With the exception of Kirchener stitching the toes together, these socks made from the Tongue River Farm yarn that Craig gave me for Christmas are finished. The socks are for Craig and should 1) last forever 2) be the warmest socks he has ever worn. The yarn is fabulous - from Icelandic sheep. I had so many comments from people when I worked on them in public. Several people asked if they were sleeves for a sweater. In retrospect, considering the time involved maybe turning them into a sweater would have been a good idea!

My current project is quite different - it is a purse that will be felted when finished. I've gone from a fairly detailed pattern on small needles (the socks) to a very slubby nubby yarn on fairly large needles. This yarn is from Dancing Leaf Farm (a great MD sheep farm in the foothills of Sugarloaf Mountain). I've also gone from working off and on for a couple of weeks to finish the socks to being able to complete a purse in a little more than an afternoon.

New Skirt

Emily has been looking forward to attending the temple with her Young Women's group ever since she turned 12. She had read in the New Era that you should wear your best to the temple and she wanted to make something modest that could be "her best", and asked if we could make a skirt together. How could I say no to that? We ran to JoAnn's on Saturday, picked out a pattern and fabric and spent today working on it together. In spite of the fact that I purchased the wrong pattern - CH instead of CS - and I didn't realize it until after I had started to cut out the pattern pieces - we think it turned out pretty cute. Thank goodness it was a skirt and not too difficult to enlarge. Emily helped as much as she could - the ruffles were a little more than she wanted to tackle. She is planning on wearing it with a white blouse. It is missing some ribbon trim on the ruffles - can you believe I can't find white thread ANYWHERE in this house??? I tried it with the blue thread that we were using for the rest of the skirt and it just didn't work.

Perler Beads

Do you remember fusible Perler Beads?? Emily received a small kit a few months ago and then "discovered" some that I thought had been tossed during our last decluttering... needless to say the past couple of cold and icy days have provided plenty of time to "perl"? While running errands on Saturday we picked up what I'm now referring to as a "bucket-o-fun" (6,000 beads). The projects above are destined for Alicia and her roommates. I'm partial to the "I Heart U" and the monkey myself. If you want to keep a tween or younger one happy the "bucket-o-fun" ought to do it! Emily is currently taking orders if you see anything you would like!

You've got to check out this picture of De-Hwa Liu that was made with 15,000 beads (not by Emily) - amazing. For some reason I can't get it to post. Kind of reminds me of the pictures made out of Jelly Bellys - smile if you remember the CA Jelly Belly tour!

A quick Cara post - we enjoyed following the poms competition season and were so proud of Cara and her squad. I hate to see it end - although the girls seem happy that practices are almost over (one more basketball halftime performance). They improved with each competition and ended up with a "Best in Show" and 2 Spirit Awards! The last picture is your first look at Cara's brand new new hair color (just hours old). I'm calling the new color strawberry blond. The new cut is darling - so short in comparison to her usual length. Too bad school was just canceled (for the 3rd day in a row) and she won't get to show it off tomorrow :(

Peanut Butter Recall

I'm always seeing recall information but they've never applied to me. Imagine our surprise this am when Emily saw the peanut butter recall on line involving the possibility of salmonella poisoning and then found this jar in the pantry. Thank goodness it is unopened - check your cupboards...

Braces, Pillows and Snow, Oh My!

After spending many an afternoon in the waiting room at the orthodontists (while older sisters were being seen), Emily now has her own appointment. She had braces put on last week (the day after her 6th Grade Honor's Band performance) and has struggled this week to eat, chew and adjust her new flute embouchure (lots of pudding, jello, soup and flute practice). She is trying to "keep her eye on the prize" - beautiful teeth! Currently the bands are pink and green - she has already planned the colors for several months in advance - perhaps the only fun thing about braces.

ANOTHER snow day - in addition to sledding and getting together with friends, Emily had fun sewing and stuffing a pillow. she isn't too fond of pinning - but did a nice job! The pillow itself is actually even and well proportioned (that one corner doesn't really sag) - my photography doesn't do it justice.

Sew much going on...

I've been "sew" excited about these pillowcases. I just finished sewing 10 Valentine's Day pillowcases and one apron. Alicia helped me pick out the fabric when she was home for the Holidays. The packages are ready to drop in the mail this afternoon - 6 to Alicia and her roommates along with candy and assorted Valentine's Day wishes and Alicia's apron (only slightly different from the picture above), also a pillowcase a piece to two of Alicia's friends who attend JMU in Harrisonburg, VA and a pillowcase for E and C - fortunately those do not have to be mailed!

Birthdays and Baptisms

Happy Birthday to Princess Miriam our cousin/niece who turned 3 yesterday! Who knew we were related to Royalty? This isn't our most current picture just one of my favorites. We love keeping up with her activities and antics via her mom's blog. We also think her mom and dad are the best and because she is a princess that must make them the king and queen!




Happy Baptism day to another cousin/niece who is being baptized today! Congratulations Marissa! We wish we could be there to celebrate you, your decision, and this special day!