Frou Frou Gypsy in Combat Boots

With Valentine's Day only a few days away I had to share these! I set up some little mail boxes for each of us in the Living room and the kids have had so much fun leaving letters for all of us and checking their mail boxes to see if they have mail! We have a busy two days of celebrating ahead of us and then i am packing to go out of town with my girl friends for a long weekend! YIPPEE!

ok so i have been MIA. sorry. Well the FBD is moving along. We are getting use to the swing of things. Total weight loss so far is about 6 pounds. I can't say that i am really happy with that. I had expected more. I am in full swing of my Moon time right now so the diet is pretty much out the window for a day or so. I am headed out of town this weekend with some friends from church, so who knows what I will be eating. No worries. I have been busily getting ready for girlz weekend which is coming up in just a few weeks. I have also been obsessed with my webkinz stuff. Honestly, I have also been in a funk, and avoiding life. If you can't be honest in your blog, then what good is it? Am i right? So I am hoping after this little retreat I will be back to "real life" and moving forward. If not, then hopefully girls weekend will snap me back!

a while back i mentioned that DH and i had picked up knitting. well....we have become obsessed! above is his first project. He made that lovely scarf for ME! Ain't he sweet? this raspberry beauty is my first "real" project, meaning i knitted a lot and ripped out a lot of stitches before i settled down enough to finish anything other than a "test" or a scarf for one of my webkinz! This is #2 for DH. All for him this time! made with "manly yarn!" I had to pick myself up off the floor from laughing when he said that! and finally, my second project, a prayer shawl. I have no idea what makes this any different than a regular shawl, that is just what the pattern called it. I do know i was wearing it on NYD when we wen to the ER and as i knotted each strand of fringe sitting there waiting, i prayed for my DD to be ok! I am so new to this knitting stuff that i really know very little. I used lion brand homespun yarn for this. I have to tell you. I didn...

*photo taken by my DD from the middle seat of the minivan on the way to school* yes indeed, where have i been? In a hole i think, or a pit maybe. I have certainly been in a funk. I was gone at the end of Feb. on Girl's weekend....that left me exhausted and in need for some time alone, not that i didn't have a lot of fun...just somehow i was overwhelmed by it this year. Then i was home a week and gone again last weekend on a weekend retreat with some ladies from my church to work on and plan things for our children's ministry. Again, fun but left me in the mood to hibernate. I've had a lot going on in my head lately. It's been sort of hard to explain. Sort of like all the therapy and Bible studies and books i have been reading imploded on me and i am left trying to sort through and figure it all out. It's not really a bad thing....it just makes me want to sit in my bed and sort through it all, which is not so productive for real life. I am normally a total pe...

I hand stitched these. I guess I got a little nuts..but it was fun! several posts ago i showed you how i was making some drawstring bags...well, these are they. I filled them with all sorts of relaxing and nurturing things that we could use for our "moontime" each month. If you click on the pictures to make them bigger you will be able to see the little tags on each item. These were just a little way to remind us that being a woman is not a bad thing and that our monthly cycle shouldn't be treated as a curse, but as a time to slow down, reflect and learn from our extra sensitivity. And honestly, who can get through it without chocolate???

I just got back from a long weekend away with my girlfriends. Lots of shopping, crafting and fun. Now i have to straighten up my house; i left it in a wreck and i have loads of laundry to do as well. Maybe i will find my mojo under this mess and finally post some of the things i have been wanting to show you! happy Monday! always cyndi hopefully i will get my February month in review up before too long as well!

well here I am...struggling to catch up. Day 14!!! This is a necklace that my DH gave me for VD. I have a few more pages done, but I just haven't had to mojo to get them finished up and photographed. I am going away this weekend with my girlfriends, hopefully that will refresh me enough to finish up this project. I know i will have some other fun things to show you. Things that i have been working on for girls weekend and things that the Duchess and i have been working on like mad women. I so need this break. Last year was so much fun. so this is not the most flattering picture of any of us...but it is the only one i have with all of us in it. Last year we went to the beach, this year its the mountains...and shopping! and relaxing! I have to start making piles of things to pack or I'll never have it all together. We are leaving Thursday night. Is it Thursday yet? It also occurred to me that Wednesday is Ash Wednesday. I've got to think about that and get my mind prepared...

So i am super slammed busy today working on something for VD so i have taken photos of things i LOVE but haven't had time to do my pages yet. So to keep you occupied while i catch up i want to show you something i have been working on... I found some Christmas napkins on clearance for 25 cents each...and i needed red fabric! So of course i bought them. I am making these little draw string bags... the simple kind? oh no! the kind with a round bottom in them of course!!! here you can sorta see the bottom. here is a detail of the drawstring...satin ribbon. and at the ends of the ribbon... these beads! very cool. You'll see it all come together soon enough.

I have seen a lot of these around...so i figured i would jump on the 16 things bandwagon! Here you have it...16 things that are going on or true right now! My DD has been sick off and on since January 5. Can't get her well. Pray for her, we are all worn our and crazy at this point and momma, that's me, is about to ring some Dr.'s neck if she doesn't get better soon! I am so excited to be going away with my girlfriends for a weekend away in the Smokey Mountains next month. I have been working on things for that weekend and we have FINALLY set a date! VD is coming up and i have no idea what to get or do for my DH. He is the most amazing man in the world and a box of chocolate just doesn't express that very well. ideas anyone? i am going FINALLY today to get my hair re dyed! yippee! the lovely blue has faded out to a weird combo of teal, a silverish blue and i have even found a few purple places in there. I have a good half inch or more of roots and well...its way pas...

so i have been kicking it around here lately...here's another hint about the girls weekend stuff i am working on. i have also been working on getting my book ready for the 28 days of love in february! Hope you are having a good week!

Last year i was so excited about what i was making for girl's weekend that i put it in my blog before we went....and guess what? it wasn't a surprise because apparently they check my blog from time to time (hi gals! see you on the 21st!) So this year i am going to be more secretive! ha! ha! what is she planning? well this picture is your first hint! and i am so happy because i got that fabric on clearance today at walmart! whooo hooo! now, what could she be doing with red fabric, a tape measure and a big green bowl? hahahah i'll never tell! well, at least not until AFTER girls weekend. Speaking of girls weekend...i hope it actually happens this year. we seem to be having a lot of trouble working all the details out. when did life get so hard? always cyndi