Confession of the Day

This week has been full of surprises. The kind that make me smile and act giddy! I wanted to share one of them with you... Please pop over and visit Karen at A Peek at Karen's World and see what she surprised me with this week! (she's got a great blog that I really think you'll dig, too!)

Thanks again, Karen!

Weekend Hello!

Another week has come and gone for us, my friends. I managed to get up before my 7:00 a.m. alarm this morning, bright-eyed and bush-tailed! I went to bed by 10:00 p.m. last night so I feel so rested. It's wonderful.

Laundry, hair color and crocheting have dominated my morning. It's been so nice. Now The Little Guy is playing Wii and making all kinds of groans at the television as Mario is kicking his butt. The rain is moving in which means that Hubby will be back home soon from his shooting practice with his buddies. Then all hopes of silence will be dashed until about 7:00 a.m. tomorrow morning when I'm the only one up and around.

That's ok. I love the cycles of sound that rotate throughout my home.

I took a little stroll in our backyard admiring what is left of our summer garden. We are amazed to see that there are tons of beautiful little tomatoes growing on our plants, and bell peppers are flourishing as well. I can't wait to slice more of these little delectable treats up and gobble them down with a dash of salt!

Happy weekending my friends! What do you have planned?

Current Eternity Scarf On My Hook!

I am so excited to report that last week I filled three separate orders from my Etsy store, and another custom order in the works for two more Eternity Scarves. I still have one available online right now!

I wanted to share with you the project I'm currently working on. I'm actually just winging this Eternity Scarf which is rare for me since I usually follow a pattern.  I picked up this wonderful yarn by Mini Mochi in Santa Fe when I was there for Labor Day weekend. I wasn't quite sure what to do with it, but ultimately I thought I would try and make a little something special just for me. And now I'm so glad I did!

I'm really just blending stitches as I go along, but I think I'll add some more of those little popcorn stitches at some point. I just love the texture they create. And, I'm trying to keep it reversible, with popcorns on both sides, so that when I wear it twisted I won't have to worry about any of those little popcorns not being visible.

The yarn is a blend of 80% Merino wool and 20% Nylon, and it is super soft sock quality stuff. I absolutely love the colors and how they stream from green to red, with the pinks and purples in between. Since the yarn is so fine and my  hook is so small it is a slow-going project, but one that will be so worth it once I finish.

Do you have any projects currently in work?

Monday Night Football (Junior High Style)

There are only three games left in The Little Guy's football season. I'm looking forward to tomorrow night's game. They have a record so far of four wins and only one loss.

Shorty & The Little Guy

Aunt Sissy & TLG

Granny & TLG

Tomorrow's game will be a competitive one... The Little Guy will be playing against one of his best friends who goes to a competing school. I'll keep you posted on how it goes!

We Made It!

The Scouting Adventure was a huge success I am happy to report! This past weekend The Little Guy, me and Hubby went to Beaver's Bend in Oklahoma for a Boy Scout backpacking retreat.

I knew we would have to hike into our camp site on Saturday, and Hubby had mentioned that it would be a six mile trek, but no one mentioned that we were hiking around a small mountain. I had in my mind that this would be a relatively flat journey with perhaps a hill or two. But, I was so wrong. There were some seriously steep inclines and declines that we had to traverse. And I grunted and groaned most of the way with shaky legs and hips that were screaming at me.

It was honestly a great time, though. Once I was parked safely on my duff resting. This was my first time to camp with the Scout troop, and I was so impressed with their independent spirits and how the young men banded together.

I must admit, however, that the best part of the entire trip was seeing how much of a good sport my son was. He and I both borrowed old troop packs since we don't own backpacks with external frames, and his broke three times before our hiking trip was complete. He had some help from Hubby and another Scout Dad tie up the back pack, then he kept moving on. Not only that, but he also had a young tent-mate who decided to overeat a box of Slim Jims and barfed in their tent at about 6:00 a.m. on Sunday morning. My Little Guy didn't complain, he just dealt with the ordeal. And when I asked if he had a good time, he told me had an absolute blast.

I'm so proud of him!

And, I'm super proud of Hubby for putting up with my complaining, Grandma-Hiker state of mind. He coached me when I got to the points where I said I didn't think I could go any further. He rested with me when I needed it. And he handed me the shovel when I needed to find a potty. Can it get any better than that?

#1 Fall Accessory

Did you know that THE number one accessory for fall this year is an Eternity Scarf? It is so versatile! You can wear them as a scarf, a necklace, a wrap, a shrug or a super cozy neck warmer.
Take a look at the cowl I just listed in my Etsy shop.

 

I absolutely love the yarn that this is made from... Homespun by Lion Brand. It's super soft and so easy to care for. I love a garment that can be machine washed and dried!

Another thing I love about a cowl is that if you change your mind about how to wear it once you leave the house you can easily move it around a little and get an entirely different look.

There is only one of these listed in my shop so hurry over and check it out!

Scouting for Pants Update

Last night the family and I went on a small adventure to get some gear for a backpacking trip we've got planned. I say small adventure because anytime I need to shop for pants or shoes I can bet money that there will be several stops before I find what I'm looking for.

You see, I'm pretty short. Which I used to not think I was all that small. Although, it seems within the last year I've been referred to as miniature more times than I can count, and I'm not sure why. Maybe my old lady shrinking phase has already begun?  I am 5'1" and my feet are a size 5 or 5 1/2, depending on the shoe. See, that's not overly small, right?


My 12 year old son is as tall as me, so maybe I am overly small. 

But, anyways... back to my story. We made trips to a couple of three different places to find some camping pants for me. No success at any of those stops. Then I remembered Old Navy... they carry cargo pants! Success was had, I am so happy to report. I'm now the proud owner of two pair of camping cargo pants (in army green and dark gray) that actually fit cute and will make me look like a stylish camper. Despite the big turtle backpack that I'll be sporting above them. And they were on sale for $25 each!

Scouting for Pants

In the past, you may have read a detail or two about my tactically inclined husband. In the past few years his wardrobe has shifted from one of a designer nature to that of a tactical one. Farewell Ted Baker designer shirts. He shops at places like Rei over Nordstrom. This has left my mom and sister completely baffled, and me, too sometimes.

But, I must admit my mindset has begun to shift. Really, only out of necessity.

I don't think I would turn down an offer to shop at Anthropologie over a sporting goods store, but I guess things could drastically change one day. Like maybe today.

You see, tonight we are headed to our local Scout store to look for tactical Scout pants. The kind that can unzip to make shorts. The kind that I never thought I would E.V.E.R. own. But, it turns out I'm going to need some very soon for a scouting adventure we have planned. There will lots of hiking, warm daytime temps and cool nighttime temps, with the possibility of cactus needles and/or chiggers brushing past my legs. So I guess I should just suck it up and get some tactical drawers.

I'll let you know how the shopping trip goes. I'm not expecting to feel sexy at all while trying these shorts/pants on. I guess anything is possible.

A Groovy Kind of Day

I am confident this is a wonderful day, and it's going to only get better as it goes along. (Despite the fact that I must go to the grocery store... the store that I abhor (I love that word!) because of so many reasons; let me just say that we shop at a major discount grocery/superstore chain to save money, but I despise having to shop there.)

Anyway, I woke up this morning to solace with my Dobie Axel as The Little Guy is with his faj, and Hubby is at a Scout training weekend. Axel and I went for a walk right after getting out of bed, me dressed in my pj's with messy hair and some trendy shades, and Axel dragging me along from mailbox to mailbox as he tried to hike his leg each time. (My hands are a bit raw from pulling the leash to keep him moving.)

I'm reveling in my daily dose of blog reading, sipping on some delicious coffee and knocking out some chores as I muddle through my morning.

My day will hold lots of time with friends that I don't get to see often enough, first at a game watching party (I don't even know who's playing), then I have two of my oldest friends coming over for a girlie sleepover! I haven't done that in sooooo long! We will devour some pasta, sip some wine and have tons of laughter and chit chat.

Oh what a great day it is! I think we will make some of these tonight... kick off October with a delicious almost morbid treat.

These are just Pillsbury bread sticks, shaped into bones, sprinkled with sea salt on top. They are sooooo good fresh from the oven. Will you bake anything Halloween-ish this weekend?