~16 Years in the Making...~

Sometimes it amazes me how long I can draw certain projects out. However, this project, a counted cross stitch set of pictures, is my longest project ever. It took me a little over 16 years to finish these:



Before my 16th birthday, I was drawn to this set, named "Pinky and Blue Bunny". The patterns were in a magazine that my grandma subscribed to. One of the reasons I liked these patterns was the fact that every single square of the pattern was filled in with a cross stitch. So I did know that they would take a while to complete, but I never thought I'd take 16 years to finish them! :-)

The final step in finishing the project is to wash them and take them to get framed. Because of their shape, they needed both a custom mat and frame. I chose to put them in one frame with a double mat. I'm happy they are done, and thrilled that a WIP is now a FO! =D

~Showers of Blessings~

As we prepare for the coming of our little girl, we have been so incredibly blessed by our friends and family. I won't list everything that has been given to us, but we are well prepared with essentials and non-essentials alike for our baby!

This week, the ladies of my church gave me a shower. I was overwhelmed with the generosity of everyone!

I wanted to share a few pictures - I completely forgot to take my camera along, so these pictures are from one of the ladies who hosted the shower.

The theme of the shower was Winnie the Pooh. I love Winnie the Pooh, and am doing my nursery with the Classic Pooh (along with other decorations - I'll share pictures of my nursery soon!).

My friend's daughter made the cake:



Each table was decorated with a Winnie the Pooh character, a book, a balloon, little cutouts and adorable favors for the guests. The favors were teddy bear grahams and gummy bears wrapped in pink tulle and tied with a pink ribbon.



As I mentioned, everyone was so generous in their gifts! Some of the gift bags seemed bottomless, as I kept pulling out outfit after outfit, item after item!



I felt very special by how well-planned everything was. It was a very nice evening!

~Yum~

So...I've had a "Yuck" post at the top of my blog for over 10 days, I figured it was more than time for a "Yum" post. :-P

Yesterday I was looking at the Money Saving Mom blog, and noticed that Crystal mentioned a brown rice, spinach and cheese casserole. That sounded so good to me, only she didn't post her recipe.

So I made up my own. I still have morning sickness issues, which include not liking onions or garlic, or pretty much any seasoning at all. So I browned some ground beef, drained and rinsed it and then put a frozen package of chopped spinach in it and defrosted it. Then I mixed in cooked brown rice till it looked right, put the mixture into a casserole dish and topped with cheese. Since everything was hot, I just stuck it in the oven until the cheese was nice and melted.

And it was so good! Kevin liked it too - and he usually likes things seasoned well. I didn't even put salt or pepper in it! Easy and delicious! The spinach makes everything moist, so that you don't need anything creamy in it. Although, I bet cream of mushroom soup would be a good addition. But I liked it just the way it was!

~Yuck~

Recently I've had to throw away two of my handknits:


Pigs Monkeying Around


How Fetching

Why? Because they felted in the wash! Boooooo I'm so sad! The Monkey Socks were the most disappointing. I washed them fine for nearly a year then all of a sudden they started felting. The yarn is 100% wool, but it was labeled as "superwash" wool, and the instructions on the label said to machine wash.

I'm certainly not happy about the Fetching mitts, but at least I am forewarned that the yarn is not machine-washable, because I have a scarf out of the same yarn. I'd hate for the scarf to get ruined since much more work went into it than the fingerless mitts.

*sigh*

And to top it off my ripple afghan is in need of washing. I'm going to hand wash it - there is no way I'm throwing it in the washer and crossing my fingers hoping it comes out ok! Not after I spent so much money on it!

~Another FO~

I just finished another little project for my coming little one, the Top Down Bonnet. I love free patterns! :-)



It was a very simple knit. I did learn one new tecnique - the Figure 8 cast on. It wasn't hard to figure out, and made the top of the cap very nice. There is no seaming on this cap. I just love the self-striping baby yarn I used. I made the "baby" size, rather than the "newborn" size, so I hope it will fit at the right time!

For more pattern/yarn details, please click here (Ravelry link).

~Happy New Year!~

A very happy New Year to you!

Last night we went to our church for fellowship, food, and games. I took a cherry pie, which was so pretty, I wish I had taken a picture of it, but I didn't! And egg salad sandwiches. There was a lot of food. In years past, people have brought a lot of sweets, but this year there was more substantial food, which is so much nicer for snacking than plate after plate of cookies and cakes and candies!

Today has been a lazy kind of holiday day. I tried my hand at New Year's Cookies. What are they? Yeasted dough filled with raisins, that are deep fried until golden brown and then rolled in sugar. My grandma makes them every year on New Year's - it is the only day she makes them. My dad's side of the family is German, and I am pretty sure this is a German tradition. We have never been with my family for New Year's, and so this year I determined to make some for myself. Well. I need more practice in the deep-frying department! Thankfully, I only made half a batch, so I didn't waste too many ingredients. The dough turned out perfectly. But I have never been a deep-fryer so I heated the oil too hot and the outsides cooked too quickly, leaving the insides gooey dough! Live and learn! Next year I'll know to cook them more slowly! I was able to salvage them, by refrying them. Needless to say, I won't be putting in for a job at the local donut shop! ;-)

We're going to take down the tree tonight, and then I'm going to get out my snowmen. I have a little collection of snowmen, and it is fun to bring them out after Christmas is over, to enjoy for a month or two during the winter.

May God bless you richly in this coming New Year! Thank you for continuing to come by my blog, and read and comment!