Santa Knows Me Well

I am so incredibly excited about the fantastic gift my mom bought me for Christmas. Are you ready for it???

 Yep! That's right! I got this cute little sewing machine for Christmas. I have never used one before, but I have wanted one for a while. I did however take the plunge on Sunday by sewing an entire apron! I tend to just jump into things like that. I mean how else am I supposed to learn what I am doing. I did get a great deal on the pattern at Hancock's only 1.99 instead of the sticker price of 15.95! Sorry for all of the exclamation points I am just super excited about this present. I can wait to learn more and make some more awesome stuff. Back to my apron. The fabric is super cute, it cost about 15.00 for everything, it isn't made perfectly, but it will serve it's purpose and I can say I made it!! I hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday!

Looking Up!

Well it seems as though things might finally be looking up. We have decided that we will move in with Walt's dad, which will free up about 380.00 a month. We are still going to pay him some money to live there of course, but he did not ask us to contribute a lot. I am excited. The apartment complex and very nice with a gym, pool, hot tub, etc... But mostly I am excited about the opportunity to save some money and buy some things we have really been wanting. Also, I think it will be good for his dad to have someone there with him most of the time. He is getting older and is unstable on his feet. I like knowing that someone will be there is something bad were to happen. However, we probably picked the worst time of year to attempt to do this. I mean Christmas is just around the corner & I have swap packages going in and out. I want to move by the 1st so that we don't owe another 500.00 in rent, another cable bill, another electric bill etc... We had to submit applications to the office so they can make sure we aren't child molesters or serial killers. We are waiting to hear back on that (not that we are concerned) before we actually start packing. We also have to pay a 200.00 pet deposit for Abby. She discovered herself in the mirror the other day and well she isn't very fond of herself. She also had her picture taken with Santa this past weekend. It is such a cute photo of our little family.

In other news with the year coming to a close and income tax time around the corner the one thing I really wanted to do with my income tax this year was to sign up for the Master Knitter course through The Knitting Guild Association. There are 3 levels in which you have to knit swatches and do research papers and just learn a lot about knitting and the way you knit. The first level seems like it is doable for me and I am hoping to learn enough during that time to feel confident tackle the next 2 levels.

Lucky!

So I have just been sitting here at work all day listening to music & updating my playlist. I guess it is that time of year when I feeling all warm and fuzzy inside so I have been adding a lot of love songs. :) So of course I have been thinking about Walt all day. I have just been thinking about how fortunate I am to have him in my life. He keeps me sane on those insane days. I get to wake up every morning knowing that at some point during the day he will make me laugh so hard that I cry. He is always there to comfort me when I am having a bad. He encourages me to do the things that I love. He teaches me new things. He makes me a better person. He loves me. I am just really lucky to have found someone that really gets me. Someone that can truly make me happy & I can truly make him happy. So yeah that is it....just needed to say something amazing about him because he is!!

Why is it December Already??

With the holidays just around the corner and so much going on I am trying to accomplish a million things at once. This means that I cast on for a pair of socks today during my lunch break. The pattern is Breeze. It is a short anklet sock with some lace and cabling. It should be a quick knit (a week or two). I also need to go home and dye some yarn for a KAL for a swap group. I will cast that on tomorrow. I still have Tiger Eyes to finish, Walt's socks (which sadly keep getting put on the back burner due to other pressing knits), roving to finish spinning, & several projects for swap boxes to finish! Not to mention Christmas shopping and menu planning. Why is is December already??!!?? Why am I so unprepared!!?? Ack! I need to figure out some solutions quickly or I am really going to let some people down & I don't want to do that.

Overwhelmed!!

Well, with only 25 days until Christmas I am feeling so overwhelmed. I have not bought the first Christmas present. I have 2 swap packages that are due for Christmas both of which require a handknit item neither of which I have begun to knit & I have only done a small bit of shopping for them. I also need to start shopping for Christmas dinner. Last year I was not financially able to cook for Christmas which was the first time in 6 years that I was not able to do that. This year I refuse not to cook for Christmas!! Even if it means the adults do not get gifts. I love cooking for Christmas. I love making food that everyone enjoys and I love sitting down with the family and just enjoying a good meal with good conversation and lots of laughs. I don't get to spend much time with my whole family and Christmas is really important to me for that reason. So I am feeling like I need to make some kind of game plan. I need to pin down what I want to knit for the 2 Christmas packages and put Tiger Eyes on hold although it is so close to being finished I could possibly finish it tonight. I have begun creating a Christmas dinner menu it's a little different this year as my step-dad found out he has diabetes I want to try and make a few things he can eat lots of & also remember to make plenty of vegetarian alternatives for April. I need to get to work on figuring out gifts and knitting.

Learning A New Trick

So ever since I began knitting I have wanted to learn to crochet. I have picked it up and attempted a few times, but it never really seems to sink in. I try telling myself it will take some time just like knitting did, but I get frustrated and put it down. I mean I can knit so why do I really need to crochet too? The answer simply is Amigurumi! I love all of the cute little amigurumi things.

Those are just a small sampling of the amazing amigurumi patterns out there. There is an amazing designer on Ravelry. Linda Potts who has the most amazing free amigurumi patterns. Things such as Mario, Luigi, & lots of other Mario Brothers items. She has lots of other amazing things, but the Mario items appeal most to me because I grew up playing Mario. So I have spent the better part of my morning on Ravelry adding lots of amigurumi patterns to my queue. Not that my queue needs anymore stuff added to it. It is already 11 pages long with over 300 patterns/projects. Hoping all of the cute patterns will inspire me to pick up the crochet hook and give it another go. This is on my list of things to learn in 2011.

A Moment To Rant

Okay, so I need everyone to bare with me for a moment while I rant about our visit to the vet's office yesterday. So let's start from the beginning. Abby had some running poo off and on for about 3 days so we called the vet and they told us to gather a stool sample and bring her in. So when she finally decided to go poo again we gathered it up and took her to the vet. Once in the room with the vet we had a long discussion about what could be causing the problem. So ideas were that she ate another dog's poo, her diet could be to high in protein, or it could just be from the immiticide. So they did a full blood work up as well as testing her stool. The vet also did a complete physical exam. We talked for a while about the raw food diet and why we thought this was best for our dog and why the vet thought this was bad for our dog. Let me say that Walt and I spent a lot of time reading and researching this before we decided to put Abby on a RMB diet. The vet recommended Science Diet in Lamb & Rice. Which is fine with me I have no problem feeding my dog regular dog food as long as that is what is best for her. So after Abby's blood work came back we learned that she was dehydrated which was probably due to the diarrhea, also her protein levels were really high which could be due to either her diet or the immiticide. The vet recommended giving her a subcutaneous injection of fluid. I agreed because I just want what's best for our dog. So when the vet tech brought Abby out after the getting the fluid she decided it was her turn to berate us for feeding our dog RMB. She was in the room when we spoke to the vet about. She knows that we are aware of their opinion on this, but still she felt the need to talk to us like we were a couple of 1st graders that just got permanent marker all of the wall. So at this point we are already slightly irritated. We then end up waiting about 30 minutes at the counter to check out and pay because no one came seem to locate Abby's chart. So once that is cleared up the receptionist tells us that we owe $15.00 dollars from the last time. Walt and I both look at her very confused because she has only been in for heartworm treatment and that is covered by the SPCA where we adopted her from. The receptionist then tells us that we called the last time and stated that there was a family emergency and asked if they could keep her overnight. THIS NEVER HAPPENED!! We have never left her there longer than they tell us. She has not stayed the night there. I am already dreading that when she goes back for her last treatment on the 23rd that she does have to stay overnight. So I ask the girl if maybe the put it on the wrong screen. There was another Abby there the last time our Abby was there. The girl then tells me there was not another Abby there. "Yes, there was. You brought me out the wrong dog the last time!" I have no problem paying for services that we received, but I am not paying for something we did not do even if it is just 15.00. I just gave you over 200.00 for her visit today. Apparently, the overnight stay was entered by the director so they could not over ride it and he was not in that day. So they will have to get with him and see what he says. Also, let me note how poorly you keep records. You did not record her weight the last time she was in here. You called me on the 8th to verify her appointment for the 9th. She never had an appointment scheduled for the 9th. This is the second time you have screwed up the appointment date for her final treatment. You SUCK at keeping records and I am not paying 15.00!!!!

Seriously, this is the worst office that I have ever been to. I feel bad. The vet himself is fantastic! He is super polite and really informative, everything you could want in a vet. The staff is terrible. Not the entire staff of course, but the majority that we have encountered. I value what the SPCA does for animals, but once Abby's heartworm treatment is completed I will not be returning. Now I am concerned that I need to ask for a receipt before I leave the next time even though there is no bill for the treatment. Also she is now on a antibiotic for 10 days and I have to trust that when I take her in for her heartworm treatment on the 23rd that they will remember to give her, her antibiotic.

::End Rant::

Sorry that I had to put you all through that I just really needed to get that out of my system for a moment. In other news. The tiger eye lace scarf is moving along so well and growing quickly!