Alice and Hatter kissing scene

MEGA MULTIFAMILY YARD SALE
Current mood: exhausted

HAVING a HUGE multi Family YARD Sale next weekend. OH MY! am at the what have i gotten myself INTO?? stage...LOL!! LOTS OF GOOD STUFF --NO JUNK!!!! check out yard sale pictures for samples of items for sale

MANY MANY BOOKS includiing Large HARDBACKS, Paperbacks, COLLEGE TEXTBOOKS
LOTS OF GOOD CLOTHES-- INCLUDING PROM DRESSES and TEENAGE GIRL CLOTHES
COLLECTORS CAMERA IN ORIGINAL CASE
CEILING FANS WITH LIGHTS (they work just have no room for them)
1982 MERCEDES Diesal 4door (for repair or parts $4000 FIRM)
Storage Trailer (ASKING $850 OR Best offer OR Trade for SMALL open trailer)
HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCES (all working)
PIRATES OF THE CARRIBEAN DVD PLAYER

IF INTERESTED CHECK OUT SOME SAMPLE PICTURES OF ITEMS FOR SALE AT MYSPACE:
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=228855576

ABSOLUTELY ------NO EARLY BIRDS!!!
SALE IS FRIDAY, SATURDAY, SUNDAY NOVEMBER14-16
CATHEDRAL CITY, CA 92234

Life in the Weirdling Way...........

My "Baby" just called me from school. Just called to ask if i needed anything from the store on her way home.... not so weird you say? oh, but!! she has only had her driver's license for about a week..... so VERY weird to me...

i am happy for her and yes it is more convienient when she drives herself.... BUT!!... this is my baby we are talking about (see kid rolling her eyes at me just about now LOL!) and i am finding the transition harder than i expected...

Many people i talk to tell me how wonderful it will be with both girls independent.. but i dont see it as yet. i am one of those moms that, as far as i am concerned, they could live at home forever and i would be perfectly happy!

i dread my upcoming empty nest. silly i suppose. we raised them to be strong independent young women, and now that they are, it's making me sad in some ways.
go figure

Grubbing through the garage and back/side yards this weekend - getting ready for our Multi Family Yard Sale --- lord do we have a lot of STUFF!! here i thought we had gotten rid of SOOOO much when we moved last year! oh my.... obviously not... did i mention i HATE SPIDERS!! at least the ones NOT inside a glass cage!!

I am SO psyched!!!!

I just finished two entire batches of made from scratch BAGELS!!
Yummy!
(one Batch with garlic olive oil and one plain.


THey were super easy-- used my bread machine for the kneading (my hands arent up to it!!) and first rise.
even found the recipe where you broil before you boil but not so sure its worth the extra work as my broiler is a bit 'so-so'

they are GOOOOOOOD!!
made homemade noodes as well,
not so great.

flavor good but the OLD ronco pasta maker makes more noise than noodles so after the 2nd flopped batch -- out it went!!! El Garbago~!!

i only paid about $5 years ago so am not in the dumps over IT. just about the fact i LIKE homemade noodles but need machine help to make them and now have no machine.


Found what i WANT for noodlemaking BUT its going to be awhile before i can spend $140 on it :(
its the KitchenAid pasta roller set. sigh....... i do like the 'good stuff' dont i!!

october 18
I have just tried my FIRST EVER Successful loaf of homemade sourdough bread-- sigh......of bliss...................
its not perfect mind you, a bit dense and more moist than it ought to be - but considering....
I discovered this WONDERFUL website called Breadtopia

http://www.breadtopia.com/2008/09/16/its-bread-baking-season/

Truly an awesome site teaching breadmaking from scratch INCLUDING making your OWN sourdough starter!! (i used the pineapple juice recipe) and making NO KNEAD Bread!! It is a time consuming (sort of ) recipe, but very very easy one. - I say sort of, because while each step Only takes a few minutes,
there are hours of waiting between steps! so PLANNING is a must!!!

but OH my is it worth it!!

ANY ONE can do this. Eric's videos are awesome (eric is the breadtopia guy) and REALLY help - have fun and TRY THIS!!

Mechanical Olympics-Synchronized Swimming

a good friends daughter having fun and spoofing synchronized swimming

am soooooo much happier today -- GOT PICTURES YEA!!!
my babies are still far away but its not quite so lonesome when i have new pictures= w has TEETH and the biggest grin!! LOVING HIM!!
and S got a hair cut it and its lovely BUT it makes her Look OLDER :( am not sure as "mom" i can dig that), ahhhh well

still, i HAVE PICTURES :) :) :)

missing my babies
its in the wee hours right now and am having empty nest pains... big time
all my 'babies' are somewhere far from home. and am missing them badly.

my first baby is a mama now, her baby is 8months all ready -- my goodness how the time flies. he was only 6 weeks old when they moved to wisconsin. she "seems' to love it there. but i must admit i worry- other family says she hardly goes out -- dont know if its a good thing or not. but then again that time with a new baby is priceless. she's an amazing young woman and i profoundly hope she is happy....... she has so much potential - i hope someday she may go back to school too. she has so much ability that is just waiting to be used.

my youngest 'baby' is visiting her sister for the summer-- that was really hard to let her do. i know, i know,she's 16 and a 'big' girl but still my baby (tho she rolls her eyes at me when i say it LOL!) somehow they never stop being one's baby do they? she's another amazing young woman (how on earth did i rate 2 incredible kids?!!) she drives herself hard, and i worry about her too... i guess worrying is part of my job as mom. i profoundly hope we find a way for her to go to a university that is good enough for her skills/needs - she will go far in any field she wants to go into.

my grand babies - my grandson- i dont have the words for how incredible that is. holding him after he was born was so profound- so much like when i held his mother and his auntie. love just wells out of my soul and i want to surround him with its protection and warmth

my grand daughter- she's not really mine tho i did sweep her into the MY catagorie- shes baby w's cousin - tif's little girl and since tif is to be my dd1's new sister when she and T marry - doesnt that make her my grandbaby too!?!?! she is a delight (and a handful at 2!! LOL!) very loving and huggable- she and her mommy drove to wi day before yesterday to live there too.... so you can see why i am a bit blue....

we are amazingly lucky arent we?? but a bit lonesome just now......
but dd2 will be home in 12 days so i just have to survive in the meantime -- but lordy, the house is way to quiet!!!!

got new PICTURES of my munchkin!!!!

this one is my fav- he is growing so fast and has a new tooth!!

Gramy's baby boy looks so awesome! am not in the LEAST bit biased!! but ya gotta admit he does have an awesome budda belly!!!

Gramy's blue bear snowbunny.. tho he doesnt look too impressed with that COLD stuff! LOL!

Check out the Canadian Geese in the foreground... this is the lighthouse in Kenosha.
they have been getting OOODLES of snow (another 20in says my kid)brrr. but very pretty ==better than here. its in the 80's again =- its already threatening summer :(

Grampa W and young W aren't they adorable?!!!

This year's holiday rant:

Can You BELIEVE how STUPID some people are???? It's the same kind of Ridiculous nonsense that happened (& still is) with Harry Potter! the new Movie The Golden Compass is getting the most irritatingly Stupid reviews by fundimentalist fanatics calling themselves "good Christian" etc. Most of whom have a: never READ the books & b: didnt bother to actually "WATCH" the movie! absolute TWITS!!
The movie is FICTION!!! FANTASY!! sheeeesh! these people need to get a life! And STOP trying to dictate to the rest of the world their NARROW MINDED little box version of the world.

I for myself NEVER take the word of an extremest of ANY Kind- its my RIGHT to make up my own mind and I AM REALLY TIRED of people who do NOT know what they are talking about trying to dictate what i should or should not do or believe!

As for the movie = I love fantasy and Sci Fi and even if i didnt i would go see this JUST BECAUSE idiots out there are telling me i shouldnt. defeats their purpose dont ya know!

China Trip july 2007

Auntie S and Master W - my "baby' and my dd#1's baby!
getting lots of visiting in while we can. - the kids have an offer of jobs/housing in Wisconsin!!! I want to run screaming around them saying NO!! but frankly have nothing better to offer. T hasnt been able to find steady work and L is on maternity leave - if they stay in CA she would HAVE to go back to work. T's uncle is offering her work with the family company that she can do from home or take babykins to work with her. so much better.

sigh.... am just going to have to hold on and not dissolve till after they leave after xmas. i am truly starting to hate december...... :(

another new venture/experiment

Baby William Has Arrived!!!!
Isnt he beautiful!!??!!!
7lbs 12oz and 18/5 inches long his Momma is Doing fine! she did really well with a very long labor we are very proud of her his daddy is already doing the proud papa walk , LOL!!

Tr & I have just begun a new venture- we plan on selling LOTS of different items but we are going to Start with her jewelry and both of our Photographs. should be fun especially as we get established -- our new Store is called "Spring Creek General Store" and it will feature Our "Roosevelt Road" line of Unique jewelry.
please enjoy our first offering at
www.springcreek.etsy.com

I always feel so honored that the dancers let us share their time/beauty/joy - i love to take pictures of faces they show such intensity.

dont you just LOVE the falcon? he was magnificint! this last weekend we attended a small pow wow - i love going to them - the drums get into your very blood as you watch the dancing

just some activities recently - a friends baby shower

then some pics at the HB Civil war event- first our neighbor Lois of the "FRESH" biscuits! then dd#1 while setting up tents- she is due in nov= then dd#2 taking a break later
one of the reasons we love re-enacting is the family oriented atmosphere. the little ones have such fun

fun stuff
http://www.sockamaniac.com/

dh & dd at the great wall in their band shirts
a glimpse of the near 2000 performers on the great wall- it was truly amazing. i only wish i could have gone with them

about the band shirts: amazing stuff this new fabric that is being used for sports clothes. the band spotted for 2 for each band member and chaparone- they are amazing - a quick rinse in a sink and hang dry! considering that Shanghai was about 90% humidity that was really imperative- everyone seems to have found them really comfortable.

personally i think we should make them apart of our regular uniform set up= in future trips it might be a good idea to have the kids only take these shirts! (its just a thought)

oh wow - its been awhile since i last posted!! (couldnt remember password for awhile & been BUSY!!!
dd#2 & dh made the trip to china and OHG!! what a trip - it was fabulous!! and the pix they brought back!! there is supposed to be a website set up for all the members of the band/flags and all the adults to add to. (we have 500 just on our own) admittedly MANY of them have other band kids in them so we will post them to the band's site for their parents- of the ones for we will keep for ourselves we still have at least 300+ (this is NOT counting the blurry/back of heads type pix LOL!) 1st pic is band in parade- 2nd pic is dd#2 in Tienamen Square.


The 3rd pic is a welcome at one of the hotels- they stayed in and performed in Shanghai (at the children's museum) then visited Suzhou and the silk factory where many had A LOT of fun shopping!! then flew to Beijing- in Beijing they went to Tienamen Square and the forbidden city and performed in the 'parade' (their parade set up is a bit different than ours but our kids Wowed them!!!) then a sit-down performance that apparently knocked the socks off the audience - this one was definately on the china national tv. Apparently our band was voted #1 of all the Olympic Music Festival's entries (Go PSHS Spirit of the Sands Band!!!)


when the went to the great wall for their performance there, it turned out the were not going to perform at the base of the 'wall" the performed ON the Great Wall!!! all 14 groups (about 2000 performers) they were stretched between 4 Towers! absolutely awesome-- as the #1 band, ours was directly in front of the dignitaries!! afterwards they had lunch on the roof of a nearby restaurant that had an incredible view of the wall. then they got to go SHOPPING again!!!
DD says she had SUCH fun with the bargaining and would just about want to LIVE in Silk Alley!!! LOL!!! (she did bring back some DELIGHTFUL goodies.

well things have been seriously busy recently. its less than 3 weeks till dd and dh leave for china- i may 'just' survive this (i think) we survived the move and i love the new house !! dont you just love our new security door?? i love being able to leave the regular door open and still have privacy!

we are still (slowly) unpacking a few boxes at a time (it seems like forever to get done. :( oh well its got to be done. i had no idea i had so much 'stuff'!

the biggest news around here is Letha is expecting!!!she is due in november. we dont know if its a boy or girl yet. the biggest surprise tho is even tho she was showing when she thought she was less than 3 months (i showed with both girls at 2+ mo since we are both very short waisted) - turns out she is already 16 weeks~ and no morning sickness. thank goodness she was NOT like me in that!! she did scare the crew at work last week tho... tried to pass out on them... now the know the news!! LOL!! oh my! am still not to sure about being called grandma- and mom is certainly not so sure about great grandma!

We are waiting to find out if the house next door might be coming available- the kids lease is up and they need a house... keep your fingers crossed they can get it!! :o)

craftwork- not much time for a lot but am looking at making a baby quilt for the new one and for a friends upcoming grandbaby. am also looking at making a christening gown... not sure what it will look like yet...... i have not done much sewing with really delicate fabrics - i would love to do an heirloom type gown tho.... we will see.

Have discovered a really neat blog- involves cooking! and canning!! yea!!
Its called Mom's Cafe home cooking; promises to be interesting reading;

http://momskitchencooking.blogspot.com/

The most exciting things have been happening :

We MOVED! i put that in capitals because we were moving w/about 3 weeks notice and moved 2 households into one AND 2o + yrs of 'stuff' without the time to sort/toss that we should have. yikes!! but we survived and love the new house~~ but OMG the reality of going back to paying regular rent!! ACCK!!! its like loosing one whole paycheck a month. oh well back to the real world.

THe china trip!! they took the passports last nite to get the visa's OH MY its getting close now and i think some moms are starting to have panic attacks - i do understand. this is the third time a family member has gone on one of these and i STILL have a problem with "my baby!!! going so far away!! LOL!! sigh........................
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If you live in the Palm Springs AREA or near enough to visit the band will be having their SEND OFF CONCERT (i know its not july- but most of the snow birds are leaving and we want a good audience for the kids) i know that most people think - high school band = iiiish! must i?= but these kids are GOOD!! the Dallas Brass was one of our guest groups and the kids got to perform with them- the DB were DELIGHTED with them!! and our kids play all over the valley- a lot of them are pursuing professional music as careers !!!!

any way off my soap box (grin) The concert is FREE so if you are nearby on May 23rd 2007 come on in and enjoy the music (its at the Palm Springs High School Auditorium) its an 1100 seat auditorium with amazing accoustics!!
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my mom and i are genealogists and do quite a bit of research- just by chance(?) we connected with a GREAT AUNT we didnt even know was Still ALIVE!! its amazing all the family information she has and is sharing that we Knew NOTHING about! turns out my gr gr grandfather and his kids were musicians like my grandmother (they even made their own instraments!!) have you EVER seen a harpguitar!??! see pic above!! very very neat. AND in researching Them discovered that a modern harpguitarist might even be a Very distant relative to the two men in the pic (& to me too!) very very cool
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i also got a quick note from a long not heard from friend from high school!! :o)
am hoping to hear from her again!! Diane if you read this PLEASE let me know :o)
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and to top it all off my 15yr old Turned into an OFFICIAL TEENAGER this week!! ACCKKK!! (she went prom dress shopping with a friend!!! ROFL!!!) fun but a bit scary at times!!

just came across a new site with video's on using the knitting looms. i have little problems with them but its hard to explain to someone sometimes - the videos are quite nice
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pclJ7gUvEAY&mode=related&search=

I am considering trying to sell some of my civil war reenacting pictures as both ATC's and Postcards. am not sure if there would be much of a market tho.
one of my thoughts was the different ladies books of the civil war period and pictures of actual dresses of the time would be a wonderful way to study the clothing styles colors and trims.

this is an example of one of my bits & pieces
its a suplice (sp?) bodice & sleeves ca 1859

since MOST people either cannot afford to collect those books and the few books that have a 'collection' in them are limited at best. my thought is to offer cards of everything i have photos of with data on the back (what data i have that is) like regular trading cards they would be very easy reference materials.

i am struggling to learn how to manipulate photos and its really hard with out lessons. but i have made a beginning.. i started with photos of pictures from godey's ladies books- its neat to see them cleaned up- i want to continue cleaning the images but am not doing well with that part- is frustrating!!!

here is one i started with.

as you can see i was able to remove the worst of the yellowing from age, brightened and sharpened the focus. the process affected the colors some. and a couple i even removed the color for a b&w image. i wonder if others would enjoy the results.

one thing have not learned how to do is remove age spots, stains or tears. that will come next (I hope).

some of the pages i have are fairly badly damaged. but they are beautiful even so. it would be really cool to see them at their best tho.

I have been having way too much fun with a new program that makes kaleidoscope images from my photos. i have decided that they make Great Digitally altered Photo ATC's and PostCards!!!

Sometimes you can see the original other times you cant even begin too. that part of the interest

here is an example - what do you think?

I am soooooo computer challenged.... i just now figured out how to access comments i was supposed to moderate-- sheeeeeesh how embarrassing- my apologies to EVERYONE!!!!!!!
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The Price of Children
This is just too good not to pass on to all.It's really really nice.

The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 and came up with $160,140 for a middle income family. Talk about sticker shock! That doesn't even touch college tuition. But $160,140 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into: * $8,896.66 a year, * $741.38 a mo nth, or * $171.08 a week. * That's a mere $24.24 a day! * Just over a dollar an hour.
Still, you might think the best financial advice is don't have children if you want to be "rich." Actually, it is just the opposite. What do you get for your $160,140?

* Naming rights. First, middle, and last! * Glimpses of God every day. * Giggles under the covers every night. * More love than your heart can hold. * Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs. * Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies. * A hand to hold, usually covered with jelly or chocolate. * A partner for blowing bubbles, flying kites * Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day. For $160,140, you never have to grow up.

You get to: * finger-paint, * carve pumpkins, * play hide-and-seek, * catch lightning bugs, and * never stop believing in Santa Claus. You have an excuse to: * keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh, * watching Saturday morning cartoons, * going to Disney movies, and * wishing on stars. * You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay on Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.

For $160,140, there is no greater bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for: * retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof, * taking the training wheels off a bike, * removing a splinter, * filling a wading pool, * coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless. You get a front row seat to history to witness the: * first step, * first word, * first bra, * first date, and * first time behind the wheel.

You get to be immortal. You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great grandchildren.

You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match.

In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, so one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost.

That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!! Love & enjoy your children & grandchildren

AHHHH@!! have survived the holidays :o) sort of anyway... getting back into the daily routine. have discovered a new craft form. they are called ATC's (Artists Trading Cards) and are delightful! i love and collect trading cards anyway and now people make art trading cards whoohee! sounds like fun to me. i am especially intrigued by Photo Trading Cards. in going thru my stored photos (you know the kind- subject good but picture not quite 'right'? well believe me when you crop a photo to a trading card size it gives the pic a whole new perspective
as an example


an ok picture but not the effect i was aiming for.
but cropped


well you get the idea-- it makes one concentrate on essentials and i like that
i also like the fact if one makes these on certain themes they could easily be fundraiser items for kids at school and scouts etc, maybe even for any kind of group= after all trading cards are Fun!

most of the yahoo groups are all about trading = i am not ready for that level of work yet but later would like to try.
should be fun

Post Thanksgiving ponderins: the days rant

am feeling like an old party pooper this weekend. Totally non-holiday mode. had the choice to work on turkey day and did, we had nachos for dinner!

am not sure if i can really explain the the problem (if it is even a problem-)it just seems like such a travesty. On the morning news there were shots of the govenor, & movie stars are out feeding the hungry. aren't they nice? yea right, out there in front of the camera on a holiday is good pr but where are they the other 364 days of the year!@???

same thing happens at christmas. all these do gooders & all their hype about 'giving' to the poor and less fortunate. of course they are doing this from their fancy $150 plate fundraising dinners. heaven help them if they actually did anything that made sense the rest of the year. and yes am sounding sour. the same people who are going on ad nauseum about help out the poor and doing their 'christian' duty are driving around in their shiny bmw's amd mercedes and wouldnt know a day without food (unless they're anorexic).let alone how to really make a difference to people who really need help.

i think i will be less pessimistic when i see things like

(1)the pharmacutical companies be less worried about their millions in profits and start making sure that people on fixed incomes can get their life supporting medications

(2)when i see see BIG oil actually encouraging & pushing 'green' fuels because they KNOW the long term petrolium is limited and to continue as we do will ONLY help destroy the planet. (THEY ALREADY DO KNOW they just refuse to acknowledge it)

there is more but most of us already know the problems. i just get so discouraged at the lack of improvement- this time of year just makes it so much more obvious.
sigh...

an example of my 'problem' with things as they are: a lady at work was all excited about what her church group was doing. their 'good deeds'- they were taking garage doors (rejects from the factory) down to a small village in the interior of mexico and building one room houses with them. on the surface this seems nice. people have a roof over their head.... on the surface.....

my problem with the scenario you ask??? first their attititude of "aren't i so generous,so "christian" ?? for Giving you a house?- (doesnt matter to them if the villagers even like the things as they dont seem to have ever Asked. then there is the problem of the materials. how on earth does a garage door strike anyone as a practical medium to build an entire house out of? and what if there is any damage to it? does the villager again do without? they cant repair it (no tools or materials to do so) they cant replace the parts (no money to import more) they cant duplicate the houses (supposing they do like them)because the manufacturing is beyond their villages skills. - at no time did the group appear to have asked some vital questions:such as what did the village REALLY NEED?? i can think of a few things more important - like a clean water source. nor did the group appear to bother to "teach" anything.like how to build a house quickly and effeciantly and cheaply (like strawbale or cob or using tires like the earthship houses.)thereby not only getting new homes and skills to be used over & over. they could have taught how to build effeciant fuel burning stoves for cooking instead of open smoke causing cooking fires.

the thing that strikes me as sad & scary is the group sees nothing wrong with their methodology or attitudes.they are probably decent folk who mean well(in spite of their insistance in preaching their possible unwanted doctrine)there are so many groups like them, but its no wonder so many 3rd worlders resent and hate the gringo yankee. we come off as know-it-alls who really dont take the time to learn or care.

on a more family level i just cant 'get' into spending 2 out of 4 days off traveling to see a huge family group while probably exhausted from said traveling then overeating on one day and turn right around and spend hours traveling back home- somehow i just dont see the fun in it. and why does this "Have" to be on the same weekend as millions of others. there are afterall 11 other months and at least 361 other days. shouldnt we spend more time WITH the family instead? with out the stress?? ok we cant get out of the overeating thing... at least if your family is anything like ours. the first thing the all do is cook a feast :o)

enough ranting for the day - i hope however you all spent your holiday weekend it was fun and safe

found a really interesting and uplifting blog today. apparently she had a stroke in her 2nd trimester of pregnancy & Survived!! wow! she is making remarkable progress as well. a real inspiration. she's at http://bethhanley.blogspot.com/

WOW - its been ages since i posted and a lots been going on. today tho all i am going to mention is the blog i have just recently found Daycreek.com
i was so fascinated that i went back and read every posting. he has been building a cordwood home. The blog is very well written and the writer goes into amazing detail. the kind of things that a potential self builder wants and needs to know. and on top of all that he is a very good photographer! i do hope you take a minute to check his site out. its a delight.

Had a GREAT research day!! www.Ancestry.com has the BRAND NEW 1930's census records on line for the FIRST time!! YEA!!! actually found info on Grfather - confirmed he was born in Ireland (family "Thought" he was but...) also confirmed grmother from Ireland as well AND we found aunt 'Babe"s" first name!! found bunches of stuff on other family lines as well. SOOOOOO COOOL~!! i was having so much fun i totally forgot to watch the fireworks!!LOL!!!

Hot Diggity!

Did i mention am a genealogist?? i love researching- wish i could make a living doing it. am doing several friends family lines, KNYVETT, ESCHETE and KARSTENS. Still digging on grandfather "CROFT" too.

AM SOOO EXCITED!! a good friend (who i MISS a lot just let me know her website is up!

CHeck it OUT on my favorite links= Sue's Old Fashions i KNOW for a fact she is an incredible seamstress and a VERY PATIENT teacher!! :o)!!! the pictures dont even begin to show how lovely her clothes are!! if you need ANYTHING in period clothing = she is the Person to check with!!

WhooooHooo! i finished one with OUT major booboo's! LOL!! the only thing i may have goofed on was how many rows of plain knitting at the top. Is a pretty swan- is such fun to finish AND it looks like its suppossed to!!

Did u knit in public today? 10 June 06=National knit in public day!!
YES I did!! LOL!!
went to DH's High School Alumnus Picnic in Garden Grove. LOTS of people came but few from his grad class :( so while we ENJOYED being there and the GREAT weather (its been averaging 108 at home) i had very few to really interact with. so..... :o) i got time to knit. (Yea!) was nice sitting in the cool breeze with all the different people wandering about (i am a bit of a people watcher) i finished a previous KAL from MonthlyDishcloths = i think it was april or march - its a darling garden watering can! the ONLY problem i found with it is that i am STILL having pattern sequencing problems. i had to frog a bit twice. but am even getting better at frogging (i dont have to start over every time now! LOL!!)you can see that i do have that problem on the border.... is frustrating as am NOT SURE what i am doing wrong there tho i suspect i am forgeting to switch back to knit those last couple of stitches.
THANK you to those who wrote suggestion=- the crossing off line by line is helping ALOT more than i thought it would.
we DID refind an old friend this weekend so all in all was a GREAT day yesterday.

the "almost finished' funky color ribbon purse (i still have to complete the handle) its cuter than i expected. :o) and the fuzzy stuff seems to suit it. even my 14yr old says its OK. (high praise indeed from a picky teener!)

I actually DID IT!! i finished my first KAL and my first dishcloth. the pattern is from the yahoo group "Monthly Dishcloths"
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MonthlyDishcloths/?yguid=185460809

its such a cute little fishy= i used some cotton i had stored (funny thing- it was sun faded in spots but the resulting varigation is kinda pretty) i already see all my mistakes tho.....:( but i am still having problems following a pattern and the size of dishcloths is great for practicing and learning. i LOVE the feel of the cotton too.

You are Milk Chocolate

A total dreamer, you spend most of your time with your head in the clouds.You often think of the future, and you are always working toward your ideal life.Also nostelgic, you rarely forget a meaningful moment... even those from long ago.

What Kind of Chocolate Are You?

LOOKING for Ideas and suggestions.
My dd#2 is in a hs band that will be performing in Shanghai and Bejing China in July 07~~http://www.psband.org/china.html all very exciting and will keep us incredibly busy for the next 13 months (as if a teen doesnt keep ya busy ANYWAY!! LOL!) but we (and others) are facing a financial situation. While we are struggling to PAY for this trip (dont get me wrong its worth it!) we are a two income household so are (so far) managing to hang on by our fingernails.

THe PROBLEM?? dd's BEST FRIEND is in a single income household w/3 kids and the dad has not been well recently (scared them badly recently with a rush to the emergency room) so they DONT have the funds for her to go. :o( ........and WE dont have the funds to send her either.
(we are talking $2500 a head here- i know, OUCH! but its actually very reasonable all things considered)

So whats to do???? HOW do i go about finding sponsors? i dont hang with the rich crowd. most of my friends are in the same boat as we are... struggling to get by in an OVERPRICED part of the country, where (literally) you can be considered below poverty level and STILL make too much money to Qualify for food stamps!

Does anyone KNOW how to find and qualify for corporate sponsorships?? is there some method or letter one can send? i can DO that. i dont know HOW to do "fundraising' kind of things. am not good at getting donations for anything...... but if it involves letter writing emailing, etc - i think i can do at least that.

could sure use some ideas here.....

The politics are starting to heat up here in California- I actually went to my first ever political shindig. (small scale but very interesting) the candidate had a lot to say that I actually approved of . go figure. me, the anti-politician.. will wonders never cease.

If i continue with this i may just back this guy. His name is Steve Westly, and he had some good things to say about where he would like to take the state. As things are really bad now and quickly going in the toilet, he seems to have some ideas on bringing our state back to some semblance of on its feet. i don't hold the hope that he is some sort of miracle man. but we need a new direction and maybe hes got the moxy to pull it off.

I hope that every one who can WILL vote for whoever they choose. thats the most important thing.
could be an "interesting' summer! assuming of course that he wins the primary. i hope so as i dont much like angelides either.
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OTN: found some ribbon on sale ($1 a skein!) couldn't resist as i like the feel of it. is pretty screwy colors tho.. not what i would choose for myself but have enough to make a teener type purse -with matching furry trim. am trying to figure out how to finish it now. is interesting.

am still working on the the sock..... am calling the whole thing my 'pet' porcupine but have made progress finished the ribbing and am working on the leg part now. one of these days i may even succeed and finish the thing. :o) i dont mind tho.. am getting the hang of its rhythm and its surprisingly soothing.

Found a blog from new zealand with the most wonderful pictures!! would love to visit there. the band kids that came to visit us from there were absolutely delightful. i hope that they can come back soon. heres the blog. do check it out. http://kiwisoul.blogspot.com/

Color play


by r18rj18

Some photo experiments

by r18rj18


by r18rj18

Has been a few days but have been busy busy.... FINISHED!! a yummy large scarf for my mil for her birthday and got it and other goodies sent to her. when we called her for her happy birthday call found out bil paul is going into hospital for foot spur and stretching of achilles tendon.... OUCH! i have a LOT of sympathy as i too have foot problems!
The scarf was of a simple varigated boucle yarn of oatmeal lavender and pale blues. worked up lovely and SOFT-- i hope she likes :o)

otn- RESTARTED baby sweater again. i dont know enough yet i guess to be able to look at my work and figure out WHY it doesnt look right. i just know it doesnt,..... so i frog and frog.. :(
this time i restarted it on the vario. got the increases done up til the 21 stitches on each side increase -then the machine had hiccups. ergghh so i took it off and am doing the next part by hand. i really like the row counter on the machine but will see how it goes from here. is pretty in bright yellow & orange,,, i know SOUNDS funky but the yarn is pretty nevertheless! i started the blanket for the shower gift on the machine, ITs pale yellow and pale green very subtle but really nice. if sweater 1 works then i will do a sweater to match blanket. if not maybe a hat? will see.

still working on the looooonnnnnnnnnng blue silk scarf. i was going to give it to a friend for her going away present, but it didnt want to go! every time i tried to finish it that weekend something went wrong ... i guess it will tell me where its SUPPOSED to go eventully. its very soft and airy. am using huge needles with fine yarn.. i like the effect.

THIS IS SOOOOO NEAT!!

ITS OFFICIAL!!

The SPIRIT of the SANDS, Palm Springs High School Band and Visual Corps. is THE FIRST American Band to be selected To Play at the 2007

www.psband.org

BEIJING OLYMPIC MUSIC FESTIVAL!!!!!!

the youngest is going to china!! Oh MY!!!

THis band director does AMAZING things with and for the Kids (how many hs bands do you know get to perform at DISNEYLAND on a regular basis! or is the local city's official band?? OR play in the SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE or TIVLOLI GARDENS, Denmark??

ESPECIALLY as they do it on a budget from the school district of $00000000!!!!!

every dime is raised by the band boosters and the families of the kids.

So From Now on i will also be including band performance info here.
this weekend there is a Bookfest with a LOT of authors here in town selling and chatting up their books and activities. I think i will go and see some favorite authors :o) and also pass out invitations that i have made on my own to as many as i can to invite them to our

Palm SPrings Youth Music Festival & 19th Annual Invitational Field Show Tournament. Its offically from the 2-9th of December in downtown Palm Springs.
SO IF YOUR family is in ANY way involved with your local high school LET THEM know about our tournament. We have an internationally adjudicated program and LOTS Of FUN!!!

Of Finland & Sweden:
I see that I have had a visitor from both these countries. How cool is THAT!! I loved visiting both of them. We went ot Stockholm then rode a train for several hours to a friends home (i dont remember where exactly but it was GREEN~! too too wonderful. there was a forest right across from their house..

Our friends in Finland were in the town/city of Espoo (also forested). Lordy that was a beautiful place. I miss those friends. we have lost touch with them and i dont even know if they are still there. Keith & Leah if you come across this, my dh worked with you in Tabuk!

i know, I know, a LONG SHOt that anyone i know would actually see this but ya never know! LOL!!

I really enjoyed All of scandanavia - is a Stunning part of the world. would love to go back someday.

Where Falcons & Desert Hawks Fly http://kkmcdeserthawk.blogspot.com/ HAs a GREAT shot of a Camel in the desert. Its funny the odd little things you miss about a place. We lived in kingdom for over 4 yrs and those loud smelly unfriendly oddly shaped and equally oddly beautiful creatures are one of them.. strange but there it is....

Discovered A really neat blog Called Infinite Zoom: A Fractal Gallary= while i have NO idea what a Fractal is i DO know when something is really pretty and these images really ARE!!
http://infinitezoom.com/index.htm

Probably the ONLY political thing i will ever put here: Came across a very interesting blog. It has a very thought provoking commentary on Censorship of Blogging - http://internetfreedomforall.blogspot.com/

I have always been very strongly opposed to censoreship - we ALL have the right to CHOOSE what we read/look at= if ya dont like it dont LOOK! Censorship smacks of Fanaticism. there is a quote "When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying the cross." - Sinclair Lewis" when you read and watch the news this very thing seems to be happening all over the US on a daily basis.

The other thing I have been noticing recently is a rather frightening scenario playing out. Here in california there is this catch 22 happening in our school systems. The "state" claims many of our schools are failing (even as they keep taking away their money to function) and if the schools dont PASS certain testings then the "state" will basically take over the running of said schools- a thing that is pretty much a given as the state is removing the districts money & they are failing from lack of resources. an example of WHAT really WORRIES me is that It is this SAME process that has happened in some of the Sacramento School Districts where they have REMOVED the Civil war from their curriculum altogether (apparently that bit of history isnt considered IMPORTANT!@) ---am i the only person to see the parallel to the state controlled school curriculum programming/censorship in pre-WWII germany??
anyway thats my one political "thing" for the day

It Takes a Village.....
i always like that phrase - even fair sized towns can be like one. I attended a middle school band meeting one night & had to laugh. Of the dozen people there i knew one from one job, another from my second job, 1 from the high school band boosters and 2 from girl scouts, ..... as it turned out there was only two there i ONLY knew from THAt school!
what brought that to mind was coming across a blog showing the artwork the lady was doing for her 'Boston Cow". these types of artwork are becoming rather popular. My favorite is still the PandaMania project http://pandamaniadc.org/ But we have one here in town too... (tho reno also has the same critter for their subject i discovered) we have BIG HORN sheep. the art work is quite amazing. http://www.pathofthebighorn.com/


One of the rams was done by a fellow scout leader and band mom and hers is residing in a local library. What the photo does not show Is the huge amount of beadwork that was done on it. in the photo it simply looks like painted bands but some of the bands are actually Thousands of beads glued in place. our friend said if she had had ANY idea how HARD that was she would have done something different. (apparently she had to hold the beads in place as they dried or they would fall off) but the end result is very Bright and eyecatching. is fun