A New Computer And I still Can't Hit The Right Keys Or Spell

    I bought a new laptop last weekend. It's pretty nice and I'm positive it's more computer than I need. Tim has inherited my old 6 year old one. Do you remember the old days when you actually got a paper owners manual? I miss those days. I haven't even found an owners manual for this computer on the computer. I guess since it's 2012, everyone figures you should know what you're doing by now. Guess again. I guess I just have to waste more time on it trying to figure it out. Maybe, Adobe Digital Editions will work on this computer. Maybe, a newer program didn't like an older computer.
   I've started playing Words With Friends with Daniel, Alyssa and Daniel's girlfriend Amy. Except for Amy, Alyssa was right when she said we really suck at playing Scrabble. I think it would really help if we got some vowels. And a brain.
   The birds are busy making nests, so I guess spring is on it's way, even if we are suppose to get more snow and a lot more rain. Once again, it's not bluebirds building their nest in the bluebird house. Oh well, as long as some bird uses it, it's OK.
   On our trip into town for our Walmart tip, we passed the Big R Farm and Ranch store and noticed they had some fruit trees, so of course, we just had to stop. We bought 2 peach trees, 2 apricot trees, 2 pear trees and 1 apple tree. no partridge, though. We would have bought another apple tree, but they didn't have Honeycrisps in yet. We also bought more ruhbarb to replace ours that didn'tt survive the soggy spring last year.
    Then, we went in to pay for the trees and started looking around. Big mistake, and yes, it was my mistake, but Tim said I could. Seems along with spring comes chicks. There were these really neat looking White Crested Black Polish chicks. Well, I talked Tim into getting a couple. He said as long as I was getting chicks, get some layers, so I got 4 Golden Comet chicks. I hope they're not all roosters, since they were all sold as straight run. The girl who helped with the chicks said the Golden Comets were females. Who knows about the White Crested.
   Now, this wouldn't have been so bad, but we have no chicken coop. Tim was planning on making one this year, now he just gets to build one sooner. Right now, since they are tiny chicks, they are in a box with a heat lamp heating it up on the dryer. (Do you think this will get me out of folding towels?) By next weekend, they will need a bigger box. I know for a fact, they will lay more eggs than we will use. Maybe, I can sell some or give some to a food bank if there is one out here that takes fresh eggs. When we lived in CA and I had all my ducks, I gave the local food bank my surplus duck eggs. I guess it's a good thing all the goslings were in last week, because I miss having geese. The ducklings will be in in a couple of weeks. I miss them, too.
   A long time ago, when I got my first goat, we didn't have a place for him, either. We seem to do things backwards. I noticed yesterday that the people behind us have had a lot of kids born. They were having such a good time playing on their big cable spool. I miss goats, too. I'll just watch the neighbors goats since it's cheaper if I just watch them.
   I guess I'll get up and do the dishes and then see if I can come up with some words playing scrabble. It's a rough life I lead. Oh!! The ice is pretty much melted, so I can start going outside again as long as I don't sink in the mud.

Winter Finally Came

   Yes, winter finally made it. It has snowed off and on since Saturday and we have about 13 inches of snow with last nights snow added to it. I know, 13 inches isn't really all that much, but it's the most we've had on the ground at one time this winter. We had a low of 7 yesterday morning which is the coldest we've been this winter, as well.
   With the snow, comes less mud right now. We still have all that mud under the snow, but it's frozen for most of the day. It's so muddy here, it's not even funny. Twice the traffic up the driveway has made a much, much bigger mess. All the rain hasn't helped, either, and all this snow when it melts won't help matters any. I was going to go out and take mud pictures, but it seems to be under snow right now. I know, you've all seen mud before, but you haven't seen our driveway muddy.
   We all seem to be over what ever ailment we had, except Tim and I still have the cough that won't go away. Daniel didn't get it as bad as Tim and I and so far, Amy and Michaela haven't managed to get it. Tim told me last night that round 2 is going around work now. I hope it just passes us right on by. I've had my yearly bout of who knows what.
   I'm not moving very fast on all my projects. I did decide I'm leaving the top of the heads open for stuffing future Dammit Dolls and then just sew them up with the sewing machine. I'm hand sewing the openings together on the dolls I have now. I did consider resewing the dolls and unstitching the top of the heads, but I sewed them really well and I figure it's more trouble than it's worth. I'm suppose to make a box full and send them to Daniel and Amy since Amy has friends who would like one.
   My fingers are in an almost healed phase right now, so I will eventually start crocheting the Roly Polies for them, too.
   I'm waiting for the weather to warm up to wash all the llama hair, but am thinking about washing it now anyway. I even thought about sending it off to be commercially processed, but have no idea of where to send it these days. It's cheaper if I do it myself, anyway and I do have the time to do it, just not the place to scatter it around to dry.
   I'm thinking about getting a new laptop, but have no idea what is a good, yet inexpensive kind. I was considering a tablet and I had decided on the Samsung Galaxy Tab 32gb 10.1, but I was told I'd have a monthly bill for the wifi and I don't want that. I already have wifi and I don't want to pay for it twice. I think I really need to go and talk to someone who knows more about laptops and tablets than I do, which is just about anyone.
   I am very annoyed with Adobe Digital Editions. One reason I bought the Nook Color last year was because I could download library books onto it. I have only been able to twice. That is the worst program. Now, if I could just figure out how to unregister form ADE and start over again, it would be nice. I have uninstalled the program and done everything else the "helpful" hints say to do, but no luck. I have managed to use the program before, so I know how it's done, but now it comes up with some error message on my computer, so I have uninstalled it again and am frustrated enough, I just might not use it again. Sometimes technology is a real pain in the ass.

You Know It's A Bad Sign When...

   You know it's a bad sign when you go to Walmart and as soon as you're in the store, there a many, many displays of cold and flu medicines. That's what we went to Walmart for, and so did every other sick person in Spokane and the surrounding areas. Let's all just spread more germs.
   When we made it to the cough and cold/flu isle, people were so rude and pushy. They just had to get in the way and grab their medicine, while I stood there and tried to figure out what exactly I could take. I chose my generic Vicks Vapo Rub, Vicks inhaler and 2 different kids of Coricidin medicine. One for coughs and one for no coughs. I stared and read many packages of cough drops and decided I'd just get lemon drops or peppermint candy.
   We got the dog food and and other dog stuff we needed so it was on to the grocery department. We bumped into those same sick, pushy rude people on the Kleenex isle, which was just about picked clean. I found a 3 pack of non lotion, non medicated Puffs and we were on our merry way.
   We bought cookies and bread because I sure don't feel like standing around making any, and the all important Hot Chocolate Mix and my Chocolate Nesquick. Nesquick will cure all that ails me and life will be good again.
   We paid for our few items that totaled $147 and were headed home when I remembered we didn't get the no cough pills, lemon drops or peppermint candy.
   We took the stuff we had home, because some of it needed to be refrigerated and then went to BiMart in Deer Park to spread our sick germs around and to collect someone else's sick germs at the same time. A quick stop at the fast foods drive up window for dinner, because I didn't feel like fixing dinner, and then we went home.
   I hate being sick. I know, no one likes being sick, so It's a good thing I only get sick once a year, but the cough seems to hang on forever. I hope this years latest virus passes you by, it's no fun.

From This, To This





We have finally had snow. It comes and it goes, but at least it's snow. It was snowing really hard in this picture.

After the heavy snowfall, we had this. It was really pretty. We had about 10" of fine, powdery snow on top of a sheet of ice from the last snow then rain. The weather can't seem to make up it's mind. Hmm snow, rain, snow, I wonder what I'll do today?





Well, it's rained again and this is what our front yard looks like. A nice sheet of ice with standing water on it. Needless to say, I'm not supposed to go outside.

This is the backyard. You can still see the ruts where the UPS driver thought he'd drive. The ice is surrounding the house and id continues down the driveway. I'm sure the driveway is a real mess, but since I'm not going out until this weekend, I can only imagine from past winters. Our backyard slants some, but I kept tilting the camera for the backyard shot. I guess that happens as you hang out the door. We have more rain and snow in the forecast this week. I really feel sorry for poor Jake. He hates icky feet and there is just no way for him to avoid all this mess.



Oh, The Joys Of Homeownership

   Yesterday, we had a plumbing problem and I hope not to have it again. Backed up sewage in the walk in shower. Yuck!!! Our septic tank is either full, or it's just not draining because the ground happens to frozen rock hard. It's much cheaper if the ground is frozen than if the tank is full because it will cost $300.00 to get it pumped.
   We have had rain, snow and frozen rain lately. The yard is a slippery mess. I think it's a good thing I can't go out now.
   The bears still don't have any clothes and I haven't started the others yet. I have been busy but have nothing to show for it. I did make a cute elephant I named Nelli Funt. Now, I need to make a lot more to send to Daniel to try and sell. Other critters besides Nelli Funt.

   Michaela has new toys. Small cans of Mighty Dog dog food. I have them stacked in the pantry, all 5 of them, and she likes to take them and put them in a line by the front door. Once they are all there, she carries them all back to the pantry and leaves them in front of the door. See, she didn't need toys bought for her. She also likes hot pads, egg separators and measuring spoons an cups. Oven mitts are also good.
   If it wasn't for the antics of a 13 month old, it would be really dull around here.

"Our Bears Need Clothes" Said The Grand Kids

   Well, I'm not done with bears after all. Besides making 3 19" bears for Amy, Alyssa and I, I have been informed the bears I made for the grand kids for Christmas need clothes. Ashlynn is going to ask her dad if he needs a bear, too. I don't know if the 19" bears will have clothes. I think they will probably end up with some clothes since kids will think they need some.
   Anyway, Micheal was very specific about the clothes his bear needs. A striped shirt and red and white shorts. I ask him if I could just make them any color and he told me that he really wants a striped shirt. I guess any color will do as long as it has stripes. He's still thinking of a name for his bear.
   Alix named his bear Arm Pit Bear. Don't ask me why. Probably because he's 4 almost 5. His bear needs shoes and socks.
   Ashlynn named her bear Purple bear because it's purple and it's a girl bear, so it needs girl clothes. Ashlynn also told me I made Nathan's bear a sad mouth and hers a straight face. At least all the bears were a success.
   I'm also going to make some little roly polie ball critters to send to Daniel to sell since he says he could. They are quick and easy to make. If he can sell them it will be nice. I have always planned to make things and try to sell them, but gifty type crafts take over.
   I have been cutting up jeans for the denim quilts, but that's hard on my thumb. I have only started cutting the jeans apart and not into squares. I did decide on 6" squares. My projects keep on coming.
   Seed catalogs are starting to come in, so Tim and I have been drooling over them. Our snow is still no where to be seen. If we don't get any, it's going to be a terrible wildfire year.

Happy New Year!!



    Well, the year is about over, and I'm waiting up to see the New Year in. Since I'm a wild, party person, I'm watching movies on Netflix.

   Today, Tim and I finally made it to Wolf Lodge Bay to see the Bald Eagles that come by the hundreds to eat the dying salmon after they spawn. Wolf  Lodge Bay is on Lake Coeur d'Alene in Idaho. I was even able to get a few pictures of the eagles. Unfortunately, I couldn't really get any of them as they were flying. We have 2-3 months yet to see them, so maybe I'll be able to get in flight pictures. I got a new camera and was having some trouble finding the eagles. I'd point the camera where they were, but I couldn't see them in the screen. New cameras mean more pictures to get more practice. I did manage to get some fairly decent photos of cooperative eagles just sitting in trees. Anyway, here are some of the pictures I took.

 

 



I was busy this month doing crafty things. Below is a picture of the rabbit I made for Michaela's 1st birthday.



Michaela's birthday rabbit





These are the bears I made for Christmas for our 5 grandchildren. At one time, I had thought about making them and selling them, but they were more work than I want to do to make and sell. The bears come with different outfits, so the grand kids will let me know what their bears want to wear.

                                               



I think I will start a denim patchwork quilt next with the stack of old jeans I have collected. I have no idea what size I will make it. The thought even crossed my mind to make several that are child size and embroider things on the squares and give them to the grand kids. I thought about making a large quilt and still embroider things on it. I guess it all depends on how many squares I can get out of the jeans.

Not that I really make New Years resolutions, but if I was going to make some they would be the usual loose weight, exercise more and fold the towels when they come out of the dryer instead of just taking a towel out of the basket when I need one. Oh, and the really big resolution would be to cut waaay back on the sugar.

I hope everyone has a Happy New Year.

The Things I Get Myself Into

   Well, Christmas is getting closer and I'm still cutting out bear pieces and crocheting Michaela's bunny for her birthday. I had to take a break from it all yesterday, so I'll be extra busy today.
   Little did I know when I decided to make these bears x 5, I would be cutting out 125 pieces. I just thought, without reading the directions of course, that 11 pattern pieces isn't bad. Everything is cut 2 except for the muzzle and nose, which is just cut one, because who wants a bear with 2 muzzles and noses. The ears are cut 4.
    Anyway, I have one more bear to cut out. The first bear took the longest because I am making it striped and I had to cut it to line up the stripes. Three bears are made from dresses that no longer fit, and I wish I could honestly say they shrunk while in storage or they are now too big, but I can't.
   I see on my weather thing on my blog it's 17 with a real feel of 2. Yeah, it's cold outside. The freezing fog doesn't help matters any, either. I have to be mean and really force Jake out in the mornings. The cold hurts his 3 toed foot. Poor dog. He's acting more and more like a grumpy old man. He's around 8 or 9 years old now, but sometimes he acts so much older until he sees something to chase, and then he's off like a shot and you can't catch him.
   Both Jake and Chip are banished to our room now when Michaela eats. They really know about babies in high chairs now, and Michaela thinks it's fun to throw food at the dogs.
   Poor Michaela is still confused about what she is. Baby or dog. Yesterday, she was walking around until she got to the laundry room, having a good old time hitting the metal folding chair we have there to sit on to take off our muddy shoes, when she decided to crawl over to the dogs' water. I heard a sharp intake of breath as she stuck her face the dish to get a drink. We were all in the kitchen, but she's a sneaking fast little critter. Now, Amy tells me that she gets on her knees and begs like their dog, Sadie. Just imagine what she would do if we had lizards or snakes.
   I'm about done with my morning glass of chocolate milk, so I'd better get busy. I'll be washing clothes for fun, too. Chances are, these bears will be finished in time for Christmas, but mailed too close to Christmas to get there in time. I'll just be known and the grandmother who sends late gifts. The kids will just have more days to open things this way.
   Well, my chocolate milk is gone, so, see ya later.

The Newest Fashion Accessory

    Well, here it is, my new fashion accessory. It's actually pretty comfortable and light weight. It only weighs 1 1/2 pounds. My back even feels better since it has a 3/4 inch lift in the the heal since my leg is that much shorter than the other. Teach me to break a leg in 4 places and then get arthritis, or arthoritis as the kids used to call it.

   I have started more projects, like I don't have enough started already. I am now making 5 teddy bears of different colors for the grand kids. It's taking me a lot longer to cut all the pieces out than I thought it would, but I really should have known better. Hopefully, the sewing part goes as fast as I think it will. I will have a regular bear assembly line going. They just get the bears now and I'll make the clothes for the bears later.

   Our weather has been pretty nice, even if a tad on the cold side. Our snow has come and gone. No snow in the forecast for at least this week.

   No one has started complaining about a brown Christmas yet. We thought it was funny when we moved up here in 2006. People were complaining about a brown Christmas. We just chuckled about that, because we moved up here from the Mojave desert and we really knew what a brown Christmas looked like. The grass was even green, so we thought it was a green Christmas.

   Christmas dinner is at my mother-in-laws house since I did Thanksgiving. Besides, if we do get snow, Tim won't have to go and get them and bring them here.

   The last week there has been some really loud explosions around here. The first on was the loudest and I thought it was some one's propane tank exploding, but it wasn't, and it was in the afternoon. Now, we hear them starting about 8:30PM for about an hour and a half. We have decided they are definitely artillery of some sort. Someone has a cannon and is firing it chasing away deer? Secret war games? Who knows, but we'd like to. We'd also like to know where they are coming from, since they sound fairly close.

   I hear bear parts calling my, so I guess I'd better get to them. Nothing like noisy bears that are in pieces.

Oops

   Have you ever had one of those days when you should just stay out of the kitchen? I should have the other night.    I thought I'd make some carrot bread. I doubled the recipe as usual. No problem there. I put everything except the carrots in my kitchen aid mixer bowl, raised the bowl up and heard a crack. I didn't see anything, so continued with the mixing. I added the carrots, mixed it all together and poured the batter in to two pans. First, things do cook much faster if you turn the oven on.
   I moved the mixer back to it's spot and found a small piece of white plastic that looks like nylon. It wasn't there when I started, so that must have been the crack. The mixer worked fine, so who knows.
   The bread baked, I took it out of the oven and turned the pans upside down to get the bread out. I did let them cool for a bit first. Most of the bottom of the first loaf stuck even though I used nonstick bread pans that I had sprayed with cooking spray just because.
   I went to pick up the loaf of bread and it was too hot and it really didn't want to be picked up, so my brilliant idea was to put another cooling rack over it and flip it over. I have done this many, many times before with no problem. Not so lucky this time. The bread slipped from between the racks, hit the edge of the kitchen island and broke. Most of the loaf landed on the floor. It's really a good thing I made two loaves. I figured I probably shouldn't do the 2 second rule, so it got tossed and then the dogs had a good snack of crumbs.
   I had Amy get the other loaf out. She did, with no problem. Amy did tell me I couldn't be perfect all the time.
   I then went on to make Tapioca pudding. I managed to burn it. The heat was on low, but it still burned. I even stood there and stirred it the whole time. I soaked and scrubbed and soaked and scrubbed the pan. It finally came clean. It's the first time I've ever done that. Such is life.
   All this is almost as bad as when I melted the plastic cutting board in the oven. I had used the cutting board, washed it and for some reason put it in the oven. Later, I fixed steaks in the broiler, wondering why the steaks smelled so funny. They tasted really odd, too. Seems the oven gets hot when the broiler is on. Duh!! Anyway, once the oven cooled down, the melted cutting board came off of the racks and the bottom of the oven with no problem.
   Unfortunately, these mishaps still don't get me out of cooking, so it's off to fix spaghetti I go. Hopefully, mishap free.