(There are pictures in this post, just scroll down)
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During the past few weeks, I knew Change was coming and boy has that happened.
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Work Change:   I work for an insurance company and they just reorganized the part of the business that I work for.  The department I worked for was disbanded and the team members were separated and put on new teams with other people.   I have a new boss or maybe two and was told they were glad to have me, but did not know what I would be doing exactly yet.  As I had surgery pending, their instructions were to leave, get better and then come back.  That leads to another change…

Health Change/Life Decisions.   I blogged several months about unfun female things and that I was possibly going to have a hysterectomy…..well that happened this past Monday. The change here is that I no longer have the choice to have children naturally.  That is not such a big deal to me as I never planned on having kids.  Having the choice taken away or that it is an ending of sorts is what saddens me.  I can also choose to look at it as a positive and that new doors are opening. 
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Actually, new doors are opening for work and in my personal life due to this change.  I am excited about the opportunity to do something different and work on a great team where there are several successful people who I can learn a lot from.
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One such positive is a friend that I know from ‘Blogland’ named Robin.  You can find Robin’s blog at For the Love of Fiber.  Robin sent the sweetest Get Well box and it had all kinds of things in there.  Robin has been making bunnies and ducks for Easter and I got my very own bunny.  How cool is that?!!!   Included in the box was one of Robin’s handmade soaps (lavender that includes patchouli and real pieces of lavender).  She has tvery nice little boxes that the soap goes in and the box is labeled to tell you what the soap is.  She even put in a ball of cotton yarn in there so I could do some mindless knitting like a dish cloth.  

 To see the pictures better, click the picture and it will become bigger.
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  What do you call a Bunch of Rabbits ?  
Besides CUTE?   notice the purple ribbon, LOL

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Now for the fun part….fiber!

I have several things that I am working on to share with you.  First off, I scored some really cool gadgets from Yarny Goodness.  The little sock bobbins are used to tie your sock tail on when you are knitting your sock.  You could also just put it on your keychain or on your rear view mirror.  The llama or alpaca (not sure which) is a WPI tool.

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At Haus of Yarn each month we host a Sock Knit Night and it is a LOT of fun.  We have new sock yarns to share and we work on a pattern as a group.  Working on the same pattern is not mandatory, but it is fun to work on the same pattern and see how different each and ever sock turns out.  This month, we will be beginning the Fiber Trends Raindrop Lace socks.  Using US size 2 needles and fingering weight, we will learn to knit (or brush up on your lace skills) socks, how to read a chart for knitting in the round and how to convert a pattern written for DPNS to knit socks on two circs.  Because I am the hostest with the mostest, I knit one sock so everyone can see what the finished sock looks like.  Mind you, I said I knit ONE sock, so the mate is an altogether different matter, LOL.

   Rio de la Plata handpainted yarn 
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This sock was so much fun, I decided to make another in a different color altogether just to how different they look.  This is the yarn I will be using for a different pair:

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Speaking of patterns and such, there is a shawl I haved wanted to make for a LONG time.  It is the Peacock Feather Shawl and can be found here:  Fiddlesticks Knitting
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You know how it is, you find the perfect pattern or perfect yarn, but not usually both at the same time.  Well, I broke down and ordered the pattern and now am on the hunt for the perfect Peacock yarn.  I ordered three hanks of yarn just for that purpose.  I cannot tell how close the yarn is on the computer to the color I am searching for, so it was easier to buy the yarn (yea, that was a real hardship, LOL)  and then decided in person which yarn is the winner.  Here are three candidates….which one do you think is the most Peacocky?

To hanks are from Ball and Skein and the other is from Miss Babs

   What is your vote?

On the agility front, I took Gracie and Jake to Harriman, Tennessee for a dog agility event this weekend.  I had it figured out to run all the way up to the last minute, compete and come in screeching sideways into the hospital for my surgery and said “Damn, that was fun” and that is exactly what I did!

  We had a great weekend and brought a few toys and ribbons home. 
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I have this remainder of this week and all of next week to recover…which means, eating, sleeping, walking, knitting, etc.  Unfortunately no spinning because I am not allowed to lift more than 10 pounds and my wheel weighs about 14#.  So, I plan on enjoying this new phase.

Ah oh, the UPS man just delivered….some shirts I ordered for work AND, most importantly, a big box from Jen at  Wool Girl.  I will share pics of that later!
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Have a great one!

Leah

I thought I was going to work on the gusset of my sock last night and make some progress.  When I picked all the stitches up and began to work the first round, I realized that I had worked the heel turn in normal fashion.  This means in normal stockinette…NOT in reverse stockinette.  I briefly went forward (about 10 STS) and thought I will have one sock with a Princess foot and one with a normal foot and I can wear them and decide which I like better.  I quickly kiboshed that idea and came to the sad realization that I needed to rip back. 
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Actually, before this little kink, I also discovered that I did not slip 3 STS before the heel flap to make the pattern more centered on top of the foot.   I had already decided that it would not be that big of a deal and I was NOT ripping the heel flap out.  I could not live with the unPrincess-like foot though, soooo I spent the evening ripping the heel turn out, reworking it and picking up the gusset STS again.   I now have my markers in place and a couple of decrease rounds made.

Last night, I found a free pattern that was listed in Threadbear’s weekly newsletter that I HAVE to make.  It is to die for!  It is one of those that when you see it, you immediately start inventorying (sp?) your stash and sorting through what would work and mentally shopping online at the same time!

Go see this beautiful Primavera sock!

Long time, no write…. Been busy and just managing to get things done when they need to be done, for the most part anyway.  Missy is really coming along with her agility training.  She is getting a little more comfortable with the teeter.  Weaves are an area we need work and I found last week that she really responds to the clicker so I am going to start using that more often with her.  She loves agility!  She jumped the wall from the crating area to get to the ring while I was working with another dog.  I did not think she could even do that!  I guess that shows how determined she is.   
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On the knitting front, I am on sock #2 of the Classic Elite Alpaca Sox in Harvest colorway.  I prefer brighter colors, but man are these socks nice.  They FEEL sooo good!  I can’t wait to wear them. I just turned the heel last night and plan on picking up and working on the gusset next.   
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Exciting news–Jackie E of Heartstrings fame will be coming to Haus of Yarn to teach a few classes.  Jackie is such a great designer….her patterns are very well though out, the pattern is balance on the foot of a sock and I just love knitting her designs.  I can’t wait to meet her…too cool! 
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 On the agility front, Jake and Gracie competed with me this past weekend in Decatur, Alabama.  Miss Gracie really made a showing this weekend!  She did not have to wait very long to run on Saturday and boy did it make a difference.  She went from waiting 5 to 6 hours to run in most trials to running soon after she arrived on Saturday.  In her Standard run, she placed first and ran 20 seconds under course time.  The second place dog was 10 seconds slower than her.  Way to go Gracie girl!   In addition to this, she Qd in Exc A Jumpers in third place and this was her third qualifying run so she got her AX title too.  Yah Gracie! 
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Jake was Mr. Dependable and Qd and got his third leg for his MX title.  He needs two more Qs to get his MXJ title.  Our next trial is in Harriman so we shall see… 
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 Stash Enrichment… I just received a really nice hank of yarn from Artsy Gal.  It is 100% superwash Merino and 475 yards.  It is hard to believe it is really 475 yards looking at it, but the yarn is pretty fine, so we shall see.  This is my first yarn acquisition from this artist.  I purchased roving the first go round and love it.

While knitting socks, I have often though about working the sole in reverse stockinette (i.e., purling) so the smooth or knitted side was against your foot and the purl or bumpy side was on the public side.  I am not sure why it took me so long to try it, but I did break down and do it.  I saw this done in one of Charlene Schurch’s Sensational Socks books and it is called a Princess foot.  I went to read about how she did it, but no directions or editorial was offered.   
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While knitting this sock, I used my Sweater Sock pattern and knit the cuff and heel flap as normal.  When I picked up stitches at the gusset, that was the last ‘usual’ thing I did.  The first round that I worked after picking up the gusset used Purls on the sole and Knits on the instep.  To decrease at the gusset which was also in the Purl Zone, I had to use Purl decreases instead of my usual K2TOG and SSKs.   I knew how to P2TOG, but was not quite sure how to do a purl version of the SSK.  I looked in my Knitter’s Handbook and used the SSP in place of the SSK.  I almost never have ladders when knitting normally, but found that you have to be very careful when you change needles near the Purl decreases.  I can see a little bit of daylight near my Purl decreases, but I would have to hold them up in the light and point it out to you and I am not going to do that (hehe).   
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The one thing that I did not think about until I was faced with a decision was grafting or kitchenering the toe when one half of the stitches were Purls and the other half Knits.  I got out some ‘play’ yarn,  some bigger needles, and simulated the sock by knitting one half of a round in K and the other half in P.  I got a different color yarn to kitchener with so I could see what it looked like.  To kitchener in this fashion, the P stitches were on the back needle and the K stitches were on the front needle.  To kitchener, you do so as normal, but instead of inserting your tapestry needle in the first ST on the back needle as if to P, you insert it as if to K just as you would on the front needle.  The graft looked fine, but there was a distinct ridge at the very end of the my sample that I just did not like.  So, on my ‘real’ sock, I decided on a game plan and went for it.  On the last round when on the P side, I knitted those STS instead of purling them—so I had all K STS to graft as normal.  I grafted and the sock looks fine with no definite ridges that were at the very end of the toe.  
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I am very happy with the sock as a general rule. When you put your hand in the sock, you immediately feel the difference with the knitted side being inside.  When you put your foot in it, I am not sure it is appreciated quite as much.  I think I will need to wear the sock(s) to get a better ‘feel’ for it and see what I think.  I think the K STS on the outside look much better though. 
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 Classic Elite Alpaca Sox  - Harvest colorway (click to see bigger pic)
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This yarn is 60% Alpaca and it is soft, soft soft.  It is a little hairy too….guess it is all those little Pacas doing that.  This yarn is very nice and yummy to work with.  I would like to make a pair of gloves or handwarmers with this yarn as they would be very warm and your hands would appreciate the softness as well.  I definitely recommend this yarn!

Know what this is?  
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Did you guess a sock designer modeling some of her designs?   Actually it is called:  My feet were cold and wanted wool socks, but no matching pairs were available because the mates are at the

What do you think of when you hear Valentine’s???  I think of chocolate, pink, flowers, Love and Happiness.   (remember to click the pictures to embiggen them)
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Chocolate

Chocolate was supposed to happen today, but it happened last week.  I got my Mom a Valentine’s heart with chocolate in it last week.  A week is WAY too long to be at my house without me ripping the top off and scarfing down every last piece….except the ones with gushy stuff in the middle. Ugh.  Actually, I think I made it a day….no, well, maybe a few hours once it got to the house.  Shhhh, don’t tell her.  Oh well, it’s a darned good thing I got her something else.  
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Pink

Gracie is four years old and a fierce agility competitor.  She also l-o-v-e-s to dress up.   
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Flowers

Hmm, well, I finished plying the Hibiscus last night.  That is a flower, right???  It’s pink in a lot of places too.  Well, I am one happy camper to have that done.   I have spinning on this off and on since September, 07.  I have been plying it a little at a time since the beginning of February.   It has soaked in water, been beat a little and is now hanging outdoors to dry.  There is approximately 950 yards of Hibiscus Merino/Tencel from Susan’s Spinning Bunny.  Average WPI is 28.  I ended up with a little bit extra on one bobbin and practiced Navajo plying with that and have about 20 yards of that.  I am guessing it is a little out of balance because the skein twists slightly at the bottom.
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Hibiscus   
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Love and Happiness

I love the yarn and am filled with happiness that the Hibiscus is done, so there!  LOL  Actually there is a lot that I have to be happy about and I know it and am very grateful for the things and ones that I love in my life.
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One thing I love is gadgets and organization.  I don’t have all the gadgets and there are lots of ways that I could organize, but haven’t.  Yet.  Someday.  Maybe.  Gives me something to work toward, I guess.

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People that spin (knit maybe too) may have one or both of these.  I love them both. 
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Both of these gadgets measure the WPI for your handspun yarns.  I like the clear one (on the right) that you placed over your yarn and it gives you a clear picture as to what the WPI is.  The other (on the left) is used by wrapping your yarn around and around it and counting the number of times the yarn wrapped to get your WPI.  The cool thing about this one is that it comes with a chart telling you the weight wool, suggested needle size, etc.  You can find information like that out there, but not all in once place.  I love that little chart.  Using that little chart, I see that my Hibiscus is a heavy laceweight at 28 WPI.  Fingering weight is 19 to 22 WPI. 

Another thing that I love is my home and being there.  Missy agrees.

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Happy VD everybody!

Through experience, I have learned that Time is something that really is tangible…..It is something that you cannot get back once it is spent.  Time is sometimes something wish away, e.g., I wish it were Friday.  After living through a life changing event, you realize that Time is one of the things that you (hopefully) have and should be spent wisely when at all possible. 
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I thought about this when I took little Lacey’s picture this past Sunday.  I used to take my dogs to a very good groomer on a regular basis.  I used to spend approximately two hours in driving back and forth.  On top of that, my dogs sat in crates all day waiting to be groomed or for me to pick them up.  Sometimes they did get to participate in day camp, but not always.  Now, I have found a much better alternative….a Mobile Groomer.  The groomer comes to my house (on Sunday of all days) and grooms all of my dogs.  She has this really cool little trailer that has her company name painted on the side.  Her trailer is self contained and has everything you need to groom a dog (and maybe a cat?).  She is here about three or four hours and each dog is only in the grooming trailer for a short time rather than at least half a day.  The one really great benefit to this besides saving time and being easier on my dogs is the health benefit.  I don’t have to worry about my dogs getting kennel cough or any other thing like that.  Do you wonder about price?  Actually, it is just a tad bit less expensive than the groomer I used to use.  Quality?  This groomer is every bit as good as the groomers that I used to use too.  Win/Win Situation for me-two hours, my dogs-no sitting in a crate and possibly getting the crud and the new groomer has someone to give her lots of business! Back to Lacey….
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 She looked so cute after being groomed that I had to take her picture.  Can you believe she will be 14 on June 1^st this year???  It is so hard for me to believe.  Lacey came to me in 2000 and she was six years old and so feisty.  She ran around and played and had the best time.  Prior to her coming to live with me, Lacey had four different homes and I am not sure of her whole history.  I lived in Pittsburgh at the time and flew to Dallas to rescue her.  My first time to fly with a dog.  She and I have lived through a lot since then.  She doesn’t hear so well now and her spine is feeling kind of bony now.  It makes me sad to see her aging.  When I got home yesterday, I could not find her so I looked and found her under my bed curled up.  I felt her, dreading that I would she really was not asleep, but she was warm and just sound asleep.  Whew….  I love this little girl!
  Lacey - almost 14 years old and weighs 3.8 lbs
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I guess besides Time, this post is really about dogs, not much about knitting or spinning.  I will say that I am ALMOST through plying the Hibiscus.  Gasp.  I have been calling this the commitment fiber because it has become a real commitment that I have stuck with.  I measured the WPI and it is approximately 28 WPI with it being 24 WPI in a few places.  I am anxious to see what the yardage is.  I am thinking I will have enough to make a real, full sized shawl.  In case you are wondering, that is an 8 oz bobbin….Yes, lotsa yardage!
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I have a magazine that I really love and want to share it with you.  It is called Animal Wellness.  This magazine’s slogan is “for a long, healthy life” and “living pawsitive.”  This periodical is stuffed full of articles and information on healthy alternatives for your dog (cat and horse too).  There are pages showing new products and there is an expert that answers veterinary questions.  This month, the cover features Faith, a dog born with only two back legs.  
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 Faith learned to walk and run on those two legs and has been such an inspiration to many.  Seeing this girl smile makes you feel like you can do anything if she can do this!  I now get this magazine at Barnes & Noble, but have subscribed to it in the past when I could not find it locally.  You can find out more about this magazine that you really should have at www.animalwellnessmagazine.com Back to Time…..it is always there, in the background, ticking.  Time is something that you spend, whether you choose to do it consciously or it just happens.  It is something we never seem to have enough of.  I have always been fascinated with the possibilities of Time Travel too.  
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How could I forget…it iced here last night and then it snowed here this morning. 
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First for us this year!  Yes, it is Snow to us….I know it is a drop in the bucket to what many have experienced!   Missy loves it….she ran outside and got the zoomies and ran around and around the backyard trying to get someone to chase her.  She had a big smile on her face!

I received several Good Things during the past few months that I have neglected to share with you.   I find it interesting when someone says to someone else:  “You are hard to shop for.”    There are those people that really are hard to shop before because they have everything.  For the most part though, if you know someone, really know them, are around them for any length of time, the chances are that you can think of at least one thing that other person might need or like that they don’t have.  I like a good challenge and am going to think about that and find someone that I would possibly be getting a gift for sometime this year and try to overcome that “I don’t know what to get them” or “They are hard to shop for” mentality.  That should be interesting. On that note, there were several gifts that I received for Christmas that I enjoyed, but am not listing them all, but might share more of them later.  I received a really thoughtful gift from sadly blogless Jan.  She took the time to get pictures of all of my dogs from many of my different blog entries and had them put on a cup.  There is even a picture of Kirby (who passed away last year) on there.  What a very thoughtful gift!    It’s not the cost of a gift, but the thought that makes something so special!   
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I have been carrying the same purse for at least five or six years.  My Mom managed to pick out a bag that I have been carrying since Christmas.  I have always enjoyed the Laurel Burch designs, but there are not that many that are dog related.  I recently traveled on business and carried this purse as it is bigger than my normal purse and I have not stopped carrying it since.  It is very bright and colorful and big enough to carrying a couple of sock projects too! 
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   (don’t forget to click on the pictures if you want to see them bigger)
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I got a belated Christmas prezzy from the same Jan – a handpainted skein of sock yarn.   In my favorite colors – different shades of purple and green.  The colorway is Leah.  How cool to have your own colorway of yarn. 
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Handdyed by Jan - Leah Colorway
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On the subject of sock yarn, I have been checking out the Flat Feet and Fly Design sock yarns.  Interesting concept, but not sure what I think about it.  The Flat Feet yarn is machined knitted into a blank and then handpainted.  You purchase the yarn still in the blank (a big rectangle) and unravel it and knit it as you go.  The other is Fly Designs.  Their concept is they machine knit a sock, dye it, and let it dry, unravel it and then reskein it.   Their colors are very saturated and interesting.  I ordered two hanks of it to see what the hype is all about and found that the colors I ordered are similar.  I thought one would be purple and green, but it is blue and green.  The other is greens, aquas and blues and is what I expected.  I think it all has to do with monitor resolution.  Don’t get me wrong, I like them both, but find them to be pretty similar….one has more green though.  I can’t wait to knit one of them just to see what it looks like. 
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 Fly Design - Monarch yarn
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One more Good Thing – Buttons!  Very cool buttons.  They can be machine washed and dried.  Not sure what I will do with them, but I have them for when I do figure it out. 
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.Button, button, whose got the button?
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Can’t have a post about Good Things and not include a Dog picture.  Sprite says “Hi!” 
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Hope you have a great rest of the week!

Yesterday I wrote about The Little Things in life that make it better or different.  Good smelling soap that makes your skin feels good and is one of those Little Things.  Having a purple pen with a squishy barrel to hold on to is one of those Little Things.  If you think about it, those Little Things could really be considered Big Things if they matter that much to you.  One of my Little Things yesterday that I would have LIKED to have had was my raincoat. 

The Little Thing I would like today is the pictures that I took that are still in my camera.  I took pictures and planned on transferring them to my camera.  I took the pictures, then promptly shut my computer down…..oh well, that post will come tomorrow. 

In the meantime, I have something really cool to share with you.  Last week, I posted about organization and how everyone has some kind of organization that is interesting that others might now.  Not only is organization interesting, but the Details can make a difference.  Well, Erin has me beat all to heck and back with her closet organization.  She and I both store our clothes by color, BUT she also organizes her hangers by color. ARGHHH!  What a Detail!   How about that?!    I love the pretty colors.  Makes me want to run to the store to get colored hangers (I am not though, it would be one more thing to do/organize/spend time on instead of knitting/spinning/etc.).  You Go,

Erin’s closet

I drove to Columbia with sadly blogless Jan to purchase soap from Beth who is an amazing lace knitter who also makes soap.  I purchased a few of her soaps last October during the local Fiber Festival.  My all-time favorite soap is her Winter Skin Repair.  It smells really nice….natural, herby kinda smelling….and it keeps your skin from getting so dried out.  I used the very last teeninesy drop of the bar I got then…I have been out (big sad face) for a few weeks now.

Not anymore!  I got several bars of my favorite as well as a few new ones to try.  There is the lemon clove, lavender mint, juniper breeze and All Things Good.  How can you go wrong with something called All Things Good?!   Oh, I forgot….coffee.  I got a coffee bar…. you use it in your kitchen to remove odors from your hands.  The fun part about it was standing in her kitchen and washing our hands with different soap bars to see what we liked.  Good, clean Fun!

I was so happy to have my soap.  Jan mentioned that it is the little things that make me happy and that is true.  One other little thing that made me happy was soup.  Yeup, you read correctly.  Soup.  I was wishing I had some Beef Vegetable soup….you can taste the goodness in each bite and it tastes good too!  Well, I was wishing I had some, but did NOT want to go to the store to get the supplies to make it with.  I opened my freezer to longingly stare in there in the remote hope there was something that I would even be interested in eating last night.  To my amazement and delight…..there sat a 3.5 cup/bowl of that soup that I had the forethought to freeze last time.  Woo and Hoo!   I defrosted it enough to get a bowl of it and the remainder is in my fridge slowly defrosting the rest of the way.  Supper tonight too, BTW.

Speaking of Freezer/Fridge, I have had this subject on my mind.  What is on your Fridge???  Everyone puts ’stuff’ on their fridge.  I recently cleaned mine off and got rid of stuff that I no longer “saw” but it was on there.  I found some fun, graphic magents this past weekend that are dog related at the agility trial and love them. 

What’s on your fridge? 
 (click to see bigger, cool horse pic, hmm?!)

 I have always wanted a fish tank, but after having a real one, I appreciate this kind…..the fridge school of fish!

This morning, it rained.  I did not have my rain coat on.  It’s the little things…