New 'Puter!

YAY!!!! My new computer is fired up and ready to go. Here she is:



It's an iMac and I absolutely LOVE IT. I had been using my DH's "hand me down" MAC since my PC died a year ago. I am definitely a MAC convert!! I can't believe how fast it runs and love its sleek design. No tower or bulky monitor(everything fits in the one & 1/3 inch thick monitor). DH says it's my Christmas/Birthday/Valentine's gift-hee! He also got me a purse which I also love (and helped to pick out).

Be sure to take notice of the clean desk space-it gets cluttered quick!


I wasn't the only one who received some Christmas gifts:


Here's Sophie with her Snowman "squeakers" and wearing her jingle bell collar (which we can only handle in short doses-but sure is cute).



She was especially excited about her candy cane shaped bone!

I have actually started knitting again while catching up on some movies. I'll post more about the knitting in my next entry.

Have a Happy and Safe New Year!

The Urge to Purge

Yes....I'm feeling it...the urge to purge....

Every year at this time I get the "itch" to toss all the "excess" in the house. Old magazines, frozen food I know we won't eat, cabinet food I know we won't make, spices that are over a year old, old clothes, towels, etc-you get the picture. Plus get rid of the Christmas cookies-I can't even stand the smell of them at this point. This year, I'm feeling something new. I want all my dishes to match! It's bugging the crap out of me that I have three + different styles of plates, bowls, etc. When DH and I got married and moved into the house 1 1/2 years ago he brought his dishware, I brought mine and my Mom gave me a set of her Corelle that she grew tired of. I really like the pattern of the Corelle so I'm wanting to add to it. Which means getting rid (donating) the other stuff.

Anyone else feeling this way?

Christmas at the beach was hectic and I'm glad to be back home. Told Mom next year we're ordering "Pizz@ Hut" for Christmas eve dinner and just doing a big dinner on Christmas Day. Its just too much work when we're only there for a few days to have 2 days of major meals to cook and clean up after. She was all for that.

Here's a pic of all the knitting I did in the last week:













Yup...That's right..nada! I just didn't have the energy. But I have been reading Knitting Rules and loving it! I bought it last summer and couldn't get in to it then and picked it back up a few days ago and don't want to put it down.

In other knitting related news, nearly everyone I know has a set of these, and I didn't want to be left out, so I ordered a set. I also recently bought a set of Denise's from Michelle so I'll get to decide which ones I like better.
Dueling interchangable needles!
I finally decided it was time to get a ball winder and swift.

After browsing @m@zon, I ended up ordering The Friday Night Knitting Club and The Northampton Wools Knitting Book: The Shop Patterns (mainly because it was so cheap-$4.99!) along with a few other non-knitting related titles.

I think I'll be set in the "knitting" department for awhile!!

Well, time to get back to "work." I need to clean off my desk for my new computer (Christmas gift from DH) should be coming today-YAY!!! Plus back up all my files and save all my links and email addresses. Also on my "To Do" list is to make some killer spaghetti sauce and then relax with some knitting tonight.

I'm a Weirdo!

Janna tagged me for a meme a few days back..so here it goes:

“THE RULES: Each player of this game starts with the '6 weird things about you.' People who get tagged need to write a blog of their own 6 weird things as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose 6 people to be tagged and list their names. Don't forget to leave a comment that says ‘you are tagged’ in their comments and tell them to read your blog.”

1. When DH (or myself) put the trash out to be picked up. It HAS to be in a container. I get grossed out at the thought of just our bags sitting out there. It makes me feel exposed or something.

2. I hate shopping when its busy so I will often go when the stores first open.

3. I'm a "morning person" and will even get up early on the weekends/vacations. This fits in well with getting to stores early. H.E.B. and W@lmart are great before 9 a.m.

4. I get annoyed when DH leaves cabinets or drawers open in the kitchen or bathroom (I, of course NEVER (snicker snicker) do this).

5. I tend to park in the same spot at work and usually in the same row everytime I go to the store or mall. I always remember where I park that way. I also like sitting at the same table when I go out to eat.

6. I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE sliced ham. I'd marry it if I could. I don't even bother with the bread and can just eat by the slice.

7. When I go on trips I always take my own pillow with me. I can't stand to sleep on a pillow that's had someone else's head on it.

Oh wait...there was only suppose to be six.



I’m going to tag Mary (who'd I'd also LOVE to get her meatball recipe), Eileen, Amanda, Michelle, Erin, and Time's Person of the Year.

McCookiePants

Here are a few of my "Finished Objects" for the day:



Cookies!!

In addition to shopping for all of the ingredients, I made a batch of Peanut Blossoms, Reese's Peanut Butter Cookies, Pretzel Cookies (mini pretzel with peanut butter and caramel dabbed on it then covered in a chocolate coating), and Cut Out cookies. I realized I had a "fish" cookie cutter and figured what better shape to take to the beach: fish-shaped cookies, along with some traditional seasonal shapes!

I also made three batches of Chex mix (not pictured).

I did cheat and buy the premade tube of peanut butter cookie dough for the Blossoms and Reese's cookies. Hey- today was my day to bake so I needed to make adjustments in order to get everything done.

I also "cheated" and bought 2 packs of these for the cut-out cookies:



These were great to work with. I had deleted the cut-out cookies from my list to make until I saw these in the store.

I plan on decorating the rest of the sugar cookies tomorrow (I just did a few for the photo) and make caramel corn on Friday.

I even got a few gifts ordered for DH (yes I was a procrastinator and they'll be late). Tomorrow is my "Shopping Day" to pick up a few more things for him and hopefully find some time to knit!

I've also been tagged by Janna for a meme so I'll try to get that up tomorrow as well.

Now that the kitchen is finally cleaned up-I'm ready to kick back and relax for the rest of the evening!

It's Almost Here!!!!

Yes!!!

I'm finally over my "Holiday Funk" and ready to embrace the rest of the holiday season.

Listen very carefully at 3:45 p.m. If you hear squeals of delight and joy. That will be me!!!! I am officially on vacation 3:45 CST-Tuesday, December 19th. I don't have to go back to work until January 2nd.

Woo hoo!!!!

I am looking forward to the hustle and bustle of the next few days before we leave for the beach. I have goodies to make, presents to buy, and yarn to knit.

Have a good day everyone!!!!!

Bah Humbug!

Anyone else think its funny in a Beavis Butthead/South Park kind of way that I accidentally typed "Bah Humbung" before correcting it? Oh, ok..I guess its just me!

Warning! Sappy, pity post ahead.

Back to the task at hand. Bah Humbug! Maybe that's too harsh...and should just be shortened to Bah!

It's not that I hate the holidays but am bummed as to what they have become for me (cue the violins). Especially when I reflect on what they used to be compared to what they are now.

Christmas Past
1. Chopping down our own Christmas tree from the many that grow near our family cabin or home. And then decorating it with ornaments that each had a special story connected to them.

2. Smells of the hundreds of kinds of cookies my Mom used to bake ahead of time. She'd get so mad when she'd go to our freezer in the basement only to find out that many of the cookies she had made and frozen for "special occasions" had been "sampled" by the other 5 people living in the house. Leaving her sometimes with only crumbs at the bottom of the container.

3. Ice skating

4. Going to church Christmas eve in our small town (population 1200) and squeezing everyone in the pews. Seeing all the college kids home for the holidays and the communal singing of carols by the candlelight of the church and the snow softly falling outside.

5. The magic of Christmas morning with the squeals of delight at the opening of packages.

6. Visiting with cousins over for the "big meal" and doing crazy things like having an olive eating contest (to this day I can't eat black olives due to a "Let See Who Can Eat the Most Black Olives contest") or offering to do dishes so we could drink the left over bits of wine in glasses. Good times!!!

7. The Christmas night parties. Our family hosted several parties Christmas night where friends came over to play games and sing crazy made-up lyrics to holiday songs.

8. Meeting up with friends at the local ski lodge on our days off from school.

That seems so long ago. And I guess it was...over 20 years ago...

Now...
1. Christmas is spent in S. Padre with friends and family. Which has been fun in its own way..but not the same.
2. Christmas decorations are hit/miss for me. This year its been a "miss." I just have a few things up.
3. The tree is fake....and small...After buying a real one down here that came with a free "gecko" and other insects, I just stick to the artificial ones.
4. The cookies, no matter how many times I make them..just don't taste the same as Mom's.
5. I'm driving with the AC on listening to Christmas music on the radio.
6. I do enjoy looking at the all lights and is one of my favorite things to do.
7. Sometimes killing myself (or my bank account) trying to find the perfect gift, recipe, etc to bring back the magic.)
8. I still get choked up seeing those I presume are going through chemotherapy (lack of hair) while remembering my December two years ago spending every Friday in December taking my Mom to chemotherapy and remembering how tough that Chrismas was for us..and thinking whats ahead for the person undergoing chemo now.

I'll be glad when New Years rolls around.

Weekend Recap

Hey There!
Whew! What a weekend! I've been in "list" mode lately, so why should it change for this-right?

1. Saturday I went with a friend and saw The Holiday and found it to be a cute romantic comedy type of movie. Very predictable but was a nice way to spend the afternoon.


2. I did some shopping Saturday afternoon and goodness gracious everyone and their brother was out shopping!


3. Attended my local SnB Gift Exchange party Saturday evening and tasted lots of yummy food, visited with some great people and received some really neat things from my Secret Santa-Thanks Claudine(blogless)! I see myself knitting socks in the near future! I wonder if I'll ever get back to the fish.



4. On Sunday I participated in a Kool-Aid dyeing class at my LYS and had a blast! I had a tendency to want to keep messing with the colors until my "classmates" ordered me to "Step away from the yarn!"-Hee!!! I originally thought my first try looked like "crap yarn" but the colors started to grow on me after awhile. The second attempt was the shades of red/pink yarn. I really had a good time and can hardly wait to try it again on my own!! I'll post pics of what I end up knitting with the yarn in the future.

The yarn "Before" shot:


Melanie-Yarnivore owner(in the middle), along with two of my dyeing classmates


Here's my newly dyed yarn:



5. From kool-aid dyeing I ended my weekend with my weekly "fix" of all things good: knitting, coffee, and knitting friends! The best part of SnB was seeing Kim A. back in town with her new bundle of joy. He was such a cutie!!

6. Monday morning came too quick!!

Made With Love

Today I felt the itch to cook. I guess it had something to do with the cooler weather that made me long for some comfort foods and try some new recipes in the process. Of course DH was thrilled with some "home cooking."

First up were Melt-in-Your Mouth Pecan Rolls. This was a new recipe I thought I might want to make for the upcoming holidays. They were yummy!!!


For dinner, I decided to go with meatloaf, mashed potatoes and bacon wrapped asparagus bundles. Everyone has their favorite version of meatloaf and this one is mine. It's the Ann Lander's recipe for meatloaf . It was published in the paper several years back and after trying it, I've come back to it again and again. The other new recipe I tried today was for the Bacon/Asparagus Bundles. These were incredible! I'm glad I followed the suggestions to partially cook the bacon before wrapping the bundles. I would add more asparagus per bundle than what I did. They did make for such a pretty presentation (fast and easy too!!) and plan on making them for Christmas dinner.


Finally, I continued working on my scarf for my brother's Christmas present. I started my second yarn ball and will probably need three before it's the length I'm looking for. It is knitting up fast and I highly recommended it for a quick project. Here are the details:

Project: Men's Cashmere Scarf
Book: Last Minute Knitted Gifts
Yarn: Lion Brand Cashmere Blend-Charcoal color
Needles: US 11 (I'm finally able to use my Bella Blue handpainted leopard print needles.)


Have a good week!