Let the CONTEST Begin...

January's Contest is up and running.

A little different then my past two, I will have multiple winners this month as I will be drawing a winner on a weekly basis. I am very excited about this.

Below is a picture of the first prize to be won.

Prize for week one, is my dishcloth in a bag…(small knitted hand bag pattern available at http://chezplum.com/patterns/isabeau-purse/ filled with a skein of cotton yarn and an original dishcloth pattern designed by me. Which by the way I still have to design, LOL. Good thing I have a week to do it in, plenty of time, LOL.)

Just ignore the needle sticking out of the bag, I was just seeing how much could actually fit in there, LOL.



Okay so to enter in the contest today this is what I am asking from you...

Tuesday- Poll:

New years resolutions:

1- Do you make them every year but tend to forget them by February?

2- Do you make them and follow through with at least one?

3- Do you even know what a resolution is?


Post your answer to the poll in the comment section along with your Resolutions for 2008 and earn an entry in the contest for week one.


Resolution- definition for those who chose option 3…
Noun: finding a solution to a problem, a decision to do something or to behave in a certain manner.

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There you go, I am so excited about some of the upcoming things I will be blogging for your entertainment. I think I may even hit my 10,000th hit during this contest as well. I am still amazed that so many people have viewed my page.

Well it's 2:20am here in NY and I better go to bed before I figure I might as well just stay up for the day, that would not be good.

I think the excitement of having a contest again has me all wound up.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

AK

Bring it ON!!!!!!!

Woke up to a Winter Wonderland this morning. This picture was taken after my husband snow blowed, so you can imagaine what was there before. It's beautiful though isn't it? I can't think of a better way to end the year then with a blanket of pure white snow. We are supposed to get some more tonight too. In a way I think it's God way of saying I am giving you all a brand new start. Washing us white as snow, the slate is clean, we can make this the best year ever. All our sin and failures and disappointments and worries have been buried in the winter snow, only to be ressurected into victories with the New Year ahead. My prayer is that you too will see this gift and embrace it and let God bring miracles into your life every minute of every day. We have so little time here on earth to make a difference, I don't plan on wasting a single moment on anything but praise and worship and thanksgiving to a God who is the I AM in my life.

Okay seems I am in a preachy mood today. LOL.

Speaking of the NEW YEAR I am planning on starting up my Blog contest tomorrow for the month of January. I am thinking of having prizes on a weekly basis instead of just one winner for the month. The prizes will be small, like a ball or two of yarn, maybe a gadget, or some needles etc. I have a few things collected. I love giving prizes so I think it will be fun to have several winners a month. Don't you? For those of you who have won in the past, my apologies for taking so long to mail out the prize, this will not be a problem in 2008. Mostly because my son Jim is home and he will help me get things done. I am so glad for that. As I am sure you all will be as well. LOL

I usually have a goal of reaching 2000 hits for the month but instead this time I ma hoping to reach the 10,000th view of my blog during this contest. This should happen, as it is less then 2000, and we have been close the other two contests.

So get ready everyone, tomorrow is only hours away. Tell your friends, link to my blog from yours, make a note to come visit daily, you never know what you will find here waiting for you this month.

Have a wonderful New Years Eve, and get ready for the best year ever ahead.

Is it OVER already???

Well It's December 26th already... I think somehow Christmas came early this year. I knitted away like a crazy person but I finished all my projects.

I made 10 scarves, all different, 2 hats, a pair of mittens, and pillow with a huge bow on it, it was a free pattern from the Caron yarn site. Let me tell you, the bow seemed to take forever and I literally finished the bow 30 minutes before we left for the Christmas Eve gathering and gift auction the pillow was for. Talk about marathon speed knitting.

We took Adam to a Christmas program at my mom's church, Hannah and Colin, were in the play and Adam loves them. Hannah was an angel and Colin was a mouse. They had Muppet's too and Adam really liked that. That was Sunday night. Adam was supposed to go home and we were going to get him again the next day, but he ended up spending the night with us. No problem except now I have not wrapped a single gift for Adam yet and can't do that with him in the same room as me.

Monday, Christmas Eve, we go to my mom's house. Every year all the grand kids put on a play, this is year 19. My son Joe, played Santa this year, Adam had not been to see Santa so when Joe came in the room Adam climbed on my lap and said "Go home now???" But Santa had some puzzles in his sack for Adam and after that Santa was Adam's new best friend, LOL. We brought Adam home to his mom around 6:30pm, so he still has not opened a single gift from us yet.

Tuesday we have out annual BRUNCH at my sister Dayna's. Everyone is usually still in their jammies and it's relaxing and fun. She has 4 children, Robbin 25, Chuck, 23, Autumn 18 and Hannah 6. Well this year she Gave her son Robbin an ornament that said to my favorite oldest child, She gave Chuck one that said my favorite middle child, and Hannah got one that said my favorite youngest child... and Autumn got a necklace (which by the way I WANT...)poor Autumn she was feeling so left out... now Dayna had staggered giving out those ornaments too, she brought one out about every 45 minutes or so... so the suspense was so funny. In the end Autumn got one that said to my favorite middle girl child but she said it was too late. It was funnier then I am probably letting on here...

I am still trying to upload photos to share with you all. I have several. I even made another original pattern. This is frustrating to me for sure.

My house is a mess... I am baffled too, we did not have a tree or any gifts to open here so I just can't figure out how it got so cluttered and messy. This is my job today.

My brother and sister in law also brought us a complete dinner to cook, Ham, potatoes, cabbage and carrots. I was going to make it tonight, but it's church night so I think I'll wait until tomorrow.

I am still planning on a contest in January, it will run all month long but I think each week might have a different theme... I am thinking maybe if I can promote it a little I might reach 10,000 hits. In fact I might name it the 10,000 Hit contest.

I miss blogging, and hope if I can somehow convince TOM to leave I can blog daily again starting today.

Merry Christmas
AK

1930 Hits To Go

Yep, it's hard to believe but I am less then 2000 hits away from 10,000 views to my blog. This amazes me, that so many people care to see what I am chatting about on a daily basis. I know I haven't been blogging like I usually do, I've been frustrated, I like to blog with pictures.

Any I remember I promised a picture of my mom and my other sister Dayna from the wedding last month. Shelly was kind enough to remind me I never followed through. So today is the day.

This picture was of Dayna's shoes, but it wasn't until after I got home and uploaded the picture that I saw it also got a great shot of the HUGE tattoo on her leg. Now the fact that she has a tattoo utterly baffles me, Dayna is so afraid of pain and a little on the hypochondriac side, and I can only imagine how much that hurt and what kind f infection she could have gotten from that. No thank you, I'll keep my skin tattoo free.


She looked very pretty though in her new dress, and I think I actually caught her in a smiling moment too.


Now my mom, well she is almost always smiling. This too amazes me as she spends all day, 5 days a week with her grandchildren, homeschooling them. They are in first grade. Isn't she beautiful, and Ma you don't look a day over 50... PS her birthday is in 5 days... and I just turned 45 so you can guess her age from there. happy Early birthday Ma, I love you.


Speaking of birthdays, my baby just turned 22 on the 11th. This is Joe, the reason for all my grey hair, and probably the reason I gained so much weight back. LOL. I swear from the year he was born he was in the emergency room at least once a year. Joe is Adam's daddy, can you see any resemblance?


So there you go... a short but sweet update. Adam is here tonight but he is sleeping. had a cough and fever all day, poor baby. I think they are taking him to see Santa tomorrow, I wonder how he will be, he really doesn't feel good.

I've been working on scarves for the last 2 weeks, and I even created the snowball pattern to match Michelle's snowman hat. I just can't show any pictures of it yet.

My other son Jim comes home on Wednesday so hopefully he can help me figure out what happened to my program. I am looking forward to having him home again, I missed him. I was going to show you a picture from his final project at school but he has set his photos to private and I can't get in there. Oh well... I guess it can wait until next week.

Hope you are all well, and not too stressed over the holidays. Remember the reason for the season...

HUGS to all
AK

Pay it Forward

Well I have decided to PAY IT FORWARD. What a cool idea.

I hooked up through CAT's blog http://craftyncer.typepad.com

The guidelines:

"I will send a handmade gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this PIF (Pay it Forward) exchange. I don't know what that gift will be yet and you may not receive it tomorrow or next week, but you will receive it within 365 days, that is my promise!

The only thing you have to do in return is pay it forward by making the same promise on your blog.

"Want to participate? Be one of the first 3 people to leave a comment on this post and make the same promise on your own blog.

Not So Random Acts of Kindness. And 365 days to do it in!!! I like this idea a lot!
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Well I had a pretty good weekend. Saturday I had a ladies get together with the women from my church. It was a nice relaxing time. They had lots of food there but I was good, drank mostly water and didn't eat any desserts while I was there.

My DR report came back better, but I still have to go back in 2 weeks to make sure it's still good.

I didn't have Adam over the weekend but he was here a few days last week. He is getting so smart. I taught him what a trapezoid was on Friday. He loves shapes.

I ordered him the Fisher Price Easy Link Internet launch system for Christmas. He love playing on the computer and wants to do it himself but I won't let him, but with this system he can play and I don't have to worry about him getting onto any other sites or messing up my system.

Still don't have my photo program worked out. This is not good. I need to get to those pictures. And I need to add pictures. I need the GEEK SQUAD.

I have been working on scarves this past week. Finished 4 and 1/3 out of 10. They are for Gary's nieces and Adam's mom and her new boyfriend.

Still trying to teach myself how to change colors in the middle of knitting, it's so much easier when crocheting. I might have to wait until the New Year. I have so many new pattern ideas floating in my head right now.

I really need to get back in the swing of things and blog daily, I guess I am in a funk because I can't post pictures. I feel if there aren't pictures no one would really want to visit. I am sure that's not true... but either way I need to fix this before the January contest.

Speaking of contests, two of the ones posted in my side bar are ending today, so if you haven't checked them out today is the day.

I am planning on getting a better link system on my side bar for all your blogs and list them... Haven't figured out how to do that with just a name and not showing the full http address. But one thing about Ravelry... if you are on there and in my friends list I can pop right to your blog from there, I love that.

OK this is long, so I'll go.

God willing I will blog more tomorrow

AK

Did Ya Miss Me?

Well I am still here. Been pretty tired and not on the computer as much as I like.

Adam was here earlier this week so that preoccupied me as well.

I went to the DR's today for my repeat blood work, so I am praying that the news is better this time. Hopefully I will know tomorrow, but most likely won't hear until Monday or Tuesday.

I finished another pencil scarf, this one I did in yellow. Adam was modeling the red one around when he was here. He knows it's a pencil. Such a smart boy.

I'm working on two other scarves as well, I am 30% done with one and 20% with the other. I am using circulars even though not needed cause I always drop a needle. It works like a charm except when you get knitting and suddenly one of the sticks disconnect from the cord and go flying across the room. That's what I get for buying cheap needles off of EBAY. Oh well.

My husband the "Hunter" finally got a deer. He's been cutting up the meat every night, one leg at a time. He is also catching mice with peanut butter. I feel like I live in a zoo or something.

I sure wish I could upload pictures, I hope when my son returns he can help me. I tried the system restore and it didn't work. It wouldn't let me put in a date before December 1st. Bummer.

I really love Ravelry. I love that I can see all my friends blogs at a glance from there. I also found a new LYS sort of near me. Maybe in the Spring I will go there for a knitting class, I'd like that.

Not sure if you noticed but I have added a few new contests. I do update that as I find more, even if I don't actually blog. I do miss blogging everyday and will be back to that I am sure before the New Year starts. I also am planning a new contest starting January 1st so don't give up on me ok?

I guess that's all the update from me for now. It's cold, I've had a cold forever now and I am just tired all the time. Welcome to winter in New York.

Maybe I'll get to blog again over the weekend.

Thanks for checking in, it really means alot that you are all still here.

HUGS
AK

Happy Birthday Dayna

Today is my sister Dayna's birthday. She is two years younger then me but she is my best friend. I have been so blessed by her in so many ways. God even rewarded me by allowing me to buy a house right next door to hers. If one of us slams a door at our house the other house shakes, that's how close we are.

Our boys are the same ages and her daughters are my joy... when I lost my daughter at birth she was wonderful in sharing hers with me. I can't imagine life without my sister.

You know it wasn't always like this. We used to fight always when we were younger, but I would stand in front of a truck, to save her, now and even back then.

So many memories we share though, like loving the Bay City Rollers, going to every home Padre game, spending vacations with our Nana and cousins, tanning in the backyard reading harlequin novels together and music. We loved music, still do. You would find us singing everyday, we always knew all the words to every song.



If I sing " M I C K E Y .... M O U S E" to this day it makes her have to run to the bathroom, I used to love doing this in the car on a road trip, LOL

She loves lady bugs, but is terrified of stink bugs. At one time she looked like a pirate, with a silver capped front tooth and a patch on one eye. You can bet money that wherever she is there is a book near by, she loves to read.

There was a time when our parents were divorced that we were separated, I living with my dad, and she and my other sister Erin, living with my mom. We were even at one point forbidden to see or talk to each other at all. But we would sneak out and always found a way.



My sister has the biggest heart of anyone I know. She will bend over backwards to help you, even to the point of exhaustion. She has been making a lunch everyday for my husband for the last 2 years, just because she wants to.

When I was burned in a house fire she drove 60 miles to the emergency room at NASCAR speeds, even got pulled over by the police but she was still there by my side in miracle time. I can only imagine her crown awaiting her in Heaven.

So my blog today is dedicated to my sister, my friend, and I hope that by telling you all a little about her that you too will be blessed.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAYNA
I love you and my prayer today is that God brings you answers to your hearts desire, peace and joy in your days always and rest.

signed...
(devil eyes... the nickname she gave me because I have 2 freckles one above each eye brow)

I've Really Done It Now...

Well I approved an update to my Internet explorer the other day and now I can no longer get my camera photos to upload.

This is BAD, very BAD

I know next to nothing about how computers work, I can follow directions but other then that I am so not knowing. I know I am admitting I am not the smartest person in the world, LOL, but don't tell anyone, especially my kids and my husband.

I took a picture of the two scarves I am currently working on and of the mystery prize that I am mailing out to Prairie Chicken but I can't show them to you.

Oh no more pictures of Adam, what will I do??? I need the GEEK SQUAD. Where is "CHUCK" when I need him?

Anyway, this is part of the reason I have not been blogging daily. So frustrated.

We got a little bit of snow last night, just about an inch, but it's a taste of what's to come tomorrow. I can hear the New Yorker's digging out their snow blowers and shovels already.

Speaking of Adam he came over Wednesday morning and he was still in his jammies. They were fleece feetie jammies, so cute. Well he wouldn't take them off to get dressed to come to my house. He wore them all day, and then that night when I was getting him ready for bed I tried to change him into clean jammies and he started crying, NO jammies on, jammies on. He wore them 2 days straight, LOL.

I was knitting on one of my scarves last night and I was using circular needles, mainly because I always drop one of the needles and if I use circulars they never hit the floor, lol. Anyway I was knitting along nicely, talking on the phone and then I looked down and only one stick was still attached to the cord. OOPS, guess you can drop a circular after all.

I'm working on a couple new pattern ideas, one is SHREK, that's really challenging me. I also have a few ideas for some intarsia type patterns I just can't figure out how to do the intarsia to test them out. I need someone to come watch over my shoulder to tell me what I am doing right or wrong. Any volunteers????

Well I guess that's all for now... Welcome to December.

AK