2011 Goals

2011 Goals

1. Focus more on my health
2. Get my finances in order
3. Finish all knitting projects currently on my needles
4. Set up my business
5. Send out one handwritten letter every month
6. Try at least one new recipe a month
7. Design a knitting pattern
8. Take more time to be happy
9. Go to a movie alone
10. Work on being a better friend
11. Take more pictures

 And that is what I have so far.  Totally do-able.  I saw today that someone does easy, medium and hard goals for the year.  I think I have a mixture of the three on my list.  I'm very much looking forward to 2011.  

I am editing to add the following:

1. Plan my Christmas knitting now and have it done by the first week in December.
2. Find a Church

Also, these are quite vague, I'm in the process of defining what I think will allow me to complete these goals.  :-)

Daily Writing

So my goal to post every day in November was an utter FAIL.  I thought about it, but then something would come up and away I would go.  Life seems to be insanely busy at the moment, but I'm coming to the realization that it is going to continue that way so I just need to acclimate to this new normal.  In order to be able to be more productive at work I've decided to dip my toe into selling my handmade things.

I'm creating a design for a project bag, I have the proto-type done, but the sewing needs to improve.  I have my Gram's sewing machine that she was given by my Grandpa & my Mom & her siblings clear back in the 50's.  It's awesome and still works fabulously.  Of course I do go use my Mom's machines as some things are a bit easier to do with a surger.  :-)

I'm also busy knitting away on Christmas presents so no pictures yet, but in a week. 

I finally got my hands on a set of Addi Lace Clicks and oh my gosh they are heaven.  I love the cords, it makes it so easy to magic loop things and they just slide in my hands.  I am anxious to make a pair of socks on them. 

My next project is one of the infinity scarves.  I'll be designing my own pattern, fairly plain, but with some beautiful yarn that I purchased at Knit Wits here in town.  As soon as I am home I can update with the actual yarn and if I can get a good picture, one of those as well.

Treadmill

As I mentioned in my previous post (which was too many days ago!!) the treadmill came in all sorts of pieces.

And the kitties were quite curious about:

Ahhh, aren't they cute? But when I turned it on, lickety split they were out the door!

The control panel has a plug in for my ipod which I love and an easy to use panel.  Very happy with this purchase and it has seen some use which is the purpose. :-)

Hmmm

So I've missed a couple of days.  So not my intent.  I went and picked up the new treadmill on Monday and it was quite the ordeal to get it into the house and hindsight being what it is, there are many easier ways to have done it than how it was done.  Oh well. 

Last night was spent putting it together.  For future reference, pay for the delivery and assembly.  So totally worth it.  However, now I have a working wonderful treadmill that I can plug my ipod into and get to work.  Tonight there will be exercising!!  Woot!

Rain Rain Go Away

Well, actually not really.  I'd much rather have rain than snow, the first snow here is always a pain in the butt because it seems that most people around here forget how to drive from one year to the next.  And that having big vehicles does not matter when there is black ice.  So I say welcome to the rain, I just wish the sun would shine at the same time.  :-)

This time change is kicking my butt.  I'm totally exhausted and it is only 6:30.  It doesn't help that the kitties got up early this morning and in turn I got up early this morning.  I did, however, get a lot of chores accomplished today.  The extra room is picked up and yarn is put away, my bedroom is reorganized so I could fit a bookcase in there and now I have room for my treadmill that should be here tomorrow!

All in all a great day, and now it's time to go chill on the couch and knit.

A Lovely Fall Day

It is the first weekend in November.  To my Mom & I that means it's bazaar day.

When I was little and my mom had her silk flower arranging business I can remember getting up and being at the Eagle bazaar by 6:00 a.m.,eh maybe not that early, but it was always dark when we got there.  My mom & my aunt shared a booth and it was always fun to help with the money and packing purchases up.

As I grew older and my mom got out of her business we started going as consumers.  It amazes me what a variety of things people come up with to create.  I came away this year with a BSU lighted snowman, a lighted Christmas tree, and a lighted Santa, nothing more than 2 feet high.  I also found some awesome spices.

In the middle of our bazaaring we stopped to have lunch with my cousins and to meet the newest addition to our family.  It's always nice to catch up with them and to hold a baby.

The best part of the bazaar day is spending the time with my Mom.  She is one of the most wonderful people I know and I am so blessed and thankful that we get along so well.  It's rare that we go a day without speaking multiple times.

After the fun with my Mom, I came home and was able to spend a couple pleasing hours with my friend.  I made beef stroganoff in the slow-cooker and she provided the salad.  I love cooking and to be able to incorporate that in with spending time with a good friend is a win win situation.

So all in all a very lovely fall day.

Alaska 2006

So in 2006 I went to visit my friend in Anchorage, Alaska.  I love Alaska, it is beautiful and wide open, and of course I've only visited during three months; March, May & June.


This particular visit was in June and C & I took a ride up to Mantanuska Glacier.

It is one of the glaciers that you can actually walk on and explore.

Me walking on the glacier

It was pretty cool to be able to walk all over and crazy at how dirty it was.  There were rivulets of water running across some of it and you could tell where it had melted.

On the way back to Anchorage we saw a moose along the side of the road. Which is not uncommon up there, but it's always a wonderful surprise.  This particular moose was a mama moose, but the baby was hiding.  See if you can see it in the following picture.

Knitting

If you see me on the street you'll notice that I normally have an extra bag with me filled with knitting. You never know when you'll have an opportunity to knit a few rows while waiting.  Admittedly is isn't as easy to tote around as a book, but I find it more enjoyable than reading.  Tho reading does come in a close second.

These are some of my first projects:

The new wave of exercise

My birthday is in 10 days and I will be 36.  It seems so insane that I am that age.  Most days I still feel like I'm in my 20's mentally.  Physically is a different matter.  So tonight I bought a treadmill.  It will be in on Monday and my goal is to use it at least three times a week to start.  I'd like to work up to an hour 5x a week.

I know that once I get into a routine of working out I enjoy it and feel sad when I don't get a chance to work out.  I'm hoping that I'll get that feeling again when I have my treadmill.  My ipod will plug into it so I don't have to use earbuds, which I'm quite excited about.

And it was on sale!  yeah.

Day 2

Two days in a row.  Look at me go.

Today was a stressful day at work so I though I'd share a picture that makes me smile.  Back in September I was able to take a trip east and ended up in Hershey, PA.  Cutest little town and amazing what one man can accomplish.  The streetlights that line the street are hershey kisses, both wrapped and unwrapped.  It's a sight to look down the street and see the huge kisses.

 

There are 107 hershey kisses lamp posts in the city: 55 wrapped 52 unwrapped.  

November 1

It's NaNo something or other month in which people attempt to write a novel or write so many words or something like that. I figured it was a good time to start blogging more consistently.

So for this first post of November I'll tell you 10 things about me.

1. My birthday is in November in 12 days from today. I always get a homemade dinner and 99% of the time it's homemade noodles & mashed potatoes. Talk about carb overload, but it is my absolutely favorite meal in the entire world.

2. I am an only child, which is not really news, except at work when I'm surrounded by people with siblings and they are much better at the come-backs than I am. Don't get me wrong, I can get one in now and again, but sometimes it's like hours later that I finally think of something. Then I want to call them up and tell them just so they hear my good come-back!

3. I am an accountant by trade. It's about as exciting as it sounds.

4. I recently adopted two black kittens named Coalie & Belle. I'm surprised at how much I'm enjoying them. I've never been a "cat person" and I'm glad they get along with the dog.

5. I love to sing.

6. I love sports which are pretty much limited to: Hockey, Football (college & pro), NASCAR, Australian Rules Football, and PBR.

7. I love to cook & create in the kitchen.

8. I love to knit and I usually have a bag that goes with me everywhere.

9. My parents are still married and two of the best people I know in the world.

10. I've known my best friend since I was 13, but we didn't become best friends until our 20's and we've been inseparable since.

Gettysburg

I was fortunate enough to be able to fly to Pennsylvania in early September to visit a friend.  We took off for Gettysburg on 09/04/10 and I was so excited.  I'm a huge US history buff and to see Gettysburg was always something I wanted to do.  I took a ton of pictures during the one day we were there and I'll show you one today.  I have lots of stories that I want to share in the next little bit.

In this pictures I'm at the top of Big Round Top, I think the fighting there happened at the end of day 2 or the beginning of day 3, I cannot recall of the top of my head right now.  The amazing thing was that there are all these boulders and the men and pulled 6 cannons up without anyone hearing them.  That baffles me that they were able to accomplish that!!

Canning

I've completed my first canning project with some help from my mom.

PICKLES!!!

And a few with some red peppers thrown in!  Now the next 8 weeks have to fly by!

I also did my first batch of freezer jam in raspberry.  So super easy and yummy.

Now I want to do some fruit and also my Grandmother's soup.  I'll do a post about that soon.

Turkey & Zucchini Pasta

Dinner recipe from last night:

1 lb ground turkey
3 cloves garlic
1 shallot (prolly could use more)
Zucchini (I used one large abt 3 cups) - from my garden!!
1 can Rotel Hot tomatoes, with juice (very spicy, may use regular next time, or could use a can of diced italian tomatoes)
1 can campbells tomato soup
Italian Seasoning to taste, I used about 2 Tablespoons
salt & pepper

Brown turkey, garlic & onions until turkey is cooked, flavor with salt & pepper.
Add in zucchini and can of tomatoes, cook a couple of minutes to let the flavors meld.
Add in soup and Itallian seasoning and mix.

Once the soup bubbles turn down to simmer.

Meanwhile cook 1 pound of pasta (I used corkscrew).

Once pasta is done put in a serving dish and cover with sauce, top with parmesan cheese (or whatever you prefer) and eat with some yummy bread.

I took a picture of the finished product, will upload tonight and post

Backyard Suprise

To the side of my patio I have a burning bush with a plant on either side. When these were planted last summer I thought they would just be pretty and green. This summer I got a lovely suprise, they are beautiful and yellow (the other is orange).

New Addition

I am a dog person.  I love dogs, I've had them my entire life, I want one of my own.  So when my Mom & I stopped by Petco last Saturday to see what the humane society had there for adoptions, I went to look at dogs.

This is what I brought home:



Two 11 week old kittens. It has been a rough week because I got them spur of the moment and my life kinda went all wonky. But it's been 7 days and we are bonding. I mean, who doesn't love kittens? (Well, I am partial to these two).

Meet Belle:



And Coalie:



And a welcome addition to my little family.

Puffing Billy

I haven't written a lot about my adventures in Australia, mainly because I got quite tired of retelling everything again and again. It's been a couple of months so I'm ready to revisit my trip.

On our last day in Melbourne we went on a day trip that took us up into the Yarra Valley & Dandenong Range.  It was a lovely ride up there from downtown Melbourne.  Of course our day started off waiting for the wrong bus, but eventually we found the right one.  There were a couple ladies from Australia on our tour and they were hilarious.  They take these trips often and knew the tour guide, I do wish I could remember their names, but they did add some humor to the day!

One of the days activities was to ride Puffing Billy, a steam train that is currently run entirely by volunteers.  It was about a 20 minute ride and the scenery was beautiful.  There were open carriages and as you can see from the picture below everyone was leaning out taking pictures.



I sat on the side with my legs hanging out just enjoying the ride and the company of the two Australian ladies.  This train has been around for a very long time and it's something that they'd taken their kids on when they were little.  And funny enough my Aunt who lived in Australia growing up has never ridden on Puffing Billy!  So I can say I've done something she hasn't in her homeland!  :-)

Rewarding Good Behavior

I am currently trying to get some things set straight in my life in regards to money & health. After a conversation with my Dad a couple of weeks ago I decided to set two goals for myself each week and my reward would be to knit on a new project. I can only knit on the shawl if I meet my goals. I did last week, so I got to start on the shawl this weekend.

The shawl is from and I think it's going to be a great motivator to get my goals met!

Finished Baby Bunting

I knit this for a cousin who is expecting a girl. The pattern was written to knit the back, up over the shoulders, and down the front. I converted it to knit in the round so my stripes would match all the way around.

Knit from Debbie Bliss: Essential Baby

Watching a Garden Grow

When I bought this house the backyard was not landscaped, so when the time came to get it done I told the landscaper that I wanted a garden area. Almost a year later I'm finally planting my garden with great help from a friend.

The finished garden:



At the front of the garden we have strawberries & herbs:





The next row only has onions in it right now, but later in the week there will be some carrot seeds planted.



After the onions come the peppers, bell & jalapeno:



Finally it is the squash, zucchini & yellow squash:



And for color we have some flowers along the edge:



I'm stoked about growing my own food and my first step in gardening. Hopefully I'll have some produce to show soon!

A lack of Activity

My silence was one due to traveling. I have many stories and pictures to share from Australia, plus some knitting & cooking! Here are a couple pictures to tie you over. :-)



A picture of some of the 12 Apostles. The day was windy and cold, but the clouds were beautiful.



A koala in a tree, much better than a Kukaburra in a tree I hear. :-)



The Great Ocean Road.

All these pictures were taken along the Great Ocean Road on our day tour. It was a wonderful experience, but next time I have to be on a plane that long, I'm staying longer than 7 days!!

Spaghetti Sauce

I am growing herbs for the first time. I'm super excited. I have them in a pot, but I think next time I'll actually plant them in the garden.




Now that I have all these fresh herbs, I'm looking for new ways to use them. I decided to cook up my own spaghetti sauce recipe. Here are the items I used:



First I took the casings off the sausage & browned it.



This was really yummy sausage from Costco, it was habanero & goat cheese flavored. Then I added the crushed & diced cans of tomatoes.



While this was cooking I cut up the fresh basil & parsley from my planter.



Then threw them into the pot as well:



Sorry this is rather blurry. I didn't get a finished meal shot, I was hungry and it was good!!

Sophie

Sophie is a family dog. Joint custody between my parents & I. She's about 6 years old, and we adopted her from the humane society when she was 4. I believe she was abused by her previous owners and she was quite shy and anti-people when she came to live with my parents. Two years later she is a much happier (if still neurotic) puppy. I get her on weekends because I now have my own home and can have animals if I want!

It just amazes me what joy animals bring to our lives. My parents took her camping for the first time this week and I missed her more than I thought I would seeing as I normally do not see her during the week. She had a pretty rough time because of all the different noises and something outside of her routine, but they survived and she's now sleeping on my living room floor. :-) It's so peaceful to have her here. As crazy as that sounds.

A Picture Story

I've fallen for Pioneer Woman and her wonderful website. I went out an purchased her cookbook and made my first recipe, eggs in the hole.



The ingredients




Making the hole




Side One



Side two




And the finished breakfast. Very yummy, easy & not too much clean up.