Crochet: What I've Been Up To

Ahhh, after a few days of rain we finally have a spot of sunshine at the moment. I cannot be happier to get the pics of my crochet items I have been working on.

First, I have a finished project. A friend of mine is having a baby girl. She isn't into the whole pink thing and asked for more neutral colors. 

So I came up with this.

You can see here with the sun shining through it that the colors are yellow, pale green, and white.

Here it is all folded up. I sure hope she likes it. Her baby shower is in the middle of October.

Secondly, I have started on a hooded scarf for myself. I am basically making a long scarf. Once I get it the width I want it I will stitch up the back part of it as the hood. I was shooting for it to be long enough to go over my head and wrap around my neck as a scarf with plenty of overhang.

Here is an shot of the colors. I am using Lion Brand's Homespun yarn in the colorway of  Ocean (406). I love the colors and this yarn. It is very soft and super cuddly. My only problem is that I get lost on where to put my hook sometimes. 

My third project to show is the beginnings of my patchwork blanket. I started this project when the thread on the We Love Lucy group on Ravelry first popped up but I have gotten sidetracked a bit. However, as soon as I finish my hooded scarf I will be working on this project. I don't really know how big I will make it but I have lots of scraps and yarns I can add to truly make it unique.

In my previous picture you could see a bit of my 4th Lucy Bag (I think it was number 4) I have had this bag finished for a long while now and have been using it but never posted about it. I have to say it is by far my favorite bag I have.

On top of these projects, I usually have pot holders, dish clothes, and wash clothes on my hooks. I keep my stash of cotton in a bag for quick on the go projects. I have been mostly using cream and reds as it matches my kitchen BUT I will soon be using some blues to make some wash clothes.

I hope you all are having a wonderful day. Ours is nearly over here. Our high school's Homecoming is tonight which is really exciting. Especially we only live a block and a half from the school...straight shot.

Anyway, I may not post again until Monday. 

Until then,

Be Blessed.

Rainy Days

Rain, rain, Go Away.

Okay so I'm not really hoping for it to go away. We need the rain. However, I have been waiting patiently for just a peek of sunshine so I can take pictures of and post about my recent crochet projects. 

However, the weather just isn't cooperating with me.

Our oldest cat and our mainly outdoor cat Wickett is/was outside enjoying the sound of the rain. He saw me and jumped up so I can stroke his long soft fur.

Here you can see the puddle that is behind him a bit. You can even see the little splishy splashes of the rain drops in the puddle.

Wickett likes to be outside in all weather but my puppies they just don't like it at all! 

The do love to snuggle under a blanket with their momma.

Here you can see my black and brown Chiweenie Tinkerbell (who will be 4 years old this year!)

And my black and white Chihuahua Roxy snuggled on the couch next to where I spend my sitting time.

I am so glad I got my housework finished yesterday (with the exception of a couple loads of laundry). I can spend today crocheting if I wish. I haven't officially started as it is 9:30 am and I just haven't gotten my eyes together yet even though I have been up since 6:30 this morning getting my kiddos ready for school. And I had to fight the madness dropping them off instead of them walking as they normally do but that madness is another blog post all together!

Here is a sneak peak of my area. I have a nice cup of french vanilla coffee, a crochet project in progress, and an owlie hat a friend asked me to put a bow on. Today is going to be nice and relaxing as I listen to the rain and work on my projects!

Oh, and I will post more info on my projects as soon as I get some sunshine to get some decent pictures! I have 3 on the go right at this moment.

I pray you all enjoy your day!

Erin

You did what in the bed last night?

My friends, I have a bedwetter.

That may not be something you would see on a blog everyday but today it is what I am going to talk about.

You all know I have 4 children, 2 girls and 2 boys. 

Out of all four of my kiddos I have one who wets the bed.

He is 9 years old and he will wet the bed nearly every night.

I have to tell you that I have been really discouraged by all of the methods I have tried to use to prevent him from wetting the bed. I would limit his fluid intake after 7pm. I have woken him up every few hours to make him go to the bathroom (that just made us both tired and cranky). I have tried rewarding him on dry mornings and I have tried a little discipline (thinking maybe it was an "I'm sleeping so good and I am so warm I don't want to get out of bed" problem. I have even taken him to our family doctor and to an urologist. Both docs said he was ok.

He has ruined two mattresses so far because he tends to go through mattress protectors like jello. I tried good nights pants but that was a big flop as he decided he didn't need to go to the bathroom at all. 

So I have decided to do some research into genetics and I found out some very interesting things. My husband and his oldest brother were both bedwetters. My hubby suddenly stopped around age 13 when he reached puberty. His older brother wet the bed until he got married! The males in his family are very deep sleepers and they just don't feel it when they gotta go like the rest of us.

I have learned a few things dealing with my son. For one, if you make the child feel bad about his issue, it tends to make the problem worse. Good night underpants are not that absorbent. Washing bed clothes every time they are wet is important and finally good cloth mattress protectors are essential. Buy several so you can change them out and replace ones that are torn.

To parents of bedwetters, be patient! If you cannot find a reason why this is happening your child is probably just a very sound sleeper. 

As for me, I still remind my son before he goes to bed to go to the bathroom. I still try to limit what he has to drink at night, and if he does have an accident I hug him and let him know it is okay and we will work on it until he stops.

Erin

Blogger's Block

My friends I am sorry I haven't been around much. I am still trying to get myself back into a schedule after having the kiddos at home all summer. On top of not having enough time in the day I seem to be having a complete blogger's block. I'm tired of writing about the same ole stuff all the time and my brainstorming gets me no where. I just keep writing down the same old stuff. I have been so blocked I haven't even been taking pictures! That is super unusual for me. Especially since I bought a point in shoot Nikon Coolpix camera that I can keep with me at all times. I keep it attached to my wallet so I never forget it BUT I still never remember to use it.

I also have been neglecting reading everyone's blogs. I really do miss reading your blogs! To be honest I don't get on the computer much. I usually check/delete my emails daily and I will check my Facebook page  in the morning and in the evening. I haven't even been keeping up with my beloved Ravelry. I miss reading the comments and seeing the projects from my "friends" there on the We Love Lucy page. I am seriously slacking!

I'm not really sure what is going on with me as of late. I have been doing a lot of self-assessment. I think I have lost nearly all my motivation. Especially with things I routinely do. I haven't been crocheting too much. I did start and am nearly half finished with a baby blanket. I have been completely neglecting my granny square patchwork blanket. I have a lot of things on my "to make" list but just haven't had the motivation to do them.

My home seems to be suffering as well. I actually have laundry piled up for the first time in ages. I haven't been "on" my kids about their messes and their danger zones bedrooms as much as normal. My house is by no means dirty but it isn't as neat and tidy with everything in its place as I usually keep it. Maybe I am just burned out with the mundane day to day of my life.

The few things I have been keeping up with is going to church, caring for my kiddos, hubby, and pets, and my healthier eating and exercise regimen. I have lost 3 pounds and I feel a little better but I feel a bit lack luster about other stuff.

With all of this being said, I am truly hoping to get back to all of these things I pride myself in doing. I love blogging but lack ideas (go figure), I love to keep a ship shape house (I haven't even decorated it for fall :( ), and  I love crocheting. 

I am putting in an effort every day to do the things I need to do during the day. I even made myself a list:

Check web pages and sites

Walk dogs

Blog

Tidy Up The House

Read Bible

Exercise

Eat Healthier

I know I am forgetting some stuff but you get the point. I even have made weekly and monthly lists to get myself back on track.

So I pose a question to you who still read my blog whenever I put up a post:

What types of things would you like to see on my blog?

I know crochet is a must. How about family things? My thoughts on things (politics, news stories), Beauty, movies, books, recipes and cooking, couponing, mommy blunders, kid concerns?

Those are just some things that rolled out of my head. 

What cha think?

Erin

I'm Ready for a Makeover

Hello again. Okay so I don't really need a makeover but I want to do some things for my house.

You see, i get bored really easy with stuff and I just want some improvements done! I don't mean major renovations here...just some tweaks here and there.

This picture is of the living room when we first bought our "fixer upper". You can see the carpet was terribly dirty and there was icky paneling on the wall.

Here you can see what I have done to our living room. I have torn the paneling off the walls and painted them this nice white color (it is actually an off white) I also painted the trim a nice white. I painted our door red, cleaned the carpet, and added curtains.

 I loved my living room for a while but now I am bored with it. I have started taking the white paint off of the trim and putting it back to its original wood tones. But now I dunno what else to do! I know I am going to get some furniture covers to "Change up" the furniture a bit. I will finish stripping the trim returning it to it's original wooden color. Should I paint the walls?  A nice sea foam green? A greyish blue? Add a rug? The possibilities are endless.

Here is a picture of what our dining area looked like before we moved in. It looks pretty much the same except the carpet is much cleaner and I have removed the border and the golden hook thing. Oh and it now hosts our 6 passenger cherry dining table :)

For my dining room I want to add a chair rail at the level of the window sill. I think I will match the chair rail to the color of the wood trim. I think I would love to paint the lower half of the wall a nice deep burgundy color and then have the part of the wall above the chair rail remain white. Then i would like to dress the window in a nice red and white plaid window treatment. Then I can add some country cottage decor. What do you think?

Below is my kitchen! I love the floor but I want to change the cabinet color and the wall color. I just don't know which direction to go!

I was thinking of removing the ugly chandelier and adding a regular ceiling light there. Then painting the cabinets some color (def not white maybe stain them a lighter oak or paint them a nice deep blueish green) and then paint the walls a nice pale yellow. I want to paint the faux brick in chalk board or white board paint. Anyone have any ideas that won't clash the tans in the back splash and the green floor!

You see, I love to redecorate but I have a hard time deciding between all the things really like.

I have tons of ideas and cant decide!

What do you all think?