Friends that Rock!!

 I am friendly with most everyone but let few into my world. I am a very private person. I had a mother that let many people know my business & I found that hard. I think that is why I put up walls around myself.

I feel very lucky to have a few people in my life that really know me & this is one of them. She is sooooo very special because she came into my life when my life was so much horror. She made me laugh & allowed me to yell, spit & stick my tongue out at her. She also pushed me out of my comfort zone. Actually she did not push, she challenge me to come & play. So I let her drive me around outside my box & amazingly it was fun. It might have had something to do with the company though!!

Thank you very much for being one of my special someones!! You Rock!

Creative Endeavors!!!

What do you call art? Who says it is art? Who says what is creative or says it is not? My friend & I where making a project which she was so very proud of that We hung them on the wall. The look on her face was priceless. I can here her excitement as am writing this!

My Second Sweater Finally Done!!

So this is my second top down sweater. It is a short sleeved v-neck. I really enjoyed knitting it. I like it even better that my first one.

I can hardly wait to figure out which one I will do for myself next. First though I will do one for my niece & one for my friend.

My New Herb Garden

This is my new herb garden that my wonderful hubby made for me.  At one end I have rosemary & thyme followed by chives, parsley & basil. At the end I have some roman chamomile & a jasmine going up a trellis. 

I am so very happy with it I can hardly stand it. I go out & stare at it all the time it seems. The front garden is starting to look good also. I have some hydrangeas, lavender, peonies & rhubarb. Spring was wonderful because I had planted some tulips, hyacinths & daffodils. It is feeling more like home all the time. 

Mentors....

My Guild is having a 40 year celebration. One of the things is to reflect on some part of the guild, like how you became part of the guild, who has mentored you, etc. I had picked up a drop spindle at the PNE in 2005. I put in aside due to some personal things going on. After my mom died I knew my neighbor did some spinning & asked if she would show me how to spin on my spindle. She gladly showed me & asked me if I would like to come to a Guild Meeting. I excitedly went & during that meeting found someone who was selling an Ashford Traditional Wheel. A week or 2 later my hubby picked it up & my neighbor came over & showed me how to clean it up, care for it & use it. Well I was on cloud 9.... I have not looked back. I am spinning on my wheel and on my spindle, knitting up some wonderful things. I am also knitting more & getting more adventurous in my knitting. Now I am learning to weave. Mentors are wonderful. I cherish my neighbor that I now call a friend, mentor, sister spinner/knitter very much!!

Warped.... and not just in the head!!!

I found out that the Surrey Heritage Museum was having Weaving level 1 courses. So I signed up & also applied for a scholarship though my Weavers & Spinners Guild. I got the scholarship which paid for a portion of my course. 

I am so glad I am taking to class. It is giving me confidence I did not have. I had bought a LeClerc Compact 24" loom last August & was feeling quite overwhelmed. With taking this course I am getting the visual learning that I find I need. The lady that is teaching is in my guild so I was familiar with her & was excited to learn from her. There are 7 of us & we are all having a blast.

So the first picture is my warp on the warping board. It is a variegated 

(blue,lilac color) The other two pictures are of my loom all dressed up & ready to weave!! Cool huh??!!!?!!

Like I need another craft to love but God gave me a love for yarn & another way to use it will be very useful!! 

5 Years Later......

My Mom died 5 years ago tomorrow (March 7, 2006). I cannot believe that it has been that long. There was rarely a day that we did not speak. There are days I am angry that she is not here to talk with, to do the things she does so well.

Sometimes it is so overwhelming the fact that she is not going to make another cake for my birthday or to go for a walk with down at the river. No more steamed beat tops that she could make so well. No more hot tub talks in the summer or the winter. (The summers where cold tubs...lol)

There were times this past 5 years I needed her to get me mad so I could get though what I needed to get through. She was a strong woman with strong opinions. She had also the ability work her magic if she wanted me to do something that I was not willing to do!!

I miss her greatly & sometimes cannot breath remembering that I will never hear her voice or feel her touch again. Don't get me wrong we had our struggles & they were painful!

Life without her is quieter, sometimes lonelier & a little more of a struggle without her here!!

My Mom's Whipped Shortbread

I have been asked by many people for this recipe. It is my Mom's whipped shortbread that we got at Christmas time. It marked Christmas when she made these along with butter tarts & my Grandma's shortbread which is pressed not whipped.


1 lb. butter
1/2 cup cornstarch
1 cup icing sugar
3 cups flour
1 tsp vanilla

Start with whipping the butter & then continue with each of the other ingredients separately & extremely thoroughly!! You really need to whip each ingredient well. Whip the hell out of them!!

Drop from a spoon & top with sprinkles. Bake at 320 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes or until just golden on bottom rim.

Enjoy!!

My New Aura!!!

So I had some $$ set aside for something special. I usually don't buy new big ticket items; I usually save & get vintage when it comes to those kind of things. I have been looking at Majacraft wheels for awhile & when I saw this one I thought ok this could be the one.

It took me about 30 to 40 minutes to assemble with the use of my hubbies battery operated screwdriver. That was what made it easy!! There was not alcohol needed to calm nerves either. Power tools rock!! 

I am use to scotch tension on my wheel so when I had this together & trying it out I was a little awkward the bands & where would the be good for my liking.

I started with just treading & then proceeded with trying to use some fiber. It was not going to well I could not get my brain around what was doing what. So I reread the mechanics worksheet, readjusted the the tensioning like suggested & WOW did that make all the difference. I started moving the bands around to what was good for me and I am flying high on how nice this wheel is!! 

Spinning for me calms my heart. It is something I can go to when I am feeling not myself & nothing else matters. I feel like I am in another place. I can feel my heart healing & calming! Spinning came into my life at a very difficult time in my life & continued in my life though what would be the most devastating period that I would have to endure.  

So I am very thankful!!

20 Rules of Wisdom

1) God wants spiritual fruit, not religious nuts. 

2) Dear God, I have a problem, it's me.
3) Growing old is inevitable, growing UP is optional.
4) There is no key to happiness. The door is always open.
5) Silence is often misinterpreted, but never misquoted.
6) Do the math....count your blessings.
7) Faith is the ability to not panic.
8) Laugh every day, it's like inner jogging.
9) If you worry, pray. If you pray...don't worry.
10) As a child of God, prayer is kind of like calling home everyday.
11) Blessed are the flexible for they shall not be bent out of shape.
12) The most important things in your home are the people.
13) When we get tangled up in our problems, be still;
God wants us to be still so He can untangle the knot.
14) A grudge is a heavy thing to carry.
15) He who dies with the most toys is still dead.
16) We do not remember days, but moments.  Life is moving too fast - so enjoy your precious moments.
18) Nothing is real to you until you experience it; otherwise it's just hearsay.
19) It's all right to sit on your pity pot every now and again.  Just be sure to flush when you are done.
20) Surviving and living your life successfully requires courage. The goals and dreams you're seeking require courage and risk taking. Learn from the turtle, it only makes progress when it sticks out its neck.

Author Unknown to Me

Saying Goodbye to Someone You Love Dearly!!

Saying goodbye to someone you love dearly is a very hard thing. I have had my share of it this past few years. You don't have a choice when that happens & it hurts greatly whether you know they are going to die or if it is sudden.

Ushie has not been feeling good the past few weeks & so I took her to see what it was.... it was devastating news. She has masses throughout her body. It has taken the life out of her. So on Monday we had set up a time to say goodbye but suddenly today she went downhill.  I took her to the Animal Emergency & we said goodbye there. They are going to cremate her for us & we will do somethings special with her ashes so we can be close!!

People who know us know that our dogs are a very big part of our lives. Actually they are in every part of our lives. So this will be another loss that will be very painful! We will miss her greatly & have another piece of our heart torn!

And what will this year bring?

What will this year bring? It is a mystery isn't it? Are you excited about what will come next, or do you care? Does it make you anxious, excited, worried, eager to see what will come next?

It all depends on your perspective. Have you had hard times so you are a bit jaded? Or maybe all is wonderful & you are looking forward to the future. We all struggle at some point in our lives with something it is how we look at it. I am finding that at times I have a real hard time with my perspective.

Fo instance, since I finished my chemotherapy & radiation I have been struggling with my self image more than ever. I have people tell me I am looking great but I see what the chemotherapy has done to me & I hurt for the person I was. I am struggling with being ok with the person I am now. I am on hormone therapy so that is affecting me & I struggle with giving myself the grace to not be what I once was & who I am becoming!

I am excited about my future. Learning not to be so hard on myself, trying to see who I am now is hard!! I am glad that I only have today. Today I can learn, learn more about me, you & the people around me!!