I'm surviving

Death is such a strange and surreal encounter. So many feelings and thoughts whirl through the mind. The first day I felt like a zombie and cried a lot. I felt such emptiness inside. Didn't sleep well and would see flashbacks in my mind. Also, I would hear sounds like the clanking of his tags on his collar. Second day, I cried a lot again and still felt very sad and heavy. Still didn't sleep well with flashbacks coming into my mind. Also, still heard sounds. Third day, still crying and feeling sad and angry. Still didn't sleep well and had flashbacks again. Fourth day (today) not crying very much and the sad feelings are not as heavy. Obviously, I haven't accomplished much but did some knitting to help relax me and keep my mind distracted. Oh death is such a painful experience for those left behind. I believe God never intended for us to experience death but that was before sin entered the world.

My sweet Dugan

What can I say but that I feel empty and so sad. Sweet Dugan died today around 1:30 p.m. I will miss him terribly because he loved me unconditionally. I will be glad to see him again in heaven.

Surprise and Soreness

I was pleasantly surprised by a Valentine package in the mail from my new friend Rebecca in Alaska. She sent me some really lovely yarn and special Alaskan candy. It also warmed up enough today to shovel the ice from last week's storm. Now I have a blister and am sore but won't fall from the ice anymore. Been working on a new song this week, as I picked up my guitar after a long hiatus. Now if I can only motivate myself to learn the recording program on the computer. Led worship for the little ones at church last night. One 5 year old boy exclaimed afterward that he owned a guitar and guitar pick! So, I told him to bring it next week and help me out. Almost finished birthday poncho #2 and will post pictures of the finished product. My niece and I went to pottery storytime yesterday and she painted a grizzly bear(grrrr). We had our first Spanish lesson given by my friend Pat. They learned the alphabet, introductions, and some colors. Hola! Check out Mark Mathis's new cd if you like folk music http://myspace.com/markmathis. Now on to my bible lesson for this week.

Happy President's Day

It is so good to have a day off to just relax and rest. I successfully delivered the 2 baby blankets yesterday to some happy recipients. That Baby Clouds yarn works up nicely when knit on size 17 needles. It makes it very soft. Then I added a crocheted edging to finish if off clean. I hit the jackpot yesterday at Joann's sale. I got 75% off the marked down clearance price on some yarn. I was blessed to find some yarn that will work out for the next girl's poncho I have to complete by March 3rd. I bought skeins for just 75 cents which is good on my budget. It is nice yarn too, being mostly merino wool and girly colors! This is yarn that was regularly $6 or $7 a skein. I'll show some pictures when I'm finished. I'm still working on another Baby Clouds baby blanket that is crochet to have some finished gifts when I need them. Also, it is getting rid of my stash to make some room in my closet(:! Maybe sometime this year I'll have time to finish the scarf and hat project for myself.

Huckleberry Scones

This is a picture from Tuesday before the sleet hit us. Just picture several inches of sleet on top of this and you get frozen tundra.

Today we enjoyed some huckleberry scones with our breakfast made from the package Lisa sent this week. I don't believe I have ever eaten huckleberries before but thought it was good. I finally made it out of the house today and to the store after being stuck at home since Monday night. I was starting to get cabin fever. I mean there is only so much gliding around on the tundra one can enjoy. Unfortunately my planned trip to Wilmington got um shall I say rearranged. Therefore I declare that I shall go by myself for Memorial Day Weekend like I did last year and leave and return when I want. I am still working on some more baby blankets and will be able to deliver two of them this Sunday since I am stuck at home this weekend. What did I do for Valentine's week? Eat a piece of Godiva Double Chocolate Cheesecake Factory cheesecake a day with whipped cream on the side and a glass of milk. Now how many calories does that equal? I hope I burned it off with all my trudging around outside this week.

Snow, Sleet, and Cold Oh My!

We probably got a total of 6 inches of snow/sleet mix over the past 36 hours with freezing temps on top of that. This made it very difficult to clean off the car and shovel the driveway.
Katie enjoying her hot chocolate after playing outside in the snow+ice.

A Great Day in the Lord

I enjoyed the morning service at Cornerstone Fellowship church in Frederick, MD today. They were hosting a prophetic conference this weekend. I was delighted to see several people that I hadn't seen in a long time, including a college friend from 16 years ago. The message talked about how God is bringing breakthrough to this country. On the knitting front, I am working on some more baby blankets and need to complete another child poncho. I went to the Scrapbook fest at A.C. Moore yesterday with my mother and completed my first scrapbook page! Of course, I perused the yarn aisles but didn't buy a thing! The new car is running great so far and I'm glad to have heat and other working parts. I'm praying that God lets this car run well for at least 200,000 miles.(: Thanks for all who were praying in agreement with me and giving me advice. It was certainly the breakthrough I had been looking for from God. Thank you Jesus for my new car!

The Needle in the Haystack

After 6 long grueling months, the needle in the haystack has been found within my budget.
I finally finished the hat for my mom that I started a year ago. My niece is wearing the store bought hat that my mom bought for herself after she gave up on me finishing the blue one. I had a hard time with getting it completed due to frustration. I didn't have a pattern to follow and had to redo it a couple of times to get the sizing and rolled brim effect correct. It is still not like the store bought version but that is because I didn't stuff it. When I tried to use stuffing it just showed through too much and looked terrible.

Brrrr....

I woke up this morning to 8 degrees outside and it didn't even make it to 20 today. I enjoyed watching the Knitty Gritty marathon yesterday while working on a baby blanket for my friend. I even started and kept a fire going in the wood burning stove. The game nite was fun and here are some pics. Some of my newer friends.

The newlyweds and Peter.

Two of my good friends Nicole and Mel. What a sweet couple.

Yarn Candy

Do you ever go into a yarn store and stare at the yarn like it is candy? I do. Today I ventured in and looked at all the clearance yarn thinking of all the possibilities. Even though I have been trying to destash I (eeks) bought two skeins of yarn. Now that is because my requests for birthday ponchos have been for pink and purple and I don't have much of that left. Pink and purple are very popular colors for little girls right now. So tonight I am working on an icy pink fur trim for a poncho needed for a March birthday party. While knitting I watched the Braveheart Conference on God TV. I really liked the song "Come Let's Go Up to the Mountain" sung by Suzy Wills of Morningstar Ministries. Anyways, the gist of the message for me was let God's peace rule. All right!!