Zoe's Zebrunicorn and the Dumpster Tree

The girls are busy coloring in their giant coloring books and I'm relaxing with a cup of coffee before we get ready to go to Grandma and Pawpaw's house.  I thought I'd share the final handmade gift this year... the Zebrunicorn!

I used the same pattern as I did with Olivia's unicorn.  There's really not much more to say about it.  =)

But the tree...

Lord, the tree.

We waited until the last minute to put up a tree.  I made a deal with the girls that they could have the tree if they cleaned up after themselves, and they failed to keep their end of the bargain.  So we waited until this past weekend.  Bill was supposed to come home Saturday night and I'd help him get our artificial tree out of the attic.  He was late, I was tired.  I went to bed.  I woke up at 2:30 am to loud voices.  We had a tree.  Not the one in the attic, though.

Bill cut it down himself.  It was growing at work, in the fence behind the dumpster.

I can't make this stuff up, guys.

Kinda gappy

A little too tall

And thorny

But he was so happy.  I don't really like real trees.  I don't like the smell and they're messy.  But he was happy.  So, we decorated it.

We had to secure it to the wall.... it fell over twice.

Yeah, he went there.  

It's a Charlie Brown Christmas, y'all!

It's not staying up much after Christmas.  Bill didn't even put water in the stand... 

I can hear it now... in 20 years "Isabelle, do you remember the year Daddy brought home that tree from the dumpster at work?"  Making memories....

Merry Christmas, you guys!  From my crazy family to yours!

Hobbes has a girlfriend

I told you that Isabelle wanted me to make a friend for Hobbes.  A girlfriend, to be exact.  I wasn't really excited about making a girl Hobbes, but I think she's pretty cute.



I used the same pattern that I used to make Hobbes.  She's a lighter color than Hobbes and I made her smile.  Isabelle says Hobbes looks sad, so I figured his girlfriend should look happier.



I still wish I could have made a Calvin... I may still try to at some point... but I'm glad Hobbes has a girlfriend, too.  They make a cute couple.



(Boy, Hobbes is looking a little rough.  Eh, it just means he's been loved...)

Rosey Ripple Afghan

I get to cross something off of my 37 List!  I have completed my Rosey Ripple Afghan!



I started this way back in summer as a way to break up the monotony of the Rose Field Throw (which is no where close to being complete).  I am giving it to my Mom for Christmas.  It's only a lap throw... it's about the size of a baby blanket, really.  I didn't make it wide enough to be anything else.  But it would be good to curl up on the couch with a book and keep the tootsies and legs warm... and my mom does that a lot.



I used the Churchmouse Vintage Crocheted Blanket pattern.  It's a paid pattern, but worth it.  I will absolutely use it again.  I've never been a big fan of ripple afghans, but this one won me over.  Every time I worked on it in public, it definitely got attention.

I used Caron Simply Soft in Pistachio, Persimmon, Country Peach, and Off White.



It's very possible that I used a larger hook when I started it than I did finishing it, that or the fact that I was working amigurumi at the end but not at the beginning (my tension is much tighter with ami, so it probably carried over)....  the beginning is a little looser than the end, but it's not incredibly noticeable. I don't think so anyway. 

I think the Rose Field Throw will take much, much longer to finish.  I'm still contemplating just making it a pillow cover.  I have a laundry list of other projects I'm dying to do.  =)  As usual.

Hermoine the Unicorn

I have completed one of the girls' Christmas lovies! 



This is Olivia's unicorn.  I used this pattern.  Bonus... it's a free pattern!



I really loved this pattern, with a few exceptions.  The nose kind of is a little too round for my liking.  One of my favorite things, which is also the other exception (bear with me) is that you attach everything as you go... there is no sewing on of the ears or legs, you crochet them into the head and body as you are making them.  I absolutely love that there is no assembly at the end.  However, it does make it a little awkward to crochet at times.  But it was worth it knowing that nothing could fall off later.  Like Olivia's cat's tail. 

The hair is Red Heart with Love in Fruit Punch.  I'm not a huge fan of variegated yarns, but I really like this one.  I think it was perfect for the hair.   The body is just I Love This Yarn in white and the horn is gold something or other... it's the color of Hobbes' girlfriend.  She just needs to be assembled.  I'm so close!

Zoe's Zebrunicorn is almost finished.... it just needs the mane and tail.  Same pattern.  Stay tuned!

37 Things To Do While 37

Originally, this blog was a 101 things to do in 1001 days blog, but I never finished it.  1001 days is a long time to keep up with a list of things to do.  But hopefully a year isn't.  This is a list of 37 things I want to accomplish before I turn 38 on December 6, 2013.  (There are actually more than 37 things.  I couldn't help myself)

Fitness Related

• Walk a half-marathon (complete 3/3/13)
• Walk the River Trail loop
• Do Turbo Jam (started 12/28/12)
• MS Walk (5/4/13)
• Heart Walk (4/20/13)
• Diabetes Walk (4/13/13)
• Mud Run (can't do, same day as SWHM)
• Go to Yogathon
• Get below 240 (2/22/13)
• Get below 230 (5/29/13)
• Get below 220
• Get below 210
• Get below 200
• Climb Pinnacle Mountain
• Go to the waterfall @ Petit Jean
• Read "It Starts With Food"   finished 1/4/13... highly recommend, by the way
• Soaring Wings Half Marathon (registered, it's 10/26/13)

Family Related

• Family portrait
• 3 dates with Bill (5/20/13)
• 3 dates with Olivia
• 3 dates with Isabelle (6/5/13)
• 3 dates with Zoe
• Take pictures of the girls in my wedding dress 
• Take a picture every month with ME and the girls (January, February, March, April, May - done)

Crocheting

• Finish my Rose Field throw/pillow
• Finish my Vintage Ripple throw completed 12/22/12
• Make another afghan (begun, progress less than slow right now)
• Make a doily rug
• Crochet a mandala

Sewing

• Finish my green quilt
• Finish my lantern pod quilt
• Make a "coloring book" skirt

Miscellaneous

• Pay off van
• Get a new tattoo
• Get new glasses 
• Get a pedicure
• Paint the washer and dryer
• Make a motivation board
• See a movie... in a theater... not a kids' movie.

So tired...

Today started at 3 am with a little face in mine asking me if it was time to leave to go have surgery.

Zoe had a tonsillectomy, adenoidectomy, and tubes placed in her ears today.  "The Works" as the doctor called it.  I was a wreck.  Zoe, on the other hand, acted like she was going to Disneyland.  I guess in my efforts to try to not pass on my White Coat Syndrome to my kids, I've created three little monsters who L-O-V-E to go to the doctor.  They actually get jealous when one sister gets to go and they don't. 

The surgery went very well.  And fast.  Between the time we waited to go back into Pre-Op and the time she was in surgery, I only managed to get 1 1/2 rows done on my ripple blanket.  And I wasn't the only hooker in the waiting room.  The lady was fascinated by the pattern of the ripple.  She had only done basic ripples before and was intrigued by the V-stitch ripple.  But anyway...

The doctor said Zoe's adenoids blocked 75% of her airway... and I know her tonsils were almost touching.  This is without her being sick, mind you.  I'm looking forward to quieter nights around here.  She sawed logs like a lumberjack.  He also said we should notice her hearing improving right away, too.  She definitely sounds different without all that junk stuffing up her throat and nose...

We only had to stay in recovery about half an hour.  Zoe did very well, so we were turned loose early.  And she's done pretty well all day.  Much better than I anticipated.  I thought she'd sleep the day away and I'd have to fight her to eat and drink.  But she has been asking for food all day and has gotten mad at me more than once for denying her things like pretzels and pizza.  And she wouldn't sleep.  Even when I gave her the prescription pain meds.  She was so tired, though.  I was practically begging her to just close her eyes because she had finally started getting really whiny and I'm exhausted so I'm having to be very careful not to get snippy.  I had to put her sisters to bed, so I stood her up off of my lap and she literally crumpled to the floor and was out like a light.  I thought surely she was just being dramatic, but no - she was out cold.  One second  awake, the next out.  I really feel like I could do the same right about now, to be honest.  I NEED to work on the girls' Christmas presents and wrap up some presents, but I'm so tired.  I already dozed off crocheting once today, so I'm pretty sure I won't make it 2 rows on the tiger's leg before I do it again.

8 miles

Did I mention that I was terrified of my 8 mile walk this past weekend?  Yeah.  I was.  I remembered when my 4 mile walks turned into 6 mile walks.... and my first 6 miler was simply painful.  Not only did I irritate my peroneal tendon (outside ankle), I felt like my legs were just going to fall off my pelvis the last mile.  So I was really afraid I'd be crawling the last mile or so back to the van, because there aren't too many places on the trails where someone could just come pick me up if I gave out.

But it was fine, really.  I was sore most of today (ankles and knee mostly), but I seem to have worked all the kinks out.  8 miles is a loooooong walk, though.  2 hours and 8 minutes of walking... a 33 oz bottle of water, a Cliff bar, and a bottle of Gatorade.  And lots of music.  I burned approximately 1100 calories (maybe Santa will bring me a Fitbit or something so I can have an accurate number?).  I think I have one more 8 mile, then a drop back down to 4, and another 8 or maybe 2 before I bump up again... to 10 miles.  I'm not quite ready to wrap my head around 10 miles yet.

I plan on actually registering for the half-marathon before the end of the month.  Eek.

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I'm making progress on Hobbes' girlfriend and the unicorn and zebrunicorn.  I'm alternating what I work on, depending on my mood.  And while the girls are awake, I'm working on my Rose Field blanket and my Vintage Ripple.  I need to take some pictures of them.  The Rose Field will probably end up just a pillow cover because it is still so small.  Since I'm using the same yarn for both blankets, I just work a row on the ripple, then make a rose.  The ripple is not as wide as I'd like, but I'll deal with it when the time comes.

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I had this idea the other day.  I didn't actually hit my 37 lbs before 37, but I liked having that goal.  But I wanted to do something different this year.  I'm going to come up with 37 things to do while I'm 37.  Or 38 things to do before I turn 38.  We'll see if I can come up with that extra thing.  I think so far, I've thought of 24 things.  More thinking is in order.  They're not all fitness related, but quite a few are.  There are some crochet goals and some family goals.  If you have any suggestions, let me know.  =)