Happy Blogiversary!

My How Time Flies!

In case you are wondering, the flowers that I enjoy are: carnations, roses, lilacs, lavender, heliotrope, snapdragons, and violets. Regarding fruit I like the following fruit flavors: lemon, lime, cherry, and raspberry.

Concerning appliances, does an iPod count, or would that be more of an electronic device? I guess I'm not much in need of standard kitchen appliances, so perhaps think more like "kitchen gadgets". I could use one of those vegetables slicers—I believe they are called a mandolin slicer. I've always wanted to make homemade pickled things, so maybe a pickling crock or one of those glass jars with the latched lid with a rubber seal.

So, there it is. Four years of blogging. I guess I'll be around for another year!

Reduced Size Means Fewer Calories

Just before going off to internship one afternoon, Smee came up and curled up around my head as I sat on the couch. I had the camera with me so I took some pictures of us. Do you see the familial resemblance? Smee and I both have blue eyes, those his are much bluer and prettier than mine.

This is Espresso from PK's Coffee N' Cream Doilies. I made it using three colors of Olympus size 40. The center part is pink, then the other two colors are lavendar and a variegated color. I didn't bother to take a measurement.

The lucky recipient of this doily is receiving this as a Doily Swap bonus.

You may notice a smudge or blurry spot on the pictures. Smee rubbed against the lens and I didn't see the smear until after I mailed out the doily. Smee was trying to mark the camera as his!

Today I weighed out how much is remaining of the original 4.4 pounds. The scale reads 3 and 7/8 ounces! Eeek! I'd better hurry up and order another bulk bag of tea! Especially since it takes up to two weeks to get the bulk bag of tea. The only thing is, I need to perform a few weddings first to earn the money to buy it. I'd better start rationing out the remaining tea!

Better yet, I should just buy a Cream Earl Tea plantation and start growing my own! It's weird but true, but I am unable to go more than a couple of hours without a cup of this tea! I wonder if those blue flowers contain a highly addictive (yet totally safe and legal) chemical substance that swoon and lures me to continuously brew cup after cup after cup? I'm sure it is the caffeine doing the trick! Why, caffeine is as innocent as a lamb! Now, give me my tea so I can medicate my brain and wake up!

Unbelievable Doys!

Not One, but Two!

She also included some goodies! I now have a pattern book of Elizabeth Hiddleston's designs, some DMC ecru thread, and some Turkish thread. And she included some very fine rayon thread that looks very shiny and soft. Plus, chocolate goodies! I love the Lindt chocolates!

Thank you so much my doily swap partner! I'm so thrilled to have been paired with you and to have received two extraordinary doilies from you!

The Hounds

Ruff's Burgers: Local Greasy Burgery Goodness

Columbia River

Rich People's House

Assorted Fun

We also spent a lot of quality time just talking and sharing our respective life stories, getting to know each other better and more deeply. Jodi and I have been through the trials and travails that life has to offer and we've come through. I think of us as having taken the leap of faith into the volcano and it spewed us back out, just like in Joe Versus the Volcano.

I drove back through the Columbia River Gorge instead of going through the mountain pass. I love the drive along the gorge because the river there is just amazing! I was also able to stop in The Dalles, Oregon, and eat at what I call "Country Cousin East". The restaurant's real name is "Cousin's Inn" but it reminds me of our local "Country Cousin" restaurant. They have great mac n' cheese at the restaurant and an amazing sausage and bean soup. The place is always packed when I've gone there.

I'll be going back to spend 4 days with Jodi in August when I attend my first class in Theraplay® in Yakima. I'll have about a 90 minute drive from Kennewick to Yakima, but the drive is all freeway at 70 mph, so it should go quickly.

This doily comes from Patricia Kristoffersen's Masterpiece Doilies and is called Grand. I made it using Omega size 30 thread, purple and variegated shades of pink, purple, and plum. I'm not sure how wide it measures out to be.

The color scheme looked good while the thread was on the ball, but now that the doily is made, I'm not so sure about the choices. The variegated hides the details of the pattern. I would still make this doily using two different colors, but I'd not use a variegated.

The two latest doilies to be added to my PK repetoire include Hazlenut from Coffee N' Cream Doilies and Splendid from Wonderful Doilies.

Hazlenut is made from Opera size 20 in Antique Violet. It measures about 14 inches in diameter. Splendid is made from three shades of Olympus size 40 thread and measures 7 inches in diameter.

Views of Hazlenut

Views of Splendid

I'm in the final steps to completing my graduate degree! On Friday (before the ear infection hit with full force) I took my oral exams and I am happy to announce I passed! I was coughing during the exam but not yet in need of medications so my brain was alert and mostly functioning at full capacity. I was fortunate to be given Solution-Focused Therapy as the theory to view a specific case study through. I've used SFT in my own attempts at therapy and it's one of the easiest theories to comprehend and implement.

Now all I need to do is get over this ear infection, write a 3-4 page synthesis paper on the 5 theories of counseling we studied, and attend Module 7 to complete the course work portion of my degree. I still have all of my internship hours to complete, which just got set back by two weeks thanks to this infection.

I asked the doctor if I'm contagious and he said yes, that I should not be going in while I'm this way, because I'd pass it on. I probably got this from a client or being in the germ field of the agency. Kids have the unfortunate role of being germ carriers and transmitters. I can recall in my childhood while my immune system was developing that I spent one year in school having cold after cold after cold. Communicable diseases happen.

My third self-assessment is written and I got feedback from my peers. They are all thinking I've Achieved Competency. I think that I have, but have this little bit of feeling inside of me that I'm not quite there yet, and that's because of my internship not quite being at the half-way point.

The Codeine in the cough syrup is now making me forget why I am writing this entry. Could it be to simply say that I am here?

I received a wonderful e-mail last week from a fellow Crochetvillain (or is it Crochetvillager?) Catheryn who let me know that I was about to receive the much sought after PK doily pattern book Wonderful Doilies! This PK booklet is very difficult to find! I think this almost completes my collection (I still have the pineapple collection to acquire) of PK's booklets and it is one book that I have been wanting to have since forever!

I about dropped out of my chair when Catheryn said she was going to send me the booklet—because I knew how much it would cost to win the auction for this coveted booklet. It's was like hearing the doorbell ring and opening the door to find the Publisher's Clearinghouse Prize Patrol be on the other side with one of those over-sized checks with my name on it! In fact, far better than that. Seriously, I take my collection of PK doily booklets to heart!

Catheryn, you've done more than make my day! You've touched my heart! Thank you so much for your kindness, generosity, and I also want to thank you for the joy it brings to me to be able to share an intense reverie of PK's doily patterns with a fellow enthusiast!

Happy happy, joy joy! Happy happy, joy joy!

My Secret Pal for the Spring Round at Crochetville is Ada (jadyn05)! Ada spoiled me with a crocheted sock monkey! I've decided to call my new girly monkey Lily. She is a deep purple color and will certainly keep the boy monkeys well-behaved!

Included in the goodies was some lovely balls of Valdani thread in the most wonderful, exquisite purple shades! I totally love it and will be deciding which PK doily pattern will be brought to life by the divine colors!

Ada included a ton of beads and beading supplies to get me started on making another lanyard! Two skeins of purple cotton yarn—I can probably make a halter top, and a skein of DMC baroque were the crochet goodies in addition to the Valdani thread. She crocheted two cat toys obviously filled with some catnip because the cats attacked them immediately! And yes, there are 6 cans of tuna in the picture! Ada sent a can of tuna to each of the babies! They are most pleased with being sent tuna! I have a new tote bag in which I can put pictures of the babies to proudly display my dedication to feline maintenance, and two note pads round out the additional items. Ada also included some coasters and dishcloths that she made in vibrant colors.

I couldn't resist taking some pictures of the beasties going nuts over the cat toys! Ming decided to be the first one to attack the tuna cans and catnip toy. Then she was joined by Teddy and Smee. Smee took the toy for himself and played with it. Mr. Doo decided he didn't care about the toys or cans of tuna, he wanted to play with the box that the tuna and toys came in!

Thank you so much Ada, for being my Secret Pal this round! It's been my pleasure to get to know you! I look forward to continuing our friendship, too!

Here's the lanyard I made for my ID badge and office key. The charms include a yin-yang symbol which serves to remind me of the duality of life and to remember that both sides need each other and to know that not everything is either/or but really both/and. Opposite of the yin-yang is a cupid with a blue piece of glass. This represents my passion for my work and to inspire and incite love within myself and others.

Next is a spring/nature goddess charm and opposite to her is a marriage license. The marriage license is obvious since I perform wedding ceremonies. The goddess charm symbolizes my love of nature, flowers, earth, and all things pagan.

The next pair is a recipe and oven mitt and then the word love with a heart. I love baking for people and sharing food and goodies. My expression of love and friendship most often is expressed by a container full of cookies or a cheesecake. I connect with people through food. Love almost need not be explained.

The last two charms are a pair of hands and a sun/moon. The sun & moon together remind me of the masculine and feminine, the night and day. The pair of hands struck me as interesting in that in the western world people would interpret them to be praying hands, but in the eastern world they could be seen as part of the namaste salutation.

The beads are blue goldstone, a man-made gemstone that sparkles brilliantly when in sunlight.