought me a rocking chair.  Although he was 9 when he came to live with us and I have never gotten a chance to rock one of my babies…I guess it’s still my favorite chair because it reminds me of motherhood.
2. What would be your design style? Asian, Americana, country, contemporary, etc.?

** Certainly it’s Americana
3. Are you of the spartan furnishing philosophy, or the more the better?

** We are a military family that moves around a lot.  Less is better
4. My two favorite rooms are the living room and the bedroom in any house. What are your two favorite rooms?

** Bedroom and livingroom here too.  Living room is the central meeting place and the bedroom is the place where hubby and I can shut out the cares of the day and retreat to our own place…at least that’s the idea at any rate.
5. If money were no object and you were to redecorate, pick one room in your house and describe its decor.

** kitchen…I would have a huge table for the whole family to sit at instead of the counter.  I would have a built in dishwasher that was very quiet and very strudy.  There would also be a tons of counter space in order to keep the bread machine out all the time as well as all the other convenience appliances I like to use.  Then the cabinets to put the dishes in and all the food my family requires.  yup….it would be the kitchen.

Today I am going to give you two recipes.  I couldn’t decide which one to share because they both sounded great.  Next week we are planning to study the desert southwest around Yuma, Arizona at our co-op.  I will be one of the teachers and plan on making at least one of these recipes for our snack.

Orange Walnut Muffins

2 cups flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/3 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 cup orange juice

1/3 cup milk

1/2 stick (1/2 cup) butter, well-softened

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 Tablespoon orange peel

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Mix the dry ingredients together.  Beat the eggs and add the orange juice, peel, milk, and butter.  Beat and blend together.  Combine with the dry ingredients, stirring just until combined.  Fill lined muffin cups until each is 2/3 full.  Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Makes 24

Strawberry & Spice Muffins

2 1/4 cups flour

1 cup sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 cup rich milk or half and half

1/2 cup vegtable oil

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 cup strawberries

Stir together the dry ingredients and add the strawberries.  Stir to coat the strawberries with the flour mixture (which will help keep the strawberries from sinking to the bottom of each muffin)  Combine the wet ingedients and then add them to the dry mixture.  Stir as little as possible.  Do no beat.  Spoon into muffin cups and sprinkle with sugar.  Bake for 25-30 minutes at 350. 

Yup…Sock Wars began already and yesterday my assignation happened.  It went like this, “Hi Ms Woven~N~Spun.” said the mail man.  “It’s a glorious day isn’t it.”  “Yes” I answered taking the many large envelopes from his hand not suspecting a thing.  I saw a gleam in his eye, and I should have know, but alas, ignorance is bliss sometimes.  I brought the mail into the house and laid it on the counter….”tick tick tick” was a sound I faintly heard, but ignored it.  I opened the bills first (I like to get over the bad news first and save the good stuff for last).  I reached for the first big envelope and opened it.  “BOOM” the socks exploded into my hand along with a really nice note from my assassin apolgizing for having to knock me off.  Here are the lethal socks.

 So my not completed socks are now on the way to her so she can hoepfully complete them and move up the ladder.  Good luck Kelly.

After being killed off and getting that news, I immediately went for the next package.  I was so surprised to see the contents.  It was from Norway and from my mitten swap partner.  They are the most gorgeous mittens I have ever had the honor of owning.  Thank you Linda for the mittens.  They are stunning.

These will be treasured for a very long time.  Also in the package was a yummy lavendar candle, some tea, and two stitch markers (of which one has already been put to use on my own swappee’s mittens)

And finally, a pair of socks I completed for Socks For Soldiers.  I knit these using Claudia Handpainted Yarn.

Now back to school for the kids, weaving, knitting, and generally taking care of the house. I mean shoot…why couldn’t my assassin take out those chores as well.

My yarn for the shawl I am making for the MP Ball arrived today.  I am paying Chris to tie it in warp chains.  I think that’s fair.  He does a great job at it and he can make a little money.  I need to finish today what’s on the loom and then warp that thing tomorrow and get busy.  I wasn’t thinking clearly (who can on 2 hours sleep) and ordered 3/2 cotton yarn but I really wanted 5/2.  So it’s going to be a little heavier then I first thought, but hey it will work up quicker that way too.  The fuchsia color matches really well so all in all I guess it’s a good thing.

We were doing laundry today (a never ending battle believe me) and it’s sheets day.  As Josh was taking a load of blankets out to the laundry area, he asked how to wash a particular blanket I had made for Chris awhile ago.  Chris said just throw it in with whatever and dry it on high.  Josh asked me what to do because he thought it would shrink.  Chris said not to worry, “It’s made of plastic anyway and won’t shrink or felt.  It’s wash and go.”  Ok…I realized then and there that I am raising a family of fiber snobs who also aren’t thrilled with ACK-rylic.  Go me…go me….woo hoo..go me!

Well, back to work, the loom is calling and so are 4 of the kids as well as the dryer.  So until next time, I pray sanity reigns in your home.

The Sockret Pal Swap has begun.  My answers are listed under my swap page.

Homeschool update.  Today was our co-op get together.  We headed out to Medicine Park.  I mistakenly thought we were headed to the dam area, but we just hung out at the river near the center of “town”.  It was neat to learn the history of this little town and I look forward to going back on the weekend when all the little shops are open.  There are several galleries and little touristy type shops and I would love to poke my head in a few of them.  The kids got to feed the ducks and fish, did some nature drawings, learned about the area, had a science lesson about fish, got to do some nature drawing, and got to have a snack of hush puppies and potato pancakes.  Here are a few pictures of the outing.

 Here are several of the kids working on their art project.

Another shot of part of the group:

Feeding the ducks at the river’s edge.

We were amazed at the size of some of the turtles.

The little fishey’s got in the act wanting crackers too.

And just two of the many ducks.

Driving home, I decided to drive through the Army post rather then around.  As I came upon a 4-way stop I heard the kids yelling that they saw their daddy’s truck.  Sure enough we both reached the 4-way stop at the same time.  We followed him a bit and he pulled over, I jumped in his truck and we drove away…ok for about 5 feet, The kids freaked out a bit but it was a nice little break.  We rarely see him during the day and to happen upon each other at a 4-way stop on a back road of the post was neat.  It was just what I needed as it was a rough day on the school front.

And here’s a little button I made that seems to describe me lately:

That’s a really catchy title isn’t it?  Just not creative this morning I suppose.  Today is indeed a Tuesday.  That’s about it…end of post.  Ok, seriously, not a whole lot happening here today.  It is only 5:40 something in the morning, but still…..We do have co-op today.  It’s the day a bunch of home schoolers get together and have co-operative learning activities.  Today we are headed on a mini field trip.  We are going to go to the dam area and do our projects there.  Will bring the camera and see if I can catch any great shots.

Yesterday I was able to tie on another warp to the loom.  It was exciting for me to learn how to tie the new warp onto the old warp and not have to sley the reed or thread the heddles.  Got over 10 inches woven too.  Josh and I also made bread yesterday.  Somehow either he or I mixed up some of the ingredients and I realized we put in 2 cups of water instead of 1.  Instead of throwing out the dough and starting over, I just doubled all the ingredients and let the bread machine kneed the now 4 pound loaf instead of a 2 pound one.  Once it went through it’s first rise and second kneeding, I divided the dough and put half back into the bread machine and then took the second half and divided it further into 4 somewhat equal parts and put them in my mini loaf pan.  So we ended up with double our bread for the next few days, but alas, I was assured it would freeze well.  I may end up doing this more often.  It really took no extra effort and it was actually easier to make hubby’s lunch this morning with the smaller loaf then the larger one.  hmmmmmm

The kids and I are getting so excited about my daddy’s visit.  He should be here in 5 days.  They started the countdown yesterday and I even caught Jess going to the calendar more then once to see if the number of days had changed yet.  We are praying he decides to move out here just because we miss him so much.  The kids sure could use a big dose of grandpa, that’s for sure.  While he’s here, we are planning a trip to the Grand Canyon, and I hope we can pull it off.

I shall leave you with a bit of kitty love. 

In the back we have Sarai.  She’s 8 years old and she’s our cuddle-whuddle kitty.  In the middle, we have our very persnickey Zipporah.  She’s going on 11 (next month).  She’s still very spry but also very spoiled and really only let’s her momma play with her.  She tolerates the kids but often reminds me that she came first.  Then in the front, we have Bear-Kat.  He’s our very tolerant of the children hand raised from birth cat.  He lets the kids dress him up in play clothes but pays them back by biting their toes in the middle of the night.  He enjoys sharing my protein shake each day.  Somehow over the course of the last almost 11 years, we ended up with cats that all look the same!

Ok, so it’s not quite a manic Monday yet as it’s still early and still quiet in the house.  Hubby is off at PT, kiddos are all still sleeping, and I am enjoying my “quiet” time.  This is the time I use for me.  I can either work on a project, study, pray, do housework, or all of the above.  Today, I had a hard time starting out.  The weather has turned cooler and the sun isn’t coming up as early, which makes me want to stay in bed.  However, I am dressed, dinner is in the crock pot, laundry started, bible reading done, prayers completed, read through gobs of email I didn’t this weekend, and am debating whether or not to let the kids sleep in.  I am thinking of letting them sleep in.  We have school to do this morning, house cleaning, an appointment later this afternoon, and of course play time.

My daddy should be here next Sunday.  I wish he would move here.  I miss him so much.  The kids miss him too.  They’ve had so much taken away from them in their lives, that leaving KY last year was a really hard thing.  They had just gotten to know grandma and grandpa when we moved, then grandma passed on and grandpa went to go live with my brother.

You know we have special days assigned for each child.  Monday’s are Josh’s days.  Tuesday’s are for Cass and on down the line.  I started this awhile ago to help give me special time with each child.  They help in the kitchen, assist with extra chores, get to pray over meals and our school day, and/or just a time where we can spend talking one on one.  They all love it and look forward to their days.  Like I said, today is Josh’s day.  I can’t help but looking back at his growth over the last 3 years.  He came to live with us as a really scrawny (I mean tiny with a big head) 9 year old that looked to be about 5 or 6.  He was scared, nervous (who wouldn’t be?) angry, hurt, defiant, hyper, anxious, and somewhat violent.  He was unable to stay on task for more then a minute, unable to do school work without being excused from his class room (when he went to public school) or crying for 2 to 3 hours when made to do his school work at home.  This summer he hit his 3 year anniversary with us as our legal son, and it was like the defining moment in his personal walk.  He told me that it was the longest he’s ever been anywhere that he can remember (and it’s the truth).  We’ve seen such a mellowing out from him.  He stays on task, he’s doing great in school and while still not where he should be yet for a 13 year old (we had  A LOT of catching up to do) he’s close.  His behavior is amazing.  Not perfect, but who is.  There is still some of that rebellion there, but it’s more of the “normal” teenager trying to find himself kind of thing.  I love to watch him play with his little sister.  He’s so sweet and gentle with her (and remember this isn’t his birth sister).  He takes a lot from her but they always have fun together.  God has so blessed me with Josh as my son.  And I truly think HE is allowing us to see the huge changes in Josh to give me hope for one of our others who is really struggling right now.

Well, hubby is home from PT, so let me get him some breakfast and then get his lunch made so he can head out the door again after his shower.

 My prayer for you today is that God richly blesses your life and increases your appreciation for your children.  Even if you are struggling with issues like we do, I pray that you find the small things to be thankful for.

 ANOTHER WRAP COMPLETED

I warped this wrap onto the loom on Wednesday and pulled it off last night.  I washed and pressed it this morning and tomorrow it will be given away.  I came up with my own pattern sort of by accident.  I had intended to follow a different pattern but realized I threaded the heddles all wrong.  I ran the threading pattern through my program and liked the looks of it.  Decided to go for it and was well pleased with the results.

The left picture was the side facing up on the loom and the right picture was the bottom.

The green side facing.

The purple side facing.

This wrap was made out of 100% perle cotton and measured 65 inches long (not including fringe) and 20 inches wide.  I will be ready to warp on another by tomorrow I hope.

The answers to my questions can be found here.

And let me just end this post by saying GO BUCKS!

 Napping on the job.

The other day, I had a horrible headache, very little sleep, and just didn’t feel well at all.  I don’t usually nap but just was too tired to go on.  I made sure the location of each child (one out back on skates, one in room playing with a game, two at counter doing school work, and one by the couch coloring) and laid on the couch and closed my eyes.  I woke to the flash of the camera and realized that my little Jessi girl, who was coloring, climbed up for a nap too.

Just a quiet day on tap here.  The kids are finished with their studies for the week and are knee deep into playing a rousing game of UNO.  Josh is going to help me clean out my dye area today so I can reclaim some organization.  I got pretty sloppy putting some things away this summer as I melted so we are going to clean it out and make it all pretty and organized again.

We are music-themed this week!!

1. When you are having a slow morning, is there a particular song that gets you going?

There is a song that Twila Paris sings called Days of Elijah that pumps up the whole family.
2. What is your favorite kind of music?

Contemporary Christian

3. What is the last song you heard?

God, He Reigns
4. Do you and your significant other have A Song? What is it and why?

Not really.  (I guess we are just boring )
5. Do certain songs bring back memories for you? Give us an example!!

First thought that came to mind was Katrina and the Waves, Walking on Sunshine.  I was in high school walking along the beach with a guy friend (and a group of others friends as well) and he held my hand.  Ok all together now….aaaahhhhhhh.