Another Finished Project!

Not that I'm trying to push winter and Christmas out of the way, but ... I found some really great green apple print fabric and decided it would be perfect for a baby bib. Here's the result:

(Front)

(Back)

This bib [and another one (same print, different back)] are now in my Etsy shop.

Those Darned Playmobil People ...

Have invaded our computer desk again! Son No. 2 was taking inventory of his Playmobil people this weekend. Seems to me that there are plenty, but he wants more for Christmas. My wife and I took him to see Santa at the mall yesterday. It's official: Santa has been put on alert. Now, if my little guy can just stay on the "nice list" we'll be okay! :-)

Projects and Thrift Store Finds

My five-year-old son is working on a Christmas tree project. (Dad is helping). We'll sew this up into a little pillow when we're all done with the "backstitching" as the boys call it.

My oldest son is working on holly and berries. As you can see, he's just getting started. It seems playing video games are way more fun than making Christmas gifts. There are times that I threaten to take all the televisions and video games out of our house. Have you ever had that thought? Oh, for the simpler times!

Prototype pencil pouches in felt.

A peek inside. This one needs modified. It looks really nice now, but once the pencils become shorter, it will be tough to get them out of the pouch. But hey...that's why this is a prototype.

Some thrift store finds. Big, big hoops and small, small prices.

Thoughts and Prayers

My thoughts and prayers are with the Kim family today. God bless them all.

Raw Materials

Here's the stack of fabric that I'm currently working with. The weekend went by too quickly and was filled with too many non-craft projects. (Darn it.) So...I'm hoping to get some things done this week after the kids go to bed. Lord help me!

And, here's a bib I'm working on. (Thinking ahead to Spring!)


And one last photo. (Just because I'm having so much fun with Paint Shop Pro X.)

My boys have a (bad) habit of pushing the pins all the way into the pin cushion. Egads!

A Whole Lot of Crafting (NOT) Going On ...

My last few posts have been very non-craft-related. I'm planning to get several things made this weekend. We'll see what happens.

Oh, by the way, it's snowing. Our 59 degree weather has been replaced with a Winter Weather Advisory. Tonite, the temperature is supposed to drop to a low of 18 degrees. Gotta love that.

Have a great weekend!

"A" is for Academics

Since I bragged about my youngest son the other day, it's only fair that my oldest son get his time in the spotlight too. He's in sixth grade this year and received straight A's on his first report card. His school had its monthly award ceremony this week and my wife and I were both able to see him receive an Academic Excellence award. We are very proud of him. Way to go, dude! Keep up the good work. It will pay off!

I Got a New Toy Today -- Corel Paint Shop Pro X

Oh. My. Gosh.

I am in love with this program. Here's something I came up with after only a few minutes of fiddling around.




Just think what I can do after I read the user's guide!

"Oh the weather outside is" .... really warm!

The weather has been totally un-seasonal here in northern Indiana. We took advantage of the 60 degree temps and did some more outdoor Holiday decorating. It was a also a great day for picture taking. I'm trying to learn more about my "old" digital camera. I see so many really great photos on the blogs I visit. There are some very multi-talented folks out there. And I applaud you! Here are some shots of various trees and bushes that live in our yard.







Here's my youngest son (in the yellow jacket, sitting under the fort). He's busy whittling a stick using his new Cub Scout pocket knife. Speaking of Cub Scouts: I was SO proud of him last night. We had a Pack Meeting and toward the end of snack time, one of the boys thought he'd play a little joke and knock off the Scout cap one of the other boys was wearing. Well...in doing so he caused the boy to spill his drink all over the floor and all over his shirt. Here's the cool part: My son ran to the back of the room to grab a roll of paper towel, brought it over and started mopping up the floor! I was (am) a very proud father! He had nothing to do with the incident but wanted to help. On the way home I told him how proud I was of him, to which he replied, "Well, Dad, that's what Cub Scouts do." You bet it is! Love ya buddy!

[Click on the picture for a larger image]

Favorite Tree Ornaments

This one is actually one of my wife's favorite ornaments. Nothing fancy or frilly. No glitter or glitz. Just a simple pair of snowshoes. They make her smile. And that makes me smile.




This is our first "married couple" ornament. The annual tradition is for us to place it on the tree together, before any other ornaments are allowed on the tree. And, it's the last one off the tree at the end of the Holiday season. Silly. But sweet.

Tree Lighting Ceremony

We've officially kicked-off the Holiday season at our house. The tree is up and the lights are on. All 1,200 of them to be exact.

I know: the normal way to put lights on a tree is the "around-and-around" approach, right? Well...last year (for some reason) I decided to try something a bit different. Rather than go around the tree, I placed the lights on each individual branch. Here's what I do: I start at the trunk of the tree and work the lights to the tip of the branch, then (still on the same branch) take the lights back to the trunk. Then it's over to the the next branch, up to the tip, back to the trunk. As you can imagine, it takes a lot more lights for this application. More than you think.

I really like the way it ends up though. The tree is absolutely beautiful -- full of light. It may seem a bit bright in the photos, but by the time the ornaments are put on, it's just right.

So...run out to Target or WalMart today and stock up on lights. C'mon, try it!

Ready for lights!

After the first few strands of lights.

Almost done!

Voila! The tree of lights.
(Notice the reflection in the French doors?)

'Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving ...

...and all through the house there was food, food and more food!

:: Making Cranberry Relish ::

I started with cranberries.

And added a few other ingredients.

The turkey in the family room kept an eye on me the whole time I was cooking.



:: My Wife's Wonderful Pumpkin Bread ::

Pumpkin breads in the oven.

Pumpkin breads out of the oven.

Let me know if you want the recipe for either the Cranberry Relish (it's easy) and/or the Pumpkin Bread (super, super yummy).

:: Gather 'round the Table ::

The kitchen table ... where homework, bill-paying, breakfast, lunch, dinner and a hundred other things take place. Here are a couple photos of a quiet time (pretty rare event).

Whew! It's 11:37 p.m. And to all a good night!

~-~-~-~-~- Happy Thanksgiving! ~-~-~-~-~

Two Small Projects -- 100% Finished!

Finally, I finished something. It seems there is hardly enough time in the day to get it all done. But somehow I managed to crank out two little projects last night. And here they are:




I am very thankful for SO many things. But especially for a wife who puts up with a crafty husband. Honey, I really do appreciate my 'craft' time.

Monday Morning

== Need I say more? ==

Last night I undid the 'hat' that I've been crocheting for my youngest son. We were at Hobby Lobby on Saturday and took a stroll through the yarn aisles. Wow...quite a selection! He saw a skein of variegated yarn and said, "Dad, can you make me a hat out of this?". To which I replied, "Well, sure." Uh-oh! And then, not to be out-done, my oldest son quickly chimes in with "I want one too. Let me pick out some yarn." Double uh-oh! What have I gotten myself into?

I've never made anything 'in the round' but didn't think it would be rocket science. I found a couple simple hat patterns on the Web and had printed them out a few weeks ago. Cuz it's getting cold out, and everybody should have a handmade hat, right?

My first attempt at the stocking cap was awful. And no, I didn't take a picture. (I have some pride, you know.) It's been frogged and turned into Mistake No. 2. The first "hat" was way too small. I have no idea what I did, but it ended up looking more like a small Easter basket than a hat. Figuring out that I didn't increase my stitches enough (duh!), I tried again. This time I ended up with what looks like a big, wavy, green flower. Oops...that's not a hat. So...third time will be charm. God help me!

I really think I understand the instructions now. I found a sample video online that made the light bulb come on. So...tonight might be the night. Stay tuned for further developments.

Weekend Warrior

It's the weekend. Woo Hoo! And it's time to get all those things done that didn't get done during the week. Sound familiar? We'll be grocery shopping, taking Holiday wreaths to the cemetary, cleaning house, doing laundry, and (hopefully) making a quick trip to Hobby Lobby to grab the winter edition of Cutting Edge magazine [Hillary, from Wee Wonderfuls is featured in this issue] and get some yarn (it's on sale).

Speaking of yarn. Here's why I don't think knitting is my cup of tea:

(the photo quality is about the same as the knitting quality -- poor!)

And here's why I prefer crochet:

(Just a swatch - I like this pattern)

Here's another reason:

(Dishcloth I finished last night)

And in non-yarn-related news, here are some WIPs:

(The two on the right are actually 99% complete)

Okay...time to get moving on today's tasks.

Have a good day!

I'm Still Here!

Hey all! It's been a long time since my last entry. I've been very busy with work and things at home. Wow...it's just been a crazy time. And with the Holidays approaching, it could get worse. Eeeeooowwwwww!

The knitting thing has been put on hold. I got really frustrated with it and decided to just put. it. away. I've become best friends with my crochet hook and have been making a few things to give as Christmas gifts. Nothing fancy, but handmade says "I made it with love." And you can't beat that, now can you?

Have a great weekend. I'll try to sneak back in here a.s.a.p.

:-)

Still Crazy After All These Years

First. It's been a while since my last post. I've been through one of those ultra-hectic times. Between work and home, I just haven't had much time to squeeze in a blog post. And I had promised to post an entry every day. Ha!

Second. The family and I spent Saturday stomping around Chicago. We had been trying to get tickets to the King Tut exhibit at the Field Museum, but no luck. A great time was had by all. We walked and walked and walked and walked some more. So much to see. After a quick snack at the museum, it was off to Michigan Avenue. Let the shopping begin! Then it was dinner at Gino's East (great pizza). Then a quick stop at the Hershey's chocolate store. And, finally, a return trip to Crate and Barrel for some really cool Christmas decorations. Then it was off for home. Or more like, "stuck in traffic". With Barry Manilow (remember him) in town and the Chicago Marathon on Sunday, it was bumper to bumper for a long time. But that's all part of the big-city experience.

Third. Yesterday was my birthday. Yep. I'm a whopping 45 years old. Don't feel any older than I did last year, or the year before. Which is a good thing. A very good thing. Still crazy, after all these years.

Have a good Monday!

Sunday's Trip to the Pumpkin Patch

A beautiful afternoon for picking out the perfect pumpkin.

And, yes, the little redhead (see that beautiful red hair at the bottom of the photo?) belongs to me. I'm very cautious about putting family photos on the internet, so that may be all you get to see. I've heard too many stories.

Last Night's Drive Home

Autumn skies that looked more like wintry, snow clouds.

Home.

Coming down the home stretch.

A river runs through it.

Two huge oak trees next to the building I work in.

Sunday Drive to the Lake

Just a Pine Tree and Blue Sky


I'm not sure why I took this photo. It's a simple pine tree that stands behind our place at the lake. Our weekend getaway spot during the summer.

Sometimes there's beauty in the simplest of things: blue sky, green tree, wispy white clouds.

Life gets complicated most days. I just need to remember: blue sky, green tree, wispy white clouds.

Ok. I'm all better now.



The Tree Tunnel
Yep, here's one I took while driving down the road (on the way to lake). Ok, I know: shame on me. But how else do you get this great shot?

Anyhow...this is the entrance to the tree tunnel. Named as such because during the summer the trees are so full that they actually create a darkened tunnel that we drive through on our way to and from the lake.

It has been tradition for us to take a deep breath as we enter the tunnel and sing a long, steady "aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh" all the way to the end. Silly, I agree. But tradition is tradition. And we love it. We've been doing it for years. And I'm guessing we'll be doing it for many more. Isn't that what traditions are all about?

See you tomorrow.

The Greek Coin Project

Ah yes, the old Greek Coin Project. A good reason to be crafty.

My oldest son chose to make some larger-than-life-size replicas of Greek coins for his class project. A little bit of clay, some internet research (thank goodness for the internet), a few toothpicks, a warm oven, some craft paint and a good dose of Mom's help, and voila: coins.

The small coin-like object laying right next to the silver coin on the left is actually a little something I baked up. I rolled up a small amount of clay, flattened it into a disc and then used a rubber stamp and a toothpick to create a seashell ornament. I'm thinking of looping some ribbon through the hole and making a book mark. Or ... who knows what? I made several and should take a better picture so you can see the detail. They only took a few minutes and they turned out very nice.

An Autumn Welcome ...

Walk in our front door and this is what greets you. When we were looking at houses to buy (a few years back), the foyer in this one was something we really liked. This is just a small piece of it, but I wanted to share it with you. My wife did an excellent job of decorating the table for the Fall season. She has such an eye for detail. (Love ya honey!)

And yes, I made the table runner. Pumpkins, scarecrows and other Autumn delights.

Welcome to another week. I hope it's a good one for you and your's. :-)

Crafty Dad Conquers Two Pointy Sticks and Some String!

What a difference a day makes. Old yarn. New needles -- I gotta’ new attitude. I finally got the hang of it. I actually formed knit stitches. Can I get a “Woot Woot”? (Or a “Gee dummy, it’s about time!?”)

Yarn tension and proper form is another story. But I have great confidence that I’ll conquer those battles very soon. The weekend is approaching and hopefully I’ll have some quality time to work out the kinks.

In other news: I received two packages yesterday (from eBay purchases). I am the proud owner of eighteen more crochet hooks (many in original blister packs) and twenty-some knitting needles (metal, plastic and circular). They are all in VERY good condition. Woo Hoo…..Crafty Dad strikes again.

More Rambling Thoughts

I made a quick trip to Michael’s last night and bought a pair of bamboo needles (Size 10). I only had a few minutes of practice, but I think they are going to make a world of difference. I’m still messing with acrylic yarn, but I really feel like I’ll make some progress with the smaller, wooden needles. Maybe it’s all in my head, but…whatever it takes!

This blog needs some photographs, no? So…I promise to get in gear and start uploading some. I need to take some photos of the Greek coins my wife and son made this past weekend. And I slso want to show you the shell doo-dads I made for bookmarks, etc. I’m hoping to get that done tonight.

During a recent trip to the cedar closet, I noticed tons of ‘raw materials’ that are just waiting to become Christmas gifts. Some of the items have been tucked away for a long, long time. So long that I had forgotten many of them. With the Holiday season rapidly approaching, I need to get off my duff and start doing something. Do you notice that theme throughout my ramblings? Never mind.

Smile – tomorrow is Friday. Yee Haa!

Knitting Update -- Frustration Has Set In

AAaaaarrrrgggggghhhhhh!

Well, this knitting ‘thing’ is NOT going as planned. I’m an intelligent guy. I catch on to things very quickly. So when I got the hair-brained idea to learn how to knit, I figured it would go very smoothly. Ha! Wrong-o!

I’ve read books, viewed on-line videos from http://www.knittinghelp.com (lots of times), viewed two DVDs from the library and I still don’t have it down. Good Lord! Can it be that difficult? [By the way, knittinghelp.com is a FANTASTIC site. Very well done.]

Dave from Dave Daniels Cabin Cove has given me lots of advice. (Thanks Dave!) I think I need needles that are a bit smaller than the 10-1/2s I’m using. And….I need to use some better (wool) yarn. I had tried acrylic (yuck) to start with. That stuff just became “fuzz” after a few lame attempts at stitching and un-stitching. So then I tried cotton. No better. It also appears that I have a lot to learn about yarn tension. The cotton started to un-ravel in no time, which did not help matters either. So…it’s back to the craft store for some wool. I saw some nice Patton Merino Wool at Michael’s this past weekend. Perhaps a trip back there is in order. I swear I’m going to learn how to do this and do it correctly…and do it well!

Nothing else crafty from this blogger. Unless you count the Cub Scout badges I sewed on my son’s shirt last night. We used Badge Magic™ and that works for a while. But there’s nothing like a good sewing machine stitch to keep those babies in place. Trust me: they ain’t going anywhere!

That’s all for now. ::heavy sigh::

P.S. Oh! Wait! I DID do something crafty over the weekend. I made clay "buttons" to use as bookmark doo-dads. They will make nice little 'fill-in' gift items for Christmastime. I'll post a pic when I get off my butt and take a pic. ;-)

Happy Friday from the Knit-Wit

Woo Hoo! It’s Friday. Another week has flown by and absolutely NO crafting to show for it. Pitiful. Down-right pitiful. However…I am experiencing another ‘flavor-of-the-month’ craft idea. My wife will attest to my multi-flavor craft repertoire, trust me. My flavor starts by seeing something on television, or in a book, or on the internet. Then, I log on to eBay and start looking. And then looking quickly turns into buying. But, I digress. BIG TIME.

Actually, it’s Dave Daniel’s fault. I bumped into his really cool blog site some time ago. While I really don’t know him, he seems like a great guy. And this dude knits some really great stuff. Lots of people stop by his site every day – check out the number of comments on his posts. Way to go Dave!

So…it’s time to learn a new skill. And this week it’s KNITTING. Yep, the age-old craft involving two pointy sticks and some string. So, as usual, I popped over to eBay and, since I already have tons of yarn, I clicked on “Buy” and typed in “knitting needles”. And I scrolled down the list and found a nice assortment of 40 needles for less than $5.00. I placed a bid and (wouldn’t you know it) the next day I was the winning bidder. In a few days I’ll have 19 pairs of straight sticks and a circular needle to play with.

I’ve already checked out some knitting ‘how-to’ books/videos from my local library. [I LOVE the library. Best thing since sliced bread. Especially for us attention deficit crafty guys. LOL!] I stayed up late last night and watched an instructional video (I’ll post the title and ISBN soon). It demonstrates all the basic (and not so basic) knitting AND crocheting stitches. It is a well-done video and I highly recommend it. I just wished I had a pair of needles to play along with.

Being the impatient person that I am, I had to run to WalMart today to get a pair of needles. Hardly knowing what I was doing, I bought a pair of 10-1/2’s. (I happened to see a scarf pattern that called for that size, so that’s what I went with.) I like them very much: they are shiny, blue, aluminum. I can’t wait to try them out. Tonight. Tonight.

That’s all for now. Have a great (crafty) weekend!

Warning! Purging Ahead!

The purging process has begun! My wife had the day off and spent a good chunk of time sifting through the cedar closet in the basement. That’s where we’ve accumulated lots of clothes we no longer wear. Some have not been worn in years and they are perfect candidates for the Goodwill bag. Other items belong to my oldest son and are waiting for their turn to be used by his brother (five years younger).

Other items in the closet are: toys (some are going to the trash, some are being saved as “keepsakes” and will be moved to the attic, some may be donated to the pre-school); holiday decorations (most will be kept -- the “worn and torn” will be discarded.)

The closet is also home to my fabric stash. And what can I say about that? “Don’t you touch my fabric stash!” Ahem. I’m sure I can (and will) move some of it out. But where will it go? Into a container to be stored somewhere else? Into the Goodwill bag? (oh, I’m not liking that idea!) Ha! Ha! Ha! Kidding of course. A lot of it could certainly be taken away, moved out, forgotten about. But most of it is good stuff that just needs to be converted from raw material status to WIP to finished goods. All before the Christmas gift-giving season begins. And in case you haven’t looked at the calendar, it will be October in just a few days. Holy cow.

Time. To. Craft.

Such a Beautiful Day!

Fall is in the air, that's for sure. And today is a beautiful day. Sunshine and seventy-something. Perfect. But, honestly, I miss summer. I had hoped to spend lots of summer evenings on the patio. Having dinner on the patio, (hamburgers on the grill, potato chips, lemonade and other summertime faire). I wanted to spend the evening in the hot tub with my wife, soothing music pouring from the outdoor speakers. Tiki torches. Lightning bugs. Clear skies with sparkling stars.

Where did all the time go? Where does it always go? Why do my plans never seem to pan out? Where do all these trivial, have-to-get-done tasks come from? Where is the fun time? Does it all go away when you're a parent? What am I missing? Why are my priorities all screwed up? Why am I asking all these questions?

Help! Call the white coats. I think I've reached the edge.

I'm Baaaaaaack!

Wow. Twenty days since my last (lame) post. But, hey, I gotta tell you: it’s been a busy/crazy/wacky time. My dad was in the hospital for a few days, and then transferred to a nursing home for almost three weeks. I’ll keep the details to myself (thanks for understanding) but suffice it to say, it was a little scary. However…I think we’re on an upward trend. Think positive thoughts, okay?

Crafting? Nope. None of that going on at my house. Although I did give the sewing machine a run for its money a few days ago. The weather in Northern Indiana has turned very Autumn-like (bummer). Wearing shorts to school is no longer an option on most days. So…my wife and I had bought several pairs of pants for the boys awhile back. And of course they are too long. But, hey: that’s why I have that expensive sewing machine (wink, wink). Honestly, it was a bit much, but (as I’ve tried to convince my wife) there are machines out there that cost a whole lot more. And I still scour eBay with ‘sewing machine’ in the search line. Hey! I can look; just can’t touch. Heavy sigh.

Blogging is my therapy and I hope to be able to post every day from now on. The Holidays are rapidly approaching and my wife and I promised ourselves we would hand-make as many gifts as possible this year. We say it every year, but this year we REALLY hope to make it a reality. We are seriously trying to de-clutter the house. I’m the cause of it, and I know it. [Admitting that I have a problem is the first step.] One of our top priorities is to get rid of things. A few things are being packed up and will be put in the attic. But a TON of things will be going to Goodwill or the trash can. And honestly, I’m ready to part with most of the stuff. It will be SO nice to be able to see floor space in the basement. And we’ll be using those big green totes for keeping the stuff that matters.

Ok…enough already. See you tomorrow.

Crazy Times Call For Crazy People - Count Me In!

Life has been more hectic that usual these days.

Both my dad and sister were taken to the hospital (separate situations) on Saturday, August 26^th. So…I’ve been playing the ‘running game’. Run here. Run there. Go here. Go there. Do this. Do that.

I won’t go into details here, but suffice it to say that it has been an eye-opening experience.

I hope to be back to blogging soon. It’s funny how our priorities can change so quickly, isn’t it?