Still here somewhere...

Hello all, its been awhile since I've really posted but I must admit I've been very tired and only read when I get on. This week is another long week, shucks who am I kidding the next few weeks will be long each and every one of them til I leave for my conference. I am hoping to get some rest before than and on the trip but it looks like the trip will be my rest though its a homeschool convention. I've been knitting even though its very slow and I've tried to get some reading done but end up sleep in the book. I've not been able to finish this week's CMSeries study pages either. I know that I'm too tired and need to get some rest, so with that thought I'm going to upload a few pics, check another email or two and go to bed ~ 6a is early around here for some reason. LOL Have a great evening.

ISE6 Progress:

co ~ 4/24

SI2M 2nd Package

Yummy Scarf

Missing in Action

Yelp ~ thats what I've been "MIA." Unfortunately, it couldn't be helped for various reasons. ;) I thought I give a quick update before heading off to bed ~ yes, I've been going to bed early Rori. LOL I must in order not to be grouchy at 7a and sit thru 8hrs of training that starts @ 9a and end at 6p. Woohoo!

Car ~ our vehicle still has some issues. After $700 repair, we found that there is an additional $2000 of repairs that need to be made before the end of the summer in order for it to run properly. What a bummer?! However, I am working hard not to let this depress me and know that there is a hope.

Training ~ it is intense, fun and tiring. We are learning so much about various products that our heads are overflowing with information. This is good so that we are able to better service our clients. Today, I learned about an amazing product ~ ghd. For those of you who use styling irons on your hair, this one is awesome and multifunctioning. Can't wait to get one ~ wait, yes I can. ;) I was a makeup model again today which was fun ~ smoky eyes are kewl will definitely have to do that one again.

Knitting ~ not much since I pinched a nerve in my upper back on the right side (I'm righthanded). However, I'm doing better today but still take Excedrin Tension because it gets really tight and starts to throb. I received several packages in the mail ~ one from my SIT2Me pal and my L2KDC pal. I will upload pictures at the end of the week. I've finished 1 1/2 socks for ds and half way thru my Yummy scarf which I started over yesterday.

Well thats all, I'm tired and will now say "adios" Have a great week.

Quick Update

sorry friends and family for my MIA status. Job training started this week along with the woes of car repairs. The training has been more like attending night classes and requires more of me than I had anticipated. I am unable to be up late at night since I need to be alert and attentive during the 8hr training which ends most days with certification testing. I will update on the weekend after sleeping in of course. I've lots to share about my spending journey, my stash diet and current knitting projects. Talk w/you all soon. ;)

Day 5 ~ Apr 5th

Its been quiet here and I've been lazy. I have been knitting and thinking about cleaning but didn't do much of that. I managed to work on ds' socks and they are coming along nicely. The younger kiddos and I walked to the convenience store and Wendy's. Since we don't have a car, I never made it to the grocery store and dinner was fast food. Not my choice but walking to the grocery store was a bit more than I had energy for. So, we spent $ on junk food but we aren't hungry.

The mechanic still has the car and will til Monday now, they close at 2p. They have no idea whats wrong with it and have run several tests and will continue to do so on Monday. I'm hoping its not something major and have started looking for our second car. I may have to do a note for it but it would give me some peace of mind to have a second car though I don't want the debt ~ the freedom to go when I need to is more important at the moment. Dh was able to go to work, our neighbor took him and he got a ride home with a co-worker. I'm glad that worked out though he ended going in later than scheduled and closing ~ I think he enjoyed it. The kiddos and I didn't do much while he was gone. We did watch OETA movie club ~ The Apartment and One, Two, Three. I loved them both and it was my 2nd or 3rd time watching the apartment. Lots of knitting done while watching. I also finished off another audio book "Kalahari Typing School for Men." Its the last audio book in the house thats not school related, so I'll have to read a book the normal way. Thats too bad, no knitting while I read and I don't know how people do if its not a large book you can sit on the table or your knitting not simple stockinette. Oh well, maybe one day I'll get the hang of it.

Nothing more to tell so I'll go now. I hope everyone has a great weekend.

Day 5 ~ $14 spent on dinner.

Day 4 ~ Apr 4th

I got more cardio today ~ dh and I walked to the mechanic's to pick up our car. It was about a 2-3 mile walk, not bad for an old lady ~ I didn't get winded but could have used a water bottle. LOL The mechanic said the car was fine so we drove it home but it wasn't fine. The car began to knock and idle hard, then it tried to cut off a couple of times. We parked it in our driveway where it promptly cut itself off and won't turn back on. Now does that sound fine to you?! No, it does not but dh is now too angry to call that mechanic and begins looking for another. Now don't misunderstand, our mechanic has never let us down before and he's within walking distance but apparently this is above his expertise and we need help .....read this clearly ~ NOW! Being a one car family with 3 working adults, a working vehicle is a necessity. We contact a shop that helped us once before, though they are farther than a good walk, and they told us to bring the car to them. Well, you know it doesn't start anymore so we have to have it towed. The tow company said "we'll be there in an hour" but it was actually almost 2 hrs later when they arrived. The delivered the vehicle and we await findings.

In the meantime ~ more drama ;) , I'm trying to figure out how to get to the concert, which my ds is already at and get him home if I don't get there. I finished doing my hair but couldn't find a ride at all. I called my friend whom I was helping and he arranged for his wife to pick me and Riley up. We arrived and helped with passing out signup cards for the drawing and hung out with friends ~ I didn't win, bummer. The concert was a blast ~ a different crowd than I'm use to seeing ~ lots of little girls and older people. Hmm...this could be good but it wasn't a rock concert sooo I'm not sure what I was expecting and it was at a really nice church. Oh well, I believe the artists had a great time, I didn't stick around to find out since I got a ride with one of our fav DJs so I was outta there after the final song of the encore. ;D Btw ~ if you'd not checked them out, you need to do so the artists are Meredith Andrews, Brandon Heath and Aaron Shust ~ who is totally awesome and the best dad. ;D

Knitting was done at the concert ~ yes, I tried knitting in the semi-darkness and it was ok til I dropped a stitched about 10 rows down on my heel flap. Now that was not right, I had to rip them out and do them again. It wasn't painful for me but my ds was upset that I was pulling his sock apart to fix it ~ how could I do such a thing was the expression on his face and on the others too. I laughed and told them it would be ok and I had to do it in order for the sock to turnout right. I managed to re-knit the 10 rows before we left the concert. I stopped at the gusset before I fell asleep (at home not at the concert LOL).

Overall, this day was truly not great but the bright side is ~ I have great friends who take care of me when I need them; my kiddos still like me at the end of the day; and music does soothe the savage beast that can rage within. Have a great weekend.

Day 4 ~ $0 spent

Day 3 ~ Apr 3rd

Today has been somewhat productive. I cleaned out my yarn bag, got some knitting done and went for a walk. Riley and I took a walk to the post office ~ we needed to get some stamps and send some envelopes off. We've not walked in our neighborhood in a long while, well at least not together. It was a mom and daughter outings which gave me an opportunity to talk and spend time with her. I've been setting aside $ for outing with each dc and today I got to use it for the first time. ;) Yes, I know I wasn't to spend money this month but it is allowed for the benefit of nurturing a relationship with my dc though I will always seek inexpensive ways to do so. But there is a budget for these outings and I classify this as a necessity.

The mechanic hasn't found anything wrong with our car. It worked for him and that created another issue. He decided to put it on the computer to check everything. We hope to get the car in the morning. I really hope we do, I just received an email that I need my driver's license, a recent photo and some copies of my personal info for orientation on Monday. I can only get my license tomorrow or really early on Monday which would be too much stress so having our vehicle back is a necessity.

Anywho, in my cleaning mode I cleared out some knitting that has been sitting around. I frogged 2 pr of socks, frogged my Yummy scarf and started the sewing up on my Toddler Sweater. The funny thing about this sweater is I made it over a year ago and it only need to be sewn. I now see why people dread sewing up, it can be time consuming but I'll be happy to have it done then I'll have to figure out what to do with it. I'll take pics when it is done. Oh yeah ~ the frogged socks, they were my Monkey socks and some Peds for my ds. The monkey socks was found at the bottom of a box in a sad state ~ 2 missing needles and dropped stitches. It didn't look well and I didn't know what to do with them so I frogged them and will use the yarn for something else. The Peds weren't working out since I had somehow increased the stitches and the yarn seem too thick and I wasn't enjoying making them. I plan to use that Opal for something else too. I dug thru the stash and found the original Opal my ds had asked me to use and started a pair of Nancy Drew ~ Ned version for him. I finished the left front of my CPH but can't start the right front since I've misplaced my #6s. This is not right ~ where could I've put those needles, I had everything together and now they are gone. Oh well, I'll do a deep search tomorrow since the quick one didn't find them. I frogged the Yummy scarf because I ran out yarn before finishing the first section but I'll start again soon and work it a bit different since I can't get to the LYS for more. I'll update later on that.

Dinner was simple ~ hamburgers and rice. Yesterday we had grilled chicken, homemade tortillas and rice. I'm working to keep dinner simple and easy especially with the warm weather and the a/c is acting cranky again. The weather is stormy but I like it ~ hot chocolate, books and knitting. Very nice indeed. Off to get some sleep, early bed time has been good for my mood too and allow me time to read and work some rows in bed. Have a great one.

Day 3 ~ $8.37 for stamps & $8 for girls outing = $16.37 but was all budgeted and necessary. ;)

Yes, updating early b/c tomorrow will be a very busy day!

Day 2 ~ Apr 2nd

today has been a quiet day though its been very dreary. The weather here is gloomy but will be good for working inside. I have been working in my bedroom clearing our unwanted stuff and sorting my clothing. I found lots more things I'd forgotten about and have removed the stack of books from beside my bed. There were over 10 books there that just seem to be buried. Now there is space beside the bed and I like it. ;)

Still no news on our car though the mechanic was able to take it earlier than expected. Unfortunately, he still may not get to it til tomorrow morning. It has been towed to the shop and I am hopeful that it will not be too bad and we will get it back by Friday. There is a concert on Friday and we are volunteering. It would be bad if we couldn't make it after planning for it for over a month.

There is not much to report today, just resting and cleaning. I took a long hot bath which I have been wanting for awhile. I fell asleep for about an hour and my neck hurts but I'm happy. I've been reading and listening to books on cd. I finished "Careful Use of Compliments" and I'm enjoying Yarn Harlot's book "Secret Life of a Knitter." This book is hilarious and I've started seeing myself in it which is really scary.

Knitting ~ I've cast on for the Yummy scarf for the 4th time however, I'm at a crossroad since I've ran out of the first yarn before finishing the last row of the pattern. Hmm...not sure what I'm going to do but I have emailed my wonderful LYS owner for suggestions. ;) I'm almost done with the left front of my CPH which is really exciting. I've gotten my drive back to get it done. It will be a wonderful addition to my wardrobe.

School is going well and I will be giving exams tomorrow. My plan is to have my lessons and outlines done by saturday since I don't have much time left before I'm gone 40hrs a week for a month. I'm glad its only a month ~ couldn't do it regularly at this time. I'm enjoying my freedom too much but if I have too, I'll be ready. Will definitely need to add some exercise to my schedule so I can handle the fatigue that it would bring. I'm looking forward to spending more time with the dc and getting our school back on full schedule ~ miss our tea times and art studies. With spring around the corner, its bird watching and outdoor sketching time. I love this time of the year in this part of the world. It really is beautiful even with the dangers of flooding and tornadoes.

Off to knit, read and go to bed early again tonight. The early nights are paying off. Have a great one!

Day 2 ~ $0 spent ;)

Knitting updates

Here are the posts I have on Stashalong about my 2nd quarter goals, 1st quarter update and my April KAL n KAL. It is easier to copy and paste then to type it all again so I combine both posts below. ;D

~ 2nd Quarter Goals ~

Wow ~ it was just yesterday we all began our stashalong commitments for '08 and now we are into the 4 month of the year already. My first quarter goals were not met as I'd like though I did manage to get some things done. I believe that I will need to change my strategy in order to have any true element of success and the first change must be to make a declaration.

"Sock yarn does count as stash ~ well at least for me!"

There, I've said it and I will hold to that for the remainder of the quarter since my stash growth has been due to skeins upon skeins of sock yarn. Oh they are lovely too but they take up a lot of space if you buy them in bulk. LOL What is a girl to do especially with such lovely colors for the season. Well, this girl will be abstaining and enjoy shopping in her own stash for awhile.

Quick review of first quarter goals:

Make 1 pr socks per month ~ completed 4 pr

Make 2 dishcloths per month ~ completed 3

Complete 1 UFO per month ~ completed 1
Something for Me ~ completed 1 item (Aurora)

Hmm....what happen here ~ not much obviously and I definitely hadn't planned for this especially since I've acquired more yarn than I actually used. So I will have to work from a different posture.

Here are my 2nd quarter goals:
1. complete WIPs
~ CPH
~ Monkey socks
~ ISE6 Scarf
~ Not Peds
2. complete UFOs
~ Baby Blanket
~ Country Cousins blanket
~ Baby Kimono
~ Toddler Sweater
~ Surprise Scarf
3. make 1 pr of socks per month
4. make 1 dishcloth per month

*no yarn purchase unless to complete a WIP or UFO; no free days unless earned thru KALnKALs or completion of WIPs & UFOs ~ really no need for purchase but will be an incentive to be done by June trip to North Carolina. You know, in case there is a lovely yarn shop or two on the way ~ I'll be driving from OK. ;D

Now to choose my April KALnKAL project. I've been having a hard time with this one but I may just use something OTNs ~ now that would help motivate me to get it done, right?! We shall see. Happy Knitting!

~ April KALnKAL ~

Loops Spring '08 Yarn Tasting Kit ~ rec'd at LYS party this weekend. ;)

Pattern: Yummy ~ a spring scarf by Shelley Brander

Needles: US 11 circs (I'm a tight knitter LOL)

Yarn: Leona (soft coral), Silken Straw (gold), Flotsam (orange/salmon), Pomaire (mauve), Prima (bright pink), and Jeannee (medium pink)

New beginnings ~ Apr 1st

its day 2 of my week off and I've been doing absolutely nothing. Its been a very freeing experience too. I found that I was very sore and my body was in desperate need of rest. I will probably rest most of the week though I had so many plans. I've been going to bed early which has resulted in me relaxing. I'm much happier and I look forward to getting my joy back too.

Today marks Day 1 of my slow quarter. I've set my goal to only spend money for the necessities and nothing more. This will include not purchasing any yarn which has been my downfall of late. I've some $$ that was set aside to purchase needles that I will still purchase for they are needed since they are sizes I don't have and I have a coupon. ;) After this purchase, I will endeavor to spend less and use what I have. I've started cleaning and found some things that I didn't know I even had. LOL So, going without spending should do me a world of good. I'll be using my coupons more so I spent time today clipping, sorting and getting them ready for use. I used a few yesterday for toothbrushes, soap and dish detergent ~ saved $7. I'm revising my meal plans since I'm no longer interested in the ones I have. They are a starting point but since I would like to get my pantry stocked again, I'll need to change things up a bit.

We had a small setback today and our car isn't running. We don't know whats wrong with it yet but it had to be towed home. Our mechanic won't be able to take a look at it til thursday either. Over the weekend dh had mentioned that the car was dragging and wouldn't accelerate and it did it again today. He took it into an auto place and they discovered that the battery was almost dead and thought it might be the issue so dh went to Walmart, which is where the battery was from, and they had to replace the battery along with clamps and another part that was corroded by the battery. However, that didn't fix the problem and the car stopped a block away from wally world. Its a good thing dh added roadside assistance to his cell phone plan, they picked him and towed the vehicle to the house and will come get it when the mechanic is ready. I'm glad I choose to not spend money today, who knows I might have had to take it all back to repair the car. LOL Glad I also started an emergency fund in Feb ~ its not much after purchasing the tires but its better than nothing. I will add more in time since I won't be spending it. ;)

Knitting has been slow and steady since my hand is still not 100%. I finished the garterlac cloth and got it ready for mailing. Progress is being made on the Peds along with plans for ISE6 scarf and a spring kal project. I am hoping to have my quarterly plans together tomorrow for stashalong so I can keep track of them here. I received my last shipment of sock yarn too ~ its all very nice and I can't wait to find a pattern for it. I'll share pics soon. This past weekend, Sk8Chick and I attend the LYS preview party. We had a good time but left early and watched movies ~ Nancy Drew & Mr. Beans Holiday. We received takeout containers which were filled with yarn samples to make a lovely scarf designed by the LYS owner. We also joined the knit-in on sunday before I went to work ~ it was a blast. ;) Well off to get dinner ready. Have a great night!

Day 1 ~ $0 spent

ps ~ you probably noticed that I wrote yesterday's events as today and will do so from this point forward. I'm cutting back my time on the computer too ~ so updating will actually be for the previous day. Enjoy!