I LOVE CAMPING!!!!

Hey, yinz guys...I'm out here in the wilderness (okay so i have a laptop with me...but only to keep in touch with the outside world) and having a GREAT time!! I love camping...so so peaceful!!! The Sweetie Man is the BEST camp cook EVER!!! BBQ chicken last night and steak tonight!!! Taking lots of pics to show you when we return. We'll be coming back in August again for a pig roast at the campground! We had rain yesterday but still had a good time. Sunday is AWESOME weather!! Well, back to relaxing under the shady trees. Have a great weekend....till next time, yinz crazy guys.....(P.S. thanks for all the compliments on the Sweetie Man's poem and thanks to Michelle for the "how-to's" on the pudding cake....I'll let him know!)

PHOTO HUNTERS....

I keep forgetting about Photo Hunters!!! (must be old age!!!) Anyway, this week's theme is "Cooked/ing" so of course you know that I'm going to post a Sweetie Man selection...excepted it wasn't cooked it was baked (same thing I guess) It was the first thing that came to mind for me anyway. Last week I made one of those Jello Cakes (the ones where you poke the holes in and pour the jello in the holes in the cake?). It turned out fabulous and everyone just ate it up. The Sweetie Man loves to take things ONE STEP FURTHER (aka "Kick it up a Notch")..."if we can do this, THEN how 'bout we try THIS!" Ya know what I mean? So he took the jello cake recipe and made a pudding cake recipe...using pudding in place of jello. He bought a pastry bag and the everything....he was excited about this. Unfortunately, it didn't work up quite as he had planned......

Where's the pudding? We couldn't figure that one out other than he just didn't make big enough holes and get enough pudding in there. You could taste a little bit of the pudding but that was about it. Either way...it was a delicious cake!!! I personally get a thrill watching him working out one of his ideas!!! Oh, well!

In the craft department, not much to show yinz guys. Been working on this wedding thing and that's about all. Here is where I'm at on it now...


This is what it is supposed to look like when it's complete. Actually the outside borders are alot easier than they look believe it or not. The difficult part is the swan area.
I plan on taking it camping this weekend and working on it alot so I'll post my progress when I return on Monday. I'm trying to get all the outside work done by the end of May and work on the scene area (bottom half) through June. That's the part that is really difficult. I ordered these magnifying glasses to place on top of my glasses to help me with it. I currently have this thing that goes around my neck but at times it gets a bit cumbersome if you know what I mean. Just pray I can finish it in time for the wedding!

Well, now we are heading out camping for the weekend. It's a one room cabin (only beds). All cooking is done outside and such. Sorta like tenting except there's a small cabin instead of the tent. Can't wait!!!! Knowing how nervous I am about leaving the dogs in the care of my 19 year old...let alone the house for 4 days....the Sweetie Man came up with this little ditty of a poem. It definately made me laugh at how silly I am for being nervous! So enjoy, yinz guys, and have a great weekend...till next time....

LOG CABIN FEVER

We’re gonna go camping this weekend
It’s more than a bit overdue
And the thought of the solitude thrills us
Oh, we’re gonna have fun
That’s what we’re gonna do
No matter if doin’ it kills us

Three dogs and a cat and a turtle
We’re leaving behind in the dust
And we swear we won’t be lookin’ back
The son says he’s got the To-Do list
Domestically not one to trust
Here’s hoping he develops the knack

The weather appears to be iffy
But a roof we’ll enjoy overhead
Alone just us two’s all we’re asking
A cabin of logs ends our journey
No frills, just 4 walls and a bed
And with luck, maybe sun for the basking

A fridge filled with pizzas and cold cuts
And plenty of pop for the drinking
We ask ourselves “What could go wrong?”
A gal pal for those constant reminders
Who’s wondering “What are they thinking?”
Is 2 ½ days really that long?

Too FUNNY!!

I hope no one is offended by this....but a friend of mine sent this to me and I thought it was too good not to share with yinz guys....ENJOY!


WOMAN'S POEM
Before I lay me down to sleep,
I pray for a man, who's not a creep,
One who's handsome, smart and strong.
One who loves to listen long,
One who thinks before he speaks,
One who'll call, not wait for weeks.
I pray he's gainfully employed,
When I spend his cash, won't be annoyed.
Pulls out my chair and opens my door,
Massages my back and begs to do more.
Oh! Send me a man who'll make love to my mind,
Knows what to answer to "how big is my behind?"
I pray that this man will love me to no end,
And always be my very best friend.


MAN'S POEM
I pray for a deaf-mute nymphomaniac with huge boobs
who owns a liquor store and a golf course.
This doesn't rhyme and I don't give a sh-t.

Till next time, yinz crazy guys.....

Hey Kare...I'm weird too!!!

Saw this one on Kare's Blog and I just had to do it!!! Who thinks up these quizzes anyway?.....Come on, what's next..."What Half of the Butt Cheek are YOU?" I shouldn't say anything since I get sucked up in these questions myself....so, till next time, yinz crazy guys......this is "little pinky" signing off!

You Are a Pinky

You are fiercely independent, and possibly downright weird. A great communicator, you can get along with almost anyone. You are kind and sympathetic. You support all your friends - and love them for who they are. You get along well with: The Ring Finger Stay away from: The Thumb

What Finger Are You?

Don't mean to talk politics....

But hey ladies......it's time for a WOMAN PRESIDENT!!!!

And who best to carry on that role than our very own outspoken........ lady among ladies (at least the ones over 50).......my candidate for PRESIDENT for the next election......the one...the only.........

MAXINE

Maxine on "Driver Safety" "I can't use the cell phone in the car. I have to keep my hands free for making gestures.".......

Maxine on "Housework" "I do my housework in the nude. It gives me an incentive to clean the mirrors as quickly as possible."

Maxine on "Lawn Care" "The key to a nice-looking lawn is a good mower. I recommend one who is muscular and shirtless."

Maxine on "The Perfect Man" "All I'm looking for is a guy who'll do what I want, when I want, for as long as I want, and then go away. Or wait nearby, like a Dust Buster, charged up and ready when needed."

Maxine on "Technology Revolution" "My idea of rebooting is kicking somebody in the butt twice."

Maxine on "Aging" "Take every birthday with a grain of salt. This works much better if the salt accompanies a Margarita."

.....and who would best serve the office of "Second in Command".......that loveable mutt of mutts........fighting for dogs everywhere......

FLOYD....the Wonder Dog!

Whadda think, ladies??? Are ya with me?????

MAXINE....MAXINE....SHE'S OUR GAL...IF SHE CAN'T DO IT.....ah.....(what rhymes with "gal" anyway?)

Okay....enough politics.....back to crafting! Till next time, yinz crazy guys.....

Okay...I've been tagged...

Before some of my blogger buddies disown me for not following through on my tag....here goes with 8 Things About Me:

1. I like spiders. I won’t kill them. If I think they are in a place that they will get injured, I will capture them and take them to a safer place.
2. I’ve always loved books. I read a lot but wish I had time to read more. I totally get lost with the characters of a book…almost as if I’m right there meeting them myself. I absolutely love the smell of a bookstore with coffee shops in them. I could sit there and explore all day long.
3. I get cranky if I can’t do some sort of craft at least once a day be it crocheting a few rows or cross stitching something….I must do something for only a few minutes at least.
4. I hate to cook….HATE IT!!! But I enjoy baking a lot.
5. I hate to fold socks…nothing more to say about that!
6. I’m a redder-upper….everything must be neat….if there is a pile of something, I must put it in order. I hate things on tables unless they are supposed to be there like a centerpiece or something.
7. I love late 50’s/early 60’s music…I was only around 5 years old then but I just could sing that music all day long!
8. I’m a Court TV fanatic….I love court shows, Cops, America’s Most Wanted, etc….

I'm sure there are alot more things about me that are not the norm, but I was only required to do eight! I think this Meme has been around the block (or is that blog) a few times, so if you haven't done it...TAG, YOU'RE IT!
Till next time, yinz crazy guys.....

Mamas, don't let your babies...

...grow up to be cowboys.....

....or GANGSTERS??????
That's what happens when you let your kid decide for himself what he's going to give you for Mother's Day! Okay...you know it's cute and I bet a good percentage of yinz guys took a pic like this on the boardwalk too...I know I did! The first pic is my boy when he was quite a bit younger....ah, I remember those days well! Now....he's all grown up!!!!

Anyways, I had an awesome Mom's Day. The Sweetie Man let me rest all day and while I was taking a little snooze on the front porch swing, (after reading and crafting a bit) he cooked up this magnificent meal.....
And the shrimp was as delicious as it looks. He then proceeded to let me win by an incredible amount in Scrabble...tho he'll deny he "let" me win.

The flowers in my last post were given to all the ladies at my new Church along with this great basket of goodies. How nice was that!!!

My family is really enjoying this new Church. It really was a great Sunday from beginning till end!!!!

I also keep forgetting to show yinz guys the nice package I received from Joanne in the Bookmark Exchange Swap.
The envelope which the beautiful crocheted bookmark is lying on top of is a lavender sachet that smells so incredible....I gotta find just the right place for it!!! Thanks Joanne!
That's it for now. I had the day off today for election day (yes, I voted) and I did a little bit of everything. A very enjoyable day even if I was alone without the Sweetie Man....that would have made it a fantastic day! Gonna go finish up some laundry and hit the hay......so, till next time, yinz crazy guys.....

For YOU!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

I hope you all have a wonderful day and never forget the words of my favorite crabby mom......
Till next time, yinz crazy guys.......

Sorry...no pics today!

But it is FRIDAY and beautiful here in SW PA! My son went away for a little weekend get-a-way with his friends and the Sweetie Man and I will be spending the weekend all alone....OH YEAH!!! Now that's a Mother's Day present.....I'll miss him but it's nice to have some alone time too.
I do have to tell you about my Stitch In that I went to on Wednesday. I really went there with doubts that I would enjoy myself but I had the BEST time! There were about 15 ladies, all different ages, working on all different sorts of cross stitch projects. Everyone was so friendly and welcoming...believe it or not, I'm sorta shy at first but then once I feel comfortable, I'll get everyone laughing one way or another. It was one lady's birthday, so Donna, (my x-stitch gru) had a surprise cake for her. MMMMMMM....yes, I had a small piece!
I just didn't realize how nice it was to sit quietly without teenagers asking where things are, dogs fighting with each other and no cell phones ringing.....sitting just cross stitching and chatting with others for three hours! I loved it! I also got to see how others work their projects and got some tips and hints. We got to walk about the store and shop if we wanted too. It was honestly like a "drug" that I just wanted more of. Everyone said they were going to go home and stitch more and I was one of them.
I found out also how much all of us "crafters" are alike...many of the ladies had a few projects going, they knit, they crochet and they read......just like me. I truly don't know or have any friends here with the same passions I have....just all my online friends. I'm talking about ladies who TRULY love to craft and do it alot. I know people who do things here and there but not like me. It was awesome....and well worth the $5.00. Now I see why everyone loves to go to these group things. I signed up for next month and so far she has 19....I'm getting there earlier...I was fashionably late cause I was nervous but I now see I had no reason to be. We jokingly suggested she have an "overnight" stitch-in at the store. One lady said that she actually did go to one of those and it was a blast....they stayed up all night and stitched. I don't think Donna went for it though...we have time to convince her!
She's holding an all day stitch-in on a Sunday in October that is already filled. I think it was near the Sweetie Man's birthday, so I passed it up. She will continue these monthly ones through December and I definately will try to make these.
So that's about all for now.......Enjoy your weekend....till next time, yinz crazy guys........

Just a Meme....

I wasn't officially tagged for this one....or maybe I was...anyway, I liked this meme, so I'm going to do it.....so there!

1. Yourself: ARTISTIC
2. Your boyfriend/girlfriend, spouse, significant other: HAPPY
3. Your hairspray: STIFF
4. Your mother: STRONG
5. Your father: LOVEABLE
6. Your favorite item: RING
7. Your dream last night: IMPOSSIBLE
8. Your favorite drink: WINE
9. Your dream car: VOLKSWAGAN
10. The room you are in: COMPUTER
11. Your ex: LONELY
12. Your fear: ASTEROIDS
13. What you want to be in 10 years? MARRIED
14. Who you hung out with last night? FAMILY
15. What you’re not? SKINNY
16. Muffins: WARM
17. One of Your Wish List Items: PATTERNS
18. Time: LUNCH
19. The last thing you did: PEED
20. What you are wearing: DRESS
21. Your favorite weather: SPRINGY
22. Your favorite book: FICTION
23. The last thing you ate: CAKE
24. Your life: FUN
25. Your mood: HAPPY
26. Your best friend: ED
27. What are you thinking about right now? EATING
28. Your car: DODGE
29. What are you doing at the moment? BREATHING
30. Your summer: MICHIGAN
31. Your relationship status: ENGAGED
32. What is on your TV? NOTHING
33. What is the weather like? BEAUTIFUL
34. When is the last time you laughed? MORNING

Check this one out...it's harder than you think...Till next time, yinz crazy guys....

I forgot.....

Okay...I forgot my Photo Hunters pic on Friday like I promised! The weather has been so awesome here that I just haven't been on the computer. I'll do better this week!!! I also forgot to give you Stacy's blog site in the last post where she sent me all the awesome Kitchen stuff. So when you have a moment, check out Zing's Things. (Sorry Stacy...I forgot!) I took a vacation day on Friday and the Sweetie Man and I spent an awesome day in the 'burgh at the Strip District buying fish and enjoying the beautiful weather. Saturday we went shopping for plants for the garden and Sunday he planted...I sorta helped. But I must tell you, because our loveable dogs are so much bigger and much more curious this year, we had to build this fort to keep them out. Every hour or so, as they tried another way to get to the plants, we kept adding onto the fortress till we finally finished with this.....

Not very attractive, but we are hoping to keep them out....actually it's Eros who is the more curious....and with his weight, what Eros wants....Eros will find a way to get!!! (and, of course, the culprit, Mr. Sweet and Innocent.......yeah, right!)

Oh, and I can't forget the add-on to my butterfly tattoo that I got on Saturday (a sort of early Mom's day present)....it's still healing so it's still red and sore....but the end result will be beautiful....

The add-on was the butterfly bush in the background. I love it.
And I did go to my "pin and tap" class at the cross stitch store nearby. Now that was informative...best $5.00 I spent in a long time. This was a sample that we worked on...not a real cross stitch.
Those little sequins pins are put in all around then gently tapped in with a hammer. The result is a nice tight fit around the foam board with no creases. The back is then taped with a fabric tape.
My stitching gru, Donna, also went a step further and showed us exactly how she frames the cross stitch piece. If we do this procedure of pin and tap before taking it to the frame store, we can basically just pay for the cost of the frame. Great class. You may possibly be able to find how to do this on the web...I really haven't searched it though. I'll be going back to the store on Wednesday evening for my first "stitch-in" night with about 14 other people. I've never been to one, so I'm sure I'll get to meet alot of people with the same passions as I have.
Well, that's about all for today....another beautiful day here, sunny and 72 degrees......I love Spring!!!! I'm still reading everyone's blog whether I leave comments or not....so keep on keepin' on! Till next time, yinz crazy guys.....

Welcome to "Bad Driver Thursday"....

I don't know about yinz guys, but I have various theories about life in general. One of my ongoing ones is the theory that people drive wacky on Thursday. Thursday is the day you find people double parked....sleeping when the light turns green.....driving in the middle of the road...etc. I don't know if I just notice it on Thursdays or if this is a fact. My best bet is that everyone is excited about the weekend and have their minds set on something else other than the way they are driving......you just watch today and see if this isn't true!
Being as I can't show you some of the stuff I've been working on since my swap partners haven't received their packages yet....I'll show you this awesome package sent to me by Stacy. It was a Kitchen Swap at Fiber Freaks and she did a perfect job. Yinz all know that my Kitchen is peppers, peppers and more peppers.....so check out what I got....

The cookies were opened and eaten by my son...go figure! I'm on a bit of a dishcloth kick, so this new book was perfect. Thanks, again, Stacy. As soon as she receives mine, I'll show you what I made for her. I love swaps!!!

Not much more going on here. I have a cross stitch class to go to regarding getting your cross stitch project ready for framing that my stitching gru, Donna, is holding at her shop tomorrow morning. She sorta cringed when I told her I used the sticky board to frame my piece. With me working on the wedding cross stitch, I really want to do this right...provided I finish it. I'm telling you, I have never worked on anything so intricate in my life. I'll show you some updates of it next week.

We are supposed to have a beautiful stretch of weather here....high in the low 70's and low in the mid-40's at night.....you can't beat that one with a stick! So they'll be alot of porch sitting and gardening this weekend. I'll check in with you all tomorrow with this week's Photo Hunters pic.....so till next time, yinz crazy guys.....