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:whew!: It has been a very very WET month! I didn't realize that we now had monsoon season......but, we do. So, not much time spent tearing down the barn due to weather. I did, however, get a bit accomplished!

1. Cyn's brother moved house. He called her, and said "Hey. I have 5 boxes of fabric. Think Fiber would want it?" She said "Yes. If she can't use it, I'll have her donate it!" The she called me.

A few weeks later (see: Rain, above) he deliver *10* boxes to her house; we went a picked it up a few days later (See: Rain, above, again). I have been slowly going thru it, washing what I can use/plan to use, and reboxing what I won't/can't. It's......vintage. About 1/2 wovens/ 1/2 knits (most are the ~wonderful~ late '60s/early 70s double knits :wrinkles nose:). So far, I have made myself 1 pair of StyleArc Ethel pants, 4 pairs of StyleArc Emma Shorts, Mom 1 pair of Emma shorts, and Himself 1 pair of boxers from the woven offerings. I have a HUGE pile of stuff for Herself, a smaller pile for bags/utility items, 3 pieces of yardage for Himself (at least 1 shirt-length), and a small pile for me. I have 2 pieces of a nice *knit* for a dress for me - I think it wants to be a StyleArc Kim. We'll see - knits intimidate me. :lol:

2. Sewing! I have been busy. Besides the aforementioned items, I knocked out 4 StyleArc (hmmmmmm, I'm beginning to see a theme here!) Clementine tops (2 me/2 Mom; 3 of those were embroidered!), 3 pairs of boxers for Himself, 4 more bras (2 for Herself, 1 for Mom, 1 for me) and.....2 StyleArc Melody tops (me, embroidered). Plus a few bags. Oh! Also 4 pairs of StyleArc Ethel pants - 3 for me, 1 for Mom. I need to make a few more for her......

3. Herself made another dress! This one is lobsters, with a sailor collar. Same pattern as her bat dress, but a bit....toned down/casual. She's got plans for more- which is good. Lolita fashion isn't cheap (even "cheap" brands like Bodyline are $40+......for just the dress. You need accessories to have a full co-ord, which, of course, adds to the price. Fabric for the dresses is...at least $40, even on sale, but it's better quality, will actually *fit* my tall, leggy girl, and will have enough scraps to make matching accessories - the total cost *is* cheaper.

4. Husband is still out of work. He's managed 20 applications....in the 2+ months. :rolls eyes: No, he's not seriously looking. Yes, I am pissed. He has emptied MY savings account (I was stupid. I fell for the guilt trip. No more.) so I have to come up with $5k by December to pay the property taxes (he claims he'll repay it, but honestly? At $600/week he barely had enough to pay HIS bills (not ours - HIS), so how, pray tell, does he plan on repaying me $3,800 by December, when he's not working, has no prospects, and isn't seriously looking? :bangs head:

4a. I haven't seen a job I can do with my wrist/leg. I can't stand for long periods of time, and keypunching is nigh impossible. :sigh: Plus - I will NOT leave Herself alone with him. He has made it plain that he doesn't like her, to the point that both kids noticed. May I remind you both kids are Autistic? And bad with social cues? If THEY noticed.....yeah. Not leaving her alone to be verbally abused. :big sigh:

4b. I do have some nice saddles to sell, and some collectables. Not $5k worth, but it'll help. We've revamped the shop, and I'm working on sewing up more things to go in it, so.....:shrug: At least I'm trying. /no more belly-aching

5. We lost another goose. :sob: Herself forgot to lock them up one night......now the kids and I remind each other to check on them at bed time. The 4 remaining geese are silly, loud, and obnoxious - which is fun to watch.

6. Himself made a pair of pants! Mostly by himself! He's avoided the Studio ever since, but I have hopes....:lol:

I think that just about brings us up to date. I need to try and do a photo dump, but no promises.
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1. lizard habitat is still not done. to be fair, it was raining friday, then saturday it looked like rain. brother and niece came out to play with lizards; we talked a lot and watched detective pikachu. fun times! i did start the hammock stands for the new habitat - so at least i did *something* for the lizards. :lol:

2. wrist - same. oh well.

3. sewing - working on laptop case for cynthia. i just need to assemble it today; it looks good. i found some cute owl fabric for the exterior - hope she likes it!

4. husband. has suddenly realized that this job sucks. doesn't pay well, hours are stupid.......but he is still *not* doing anything about it. :sigh: he had to borrow the kids' savings to pay for a water leak repair at his house......and he suddenly realized that taxes are, in fact, due *every* year. no, really? :bangs head: my small savings took a hit friday - we had eye exams and 2 of us needed new glasses. i had hoped i'd get my last contract check...but no. ah, well.....when i do, it'll go back into savings. :shrug: what do you do?

not much else to report. i'm backing up my air - soon as it's done i'll go out to the studio to finish the bag.

hope it doesn't rain........
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let's see....a lot has happened over the last..2 weeks or so. himself decided he wanted to work on cars - i think i mentioned that. he replaced my stereo (excuse me, "head unit"), then this past sunday he installed the backup camera. works a treat!

we did a run to mom's. on the way there, he started kvetching about how he was going to be bored now, and he wanted to do something with cars. the husband had talked to his dad about having himself work on his dad's vast collection of collectible bugs, but - as usual with the husband - nothing further was decided. anyway...on the way home, we passed a house with an older model jeep cherokee out front with "for sale" written on the windshield. we stopped, talked....$500. NO motor - it was blown. body in decent shape, interior in good shape - just needs a headliner. all the motor parts are there.......

i heard a goat, so i jokingly asked if they needed another one. free. they said sure! so we said we'd bring biff back after feeding. off we went to discuss.

fed the critters, packed up biff. himself and i discussed, decided ok, this was a good project car. dropped off the goat, told them we were interested, but needed to get the funds....and the husband took $100 off because we gave them a goat. :blink:

so. tuesday we ran to the bank then to their house, and himself is now the proud owner of a $400 (+ 1 goat) jeep. yes, it'll be a ton of work. yes, he's aware - but he WANTS to do this. so, he's going to start with the small stuff- replace the lights/headliner/etc, then start breaking down the engine. he's excited - this is good. very good.

only thing - it's a 5-speed. it's been 30 years since i've attempted to drive a stick......at least i have time. :lol:

today is errand day - hope you have a good one!
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So. We are all giggly-happy over Duncan's arrival. *We* won't get him until mid-September, of course, but the breeder has been happily sharing her photos with us. Since I know y'all are only here for puppy pictures, let's start with him:

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This was the first picture she sent me. Let's all say "Daawwwwwwww...." :lol: Then came these:

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Then we made a trip to visit.....and Herself snapped this one of me and Duncan:

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There is another photo, but I am making a very silly face (I was cooing at him, all right?) so it will NOT be posted. :lol:

After we got home, this appeared in my text messages:

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Moving on before we all succumb to cuteness overload.......I spent most of yesterday in my Studio (finally!) and managed to knock out another purse:

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It's the Swoon Patterns Blanche bag. The fabric is from Spoonflower - expensive, but the ONLY place I could find My Hero Academia themed fabric. I accidentally grabbed an invisible zipper (it was the correct color!), so Uraraka is helping me with the pull. :lol:

And, finally - Herself has a new friend:

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His name is Griff; he's a Joltean (Pokemon) made by an Etsy.com artist named CrypticEnigma. He's AWESOME. Very well made, the fabric is lush and soft and nice, and the artist couldn't be nicer. (Herself has ordered 4 custom plushes from her now......:heh: She's sending up progress shots - she is SO TALENTED!)

Himself and I played a new outdoor game this AM - Recoil. Basically, laser-tag. With air strikes. He beat me handily, but it was fun.

Gotta skitter - Himself has a doc appointment, and he wants to take us out to lunch. Laters!
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After contracting the plague December 25 (we are STILL coughing from that!), things are ticking along OK. Himself is doing.....better. Not a LOT, but hey - any improvement is good! Unfortunately, SG borked the insurance (when you wait until Jan. 1 to call the company to, y'know, see about plans for the current year.......) so we are in limbo and I can't get his meds filled. :BIG sigh: Anyway.

One of the things his therapist told him to do was set up "Mastery Tasks" - something that he can't do perfectly the first time, that he's interested in. He decided he wants to cook...so every Monday is His Night. We have had some AWESOME meals! Chicken potstickers with tzatziki sauce (OMG that was YUM!), fish, mac and cheese (that's on tonight menu, again, because it's just so good!)...and desserts. Oh, the desserts! Chocolate cream pie that is SO good! And a deep chocolate cake that.....oh, my. He wants to do another meal this week - some sort of French Toast. I baked a loaf of bread today for him to use for that. :lol: 2 weeks ago he made me lunch - Greek meatballs and salad, with Tzatziki sauce and flatbread. Yum! I'm trying to get around to making some Feta to go along with this....(the blueberry muffins last week were also good, and I don't like blueberries!)(And, I should mention that all of this is FROM SCRATCH. Yeah, the grocery budget is shot, but.....YUM!)

My Studio.....the roof blew off a few months ago. The builder doesn't stand by his work. We had a contractor come out Saturday; it was definitely NOT installed correctly to begin with. SG wants tin this time - I am OK with that. I'm just tired of the blue tarp of dismay. :lol: Nothing inside got wet, so that's a plus. I almost have it - dare I say it? - organized now. I need to slipcover the sleeper sofa and make some throw pillows, and use up a LOT of fabric (I have.....a lot of smaller amounts that won't fit in the table. Useful amounts, so I can't justify tossing....) SG bought me 4 alpaca fleeces off of CL (they are YUMMY!) for $30; that was fun trying to Tetris them in there. :lol:

I have a plan for this year - I am focusing on jeans/capris/shorts (same pattern, different lengths) and bras/panties. I need these - I have enough dresses and tops now, so I need to get with the program. My waist is 2.5" smaller now (how'd THAT happen????), but the dresses will still work. I'm sick of sweat pants, so I need to get sewing!

SG is sorta, kinda "over" working as an electrician. Sorta. Seems that one of his coworkers told him he was stupid to NOT use his IT experience (um - I've been saying that for over a year, now!) and that he should go do that again, as it pays better (yeah - he's making $15/hour now; contract IT jobs start out at $40/hour.). He was all amazed at the thought - go back to IT! Why didn't he think of that?! :bangs head:

Herself is scattered. She goes from jewelry to polyclay to resin crafting and can't settle. She wants to do cosplay, but I told her SHE has to do the sewing. I have plenty on my plate. To that end, SG went a little nuts on the last Great Courses sale - he bought "me" 2 sewing courses: "Fitting all by Yourself" and "Sewing 101". I've told Herself she needs to watch them with me.....so far, no good. I'm working on it. (He also bought me "Continental Knitting", because I need to switch up how I knit, and I can't get it by myself.)(Yes, we still have the streaming. :lol: I have almost finished "Law School for Everyone"; Himself and I are almost done with "English Grammar Bootcamp".....yeah, we like learning here.)

I think that brings us up to date now. I've been making more bath/beauty products - I think I've nailed my face cream and cold cream now, just need to tweak the body butter a bit. Then I need to work on a shampoo/conditioner. I'm trying to get away from all the unpronounceable chemicals here.
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1. We're OK. Himself is...well, a little better. Not a lot, but I'll take what I can get. He fired his therapist, and her boss took over; he wants to quit his social skills class. :sigh: We'll see.

2. I spent the last 3 weeks frantically sewing - I was impressed into the Imperial Navy's Tailor division, Southwest Fleet. 2 up and coming officers needed uniforms....:lol: Turned out, only 1 was willing to WEAR the kit to the theater today....oh, well. She got LOTS of attention, so it's good.

3. Movie....:sigh: I SO wanted to like it......I am disappointed. Look, I LIKE the prequels :gasp!:, so it's not like the bar is set very high.........this one? Left me disappointed. I can't really discuss WHY, without spoilers, so I'll just say that 1 scene is BS (you'll recognize it when you see it. Seriously - that's not how the Force works! :snicker:), some of the reveals were.....flat, and some of the situations are...well.........huh. Not sure where they're gonna go from here, let's just say.

I've been a fan since 1977, and this is the first time I left the theater feeling let-down. Again - I LIKE the prequels. They're not fantastic, but they're - honestly! - not as bad as rabid fans make them out to be. (Duel. of. the. Fates. Just sayin'.) This? I......feel like there's a lot of misdirect (and I am willing to be wrong), and.....well.....it just fell flat for me. :sigh:

*I* feel like this was meant to be the end of the Star Wars Saga; any other movies will just be in-universe (if that makes sense.) I don't MIND that, so much, but........ugh. NOT what I wanted to see. And...too much slap-stick. Star Wars is NOT a comedy; it felt forced. By too many characters.

Yes, I'll be buying the DVD, because Star Wars, but........unless the next movie does some explaining, this one won't be in the rotation much.

Ah, well - I'm willing to listen to you tell me why I'm wrong. I may not agree, but.......:sigh:

Anyway. I have to tidy my Studio this weekend - it looks like the Empire exploded in there. I have gray green wool *everywhere*. I have a SW-themed hat on the needles, as well as a sock. I'll try to update more often - but no promises. :lol:
The Porgs ARE cute, though.
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Wow, it's been a month....let me fill you in on our doings:

No, wait - it's too much. Let me sum up:

1. Himself is.....well, Himself. He's started social skills training, and has had 1 meeting with the therapist assigned to him. That.....didn't go to well; he doesn't like her. She - get this! - has NEVER SEEN STAR WARS. This is an issue........:sigh: He starts with the medical side on it Tuesday.

2. Herself is OK. Stressed over her brother, of course. I'm trying to get her into the same program.

3. Me. Hanging in there. Over-booked, but it's for the kids, so I'm OK. I've made 10 batches of soap - so far. I finished my "Skywalker" socks (Mark Hamill breathed on them! :squee!: /fangirl ), started and finished a pair of Firefly-themed socks, and am halfway thru a pair of Shakespeare-themed ones. Why Shakespeare? Because....

3a. This weekend is Dallas Fan Days. Matt Smith (the 11th Doctor) was supposed to headline; Yawn. I was going, but not to see him - he and the Ponds RUINED Dr. Who for me. :shrug: However, he cancelled, and they brought in 10. David Tennant. Oh My GOSH! David-freaking-Tennant! Mr. Scottish Shakespearean actor!!!!!!!

3b. I ponied up extra $$$ to get a "Gold" pass for this con - after the Mark Hamill fiasco (HOURS in line!), I swore never-again. The Gold pass gets you in all 3 days (we only went 1x, so that was a waste), PLUS 5 line jumps. Meaning - NO long waits!

We got there yesterday at 9:30; the doors opened at 10. *I* could have gone on in, but wanted to wait with SG and Herself (we could honestly only afford 1 gold pass.) We went straight to the autograph floor, and found Tennant's line. Since we had a gold pass, we went straight to the front (along with about 50 of our newest best friends. :lol:) He was supposed to start signing at 10:30; at 10:20 he arrived to a loud, long, cheer and started signing.

By 10:40, we were done. He is a VERY lovely person - he was friendly, actually *looked* at each person in front of him, and made small talk with ALL of us. Herself made a "Tiny 10" for him - he was gobsmacked. Asked if it was Fimo (well, yes/no - it's actually Sculpey, but that's basically the same thing), then asked if it was really FOR him, to actually TAKE home (yup!), then said his kid(s) would LOVE it. :squee!: It was great! (and, honestly - worth every penny we paid!)

We spent a few more hours there, shopping and talking with folks. Himself stayed home (he was pre-alpha testing a game), but he had tentatively requested a light saber - IF I could find either Kylo Ren's or Vader's, and ONLY IF it wasn't "too expensive". "It's just going to, you know, sit on my shelf, so I don't want you to spend too much. I really don't want you to spend...anything...but.....I.....I wouldkindaliketohaveacoollightsaber. If that's OK....."

My baby (who never asks for anything, and refuses to let me spend money on him) actually ASKING for something? You KNOW Mama's going to do whatever she can to fulfill THAT wish, right? Right. He now has an Ultra Saber "Chosen One". :snerk: In a nickel-plated finish (because SG insisted, and paid for half of the saber, so....Sure!) He was totally thrilled when we got home - he actually LEFT his game to admire his new saber! (That's BIG. Really, really BIG.)

4. Slowly working on getting the house in order. The kitchen is DONE, the family room is almost done, the dining room is...well, done, but I need to get the donate pile out of there and to the donation center. The Game Room is a DISASTER, but that's not my problem - that is SG's room. He said HE was in charge of it....so *I* am leaving it alone.

5. I need to find a new calendar/schedule app. Preferably one I can have color-code appointments so I know at a glance WHO I am hauling someplace. Bonus points if it lets me also schedule chores. DOUBLE bonus points if it is "cross platform" - meaning I only need to buy it once, but can run it on my iPad, iPhone and, maybe, my MacBook. Off to the App Store I go!

Sorry it took a month.....but seriously, life is packed right now.
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Himself is doing OK-ish. Pretty stable - we've had 4 evaluations in the past 2 weeks. We have discovered that he, too, is on the Spectrum. :sigh: He's classified as "2E" - twice exceptional. His IQ is off the charts, which is all anyone ever noticed.

I had wondered a bit, over the years, but - insert Mom guilt here - was able to dismiss my thoughts because, compared to Herself, he was "normal"-ish. :bangs head: I have profusely apologized, and will continue to.

Part of his depression stems from this, we think. Not all - but some. He's a little better, just knowing.

The other "big" thing....we had a "life skills" assessment this week. Now, both the therapist and I figured he'd ace it.....um, not so much. Seems my "little engineer" really IS - he can't see the whole for all the itty-bitty parts. He gets hung up on the pieces, and can't finish the process. So.....they'll be scheduling some help, there, too.

Also - we found out he has low processing speed. Which just adds to the pressure he puts on himself......:sob:

Anyway. We are now waiting on some call-backs so we can move forward.

Me? I'm hanging in. I managed to knit 1.5 socks during the assessments, and have sewn a couple of portfolios to keep both kids' medically-related stuff in. (I had Herself's in a plastic one, but it disintegrated while in the POD. I can't find a replacement ANYWHERE, so....sewing machine to the rescue! I have 6 more cut out, because they will be PERFECT to hold my various knitting patterns....)

I had a scuffle with Zoey yesterday, and she managed to tear something in my left elbow. I think it's just scar tissue......my arm is bad enough that I CAN NOT KNIT. :horrors!: It's bad enough that Herself *volunteered* to milk for me tonight.....:sigh:

Oh! One thing we did that has helped Himself a bit - he's been wanting to upgrade his gaming PC for a while, so we went ahead and did just that. Today I ran him to Fry's and picked up a new monitor, keyboard and mouse. It's helped his outlook a little bit (yes, I KNOW that buying stuff won't make him non-depressed, but it has helped his mind get out of the rut it was in. No, it's not a cure, but I will take every little bit of help I can get for him.) Herself will get his old PC - she only wants a few games that they can play together, so she doesn't need the latest and greatest. He's got a new game coming up (Dual Universe - it looks AWESOME) that his old PC was almost not up to running.....so he's now in a slightly better frame of mind.

And one more thing - my identity got stolen back in January. (Or March....I can't be sure.) Seems someone went to Sprint and bought "a few" iPhone 7's and disappeared. I spent a few hours at the Sheriff's office filing a report, just so I could put a fraud alert on my credit reports, and get Sprint off my back. :big sigh: I have a feeling Equifax is involved..........

L'shana Tova!

:sigh:

Sep. 4th, 2017 11:38 am
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Friday evening we ended up at the ER with Himself. He had a major mental breakdown......he's been diagnosed with severe depression and social anxiety. I have to start making calls tomorrow - he needs professional help. :sob:

Anyway - I'll be away more than usual, I think. He's OK right now.....but he's pretty fragile.
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which is nothing new, right? :lol: Let's see:

1. Sewing: Have the Sew Over It's Vintage Shirt Dress almost done! After staring at the muslin for a bit, I decided I *did*, in fact, like it, so I pulled out the $1/yard cotton I had slated for a shirtwaist dress and went to town. I'm near the end; it needs buttons, button-holes, bias binding at the arms, and a hem. Pics when it's done.

1a. H. sent me a BEAUTIFUL hand sewn - I should say, hand TAILORED - coat. In red. That goes with the new shirt dress perfectly. It's just GORGEOUS!!! It made me slow down on the the dress, so it would be worthy of being worn with it. I am humbled - and happy!

1b. Himself wants an Imperial Officer Uniform, to wear in December. I have scored the pattern for the pants and the coat (and the hat!), just need to score the fabric. Does anyone have ANY idea where I can look for a gray-green, suiting-weight? Wool is OK - and probably film-accurate. Budget-priced preferred - Herself has said she'd kinda like a uniform, too. :bangs head: (The TIE pilot flight suit is still on the table, but he wants the Uniform FIRST. :sigh:) I'm thinking 2 yards for the pants, and 3 yards for the coat (because I am paranoid of mistakes) per Uniform....so 10+ yards. I...can't afford $20/yard fabric in that amount. Black is a possibility, but he REALLY wants the gray-green - something to do with which branch he is. (Krennic's uniform has also been broached; black pants with white coat. Or Thrawn's - all white. :sigh: White and Black are relatively easy to find - the Gray-green is eluding me.)

I can't get into the Imperial Officer Forum (part of the 501st) without signing up - and I don't want to do that. He doesn't want to join; *I* want these to be film accurate in case he changes his mind later. :sigh:

2. School: Started lesson planning for next year - my last. Himself will be a Senior next year. This is hard - not because it's his last, but because he's galloped ahead, and I'm trying to figure out WHAT to do. I mean, he's already done more Science and History than Texas requires (or that he'd have gotten in Public School), he's doing Calculus (slowly. Thankfully! And Thank GOD for Khan Academy!!!!).

One of the things we're implementing is a linguistics "course" based on Asimov's book "Words on the Map". See, back when we started Homeschooling, I bought a Great Courses DVD set called "The History of the English Language"....linguistics. *I* LOVE linguistics; I love following the rabbit trail of where words came from. Turns out, so does Himself! So, when I was on an Asimov kick last year, I bought a bunch of books - mostly Science (we've been using them to finish out this year; some of the info is dated, but we talk about the new discoveries. Most of it's basic, so still valid.) One of the books I ran across was "Words on the Map"...which is basically a book of city names, and the history behind them. (I also bought "Words from the Myths", which I'm going to try to squeeze in, too.) We're excited - we're starting "Maps" next week!

3. Blather: My bruises are just about gone. Back still hurts, as does my cheek bone, but they are healing. The critters are doing well - the chicks are just about ready to go outside; good thing, since we're slated to get some day-old guineas next Thursday. :sigh: The goats are due to freshen in the next few weeks - I have a feeling the first kids will arrive the day the floors are going in. What a way to christen the new floors, huh? :lol:
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let me count the ways....:lol:

My over-the-top, absolutely, most favorite treat is Baklava. LOVE it! Unfortunately, over the past decade or so, I've become allergic to honey....which is a MAJOR ingredient in Baklava. Whenever we go to a Greek/Middle-Eastern restaurant, I have to make a choice: Is the Baklava worth the itching?

Mostly, it's NOT. So I have to settle for something else - usually good, but not Baklava. (Sometimes, I decide that it is....and I usually spend the next 8 hours or so itching and miserable. :sigh:)

So. Last year, my darling boy discovered Yakan Root Syrup - supposedly a good substitute for honey. For the past year, we've tried to acquire some - usually, when I had the money, we forgot about it.

Until last month. I found the syrup, on a day I had the funds, and it was LOCAL. Yesterday, he asked if we could see if the local Wally-world had Fillo dough...it did. I read the box - it's leavening-free!

Guess what my darling boy did for me yesterday? He made me a batch of oozy-gooey, sticky, absolutely YUMMY, honey-free Baklava. Mostly by himself! :huggles:

Next time, he wants to reduce the water to try and make it less soggy. I want to try crushed pecans instead of walnuts - BUT. This stuff is awesome. And yummy. And true to the "real" Baklava taste. :mmmmmmmm:

So. Mom's a very happy camper right now - and my diet is out the window, because I have a pan full of Baklava to devour. :lol:
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Hope y'all had a nice Mother's Day - I got to split and stack firewood! (I WANTED to, y'all. We need firewood for winter - even a mild one.) We have about 1 week's worth done; we need to do more. Fortunately, the county cut trees down our street last month, so I can go gather more wood. (Do they do that in other states? Here, every year the power company sends crews out to clear the lines. The tree-cutters cut the logs to fireplace length, and stack them neatly on the side of the road for anyone to pick up. Free wood - works for me!)

SG and the kids took over the morning stables (I had taken them over during Spring Break; the kids need the extra sleep and I don't mind.) then took me to lunch. He also bought me a new leather jacket - think Black Widow. :lol: Wilson's was having a major sale - the jacket was ply $39. Solid, real leather. :blink:

I think it was to "make up" for Saturday....see, I wanted to do lunch then instead of Sunday - less crowds. We hit Woodcraft first...and the ShopSmith people were there. We just so happen to have a ShopSmith - a 1969(ish) Anniversary edition that needs to be looked at. (The motor has 2 wires that came loose, and he can't figure out which pole is which.) I got to talking to the demonstrators.....long story short, he ordered a rebuild kit and will soon have a working ShopSmith (if you're not familiar with ShopSmith - look them up! Short version: a multi-tool. The new models are 7-in-1; ours is 5-in-1. Takes up less space in your shop, and works well.)

Saturday was also Free Comic Book Day, and we hit the "local" Comic store. They had an artist there....my art wall has 1 new frame, now. (And 1 on order. :lol:) He's doing BB-8 for me; we bought a cute chibi-style Avengers piece with Thor, Cap, and Iron Man. One of these days I'll get a photo of the wall for y'all....

Oh! Herself bought me a pair of shoes! This is BIG for her - normally she grunts "Happy Mother's Day" in my general direction and later presents me with a(nother) pair of earrings (which I love, don't get me wrong, but I have...plenty of earrings now. :lol:) This year? She saw a pair of shoes on my eBay watch list and told me to order them, using her debit card. :blink: They haven't *gotten* here yet, but - she bought me shoes!!!


Anyway. SG's off all week..so we'll be all sixes and sevens around here. I need to get ready for school - laters!
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has been....interesting, shall we say. I guess somebody invoked the old Chinese curse, "May you live in interesting times" because, folks, it has been Interesting.

Especially Wednesday. It was Herself's braces OFF! day. SG was home, so I invited him out to lunch with us after. Himself decided last minute that he didn't want to go - it was Star Wars day, after all, and he had just bought some "new" SW games that he HAD to play. I pointed out no lunch; he pointed to the freezer. :lol:

So. The 3 of us went. While they were trying to get the impressions for her retainer (2x on the bottom, *4* on the top!), my phone rang. It was Himself......

Seems that right after we left, Chloe started barking. And barking. And barking. He went outside - she was "playing" with a turtle. He, being a soft-hearted kid, pushed her away and tried to get the turtle to remove it. Chloe lunged at it; he shoved her away again. She lunged again, and Bree - who had been standing there watching - decided Chloe needed a lesson in minding and lunged for her.

Only, Himself was in the way. Of 2 very large dogs. :sigh: Bree got him on the hand, and immediately backed off. He got knocked down and trampled a bit, but managed to get into the house and on the phone with me before starting to panic. *I* started panicking, but managed to hide it, thank God.

I went out to the waiting room and sent SG to the house. He picked up Himself, came back and got us, and off we went to the ER. :sigh: 4 hours later, Himself was OK - no stitches, just 2 bad puncture wounds on his left hand, 1 on his elbow, and 1 on his right arm, plus a lot of scratches from Chloe's claws.

We got home (finally!), and I went to look for the turtle. Which was on the back porch (Chloe had brought it there) with 2 punctures in it's shell....turns out, it wasn't a cute l'il turtle that needed saving. It was a demon-spawn SNAPPING turtle that deserved everything it got (sorry, y'all, but I have been chased by a snapper before. They are EVIL - and if IT had gotten hold of Himself's hand, things would have turned very bad, very quickly.

Anyway. Good news is that (besides the world having 1 less snapping turtle) I had drug my Pax Eire socks to the Ortho with me (I have been studiously IGNORING them lately. I went off them, and couldn't drum up any knitting mojo.).....the time in the ER? Was prime knitting time - see here:

2016 Caliegh socks right

2016 Caleigh socks left

They are nice socks - Cashmere/Merino yarn! - but....I just lost interest in them mid-way down the foot of #1. Sometimes that happens.....:shrug: I have started another pair (What???? I Knit. Except when I lose mojo - but it's back for now.) in a nice, over-spun Merino in a lovely turquoise color way. We'll see how long it takes me to work them...:lol:

I had started another apron.....today I put the binding foot on, cut the bias strips (but not very....um...accurately. :sigh:) and took it for a test-sew. That foot is da Bomb! But you have to pay a lot of attention to it, and the resulting bias binding is only 1/4" wide. I have discovered that I prefer 1/2" wide binding.....and that if I don't pay close enough attention the binding gets screwed. :sigh: That apron was a fail, and is now in the trash. (No, seriously - I didn't feel like trying to seam rip 2 yards of binding; I tried and the edges of the apron started seriously fraying. :sigh:) I'll reattempt that apron later.....lesson learned. :lol:

Gotta do some knitting - Shabbat Shalom!
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It's been a wild ride, today. Got 1 of the kids' refunds in.....both kids went on a virtual shopping spree. :lol: Herself has bought a TON of plushies (gotta love my Aspie!); Himself has bought 2 video games. The priorities....:lol:

We also hit Sam's Club and JoAnn's, because Herself also needed more yarn. (Why yes - she DID need yarn. *I* only have wool. She uses acrylic :ack:, so...there was no yarn in the house for her. :snicker:)

Hopefully the other kid's refund will hit soon - that's slated to be spent on groceries and clothes for them. (They get SSI from their dad - I have 10% withheld so that we get a nice lump sum once a year. They get a portion of it - that's only fair! - and the rest gets put to use for the household.) Our joint return was filed on Monday.....they claim we'll get the refund within 21 days. We'll see....I get some of that for personal use; I'm thinking about upgrading my serger. Maybe. The Singer is an entry-level machine, and it works....but I can't get the tension perfect and the bloody thing moves around on the table when I'm trying to serge denim. :sigh: I have a LOT of jeans planned - both for me and for Herself - so.....I'm window shopping right now. We'll see.....I haven't fully decided yet.

I hit Bootstrap when we got home....Herself now has a custom-fit skinny jeans pattern, the PJ bottom pattern I have ( but in her size), and underwear. Soon as I can, we'll go fabric shopping and I'll get started on her wardrobe (mine's almost done; I just need 2 more pairs of jeans/bombachas and some underwear and I'll be done. Shirts? I have plenty of geeky graphic tees, so I'm good to go there. Her wardrobe is lacking...so she's up next.

Gotta start dinner! Shabbat Shalom - see ya on the flip side!
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because boy, have I got photos for you!!! God is good - and I'll show you THAT in a minute! :lol:

First up, let me catch you up on the sock knitting front. (Because I am ALL about the socks, right? :lol:) Let's start with the Yaacov socks, V.2.0 (which Herself STOLE from me. :humph: :lol:)

2015 Yaakov Socks V.2.0

2015 Yaacov socks V.2.0 other side

Except for the spots where the colors ran together, I am *very* pleased with these. We dyed the yarn ourselves, and it pretty much worked out. I figured out where we went "wrong" (and, let me say that the original socks, the ones in the book, have areas of colors running together. So, in that respect, we HIT it out of the park. *I* however, want a pair with NO or very little blurriness.) You'll note that they match *exactly*, which was also part of the plan.

Herself is totally enthralled with them, so they are still a win. :lol:

Next up, the current sock - I give you Socks to Knit While Bored (aka: Sherlocked!) :lol:

2015 Sherlocked in progress

I am...not following the pattern exactly. I know, I KNOW - but...I really, really HATE trying to purl color work. I can do it, but...I don't LIKE it. And I'm not really sure I have enough of the black yarn dyed up to do solid-color heels (the toes WILL be solid, because I think it'll look better.)....so color-worked heels were always the plan. I knit 2 rows....and decided to sub the heel from Maurits (remember the neon lizards? THAT heel. :lol:) You knit the heel flap and gusset AND instep at the same time; you decrease all the added stitches away and get a triangular thing going on on the foot. I think it'll look cool, so....there ya go. :lol:

And now.......well. I browse CraigsList quite a bit, usually just the Free and Arts and Crafts areas. Thursday I hit A&C, and saw an ad for "Free Clay!", so I clicked on it. It was from a teacher about 1 hour away who is moving, and decided she didn't want to move her pottery clay. I called. She said "Well, it's only about 200 pounds of clay, but I just don't want to bother moving it. I'll just buy new once I get settled (? Um.....that's still moving 200 pounds of clay, right? Whatever....). We made arrangements to pick it up yesterday, and Herself got moderately excited.

Well. Um. We got there yesterday AM, and...um....well, here - have a peek:

Free Clay

This, my friends, is "200" pounds of clay. Plus 50 pounds of Air-dry clay, 2 5-gallon buckets of pre-mixed slip, and.....oh my gosh, probably another 10 gallons or so of colored slip. And some tools. And some plaster of paris to make molds. And....I honestly don't know what all else. I just know that the back of my Jeep - which can hold 25 bags of horse feed, or 2 square bales of hay (with some room left over) or a wolfhound, or a full-size pregnant Nubian - is FULL. Today I HAVE to rearrange the Studio - SG is going to bring home a set of shelves tomorrow to put this stuff on - because....well, it can't stay in the Jeep. :lol:

The lady also gave us a lead on a consignment shop that sells artwork; we went and had a good long talk with the proprietor. Herself is......mildly anxious, excited, and scared about this. I have a contract that we are going to look over......this could be good for us. The proprietor is also interested in my soaps and handwovens...so. We'll see. I HAVE to get the loom unearthed so I can get back to weaving...it's been far too long.

Anyway, what a HUGE blessing this is! Clay isn't *that* expensive, but.....it's not super-cheap, either. All of this is the same firing temp as her porcelain, so she can make stuff out of both and fire them at the same time. And the glazes will work on both. :happy dance:

Guess I'd better get to work - we have a LOT of rearranging to do!
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because we were supposed to be at the Med. Center for the 2nd scan right now. Only, we're home......

Yesterday was the day of the Scan. I got up at 5-Freaking-0'clock and headed straight out to milk. In the dark (no biggie), the cold (OK, that's a bit of an issue for me) AND the rain. Oh, did I mention the HAIL???? Because I got hit with quite a few hailstones......anyway. Got everyone sorted, grabbed a quick shower, then grabbed Herself (who has been a basket-case the past few weeks; not only does this screw up her routine (which is Verboten - you do NOT mess with her routine!), but she gets very, very tense when she doesn't know what is going to happen. :sigh:) and headed out. At 6 AM. In the dark. And rain. (The hail had thankfully passed by then). We had an hour drive to the Med. Center....so I left an hour and a half early. (Because....you just never know. Traffic. Accidents. Trains. Which....we met 2 of the 3....the accidents happened AFTER we passed thru, Thank God!)

So. We check in and are led to the Radiology waiting area. I get out the current sock and settle in; Herself nervously plays on her DS. 1.5 hours LATER (at 8:45...our appointment was *8*, mind you!), we get taken back to the room. The nurse starts asking questions......"is she on any thyroid medication?" Um....well, yes and no. WHAT? She's on Propanol - which is NOT a "real" thyroid med; it's a beta-blocker that also does "good" things to the thyroid - and all Hell broke loose. Nope, can't take the test - the thyroid med will mess it up. Um...it's NOT A THYROID MED you morons! OK, is she on any multi-vitamins? Well, yes -but she hasn't taken one in over 3 weeks. NO NO NO NO - it has to be at least *6* weeks, so No Test For You!

I....will not repeat what I said to them (but I honestly didn't cuss. I am proud of that! I saved that for SG, who is a Marine and can take it.) - but I. Was. Pissed. I had cleared 2 days of everything so we could do this stinking test, and now I'm told no, we can't, too bad for you?

The message I left on the doctor's answering machine was NOT happy. They haven't called me back - which doesn't surprise me! - but they'd better. I told them I was DONE with this stupid test. This is the 2nd time they've screwed up - I am NOT giving them a 3rd try. They can figure something else out - no more hour drives (and 1/4 tank of gas!) for a 2-day test (that would be - at the minimum! - *4* hours in the car over 2 days, and 1/2 tank of gas.) They deal. And they'd better - SOMETHING is going on with Herself's thyroid; it's messing up everything else in her life, and they NEED to get a handle on it. Oh, and did I mention it's a FASTING test??????? :bangs head:

:deep breath: I am actually calm(ish) this AM. I need to rip back a few rows on my sock....I got kinda tense there for a bit and....well, you can tell. :lol:

I need to post photos for y'all, but it'll have to wait. I'm not in the mood for pictures right now......
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:lol: Anyway...

Herself has a week of doctor's appointments next week. Monday is a Gyn visit (to try and figure out WHY the BC pills aren't doing their job of regulating her cycle), Tuesday we have to be at the Med. Center in Mesquite at *8* AM for the start of a test/scan on her thyroid (the endo checked her levels last week, and did some "new" test - low and behold, her thyroid levels were *high*. :sigh:); we have to be back at 2 for the scan, then Wednesday we have to be back at 8:30 for the final scan. Thursday we see her GP.....needless to say, school has been cancelled for next week. :sigh: Glad we homeschool!

Just turned the heel of Yaacov sock #1. My gauge is all over the place - i was supposed to be at 3" and 32 rows.....um. I was at 3" at 24 rows. I fudged it - knit to 30 rows so I can pick up the required 16 stitches on each side of the flap. I tried it on - it DOES fit, thankfully! I am going to push and try to get this pair done this week, so I can take a NEW sock along on Tuesday (I think we'll have to hang out at the Med. center, because it's an hour away - gas is an issue. :sigh: Ah, well - let's pray they figure out what the heck is going on with Herself, because she's miserable. (Oh, and the endo put her on thyroid meds. :sigh: Fun stuff....)

We started Joshua this week (TorahClass for the win!). Looks good, so far. I really like how Mr. Bradford goes into the traditions and culture of the time period, and brings the NT into it. Fascinating stuff!

Gotta run - have a Jedi outfit to finish, as well as a new knitting bag. (What? I found Star Wars fat quarters at Wally-world......and 2 fat quarters are just enough to squeak out a large bag. And......Star Wars!!!!!! :lol:)
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since I have to run Tigger to the vet for stitches removal, then we have to head out for our monthly shopping trip......:whew!:

H, THANK YOU!!! I will look at the links later today. Defined waistline - yup. Otherwise, I look like Omar the Tent-maker has had a field day. :lol:

God is GOOD, people! I thought - according to all the paperwork I had - that Herself was not getting a SSI check this month. It put me in a small panic - because Himself's check pays the house, the car and house insurance, and the electric bill (most months - electric fluctuates!), her check pays everything else. I did the bills this AM, expecting *1* deposit - we got 2. :scratches head: I put a call in to the "local" office...seems that SS is 1 month BEHIND. So, THIS is her last check.

AND I got a call from the state disability office - they just NOW started working on her claim. :fingers crossed:.....I really, really hope it goes thru without a hitch. SS wanted to speak to Herself (since she's 18 now)...and she Freaked OUT. She doesn't do well on the phone.....or with people she doesn't know. (Funny story: we took SG's dad out on Saturday. He and I got to talking about the kids, and I dropped something about Herself being on the Spectrum. He said "Oh. I had no idea...I mean, yeah, she's always sitting over there, doing stuff...I just thought she was shy or something." I chuckled...."Um, no - she was with family, and that IS her being social. You should watch her when we're out and about sometimes - she doesn't interact with anyone she doesn't know. You? She knows you're "family" but doesn't KNOW you, so she's in the room, but not IN the room, y'know? Once she's......."safe" with you, she'll start talking to you - and you'll wish she was back to today. :lol: Because....YOU don't pick the topic, and YOU don't control the conversation. It's...interesting."

He "got" it - which is good! - and we'll see how it goes.)

So. Today we shop - and be as frugal as possible, while stocking up. Tomorrow...the plan is to hit the Fabric Outlet stores. I got paid for 2 jobs, so I have "extra" $$. (For the record, I entered her deposit after getting off the phone, and immediately took out an extra house payment. I want that in reserve, so I'm not panicking next month. I have just enough left for our normal grocery run....and I should be able to score a LOT of fabric tomorrow at cheap, cheap prices.)

Anyway.....gotta go round up Tigger. Laters!
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OK, so Herself is moderately better. Doc appt. yesterday was honestly a waste of time - we learned NOTHING. And nothing was done - just "come back in 6 weeks for more blood work" :bangs head: At least she sees a "specialist" on Tuesday....maybe we'll learn something then.

I finished sock #1, and am on the leg of #2. I am itching to dye up some more yarn to kit up yet more socks....but I am fighting the urge. I need to knit more down, first......maybe. :lol:

Tomorrow we go to pick up a sewing machine cabinet/table....I want to move my White (30-ish pounds!) into the house, as I can't sew in the Studio. No room! I found a cheap, antique cabinet on CraigsList - hope it works. (No picture....but the lady is nice, and it's CHEAP.) Not sure where I'll put it.....ah, well. Such is life, right? :lol:

Himself got his forge, and promptly freaked out. :rofl: I'm working on him......

Shabbat Shalom! See ya on the flip side!
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because we spent 6 hours Sunday night/Monday morning at the ER with Herself. She's got something going on in her lower GI....with blood. :aaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!: Of course, it was our ER...which is not so....good. :sigh: 2.5 hours before we got INTO the ER, then another hour before the doc even came in. (And...they were NOT busy. Most patients went to the "fast track" rooms; only 3 went back to the ER proper. Of those 3, 1 was out by 10, 1 poor guy was discharged at 8, but taken back to a room at 11 because there was no one to take him back to his nursing home (I mean, really? REALLY? The 2 sheriffs deputies that were hanging out at Denny's at 2 AM couldn't take the 45 minutes round trip to get him home?????) and the 3rd was a 35-week pregnant lady that got whisked to L&D. (As she should've been.)

Herself got an IV at 11:30.....then potassium at 1. Then we were discharged at 1:45, knowing nothing more than we did when we arrived. Seriously. SLOW and - dare I say it? - incompetent isn't even enough to cover our ER...which is why I don't go there unless I feel we need help NOW. (Not that "NOW" is....it's usually 2 hours from when we get there. :sigh:)

I got 2.5 hours sleep Monday AM, so last night at 7 I crashed and burned. Feel better today - but Herself is still lethargic. :sigh: She has an appt. Thursday with her doctor, so that's good, and one with an endocrinologist next Tuesday, so hopefully we'll find out *something*.

Anyway. Today is take-the-aunt-shopping day, but Herself will be barricading herself in the bathroom. The roofers are supposed to replace our roof on Monday - should be fun! I am 10 rounds from the toe on Nile sock #1 (thanks to the ER visit. I had LOTS of knitting time! Too bad I had to quit around midnight -I was at the point I couldn't count to 2. :sigh:) And laundry. :sigh:

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