Freedom

I'm finally free. I've had a Work In Progress hanging over my head for what seems like an eternity and I finally finished it up yesterday. It was one of those two steps forward, one step back kind of projects (stitch, stitch, frog, repeat). It is a baby blanket for a baby who was born in ... I'm ashamed to say it ... November! Ack! At least it's done and I feel about a million pounds lighter. Crisis and a complete melt down were averted the other day when I was a quarter of the way through with the last round when Geof decided to spill Yoohoo all over the blanket! I spot cleaned it as best I could and then had to continue working on it. It was still a little sticky, but after washing it last night it came out fine...thank goodness! I am not a multi-tasker when it comes to my crochet projects, and this one's been holding me down for too long. I'm excited to start something else, I'm sick of the color blue! I do have some of the yarn left that I used and it is the perfect shade to make a Smurf, I'm thinking Smurfette. We'll see. So, without further ado, here is my latest and greatest FO...

It measures 31.5" x 39". I used Caron Simply Soft in Berry Blue and the "Show-off Baby Blanket" pattern from Beginner's Guide Crochet Stitches & Easy Projects booklet from Leisure Arts #75009. As you can see from the pictures it isn't perfect, I'm not really sure what happened but the sections with the diamonds came out slightly bigger than the rest. It doesn't look too bad in person so I can live with it, I just hope the baby it is intended for will enjoy snuggling with it!

Previous postings about this project...just to refresh your memory...
September 17, 2006
November 29, 2006

Foodie Friday

I'll admit it, I am no chef. Nathaniel is the cook around here, and an awesome one at that. Sometimes that bothers me, like it makes feel a little less womanly...pipe down, keep your feminist panties on...I only said a LITTLE less. I do cook, just nothing fancy and not very frequently since I'm usually just cooking for Geof and myself. We eat a lot of left overs, I never realized how hard it was to cook for 2 people! I'm pretty lucky though because my kiddo is an eater and always has been. There's not much that he won't eat. There are a few food items that require a little tweaking for him to eat, and this brings me to my Foodie Friday offering for today. Scrambled Eggs. "Scrambled eggs?!" you say...I know everyone with at least a quarter of a brain can cook scrambled eggs. Today I'm going to share some add-ins that help Geof's eggs disappear from his plate a little quicker.

Eggs, when they're scrambled, are the perfect base food for adding additional ingredients. There are so many things you can do. I've never been able to make a decent omelet to save my life so when I was pregnant and craving them, I just started dumping things in the eggs to get the same effect. Here are a few of the ones we've tried and liked. The great thing is that anything goes, add one thing or any combination you can dream up and it's also a good way to sneak more veggies into your diet!

• Tomatoes...canned or fresh...I like the canned tomatoes with chilies or different spices/herbs/flavors
• Ham
• Baloney
• Salsa
• Onions
• Olives
• Cheese
• Chives
• Goldfish Crackers....Geof likes this one
• Peppers...hot or sweet
• Relish...I was very fond of this one when I was pregnant...not so much now
• Garlic
• Celery
• Bacon Bits
• Sausage
• Peas
• Spinach
• Beans...I like black beans
• etc., etc., etc.

You see, the possibilities are endless. I know some things in that list sound repulsive, but I dare you to try it. What have you got to lose?

Foodie Friday

It's Foodie Friday again! I don't have a recipe to share today, just some interesting foodie information I found a few weeks ago. Since it's getting to be about the time where people are slacking in their New Year's resolutions, here's an article I found that might help everyone keep on track. Or, at least make them feel good. It's about the Top 10 Detox Foods and there's a tasty sounding recipe at the end.

My other Foodie Friday offering is a tip. The other day I made some cookies that turned out horribly. I followed the recipe to a T and everything. The cookies came out thin and brittle, but they still tasted fine. Now that they've sat in the cookie jar a few days they're like crackers. I learned from my Mom that if you put a slice of bread in with the cookies they will soften...and it works! I'm not sure about the science behind it, but it never fails.

Urinals & Crochet Hooks

Catchy title, no? If you ever want to have a "hey, why didn't I think of that" moment or a "whoa that's bizarre" moment, check out the blog entitled Art For Housewives. I can't recall how I stumbled onto this gem, but I'm glad I did. I've been a fan for a while now and I'm always amazed at the art that is out there. Sometimes the blog is written in Italian (..I think) and sometimes in English, but it's easy to navigate the links. Most of the art is made from recycled things and found objects and other pieces aren't. It's a very mixed bag. It's all wonderful, and it's made me more aware of the things that surround me and how they can be used in a completely different way than for what they were intended. Here are a few examples. Click on the pictures to see where they can be found on the web.




I could go on forever digging up this stuff! My favorite of the moment, and what got top billing up there in the title of this post are the urinals like this one...



I would totally have a urinal in my house if it looked like this!!

Ok, now to explain the crochet hooks portion of the title. Sorry to say though that this part of the post won't be as exciting as the first, but I still thought it was cool. I was over at Provo Craft's website (the makers of the Knifty Knitter looms) looking for patterns for my Knifty Knitter looms when I ran across this...



..GENIUS!!