The B-I-G Announcement

Hey everyone!  I have an announcement to make!!!  Are you ready?!  (I bet not!)  Ok...

WE'RE MOVING TO FLORIDA!!!!!!!!!!

AAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!  Can you believe it?!  I almost can't!  But it's TRUE!!!  I'm so excited that I can't even figure out what to say!  So, here's the story...
As some of you may know, I double majored in French and History in college.  So, kind of on a whim, I applied for a French teaching position at a high school in Florida.  And, long story short, a lot of things went right, and they offered me the job!!!  So, I will be the new French and World History teacher, and also the assistant band director!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I'M SO EXCITED!!!!!!!!!!!!!  So, in about three weeks, Thomas and I are packing up and moving to the East coast.  And the best part is... we will be living our entire lives 10 minutes away from the BEACH!!!!!!!

And for those of you who don't actually know me, it has been a life-long dream of mine to live at the beach, so this is 100% a dream come true!  And remember how last week, I told you that Cocoa Beach is my heart's second home?  Well, we will be living in the Melbourne/ Palm Bay area which is pretty much the next town South of Cocoa Beach!  So, I'm finally coming home.  As the movie "The Mechanic" observes, "your heart's telling you that you're homesick for a place you've never been."  And even though I have been there, I am homesick for the beach all the time.  Everything just feels right when I step onto that sand and smell the sea and watch the waves crash on the shore.  Just the way it feels right when Thomas holds me in his arms.  And so, I could not be happier that this is God's plan for us right now.

So, that's my big news!  And now I'm just freaking out, trying to figure out all the details.  Even though I know that God has it all worked out, I just can't help but worry.  This is definitely a huge test of my trust in Him, because I see so many things that could go wrong in front of me, but I know He will work it out in His perfect way.  But still, I keep waiting for something to go wrong or wake up to find it was all a dream.  But no, it's REAL!

So, obviously this will bring about some big changes in my weaving world.  For one thing, my shop is going to have to be shut down until I get get everything moved over to Florida... which may be a while since I will have lesson plans to make, homework to grade, not to mention band practice and Friday night football games!  So, my life is getting really crazy, and I'm just along for the ride!  So please, bear with me, there will probably be a gap in the fiber arts for a little while, but I'm pretty sure I can more than fill that gap with all my personal musings.  ;)

Speaking of lesson plans and such... I should probably be doing that instead of this... so...

Random (or not so random) quote:  "Every dreamer knows that it is entirely possible to be homesick for a place you've never been to, perhaps more homesick than for familiar ground."  ~Judith Thurman   (So true!)

So...LIFE

Well, if you haven't guessed, I've been on vacation!  Last week, Thomas and I traveled to Cocoa Beach, Florida (my heart's second home after wherever Thomas is) and had a wonderful vacation with my family.  And then, we got back, AND I just haven't felt like writing because I can't really say what I want to say... yet.  Anyway, here are a couple of pics from the trip!

 Feels like driving home...

 Mom and child walking on the beach... I thought this was really sweet.  (This was taken from our balcony!!!)

This is where I belong.  Right here.  Always.

Me and the hubby at Sunset Cafe.  Quite possibly my favorite restaurant in Cocoa Beach!

So, obviously, its hard to come back to Missouri after that, but it has to be done I guess.  It was a wonderful week, and I wouldn't trade it for anything!!!

And, I have actually done some weaving stuff since I got back, but I haven't taken any pics, so I guess that will have to wait.  I finished spinning a skein of my Tropical Punch yarn, and I think it turned out really well!  The colors are super vibrant, and I really like it.  Also, I just started weaving a scarf for a friend's birthday present.  And I have a deadline of Tuesday for that, so I'd better get going! 

You know how it goes, life hits and everything goes crazy.  SO, that's where I am right now.  I'm loving it, but I can't really give you all the details yet, so I guess you'll just have to be confused for now!  :)  Anyway, I'm really just stalling because I have so much stuff to do, but I needed a break.  (The pile of dishes is pretty huge right now, and I am glaring at them, but they just won't go away.  Boo.)

Random: "The Adjustment Bureau" came out yesterday, and Thomas, being the perfect soul mate that he is, bought it for me.  So, of course, we watched it last night... and it was all I could do tonight not to watch it again.  I love it that much!  But I refrained, mostly because I really had other things to do, and I was trying to be a good little productive girl.  Seriously, I'm such an over achiever sometimes that its really pretty pathetic.

Moving on..........

And I'm feeling too lazy to proofread this post, so I'm really really hoping that there aren't any typos that I missed.  Cross your fingers!  ;)

Ready... OK!

Alright, here is your long-awaited update on my to do list progress!  Since I know you have been sitting at your computer all weekend waiting... lol.  Anyway, I'm pretty sure I've added more to my to do list than I have scratched off, but nevertheless, here are some things I have done:

~Finished up my bday list and got it emailed to everyone... I had a really hard time thinking of ANYTHING that was not related to weaving or spinning to put on there... oh well, I guess.
~The dyed yarn is done!  So, here are pics:

 So, this first one is a skein of Corriedale yarn that I spun and dyed back around Easter, and I just never got around to blogging about it... obviously.  The color is not quite right in the photo, its really more of a mulberry, rich purple with a just a hint to red to it.  The color is a combination of Black Cherry and grape kool-aid!  Oh, and I would like to add that directly after I spun this yarn, I did the math to figure out how many yards I came out with.  And, what did I do after that?  I promptly forgot the number.  Yup.  That's how I roll.  And apparently I am too lazy to go back through and count again... I probably should though... darn...

And this is one of this weekend's creations!  I dyed this and the rovings which you will see when you scroll down farther using the same three colors, but I dyed them completely differently, and got completely different results!  This was dyed in a skein of already spun yarn, and I used my three different colors of kool-aid, and just splashed them on however and wherever I felt like it.  So the skein is very unpredictable; the colors are very pastel, and blend together quite nicely.  Colors include: baby pink, white, sky blue, lavender, and medium pink.  I kind of like it.  And I think it might look nice in a baby's hat or accessory which is good since it is bound for a crocheter who makes baby accessories!  This is 120 yards of thick-thin yarn.  (I wrote this number down on a big post-it and stuck it on my to do list so I wouldn't lose it!!!)

~The dyed roving is all dry, and I am currently in the process of spinning it up!  Here are the in progress pics!

 Here is a pic of the roving laid out on the table just after being painted.  This process was extremely messier than the website suggested it would be.  I now have some lovely new electric blue stains on my kitchen table that I am slowly scrubbing away at.  Any way, the red is a combination or strawberry kiwi, cherry, and strawberry.  The electric blue is ice blue raspberry lemonade (love it!).  And the darker blue is berry blue (I think).  The electric blue is my fave!

 

And here are the rovings hanging up to dry.  I painted two different colorways (the other one was already rolled up is the last picture).

And here is some I've just spun on my spindle!  I'm thinking its name will be Tropical Punch.  Or something like that.

~Went tanning again... got burnt again...

~Did the laundry, cleaned the apartment, etc. (not on my to do list)

And I added a bunch of things to it... boo.  Anyway, I have made zero progress on the headbands.  I don't know why, but I just don't want to do them.  I wish I had two looms so that I could just do another project instead.  But I don't, so I have to finish this before I can make anything else... boo.

Well, for today's random note, I have a shout out to a fellow blogger and Etsian.  One of my favorite blogs to read is Cut, Paste, Repeat by Rachel Pfeffer.  I just love reading about her adventures in jewelry making and in life.  And this week, she is Etsy's featured seller!  Congrats Rachel!  You can read her Etsy interview here or go check out her blog.  Trust me, its always fun to read!

I'm off to go play with my lonely kitty!

Another Update

So... I didn't get nearly as much done tonight as I had hoped, but I worked all night.  So:

~Did more dishes today and now have more sitting by the sink again.  Yippee... not!
~Make some homemade cinnamon rolls for breakfast!!! Yum!  It's my mom's recipe, so they're pretty much the best cinnamon rolls ever.  And I made some cream cheese icing to top them off!  Homemade breakfast always makes my day!
~Finished up the yarn I dyed last night (will have pics to prove it tomorrow)
~Started spinning the newly dyed roving
~Worked on my bday list, but it's not done yet
~Went tanning and got burnt... ouch

Otherwise, I just hung out today with my hubby before he went to work and my kitty!  Not as productive as I'd hoped, but still not too bad.

Now I'm off to play Traffic Jam on the hubby's phone before I go to bed!  Night!

Update

I'm slowing down for the night, but I would like to update everyone on my progress.  Here are the things I have accomplished thus far:

~Dishes (already had those done)
~Update iPod (also already done)
~Dye Roving - It's hanging up to dry right now!  Should be ready for spinning tomorrow!
~Dye Yarn - also dyring
~Balance checkbook - thank goodness this is done... its so tedious!
~Pay bills - yuck
~Update facebook page - it's updated... you should check it out! Project31 on facebook!
~Blog - I am  :)

So, I'm getting ready to work on my bday list too.  So, I still have several things to do, but I took a pretty good chunk out of it tonight.  I didn't go on a walk... I just didn't have time (great excuse, right?!).  I danced around the kitchen all night though, does that count?  Lol.

Nighty night blog!  Off to watch t.v. with the hubby!!!

To Do

I love lists.  I love making them, reading them, crossing things off of them, adding things on... I love lists!  I was at a bookstore last week, looking at the gorgeous leather journals, and I found a journal that was entirely comprised of making lists... and I ALMOST bought it.  I did, however, sit in the store and flip through every single page to see what all the list categories were.  It was like a figure-out-more-about-yourself-just-from-making-lists journal!!!  So, in my list of lists I like to make, to do lists are right up there in the top ranking.  And tonight, I have one honking to do list!  Since I was thoroughly committed to sitting around moping last night, I suddenly felt like I just HAD to be productive tonight.  (It might also have something to do with the fact that its Friday, and I don't have to go to work again for three whole days!!!)  Anyway, I thought I might share my to do list here so that I will hopefully be more likely to actually do the things on it!  So here goes!!!

"Friday and Saturday To Do List"

~Write up birthday list (my birthday is in the beginning of July, and since almost everything I want will have to be ordered online, I'm trying to be pro-active about it!)

     -Email to mom, mother-in-law, and hubby

~Dye Roving  (Already simmering in the pot!!!  I'm really nervous about how its going to turn out.)

~Dye Yarn  (Simmering along with the roving!  Yikes!)

~Spin Roving (once its done dyeing and dry of course, so that will probably be a Saturday night thing)

~Update facebook page (because it sorely needs it)

~Do the dishes (Yay!  Already done!!!  I hate hate hate doing dishes, so I started with them... though that's probably not a great way to get me inspired.  However, the iHome is right next to the sink, so the upside is that I can be a major karaoke superstar while I'm muddling away with the dishes.)

~Blog (doing that now  :)  But I'm also going to try and keep you updated on my progress!)

~Take a walk (Yes, it may be 95 degrees in Missouri, but I still need to exercise to get my lazy butt in shape.)

~Go tanning (The beach is getting close and I'm still super white!)

~Update iPod (Did this before I did the dishes in order to inspire my fabulous karaoke and dancing around the kitchen, flinging suds onto the floor)  :))))

~Pay bills (yuck)

~Balance the check book (double yuck)

~Finish those stinkin headbands!!!

So, there it is, for all the world to see, so that when I think about not bothering to do something on it, everyone will know...  let's see if that makes any difference in my productivity.

Well, since I'm being productive, the iPod is blasting, and because I know that you are just dying to find out what I'm listening to, I will give you a sampling!

 30 Seconds to Mars - "Vox Populi", "A Beautiful Lie", "This is War", "Kings and Queens"

Katy Perry - "Last Friday Night", "Teenage Dream", "Firework"

Paramore - "Brick by Boring Brick", "Ignorance", "Decode"

Ke$ha - "Your Love is My Drug"

Sara Bareilles - "Bottle it Up", "Love Song"

Wakey!Wakey! - "Almost Everything"

The Script - "For the First Time"

Leona Naess - "All the Stars"

Superchick - "Stand in the Rain", "Hey Hey", "Hold", "bowling ball"

And yes, I do know how completely random my playlist is, but that's just how I do it!  But, the song of the day, by far, is..........  "King of Anything" by Sara Bareilles.  I cannot stop listening to this song!  Here's the music video so you can enjoy it too!

I think this post was random enough!  Happy Friday!

Holidays and Loss

Well, obviously I didn't post those pics of the yarn I've been spinning... I took them, but they never made it off of my camera.  Well, this post is not for them!

On Monday, Thomas and I went hiking with my family, and it was fabulous!  I have tons of hiking memories from growing up... We'd always go hiking on vacation because, well, why not?!  It's always so much fun with my family because we get to spend time together and just enjoy the beauty of nature!  So, this time, we went to Taum Sauk Mountain State Park (in Missouri).  This park features the highest point in Missouri (really not much to see there... its a rock on the ground with a plaque on it... ooooo!) and the Mina Sauk Falls, which is the tallest waterfall in Missouri.  And the scenery was AMAZING!!!  We hiked a three mile trail that had the waterfall in the middle.  It was so beautiful.  And, we climbed around and played in the waterfall too, I mean, who wouldn't on a 90+ degree day!  So, here are some pics from the day trip!  And I would like to mention that, the reason I own a camera is so that I can document our lives, so of course, this is a trip I would want photos of.  So, what do I do?  I leave the camera at home... So these photos are from my cell phone which my wonderful husband lugged around for me all day!

 The views were spectacular!

 This was a giant tree that had fallen next to the path, and I should have had Thomas stand next to it in the picture because the roots are well over six feet high.  It was huge!!!

 

Here's a photo looking up from about halfway down the falls.

And here is me!  Wading in the pool at the bottom of the falls was absolutely wonderful!

And, you may notice that there are only photos of the first half of the journey, and that is because, by the time we climbed back up the falls to finish the second half of the three mile hike, I was about ready to die!  It was a seriously strenuous hike, and I'm not in great athletic shape to begin with!

Well, now for the loss part... I'm mourning... just a little... for my hair.  I got my hair cut last week.  And, for about a year and a half now, my hair has been long (about halfway between my shoulders and elbows), and I love it long.  But after a while, it gets boring.  So, I got it cut.  And, I like it a lot, but I still miss my hair...  Now, it is just past my shoulders, so I didn't get that much cut off, and its still really cute, but I miss my long flowy hair.  I know it will grow back, but still...

Well, if you can't tell, I'm procrastinating...  I need to get up, grab the loom and finish the headbands that have been sitting there for days.  But I just don't wanna.  It's hot in my apartment, and I would much rather eat ice cream and watch movies instead.  Or just go to bed.  Or start my vacation really early and go to the beach. And I'm sitting here, also secretly wishing Thomas would text me from work and ask me to go to Qdoba for dinner with him on his break (too bad he won't read this until after he gets home from work!) Anyway, I guess I don't have anything else interesting to say, though I could keep rambling for quite a while if it meant that I wouldn't have to get my lazy butt off the couch!

So, here's the random thing for today.  And here is the context:  I work for a photographer, so I occasionally cyber-stalk several photographer's blogs.  And Jasmine Star is one of my FAVES!  She is so talented and amazing. And as I was poking around on her blog, I came across a post that had random things that she thought were funny in it (that's right up my alley, right?!), and here is one that I thought was just hilarous!!!  Its a letter press card that is available for purchase from Shop Sapling Press on Etsy.  Are you ready?!

 

LOVE IT!