I'm flat out stealing Anna's idea from Day Zero Project. It's 101 things to do in 1,001 days. Which would put me ending at January 15, 2015 (my mother-in-law's birthday!)
Some of the things started to sound kind of New Year's Resolution-ish, but I kept to things I thought would be fun, necessary or doable. It's okay if you don't want to read the whole list, but if you do, hopefully it will inspire you to think up a fun list you'd like to tackle over the next couple of years....
1. Come up with a cleaning schedule - and use it!
2. Cook dinner for Phil three times a month. (I've been blessed with a husband who likes to cook and is good at it, but I know sometimes he'd like a break.)
3. Learn to style my hair.
4. Count my shoes. I'm curious how many I have, and how many it takes before I'm admitted to shoe shoppers anonymous.
5. Run four half marathons.
6. Set up my sewing area.
7. Make a quilt for each of the boys.
8. Find a cheap hobby (if that exists....)
9. Re-read the Mandie, Elizabeth Gail, and Saddle Club books before I pass them down to my nieces.
10. Visit Nova Scotia.
11. Teach Oliver, Oakley, and Elliot to downhill ski.
12. Ride the roller coaster during S2S.
13. Give someone a thoughtful present without occasion.
14. Reclaim Banff with happy memories.
15. Take more pictures.
16. Learn the features of my new sewing machine.
17. Not freak out when the boys have legos everywhere.
18. Start running with Rocket - we could both use it.
19. Keep the top of my dresser and nightstand clutter free.
20. Figure out ways to maximize the gas mileage in my Jeep.
21. Befriend other moms from preschool.
22. Read through the Bible.
23. Play outside with the kids.
24. Learn to save money.
25. Pay the bills with Phil so I'm aware of our finances.
26. Make an effort to keep in touch with friends.
27. Toilet train Elliot.
28. Floss enough so the the dentist won't scold me for not flossing.
29. Tend my garden more than three times per season.
30. Make the bed more often.
31. Remember to put other's needs before my own.
32. Wear lipstick (without feeling like a six-year old playing dress up, or a prostitute.)
33. Catch up on Downton Abbey and Mad Men.
34. Finish the hand quilt I started in 2006.
35. Pray for the neighbours that seem to hate us.
36. Get passports for the boys.
37. Visit Kenya before Phil's aunt moves stateside.
38. Get the rest of my things out of mom's house.
39. Actually use my treadmill.
40. Start working out again.
41. Do ten projects I've pinned on Pinterest.
42. Keep my orchid alive through summer.
43. Find a way to clean the nastiness out of my couches.
44. Get slip covers for my couches
45. Print and mail pictures to Phil's grandmas more often.
46. Make a chore list for the kids.
47. Make plans for a fabulous adult-only vacation.
48. Make plans for a fun-filled family vacation.
49. Figure out what I want to be when I "grow up." (Will I stay at home after the kids are in school full time? Should I go back to school myself? Etc....)
50. Not get annoyed so easily.
51. Learn the names of four other people on our street.
52. Set up play-dates for the kids.
53. Come up with projects/activities for the kids.
54. Use my crock pot!
55. Bring in a treat to the police station.
56. Teach Rocket to "shake."
57. Babysit for our neighbours so they can go out on a date. (Different neighbours than previously mentioned.)
58. Find the mouse in the garage!
59. Learn to use the BBQ.
60. Bike the kids to school (this depends on where they will go to Kindergarten.)
61. Wake up with a good attitude. (or fake it!)
62. Get Elliot's picture in the paper so we'll have had all three in there.
63. Try the new gel nailpolish.
64. Make 12 new scrapbook pages.
65. Make a curtain for the kitchen window.
66. Fix the holes in Oliver's jeans.
67. Hold my own in a conversation with Phil's family. (This is not easy when you have a lawyer, surgeon, medical researcher, and future biologists at the table.)
68. Visit the library once a month.
69. Learn how to bind quilts the correct way.
70. Update family pictures.
71. Correspond with an old friend electroniclessly.
72. Have a fun, themed party.
73. Figure out an occasion where I can wear evening gowns.
74. Get tickets to the masquerade at the Fox Theatre.
75. Support a local artist.
76. Get a perfect score on Nintendo Wii Archery.
77. Shoot a real bow and arrow.
78. See a doctor about the circulation in my fingers.
79. Go through the bottle of daily vitamins that Phil bought me.
80. Sew an article of clothing from a pattern.
81. Finish the autumn quilt I started last fall.
82. Beat my 5K and Half marathon PRs.
83. Do the Mt. Si relay again - with a camera this time!
84. Take my guitar out of its case and see if I remember how to play.
85. Have one of my cakes up on the Sunday Sweets portion of Cake Wrecks.
86. Submit one of my cakes to the Sunday Sweets.
87. Find a non-dessert wine I like.
88. Go through my closet and get rid of dresses that no longer fit.
89. Sketch out the ideas for the children's book I have.
90. Find a babysitter! (That isn't my mom or sister-in-law.)
91. Sew covers for the throw pillows in the living room.
92. Build up a stash of fabric.
93. Get rid of tupperware that no longer has a lid, is only a lid or is grossly discoloured.
94. Send Grandmaman a birthday card.
95. Paint the laundry room.
96. Donate blood. (If I'm no longer anemic.)
97. Keep keeping track of all the miles I run.
98. Get out my watercolours and paint something.
99. Learn how to make a hot latte and London Fog at home.
100. Start learning Italian.
101. Make jam from scratch on my own.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Monday, March 5, 2012
Snake River Half Marathon 2012
One of my New Year's resolutions was to beat my time from last year: I finished in 2:31:51, averaging 11.36/miles. I hadn't trained as much as I should have, and was hurting so badly the last four or five miles that I ended up walking most of those. I hadn't paced myself, starting out WAY too quickly, and I was very cocky thinking I could outrun my friends that I was there with because they are in their early forties. While I am glad I did it last year, it was not the funnest experience for me, and I wasn't planning on doing this race again anytime soon. Until I was guilted into it.
In contrast, this year was AWESOME!!!
I had a training schedule, and I stuck to it as much as I could. Having three kids, running is not my highest priority, so I missed a few runs here and there, (some due to blizzard-like conditions) but I tried to make up for them when I could. I had fellow runners to keep me accountable. I've been learning to pace myself a lot better, to run through discomfort, to ignore the part of me that wants to stop and walk (unless I really am in pain.) Most importantly, I've learned to not judge runners by how they look. Yes, it's humbling to get passed by a 70 year old lady, but she's worked for it, and I overheard her talking about doing the Boston Marathon and Ironman this year, so clearly she's earned the right to pass a 24 year old. I tried to set more reasonable goals on the half this year than simply looking ahead and thinking I wanted to pass the old man ahead of me, or the overweight woman. Yes, it is a race, but everyone is running to their best ability, and it's an endurance race, so there's no point in killing myself to try and pass someone who's a better runner.
I feel like I've grown so much as a runner this past year.
The girls and I all met up in Coeur d'Alene to head down to the race together at 6:30. I was feeling pretty good, better than usual because I was able to eat actual food, which normally I have a hard time with. We got there earlier than we meant to, registered, got our "swag bags" (which were kind of lame this year) and wandered around trying to stay warm.
The race finally started, and I knew I needed to pace myself, but it just felt like I was going so slowly! But I passed the first mile marker at 9:19 or something like that, and knew I was probably still going faster than I should. By mile 2, that nagging voice in my head was telling me I was tired and wanted to walk, but I told it to be quiet and that we would run until mile 4. At mile 4, I told that voice to be quiet until 6, and so on. I tried to keep myself from thinking that I had so many more miles ahead of me by eavesdropping on conversations happening around me. I loved the enthusiasm of first time runners running in pairs, the cute old couple ahead of me going at a steady pace (they finished about 20 seconds before me!) quietly encouraging each other to press on, the loud music blaring out of young women's headphones.The steady fall of footprints around me. All of it seemed to equate to this peacefulness in the midst of around 700 runners.
The turn-around point at 6.5 miles was a big milestone for me. Last year at the point, I had already been walking a while, and just feeling so down on myself for not doing better. My ankles had been starting to hurt, and I was so discouraged that I was only halfway done. This year, I was still going strong, I had run through some shin pains, and as a bonus, I was ahead of everybody I knew at the race. (Victory for my ultra-competitive nature!) I turned around at 1:02:10.
The next few miles seemed to fly by since I had people to look for that were still heading to the turn-around. After mile nine, I started to get tired a bit, and strong head winds started to blow. And I mean strong! When you have to physically brace yourself and buckle down for it, you know it's going to be a tough four miles.
The thing about this course is while it's kind of pretty in its own way, the landscape doesn't differ at all the whole way and it gets pretty boring. So I was overjoyed to see the herd of cows at the 11 mile mark (mile 2 on the way out) knowing that I was almost done. And really, when you've run 11, what's 2 more? It felt like I was running so slowly because of the wind, and I started to worry that I wouldn't be able to beat last year's time after all; especially when I overheard two girls say 2-15. I thought they meant we had already been going to 2 hours, 15 minutes, and there was no way I'd be able to finish under 2:31 with two miles left.
The wind still blowing like crazy, it was hard to resist the urge to walk. Thankfully, a water station was right ahead as I was seriously considering it, so I walked the few paces it took to down the water, then felt like I would be able to start running again. I was so thrilled to see the markers for miles 12 and 13! The last tenth of a mile went on forever it seemed. There were people everywhere and so it was hard to tell where the finish line was exactly, but finally I could see the clock. There's no better feeling than seeing that clock especially when it has a good time on it. A much better time than I was expecting with the wind and how slowly it felt I'd been going.
I crossed the finish line at 2:11:25. Shaving off just over 20 minutes from last year's time! I was thrilled! And then a little less thrilled when I realized we didn't get medals this year, but still happy with my performance.
The bonus about finishing first out of my friends is that I got to see them all finish! It was so exciting. It was Brenda's 17th Half Marathon, Ashley's 1st, Sydne's 2nd (? I think?) and Dee's 4th. We celebrated with Mimosas in the parking lot:
So, here's to next year, and trying to beat this year's time! In the meantime, I have a few small races in the next few months, and then bigger ones in the summer, and hopefully we get into the Nike Women's Half lottery for the fall.
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| Sydne, Brenda, Dee, Ashley and I before the race. |
In contrast, this year was AWESOME!!!
I had a training schedule, and I stuck to it as much as I could. Having three kids, running is not my highest priority, so I missed a few runs here and there, (some due to blizzard-like conditions) but I tried to make up for them when I could. I had fellow runners to keep me accountable. I've been learning to pace myself a lot better, to run through discomfort, to ignore the part of me that wants to stop and walk (unless I really am in pain.) Most importantly, I've learned to not judge runners by how they look. Yes, it's humbling to get passed by a 70 year old lady, but she's worked for it, and I overheard her talking about doing the Boston Marathon and Ironman this year, so clearly she's earned the right to pass a 24 year old. I tried to set more reasonable goals on the half this year than simply looking ahead and thinking I wanted to pass the old man ahead of me, or the overweight woman. Yes, it is a race, but everyone is running to their best ability, and it's an endurance race, so there's no point in killing myself to try and pass someone who's a better runner.
I feel like I've grown so much as a runner this past year.
The girls and I all met up in Coeur d'Alene to head down to the race together at 6:30. I was feeling pretty good, better than usual because I was able to eat actual food, which normally I have a hard time with. We got there earlier than we meant to, registered, got our "swag bags" (which were kind of lame this year) and wandered around trying to stay warm.
The race finally started, and I knew I needed to pace myself, but it just felt like I was going so slowly! But I passed the first mile marker at 9:19 or something like that, and knew I was probably still going faster than I should. By mile 2, that nagging voice in my head was telling me I was tired and wanted to walk, but I told it to be quiet and that we would run until mile 4. At mile 4, I told that voice to be quiet until 6, and so on. I tried to keep myself from thinking that I had so many more miles ahead of me by eavesdropping on conversations happening around me. I loved the enthusiasm of first time runners running in pairs, the cute old couple ahead of me going at a steady pace (they finished about 20 seconds before me!) quietly encouraging each other to press on, the loud music blaring out of young women's headphones.The steady fall of footprints around me. All of it seemed to equate to this peacefulness in the midst of around 700 runners.
 |
| Not sure how well you can see, but there are runners wrapped around the bend of the river. I am about in the middle of the pack. |
The turn-around point at 6.5 miles was a big milestone for me. Last year at the point, I had already been walking a while, and just feeling so down on myself for not doing better. My ankles had been starting to hurt, and I was so discouraged that I was only halfway done. This year, I was still going strong, I had run through some shin pains, and as a bonus, I was ahead of everybody I knew at the race. (Victory for my ultra-competitive nature!) I turned around at 1:02:10.
The next few miles seemed to fly by since I had people to look for that were still heading to the turn-around. After mile nine, I started to get tired a bit, and strong head winds started to blow. And I mean strong! When you have to physically brace yourself and buckle down for it, you know it's going to be a tough four miles.
The thing about this course is while it's kind of pretty in its own way, the landscape doesn't differ at all the whole way and it gets pretty boring. So I was overjoyed to see the herd of cows at the 11 mile mark (mile 2 on the way out) knowing that I was almost done. And really, when you've run 11, what's 2 more? It felt like I was running so slowly because of the wind, and I started to worry that I wouldn't be able to beat last year's time after all; especially when I overheard two girls say 2-15. I thought they meant we had already been going to 2 hours, 15 minutes, and there was no way I'd be able to finish under 2:31 with two miles left.
The wind still blowing like crazy, it was hard to resist the urge to walk. Thankfully, a water station was right ahead as I was seriously considering it, so I walked the few paces it took to down the water, then felt like I would be able to start running again. I was so thrilled to see the markers for miles 12 and 13! The last tenth of a mile went on forever it seemed. There were people everywhere and so it was hard to tell where the finish line was exactly, but finally I could see the clock. There's no better feeling than seeing that clock especially when it has a good time on it. A much better time than I was expecting with the wind and how slowly it felt I'd been going.
 |
| Okay, I look like a complete dork when I run, it turns out! But check out my calves ;) |
I crossed the finish line at 2:11:25. Shaving off just over 20 minutes from last year's time! I was thrilled! And then a little less thrilled when I realized we didn't get medals this year, but still happy with my performance.
The bonus about finishing first out of my friends is that I got to see them all finish! It was so exciting. It was Brenda's 17th Half Marathon, Ashley's 1st, Sydne's 2nd (? I think?) and Dee's 4th. We celebrated with Mimosas in the parking lot:
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| We keep things pretty classy! |
Monday, January 2, 2012
New Years
It's January 2nd, and I just cannot believe it!
New Year's is a little different at our house because of Oliver's birthday. Can anyone believe that he is five already?!?
My big boy seems all grown up. On the one hand, I'm having trouble realizing that I've only had him in my life for five years (my, how the time flies!) but on the other hand, if you look at him, he seems so mature and old, I catch myself thinking, "wait, he's ONLY five?" It's a weird mix of emotions, to be sure. Part of him turning five meant finally taking him off his sippie cups. He's far too old for them, and I thought we'd have a big fight about it since the few times I brought it up in the days leading to his birthday, he was NOT a fan of the idea. So far, though, things are going pretty well; he's been just using a cup, and knows that he should keep it in the kitchen/dining room, and that he can't take anything to bed. Thank you Lord that it's going smoothly!
We're waiting to do his birthday party until Phil's mom and sister come into town in about a week and a half, so we haven't really celebrated him yet. I offered him dessert and ice cream last night saying we could put a candle in it and he could blow it out since it was his birthday, but he didn't want anything to do with that. What kid passes up dessert? We did play Candy Land with him and the other boys, and let him pick some of the day's activities yesterday and he got to go play at the neighbour's house for a little bit in the evening. I'm excited to do his birthday party though; I've had a few ideas for the last couple of months that I've been dying to do :)
Things about my five year old:
New Year's is a little different at our house because of Oliver's birthday. Can anyone believe that he is five already?!?
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| Here he is, about nine months old. (In California) |
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| Oliver at six days old. Dressed up to go to church. |
We're waiting to do his birthday party until Phil's mom and sister come into town in about a week and a half, so we haven't really celebrated him yet. I offered him dessert and ice cream last night saying we could put a candle in it and he could blow it out since it was his birthday, but he didn't want anything to do with that. What kid passes up dessert? We did play Candy Land with him and the other boys, and let him pick some of the day's activities yesterday and he got to go play at the neighbour's house for a little bit in the evening. I'm excited to do his birthday party though; I've had a few ideas for the last couple of months that I've been dying to do :)
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| Oliver at about six month old with Mr.Lion. |
He loves the colour red, trains, every thing to do with trains, dinosaurs, trucks, anything to do with construction, Go Diego Go!, the Backyardigans, school.
He's the tallest in his class, but not the oldest. He doesn't like when people call his hair red; to him, red is like the colour of a fire truck, so he thinks his hair is brown, and has sternly told strangers so. He loves to sing and make up songs. He does not like when Oakley tries to sing with him. He used to be terrified of dogs, then we got Rocket and now he loves them. Oliver does not like drawing or colouring; most of the papers he brings home from school have minimal work done on them. He's shy, but also likes being the center of attention. He's a hard worker. He's an early bird (like, really, really early.) Oliver has one of the best laughs, and likes pranks and slap-stick comedy. His favourite food is bacon, followed probably by ham. He will eat most anything if there is ketchup or sprinkles on it. Oliver is very good with his hands. He is always very curious how things are put together and work. He has a really good memory. He says Grandma and Oakley are his best friends.
As for New Year "resolutions," I'm keeping it simple this year:
1.) Keep track of all my mileage for running. I think it'll be really motivating at the end of the year to say I ran 500 miles or whatever it ends up being. That way next year I can make a mileage goal that I know is realistic.
2.) Run my second Half Marathon, and beat my time from last year. It's the same course and this year I have an actual training plan and a large support group (Plus, I know a bunch of girls running too) so I feel this is very doable.
3.) Stay better organized/neater. If you've known me for any length of time, you know I'm a very messy person. While I've improved A LOT since I've been married and had my own house, I still have a long way to go. I've been doing pretty great/good/better lately, and a big part of that is that the kids haven't been dragging all of their toys in the living room from the play room since we moved furniture around. IT'S AWESOME! I've also been doing better at keeping our kitchen and my part of our room picked up and cleaned, so I'd like to keep that going.
4.) Elliot getting potty trained! Sigh. I'm not looking forward to it. I've already done two boys and a dog.... this one comes free, then, right?
5.) Strengthening current relationships and forging new ones. I am a sucky people person. I don't communicate well (apart from my like-minded, quirky friends) and I tend to end up pushing people away, I think. So I'd like to make sure I try to get out of my comfort zone and talk to new people.
6.) Finish sewing projects that I have started! This doesn't automatically apply to the hand-quilt I've been working on for six years. That one I have to be in the right mood/frame of mind to work on, but I have a good-ish sewing machine now, and I have a big quilt started that I'd like to finish. It was supposed to be for Autumn 2011, but Autumn 2012 will do.
7.) Get better at decorating cakes. I don't get much practice because the only cakes I give myself time to do are ones for clients, so this year, I'd like to take the time to make faux cakes (I have styrofoam rounds) or real ones to practice fondant, sculpting, and icing skills. I'd also like to practice making gumpaste flowers some more. Along the cake line, I would also like to start charging more for the cakes; not to rip people off, but just so I could maybe make some actual money and not lose money, which is usually what happens because I feel badly charging more than $40. NO MORE! It would be nice to make more money so I could buy more tools too.
Well, that feels like a fairly ambitious list. What are your goals for 2012?
As for New Year "resolutions," I'm keeping it simple this year:
1.) Keep track of all my mileage for running. I think it'll be really motivating at the end of the year to say I ran 500 miles or whatever it ends up being. That way next year I can make a mileage goal that I know is realistic.
2.) Run my second Half Marathon, and beat my time from last year. It's the same course and this year I have an actual training plan and a large support group (Plus, I know a bunch of girls running too) so I feel this is very doable.
3.) Stay better organized/neater. If you've known me for any length of time, you know I'm a very messy person. While I've improved A LOT since I've been married and had my own house, I still have a long way to go. I've been doing pretty great/good/better lately, and a big part of that is that the kids haven't been dragging all of their toys in the living room from the play room since we moved furniture around. IT'S AWESOME! I've also been doing better at keeping our kitchen and my part of our room picked up and cleaned, so I'd like to keep that going.
4.) Elliot getting potty trained! Sigh. I'm not looking forward to it. I've already done two boys and a dog.... this one comes free, then, right?
5.) Strengthening current relationships and forging new ones. I am a sucky people person. I don't communicate well (apart from my like-minded, quirky friends) and I tend to end up pushing people away, I think. So I'd like to make sure I try to get out of my comfort zone and talk to new people.
6.) Finish sewing projects that I have started! This doesn't automatically apply to the hand-quilt I've been working on for six years. That one I have to be in the right mood/frame of mind to work on, but I have a good-ish sewing machine now, and I have a big quilt started that I'd like to finish. It was supposed to be for Autumn 2011, but Autumn 2012 will do.
7.) Get better at decorating cakes. I don't get much practice because the only cakes I give myself time to do are ones for clients, so this year, I'd like to take the time to make faux cakes (I have styrofoam rounds) or real ones to practice fondant, sculpting, and icing skills. I'd also like to practice making gumpaste flowers some more. Along the cake line, I would also like to start charging more for the cakes; not to rip people off, but just so I could maybe make some actual money and not lose money, which is usually what happens because I feel badly charging more than $40. NO MORE! It would be nice to make more money so I could buy more tools too.
Well, that feels like a fairly ambitious list. What are your goals for 2012?
Monday, October 3, 2011
Me and my 'Brother'...
So, on last Wednesday, if I remember correctly, I was online browsing through Pinterest, and found a link to a cool quilting tutorial blog. It showed step by step instructions for beginning quilters, and had a lot of neat information/ideas on it (diaryofaquilter.com)
I've been wanting to get back into sewing/quilting for a while, but every time I looked at the price of machines, I got discouraged and let it go. But after seeing this blog last week, I was determined to get a machine and do this!
I got on Facebook, asking advice about where I should try to look for a machine. I didn't need new, and I didn't need fancy. Just something that worked and was reliable. A few (professional sewing) friends suggested stores for me, and I was thankful that I'd been set in the right direction, though not looking forward to spending the money on it. Then, another friend told me she'd been cleaning out her shed and was going to be giving her machine away to Goodwill, and would I like to have it? She did mention she'd always had trouble getting it to work just right, but I figured since it was free, I could try to work on it, and if it was broken, well at least I didn't spend any money on it (save the price of the coffee that I bought in exchange)
So the next day, I went and picked it up and was really excited about starting to use it. I even stopped at this awesome quilting supply store on my way (with all three boys!) to pick out some fabric. I found some super cute Moda charm packs "Just Wing It" and was all set to go. Side note: charm packs are the best invention ever. I didn't have to worry about trying to find coordinating fabrics and measuring yardage with the three kids with me. It feels a little cheater-y, but some day I'll pick them out by hand and whatnot.
Here's my free* machine:
I got right to work trying to figure out how to work the thing, and turns out it's pretty similar to the one I used growing up, but I could not for the life of me get the bobbin thread to come up the way it should, even after consulting the manufacturer's website and some YouTube videos.
Posting my frustration on Facebook, a friend of the friend who gave me her machine came to my rescue. She services machines and gave me her phone number and walked me through some trouble shooting scenarios. Within about three minutes, I had the machine working! (she had me change the needle.)
That evening, I laid out my squares decided what I wanted to do with them:
Friday morning, the kids went over to the neighbor's house for a couple hours and I got the rows all pieced:
Then, using material I had left from a project in high school, I added a border since the blanket was still a little smaller than I wanted:
Then I got batting and piping and backing and worked on it in between the cake I had an order for that was due on Sunday. I finished it around 4:45 Sunday morning, having wanted to finish it before we went to church that morning since the person I was giving it to is going in to have her C-Section this Friday. I'm pretty happy with the finished result even though it got a pretty lack-luster reception from the mother-to-be (which about made me want to cry, though I'm sure some of that could be blamed on the lack of sleep.)
Anyways, I'm looking forward to my next project; maybe something a little more daring than a basic "squares" quilt, we will see....
I've been wanting to get back into sewing/quilting for a while, but every time I looked at the price of machines, I got discouraged and let it go. But after seeing this blog last week, I was determined to get a machine and do this!
I got on Facebook, asking advice about where I should try to look for a machine. I didn't need new, and I didn't need fancy. Just something that worked and was reliable. A few (professional sewing) friends suggested stores for me, and I was thankful that I'd been set in the right direction, though not looking forward to spending the money on it. Then, another friend told me she'd been cleaning out her shed and was going to be giving her machine away to Goodwill, and would I like to have it? She did mention she'd always had trouble getting it to work just right, but I figured since it was free, I could try to work on it, and if it was broken, well at least I didn't spend any money on it (save the price of the coffee that I bought in exchange)
So the next day, I went and picked it up and was really excited about starting to use it. I even stopped at this awesome quilting supply store on my way (with all three boys!) to pick out some fabric. I found some super cute Moda charm packs "Just Wing It" and was all set to go. Side note: charm packs are the best invention ever. I didn't have to worry about trying to find coordinating fabrics and measuring yardage with the three kids with me. It feels a little cheater-y, but some day I'll pick them out by hand and whatnot.
Here's my free* machine:
Posting my frustration on Facebook, a friend of the friend who gave me her machine came to my rescue. She services machines and gave me her phone number and walked me through some trouble shooting scenarios. Within about three minutes, I had the machine working! (she had me change the needle.)
That evening, I laid out my squares decided what I wanted to do with them:
Friday morning, the kids went over to the neighbor's house for a couple hours and I got the rows all pieced:
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| Not sure why the photo is all wonky, but you get the idea. |
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| Finished product. Super cozy! |
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| Another slightly wonky picture, but I stitched my name in a small corner. |
Anyways, I'm looking forward to my next project; maybe something a little more daring than a basic "squares" quilt, we will see....
Monday, September 19, 2011
Summer Wrap-Up
Yes, yes, I know I"m terrible at upkeeping this blog!
Lots has happened since I last posted, but I've been too lazy or busy to write and post pictures.
So Oliver and Oakley have started school and they love it! Oakley cried a little the first day, but on the second day when I explained more clearly that I wouldn't be staying with him but would be coming back in a couple hours to pick him up, he did great!
Not much else happening on the kid front. Elliot and I have been doing parts runs fro work while the other boys are are school, or running errands of our own. I did buy a jogging stroller at a consignment store last week and I plan on trying to run with Elliot during school hours. We'll see how that goes. he loves the stroller so far, so I hope this works out for us.
Speaking of running, here's an update of the races I've done since the half marathon:
Leashes and Laces 5K 03/25/11 28:48
Mt.Si 59 mile Relay (with the Sole Sisters) 04/11/11 8:48:45 (not sure on the date..)
Run for the Son 5K 05/??/11 Not sure on my time.
Fairfield 5K 06/11/11 26:24
Hot Summer Nights 5K Series #1 08/10/11 26:39
Spokane to Sandpoint (Team Happy Feet) )8/12-13/11 30:42
Hot Summer Nights 5K Series #2 08/17/11 28:07
Dirty Dash 10K & Obstacle Course 08/20/11 1:40:00
Hot Summer Nights 5K Series #3 08/27/11 27:24
Sundae Sunday 10 Miler 09/11/11 1:42:30
The races I'm most proud of are the Spokane to Sandpoint, (since I got to finish this year! I almost cried when we got our medals) the Dirty Dash, (since it was so awesome!) and the Sundae Sunday race (since it was sort of like a half marathon..)
I've been having a great time running these races and training for them, but am also kind of excited to start taking it a little slower through the winter. I still plan on running with the Winter Warriors again. I was originally going to give a re-cap of my three favourite races, but kids are up from naps and acting cranky, and it seems like an awful lot of work....
I'll try to do a better job of keeping everyone informed with the highlights of our lives, so 'til next time!
Lots has happened since I last posted, but I've been too lazy or busy to write and post pictures.
So Oliver and Oakley have started school and they love it! Oakley cried a little the first day, but on the second day when I explained more clearly that I wouldn't be staying with him but would be coming back in a couple hours to pick him up, he did great!
Not much else happening on the kid front. Elliot and I have been doing parts runs fro work while the other boys are are school, or running errands of our own. I did buy a jogging stroller at a consignment store last week and I plan on trying to run with Elliot during school hours. We'll see how that goes. he loves the stroller so far, so I hope this works out for us.
Speaking of running, here's an update of the races I've done since the half marathon:
Leashes and Laces 5K 03/25/11 28:48
Mt.Si 59 mile Relay (with the Sole Sisters) 04/11/11 8:48:45 (not sure on the date..)
Run for the Son 5K 05/??/11 Not sure on my time.
Fairfield 5K 06/11/11 26:24
 |
| The first time I got a medal for placing in my age division. #2 in the 20-29 category! |
Hot Summer Nights 5K Series #1 08/10/11 26:39
Spokane to Sandpoint (Team Happy Feet) )8/12-13/11 30:42
Hot Summer Nights 5K Series #2 08/17/11 28:07
Dirty Dash 10K & Obstacle Course 08/20/11 1:40:00
Hot Summer Nights 5K Series #3 08/27/11 27:24
Sundae Sunday 10 Miler 09/11/11 1:42:30
The races I'm most proud of are the Spokane to Sandpoint, (since I got to finish this year! I almost cried when we got our medals) the Dirty Dash, (since it was so awesome!) and the Sundae Sunday race (since it was sort of like a half marathon..)
I've been having a great time running these races and training for them, but am also kind of excited to start taking it a little slower through the winter. I still plan on running with the Winter Warriors again. I was originally going to give a re-cap of my three favourite races, but kids are up from naps and acting cranky, and it seems like an awful lot of work....
I'll try to do a better job of keeping everyone informed with the highlights of our lives, so 'til next time!
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Furniture Remodel!
For quite some time, Phil and I have been wanting to redo our bedroom furniture. He never super loved the colour to begin with (though he didn't tell me until after it had been purchased) and it was just kind of a weird colour to match other things to. Plus, it had been beat up a little when we had it squeezed into a tiny room at my parents' house, and then moving into our house.
All in all, it was just time for a change.
So we picked up a few cans of spray paint, figuring it would be the fastest way, and it it didn't turn out, we could always sand it back down and it would have at least given us an idea of what it would like when done.
Then we added a coat or two of flat black paint, followed by a coat or two of black satin paint:
And we sprayed the hardware with an ivory paint:
Here is the finished product:
We love the new look of our furniture! And I don't think we spent more than $50 getting all the paint.
All in all, it was just time for a change.
 |
| The original night stand. Sorry I can't seem to flip it the right way. |
The sanding took the longest time, but the kids helped out.
Then we added a coat or two of flat black paint, followed by a coat or two of black satin paint:
And we sprayed the hardware with an ivory paint:
Here is the finished product:
 |
| Nightstand. |
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| Phil's dresser (I didn't take a picture of mine, but it got done as well.) |
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Catching UP...
I've been ignoring my blog lately... Sorry to anyone to was actually reading it before.
A few things to catch up on: Oliver is registered for pre-school in the fall! A huge burden off my shoulders. He doesn't do very well focusing on activities like writing, colouring, etc... Pretty much anything that doesn't involve trains, really, so I'm excited that he is excited about going to school and will hopefully be taught the skills he'll need in kindergarden to focus there. Oakley is first up on the waiting list. I kind of hope he is able to get in this fall too. I don't think he needs it like Oliver does, but I think he'd really enjoy it. (And, the "evil Mother" side of me is looking forward to the half day with just one boy at home... I could go running! Get house work done! Nap? Who knows the possibilities?!)
I'm trying to think of what else there was to update on...
Hmmm...
I gave Elliot his first "haircut." Really, I just trimmed his bangs since they were in his eyes 24/7, but he looks so mischievious now. I love it. I do not love the new screeching thing he picked up. It's like the noise I imagine a baby pterodactyl making. At first I was attributing it to his first molar that's coming in, but it looks like it's mostly through the gum, and he still does it. A lot. And waking up super early. (5:30 this morning) Not being a morning person, I'm also not the hugest fan of that. Something else I'm not a fan of, not that I'm trying to rag on my kids, because really, generally they're amazing and great and wonderful, but I'm saying it anyways. Oakley keeps having accidents. I'm hoping it will resolve itself soon since I think it might have started when my MIL was with us for a week and she was babying Oakley a little and helping him go to the bathroom when he would normally go by himself.
I haven't done much running since my Half Marathon.. I've been lazy. I did do a relay race in Seattle that was a blast though! Good weekend with my Sole Sisters :) That race was at the beginning of April, and until last night I had only run about 4 miles total. And those were on a treadmill. Last night I went running with a friend and we did four miles, but they felt so hard! I'm always amazed at how quickly I can fall out of shape! We did pretty well for not having run in about a month though; we finished our four miles in 36 minutes.
In other completely random news, I'm slowly going through my house and getting rid of stuff for a yard sale I'm doing in a couple of weeks. It's slow going, but it feels good to be getting rid of things I'm not using anyways and hopefully I'll make some spending money for my trip to Banff which is mid-June. That is the real reason for having the yard sale. I'm not going to lie. I probably wouldn't have the motivation otherwise. Thankfully my dear friend and neighbour who is also going on the trip is a super organized person and thought of doing this. Bonus: we get to hang out all that day (Pray for sunshine on June 4th!)
Lastly, the cake business has picked up a bit! Hooray! I really don't make any money on it at all since I only charge about the cost of ingredients (I feel bad charging my friends [who are my only clients so far] more than that) but just in May I have made a Baby Shower cake, a birthday cake, I have another Baby Shower and birthday coming up. It's been fun. :) Maybe someday I'll actually make money at it, which would be nice, but until then, I'm happy to be involved in friends' celebrations in an extra way. It's also a fun thing to swap services with friends. My friend Monica is trading me family pictures for me to do her daughter's birthday cake.
I feel like I've been rambling, so I'm going to stop while I might still possibly be ahead.... Off to relax!
A few things to catch up on: Oliver is registered for pre-school in the fall! A huge burden off my shoulders. He doesn't do very well focusing on activities like writing, colouring, etc... Pretty much anything that doesn't involve trains, really, so I'm excited that he is excited about going to school and will hopefully be taught the skills he'll need in kindergarden to focus there. Oakley is first up on the waiting list. I kind of hope he is able to get in this fall too. I don't think he needs it like Oliver does, but I think he'd really enjoy it. (And, the "evil Mother" side of me is looking forward to the half day with just one boy at home... I could go running! Get house work done! Nap? Who knows the possibilities?!)
I'm trying to think of what else there was to update on...
Hmmm...
I gave Elliot his first "haircut." Really, I just trimmed his bangs since they were in his eyes 24/7, but he looks so mischievious now. I love it. I do not love the new screeching thing he picked up. It's like the noise I imagine a baby pterodactyl making. At first I was attributing it to his first molar that's coming in, but it looks like it's mostly through the gum, and he still does it. A lot. And waking up super early. (5:30 this morning) Not being a morning person, I'm also not the hugest fan of that. Something else I'm not a fan of, not that I'm trying to rag on my kids, because really, generally they're amazing and great and wonderful, but I'm saying it anyways. Oakley keeps having accidents. I'm hoping it will resolve itself soon since I think it might have started when my MIL was with us for a week and she was babying Oakley a little and helping him go to the bathroom when he would normally go by himself.
I haven't done much running since my Half Marathon.. I've been lazy. I did do a relay race in Seattle that was a blast though! Good weekend with my Sole Sisters :) That race was at the beginning of April, and until last night I had only run about 4 miles total. And those were on a treadmill. Last night I went running with a friend and we did four miles, but they felt so hard! I'm always amazed at how quickly I can fall out of shape! We did pretty well for not having run in about a month though; we finished our four miles in 36 minutes.
In other completely random news, I'm slowly going through my house and getting rid of stuff for a yard sale I'm doing in a couple of weeks. It's slow going, but it feels good to be getting rid of things I'm not using anyways and hopefully I'll make some spending money for my trip to Banff which is mid-June. That is the real reason for having the yard sale. I'm not going to lie. I probably wouldn't have the motivation otherwise. Thankfully my dear friend and neighbour who is also going on the trip is a super organized person and thought of doing this. Bonus: we get to hang out all that day (Pray for sunshine on June 4th!)
Lastly, the cake business has picked up a bit! Hooray! I really don't make any money on it at all since I only charge about the cost of ingredients (I feel bad charging my friends [who are my only clients so far] more than that) but just in May I have made a Baby Shower cake, a birthday cake, I have another Baby Shower and birthday coming up. It's been fun. :) Maybe someday I'll actually make money at it, which would be nice, but until then, I'm happy to be involved in friends' celebrations in an extra way. It's also a fun thing to swap services with friends. My friend Monica is trading me family pictures for me to do her daughter's birthday cake.
I feel like I've been rambling, so I'm going to stop while I might still possibly be ahead.... Off to relax!
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