Darling Daughter Donates!

Now before you get all, "Gift of the magi...awww how wonderful!" or "That's so sweet just like when Jo in Little Women sold her hair to take care of Marmey and her Papa...", let me preface this to say Darling Daughter needed help thinking of something to do for her required service hours for school, and she was bugging me to cut her hair off spikey short like mine. I, being the mean mama that I am, told her to research Locks of Love and I convinced her she didn't want it that short.

Locks of Love is a wonderful organization because it focuses of the children's self confidence. Their web site states, "Locks of Love is a public non-profit organization that provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children in the United States and Canada under age 21 suffering from long-term medical hair loss from any diagnosis."

The best part of this experience, at least to me, is that I got to witness my darling girl look up a salon that participated, call them herself and set her own appointment. Usually so very soft spoken and wanting Jaimee to do everything for her, it was a thrill to hear DarbyDoo speak with clear confidence to make her appointment. I was even more impressed when she had to call them back to reschedule because she had double booked herself...TWICE.

Now Darling Daughter may be calling some of our relatives and close friends this week to ask you to help her raise money to purchase gifts for the kiddos at Plano's City House. This you can ooohhh and awwww over her for as she is doing this one on her own! I love that girl's heart!

Neutral Zig Zag Sparklies Scarf

I just completed my first not-promised-to-anyone project. Sosie gifted me a ton of remnant yarn Friday during knitting club and I made a pretty scarf!

Yarn is cream, light gray, lightweight fuzzy yarn. I hold a sparkling lace yarn against the yarn as I crochet to weave in the pretty. I think this makes it a dressy scarf.









CHAIN to the length you prefer; add one for every five in your chain.

Row 1: 3ch, {(DC in next five, 3 DC in next one chain to make top of zig), [DC in next five, skip two chains]} repeat {} to end of chain

Row 2-6: change yarn color alternating each row

Row 7-8: SC all the way around scarf.

Row 9-10: slip stitch all the way around scarf
Ta-da!

Keep Calm and...

Well, I wish I was cooler, but you make the best with what you are given. I just discovered the trending "Keep Calm and ________________", which was originally the UK's propaganda from WWII that said, "Keep Calm and Carry On." I like the one for crocheting and fishing, but this one made me smile today.

Dear Santa, 2011

Dear Santa,

Tell God that I want my sister back. Kick HIM in the shins and say, "I am just the messenger!" Then run like Satan's on your tail.

Sorry about that. I really have been good this year even if my thoughts have been...not so much. I'll work on that for the next year.

I wish you existed, St. Nick, because I would really love an IPad or the Nikon camera like the Pioneer Woman uses. A day at the spa for manis, pedis, facials and deforestation coloring would be fun too. Of course I am still working on my Pandora charm bracelets [der! If you know who's naughty and nice, then you can read my mind to figure out the charms I need!].

Hubby dearest says he's looking at the individual coffee maker thingy for me...yummy. While you're at it, could you get Chad a kayak and Darby a laptop from me. Cool! Thanks...really don't want to go shopping this year. Oh yeah, if you're in with Ellen, I will be so jazzed to get tickets for my pals and I to go to see her (dreaming...).

Santa, I don't need any of this; I just want it. I NEED Gayla. Good luck with convincing God to give her back. Maybe don't kick Him after all. Peace! 

J

P.S. WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR THE HOLIDAYS? I really just want to be with family and friends.

P.S.S. I apologize to anyone who is offended by my crass sense of humor. Depression and a broken heart seem to exasperate the situation.

I Quit! (it's not what you think...)

The song, "Take this job and shove it" is playing in my head, but I am substituting "job" with "nasty bad habit." BE THANKFUL! During my month-long thank you program, you may have missed out on my complaining rejoicing about quitting smoking.

MyMama told me back in April of this year that for her next birthday she would like me to be nicotine free. I have spent the last six months telling myself I will quit as soon as I am not stressed, or sad, or mad, or INSERT EMOTION. Have you met me?!? With that excuse, I would never quit so God took over and struck me with an eight-week case of bronchitis and a cough that sounded like I was trying to extricate my lungs from my chest via my mouth.

Having foreseen my future with emphysema, I took the after-school-special lesson to heart and just quit. I didn't talk to anyone or consult the gang. I just quit. I began the month wearing patches and struggling to not partake of my vice. I decided I needed something to do with my hands (i know, i know, that's what she said). This led to crocheting. A LOT OF CROCHETING! Like every free second of the day crocheting. I think if yarn is ever discovered to be carcinogenic, I will be long gone.

Now, to spread my crazy around, Sosie, Val-gal, and I are starting our knitting club tonight. We will gather the first of each month to stitch and _itch. Isn't that awesome! Tonight I think we are making slouchy beanie hats. I am just hoping Sosie can teach me to translate the patterns. I have a bad habit of starting with a pattern and then going off on my own when I hit a "dcdec" that I cannot figure out.

Check out some of my creations:

This is my current project...

Made this for my niece Gena.

This was the first blanket; I call it Charisma.

Now I can be a warm sideline mom!

This is supposed to look like camo...

We will widen this as we come up with more t-shirts to cut up.

Happiness Report: Thankful for November and Ready for December!

Wow! November was my most successful part of my Happiness Project yet! It truly made me abundantly happy to write all those letters and show my love and appreciation for everyone. BTW, I was also the goofy kiddo at birthday parties who was more excited to give her present to the birthday girl or boy. It's a sickness...don't judge.

December is all about focusing on friends and family. I have big plans to make a point to call my friends and family every week. Also, I am looking into space to have a gift closet somewhere in our house where I can have a little fun to give away when I visit or get visited. I am not quite sure why I wrote as a note, "Don't gossip or criticize." That doesn't sound like me. Another fun item on my to-dos is to start a monthly game night. Beginning tomorrow, Sosie, Val-Gal and I are starting a knitting/crochet club. I am totally jazzed about it! Most importantly, this month I am going to show up and be present.

Items I am on the look out for stocking stuffers this week:

1. $5 gift cards (Starbucks, McDonalds, Amazon, Borders etc)
2. A favorite candy
3. Personalized stationary
4. Fun socks
5. Nail polishes
6. Gel or Sharpie Pens
7. Chapstick or lip gloss
8. Hair bands or other accessories
9. Crayons
10. Body wash or lotions
11. Stickers
12. Lottery tickets
13. Bookmarks
14. Fishing lures
15. Small photo frames
16. Personalized water bottle
17. Travel sized games (connect four, uno, etc)
18. Small sketchbook
19. Fridge magnets
20. Crafting fun
21. PJ's (pajama elf delivers on Christmas Eve)
22. Cute umbrella
23. Bubbles
24. Bath toys
25. Coloring book    

30 Days of Thankful: Day 30--Self

Dear Jaimee,

Thank you for undertaking the challenge to spend the month of November being thankful. Thank you for remembering and writing about all the reasons you love the people in your life. It has been cathartic to focus on all the blessings you have been given.

Thank you, self, for being a diligent student throughout your life. Thank you for developing a love of learning early on and continuing to follow that passion everyday. Thank you for being open to new experiences and people. Thank you for not letting the negative overtake your life and ruin your chance at happiness. Thank you for accepting change. You grow because you let life happen.

I am thankful that I have learned to recognize when I need help. I am thankful my pride has not kept me from seeking assistance when my plate becomes too full. I am thankful that I love myself enough to move through the dark days with an eye on the hope of a better tomorrow. I am thankful I have learned to forgive myself for my self torture and torment of the past.

I am thankful that I waited for my one true love to come back around. I am thankful for the life we make each day and for the blessing we have in our girl. I am thankful I learned to be a good mother pretty quickly so she always has a built-in biggest fan.

I love you, Jaimee...always will.

You

30 Days of Thankful: Day 29--Listography of Thanks

Top 10 Things For Which I am Thankful:

10. My Family and Friends

  9. My Puppies, Hope and Faith

  8. My Employer and Career

  7. My Education

  6. The house we call home 

  5. The trials I have overcome

  4. The people who inspire me

  3. Coffee on cold mornings

  2. My ability to be silly and to play

  1. You

30 Days of Thankful: Day 28--That Dinner Everyone Always Talks About

This thank you is a little lame but at least I am still trying. If you could have dinner with anyone, who would it be? Here's my guest list:

Ellen

Matthew (yes my husband knows)

Mrs. Obama

The Queen

30 Days of Thankful: Day 27--My Blog Hero

Dear Elizabeth,

For the month of November, I challenged myself to write 30 thank you notes to those in my life whom matter and mean so much to me. You are on that list! It may seem strange (or slightly stalker-ish) that a stranger would call you her friend and blog hero, and it is probably oogie (and slightly scary) for that stranger to send you a letter of thanks. That's just me, your best scary, oogie, stalker/stranger friend. Thank you for not putting out a restraining order.

Thank you Liz for your blog, Flourish in Progress. Thank you for making me laugh and cry. Thank you for always writing a response to my crazy little comments on your blog. Thank you also for the very cool magnet you sent me for liking your page. It's the first blog SWAG I have ever won! Thank you mostly, Liz, for supporting my blog as well. I truly feel like a rock star has visited my home when you leave comments on my posts.

I began my blog because of the tragic loss of my sister this past March. Most of my followers are our friends and family. It was the only way I could work my way through this anguish. As I was looking for ideas for how and what to write about each day, I found the Happiness Project, which led me to your lovely blog. Girl, you keep me laughing with your Monday dares, and you remind me to laugh at even the most crazy things people in this world put us through. Your openness about your past reminds me that my happiness in life is not determined by the hardships of the past but of the joys we make of them. Thank you for your heart and your openness, Friend.

As for groups of friends, we are a troop of four peeps that became friends at work more than a decade ago. Sarah and I drug our sisters into the group and a few others. We truly are that crazy group that looks like that have a lot of inside jokes and tons of memories. Some days those are the only things we have to keep us from crawling under the bed and hiding there until this pain subsides. I want you to know you would always be welcome to join our little bit of crazy if you ever moved back to Texas.

Love ya, girly!
Jaimee