Day 12: Happy Easter!

It's not about eggs, candy or bunnies.  It's about a God who is not dead, but who is ALIVE!

Luke 24: 1-10

Day 10 & 11: I majored in Communications

Blogger ate yesterday's post and instead of reposting, I'm just moving on.

I went to school to be a filmmaker.  I made lots of short films in college which may creep up here soon if I can get them transferred. :)

Today, I broke out the point and shoot camera, through some footage in iMovie and made this:

Not too shabby for 10 minutes of work.  It was fun to make too, especially the credits.  I love fonts and typography.  More to come soon. :)

Day 9: Smells fruity

A few weekend ago, I got together with a few of my knitting friends to dye some yarn with kool-aid! It was a lot of fun!

We used the directions found here and had some interesting results.

I was aiming for pink and purple, but got red and purple. Plus a lovely yellow yarn I have no idea what to do with.

Day 8: Lots of working

Is keeping me from blogging, but tomorrow there will be photos.  Promise.

Day 7: Sad

Tonight was my dear Wendy's last night with the NYGK ladies. In an effort to not have to say goodbye, I invited her to dinner on Thursday -- she leaves on Friday.

I'm bummed and sad.

:(

But also very happy and excited for all her new opportunities...

Day 6: Potato Chip Scarf

Totally cute scarf! I'm just finishing one in Moonlight Mohair (which was only $1.99/ball at my Michaels) for a charity auction my boss is collecting donations for.

But the MATH!!!

90 sts to start, then you double them, to 180!! Then double that to 360!! The double that to 720!!

No wonder it's taking me three days to bind off. :)

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An aside: We're getting a cold front and it's beautiful outside!

Day 5: Blogshare

http://neverpayretailagain.blogspot.com/

This blog has TONS of sale info, coupons and tips to save money on almost everything. It's a great add to your bloglines or google reader. Just keep in mind that you may end up shopping for great deals you may not have been shopping for if you didn't know about them. :)

Day 4: My house smells like garlic

Restaurant Style Spinach-Artichoke Dip

4 cloves garlic
1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 (10 ounce) container Alfredo-style pasta sauce
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Place garlic in a small baking dish. Bake in the preheated oven 20 to 30 minutes, until soft. Remove from heat. When cool enough to touch, squeeze softened garlic from skins.
In an 8x8 inch baking dish, spread the roasted garlic, spinach, artichoke hearts, Alfredo-style pasta sauce, mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese and cream cheese.
Cover and bake in the preheated oven 30 minutes, or until cheeses are melted and bubbly. Serve warm.

Make a lot -- there will be none left. :)

Day 3: Where I Write About My Hair

I'm getting my hair cut in the next few days and while that may not seem like a big deal, I'm very excited about it. My hair has grown to a reasonable length for short hair and I'm happy to have more options.

I'm considering "inverted bob", but need to do some googling to make sure I have my terms right.

Day 2: Happy

I spent today with my dear friend Wendy at Universal Orlando. I was one of the lucky few who won tickets from the Super Bowl and Wendy is moving next week so we had a girl day.

We had an amazing time!

The lines were short and pleasant. The weather was decent. The company was stellar.

I rode Dueling Dragons, The Mummy and The Hulk in the front row! We brought clothes to change into and went on all the water rides - twice!

It was great and now I'm sleepy.

Day 1: Ease in gently

With a short discussion.

I have over 100 squares of my blanket done.  

Around square 60 I got a better idea of how I could have arranged the colors, but continued with my current plan 'cause both wouldn't work together.  

To my knowledge, no one else has tried my idea.  

I get lots of compliments for how I'm arranging things now, but let me tell you, the new way -- wow! :)

So a few days ago, I said out loud to my dear Wendy that maybe I'd just rip it all out and start over.  Or abandon what I have and start over.

I don't know where these crazy ideas come from, nor have I done them, but I feel like I can't be happy with my already crackalackin' blanket if I continue....

3.5 lbs!!

I'm freaking out guys!  

I was looking for some yarn to finish a stripe -- again! not the greatest guesstimating skills. :)  I wrote to a few Ravelers who had it in their stash

es and kept my fingers crossed.  

One friend wrote back that she not only had the yarn I need, but "some other scraps" she could get together.  Those "other scraps" amounted to 3.5 lbs!!!! of partial skeins and scraps.  Wendy did the math on how many ounces that is, but all I know is that it was one HUGE number.

My blanket passed out when it saw the bag.  I'm surprised I didn't too. :)

Too busy

I've been neglectful with the blogging, which I think is an inevitable part of blogging.  I've been busy with work, missionarying, fundraising, knitting, etc, etc.  

This morning I was mulling over how to get out of my rut and back in the swing of bloggy things -- and I decided to NaPoBloMo April.  I may even start now to flex my blogging muscles, but my main goal is April.  30 days.

In the meantime, Emily enjoys cupcakes:

30 Years!

Happy Birthday to the most amazing husband, daddy, guitar player, scorpion killer, Mario Kart-er, man of God and friend I have ever known. I can't wait to see the amazing things your next 30 years will bring. :)

Love, Megan

Boogers

I haven't posted in 2 weeks! Ick! My sincerest apologies, I've just been working a lot.

My teaching position has turned out to be a whole lot more. In addition to my two knitting classes and a knitting group I'm hosting at the center, I've taken on a lot of administrative work for the center.

It's very rewarding to support such a great place. I love to see the kids and adults who come in for classes. I love the comfortable and positive environment. I love the creativity.

I'll just have to manage my time better so that I don't ditch you all for 2 weeks again. :)

It's Just Like the Oscars!!

I've been nominated, twice!, for a KreativeBlogger Award!!!



I'm so flattered!! Thanks Harriet & Nicole!!

As a new nominee, you are encouraged to:

1. Copy the award to your site.
2. Link to the person from whom you received the award.
3. Nominate 5 other bloggers.
4. Link to those on your blog.
5. Leave a message on the blogs you nominated.

Here are my nominations, in no particular order:

1. Adrienne -- quite possibly the craftiness lady I have the privilege of knowing.
2. Becky -- who will one day figure out how to knit and run at the same time. :)
3. Ann-Marie -- who is so creative she hosts craft nights!
3. Guinifer -- sock-knitter extraordinaire!
4. Alyson -- whose creativity has spilled over onto her husband!



Um, and that right there, is 85 squares of fabulosity!

I've Been Cheating

I don't know if you've noticed, but there have been quite a few projects making their way through my progress bar badge. Some have only been up for a day, others a few days -- shhh, don't tell, but I've been cheating on my blanket.

It started innocently enough with a gift for a friend. She'd had some things happen to her and she was far away and I wanted to hug her. So I knit her a hug. More specifically a Cashmere Neckwarmer Kim K. But that little baby was on and off the needles and posted so quickly I don't have any photos. Should some turn up, I'll post them. I will say this, the pattern is quick and makes a lovely warmer. :)

Next up was a Slouchy Star-Crossed Beret by Natalie Larson for another far away friend. I did manage to grab a few photos of this one, but all self-portraits so forgive their somewhat crumminess.





Knit out of some buttery soft, wonderful, amazing Malabrigo. Swoon.

Next up, I remembered that my favorite Star Wars fan is having a baby. And we're attending the baby shower this weekend. So what better gifts than a Baby Yoda Sweater by Cari Luna and matching Yoda Hat by Sunshyne Leland?



The hat is finished and needs only the glue application to the ears. It felted beautifully and to just the right size. I used the recommended Patons Merino in Leaf Green.



The sweater is finished being knitted, but the seaming is taking some time. I've never had to seam a sweater and want very much for this to be perfect, so I'm trying to be meticulous. I used Cotton-Ease so it'll be super washable for the mom- and dad-to-be.

Last night I picked up my Scraps Blanket for the first time in almost two weeks and fell immediately back in love with it. I pulled out my yarns that have yet to be knitted and dreamed about how each square will look. I think our "break" might be coming to an end.

Happy Valentine's Day, here's some Soap!

In an effort to not burden any of her classmates with another pencil or piece of candy, last weekend Alison and I made Valentine's Soaps. Very easy and kindergarten-helper-friendly -- you use the microwave.

Let me be clear, you're not actually making soap per se, more like reforming soap. :) Here's the deets:

What you need:



Bar of clear glycerin melt & pour soap
Food coloring
Mold (we used a Wilton lollipop cookie sheet)
Soap glitter
Soap fragrance

What you do:

Melt the soap in the microwave per packaging instructions.
Mix in glitter, fragrance and food color.
Pour in mold, let cool for 20-30 minutes.



Bingo-bango!

RECIPE: Amazing, Easy, Crock-Pot Chili

Perfect for a frosty day, which it isn't today, but it was when I went grocery shopping.

INGREDIENTS:



2lbs ground beef
2 packets McCormick's Original Chili seasoning (I usually do one regular, one low sodium -- they also have a hot and a mild)
2-15oz cans beans (I use one light red and one dark red kidney beans, we've also tried black beans)
1-15oz can petite diced tomatoes
1-12oz can Rotel diced tomatoes & green chilis

Brown beef. Drain.
Empty all cans and seasoning packets into Crock Pot.
Add beef to Crock Pot.
Stir.
Cook on low as long as you want -- sometime I'll cook it all day, but you can go as short as one hour.
Serve with cornbread, sour cream, diced tomatoes, shredded cheddar, etc.

Yum!

The Emperor of Ice-Cream by Wallace Stevens

Call the roller of big cigars,
The muscular one, and bid him whip
In kitchen cups concupiscent curds.
Let the wenches dawdle in such dress
As they are used to wear, and let the boys
Bring flowers in last month's newspapers.
Let be be finale of seem.
The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream.

Take from the dresser of deal,
Lacking the three glass knobs, that sheet
On which she embroidered fantails once
And spread it so as to cover her face.
If her horny feet protrude, they come
To show how cold she is, and dumb.
Let the lamp affix its beam.
The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream.