Time To Pay It Forward

While I was on my recent break from blogging, I received a package in the mail from Ireland! It was from my friend Leanne. Leanne is the industrious sort, taking care of her husband and daughter, cooking from scratch, creating and selling jewelry and other crafts; she's even planning on installing a skylight in her garage! She maintains not one, but three blogs: See The Woods and the Trees; See The Woods, Simply Food; and See The Woods Designs. For all I know, she has a half dozen more blogs out there...wouldn't surprise me a bit!

A while back, Leanne participated in the Pay It Forward Meme, offering to send a specialized homemade gift to the first three people who responded to her post and asked for one. Of course, I jumped all over that!

Here's what she sent: A wonderful knitted coffee cup cozy, a set of 4 (K-N-I-T) stitch markers, and two little handmade notebooks. I love them all! I can't wait for cooler weather to try out the cup cozy, and I'm always searching my purse or glove box for a bit of paper to write down a note or two. The stitch holders will come in handy, too; I'm determined to do more knitting this fall and winter.


Now it's my turn to Pay It Forward!

Here's How It Works:

The first three people to comment on this post (and this post only) will receive a handmade item from me within three months, completely free of charge. I have some great readers and this is a great way for me to reward some of them. You don't get a set date, but just know that some day within the next three months, you'll receive a little surprise from me.

The Catch (of course there's a catch):

You agree to Pay It Forward yourself after you receive your gift from me. Or even before you receive it. Send a gift to the first three people who respond to your post. The gifts should be handmade, by you, and somehow personalized for that person.

So, who's in? I'm feeling crafty today!

Some Things About Me

I've been tagged by Leanne at See the Woods and The Trees.

This meme is a bit more thought provoking that most. The instructions are:

1. Respond and rework; answer the questions on your blog, replace one question that you dislike with a question of your invention, and/or add one more question of your own (don't feel obliged as it's quite long already!)

2. Tag eight other people. As I've mentioned before, I don't tag, but feel free to copy this if you'd like to play. I'd really like to read your answers, so be sure to let me know you've played.

What is your current obsession? Gardening. I'm not obsessed in the "read everything I can get my hands on to learn about it" way, but it's my current top hobby and I'm finding much enjoyment in it this year.

What is your weirdest obsession? I guess I'm a bit obsessed with numbers and tracking things. I track our spending. I track our utility usage. I track how much TV we watch and how much food we get from our garden. I track how much money I spend at garage sales and how much I make on eBay when I re-sell the things I buy at garage sales. Oddly enough, one thing I've never tracked or obsessed over is my weight.

Coffee or tea? Tea. I do enjoy coffee and drink a cup or two almost every day. Tea, on the other hand, is almost a necessity for me. Hardly a day passes that I don't drink at least one glass or cup of tea, and usually much more than that. I like all kinds of teas - green, white, herbal, flavored - but my favorite is just Lipton Orange Pekoe (black) tea, made strong and sweet.

What’s for dinner? By the time supper rolls around, we'll be setting up camp. To keep things quick and simple, we'll be having taco salads; most of the ingredients were prepped here at home before we left. They were supposed to be those "Walking Tacos" that each person assembles in their own little bag of crushed Doritos, but I'm too cheap frugal to buy the little bags of chips. We'll be making them in little disposable bowls leftover from one day last winter when Shane took homemade soup in for his work crew. Not very green, but very cheap frugal.

What have you just made? In the kitchen, I last made some Sausage Pinwheels and some Coconut Blondies to take to camp with us. In the craft room, the last thing I completed was a baby afghan. The last thing I started was a shorts and top outfit for Kat. I got it cut out and partially sewn - I really need to get back to it and finish it.

What are you listening to right now? Kat's cartoons from a couple of rooms away.

What is your favorite ice cream flavor? I'm not a big fan of ice cream, but when I do want some, I like chocolate chip (the kind with the tiny little flecks of chocolate throughout, not big chips) or something with cherries in it. My favorite sundae toppings are butterscotch or caramel.

What do you think of the person(s) who tagged you? Leanne's got her act together as a mom and homemaker. Because of this, I was surprised when I learned how young she is. :) I also think she is very creative, and I enjoy learning little bits about Ireland and Irish culture from her blog.

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go? To a massage therapist. A massage would be heavenly right now. Preferably full-body, but even just a back massage would be great.

Which language do you want to learn? I know bits and pieces of both Spanish and German, but really only to read and not to speak. I'd like to become fluent in both, but especially Spanish.

What’s your favorite quote (for now)? It changes from time to time, but I like the one on my header for now: "Happiness consists not in having much, but in being content with little." -- Marguerite Gardiner, Countess of Blessington.

What is your favorite color? I don't have just one. I like earthy tones - browns, rusts, greens. I used to love cobalt blue, and my eyes are still drawn to that color, but I think it's more out of habit than it is real attraction.

What is your favorite piece of clothing in your own wardrobe? I have a very soft jersey knit top in a swirled pattern of white, oranges, rusts, black with a kind of clasp at the bust line. I picked it up at a garage sale for pennies. It's very much NOT what I consider "my type" of clothing, but I love the colors and it's SO comfortable that I find myself wearing it often. It didn't hurt that Shane said he liked it, too.

What is your dream job? I have my dream job staying home, taking care of the home and garden and raising our granddaughter. I didn't actually realize it was my dream job until it happened, though. When I was a single mom and HAD to work, I always assumed I'd be bored as a SAHM. How wrong I was!

What is your worst habit? Procrastinating. Specifically, working in too much detail on projects or chores I enjoy, intentionally or unintentionally leaving myself little time for projects or chores that I don't like as well.

If you had £100 now, what would you spend it on? First I'd convert that to dollars, finding that today I'd have about $165. Then I'd probably save half of it and take the other half with me to garage sales.

Do you admire anyone’s style? In a fashion sense, not really. I do admire writing styles, humor styles, personalities, etc. And I do notice when someone's sense of fashion seems to enhance their true personality...and when it goes against it.

Describe your personal style? I don't think I have a style, especially when it comes to fashion. I value comfort over all else and usually blend in to the crowd. I like quirky clothing, but only if it pleases me and never just to draw attention to myself.

What are you going to do after this? Finish getting ready to go camping.

What is your favorite fruit? A nice ripe pear. The kind that drips all over the front of your chin and shirt when you bite into it.

What inspires you? I'm primarily inspired by things I read and music I hear. I'm sometimes inspired by other people, their achievements and my (nighttime) dreams.

Your favorite book? As with types music, I find it very difficult to pick a favorite book. A blogger I once read (I've forgotten who it was) described herself as a "book slut" because she read all types of books by all kinds of authors, regardless of what was considered popular or proper. That describes me well.

Do you collect something? I don't collect anything just for the sake of collecting. That said, I have a decent collection of cookbooks and other books. I have a dozen or so beaded bracelets that I forget to wear. At one time I owned about 500 music CDs. And I often collect dust.

What are you most proud of? I'd have to say my marriage. Shane and I had something of a whirlwind courtship. We met on a Saturday, he moved in with me the following Thursday, we were unofficial engaged that same week, official engaged within a month and got married eight months after we met. Add to that the fact that he was just 23 when we got married, but I was 36. I'm sure there were a lot people who didn't think it would work. We've been together almost ten years, and married nine of those, and our relationship is better than ever.

How many times do you press the snooze button before you get up? None. I either wake up on my own before the alarm goes off, or I get up when it goes off. Snooze alarms are just another form of procrastination.

Cats or dogs? Cats, without a doubt. We have three in the house and currently four outside (see yesterday's post). I don't mind some kinds of dogs, but I have no desire to own one.

What’s your biggest fashion mistake? Leanne mentioned a perm and I'd have to agree. No matter how large the perm rods or how long my hair is, my "style" turns out to be an afro.

Complete the following: Love is...not at all what I thought it was when I was young and foolish.

What would you like to make next? Clothing for myself. But ask me again in five minutes and the answer will be different. The reason I have so many unfinished craft projects is because I'm always thinking ahead to what I want to make next. Often at the sake of enjoying what I'm working on currently.

A Meme

Lisa tagged me with the 6 Quirky Things About Me Meme. Most of what I think is quirky about myself I've already talked about elsewhere, but here goes. Sorry if you've heard it all before.


1. Each year I try to have all of my Christmas shopping before Thanksgiving, but this presents a problem, because I absolutely hate shopping for toys. I obviously have no inner child.

2. I can't sleep if I'm cold, and I especially don't like for my pillow to be cold. Seems most people prefer a cooler environment for sleeping.

3. I often dip French fries in mayo, but never in ketchup. I acquired this taste from Shane on our first date. Before I met him, always ate my fries plain.

4. Although I will drink coffee or tea from anything, I prefer to use a clear glass mug or cup.

5. Just a few months ago...I watched the movie "E.T." for the first time.

6. I do not want any more children (and Shane has taken measures to make sure we don't have any), yet I sometimes amuse myself thinking up names for the kids I'm not going to have.



I don't tag, but let me know if you play. I'd love to hear about your quirks!

Catching Up with Tags

Lisa at Living Easy tagged me last week with a "3 Things" meme, and Donna at Made In Heaven tagged me with a "5 Things" meme way back in January. I'm not going to make you suffer through eight things, but I will do five. I'm not going to tag anyone, but feel free to play if you like.


THREE RANDOM THINGS ABOUT ME

1. I grew up in a frugal family. My parents raised six kids on one salary, saving, recycling and reusing anything they could. They supplemented their income by buying things cheap at garage sales and reselling them at their own garage sales for a little more than they paid. They still do this, although it's been a long time since they've had kids living at home. All of my brothers and sisters and their families are frugalites in one way or another.


2. I've always loved food and cooking. I got an Easy Bake oven when I was 7 years old. I went through the little mixes in a day and immediately moved on to full-size cakes in the full-size oven. As a teenager, on the rare occasions we would make a trip to a mall, I never understood why my brother spent his allowance at the arcade. I spent mine in the food court.


3. I was always good at higher math in school, and even won ribbons and medals in math competitions, but I didn't have a clue how to set up an effective budget for our household until five years ago. I think managing household finances is an important skill that should be taught in school.







4. I am intrigued by the Amish. Not their religion, but the pure simplicity of their lifestyle. They seem perfectly happy with their "less is more" philosophy. I'm not sure I could ever live as simply as they do, but parts of their lifestyle are very appealing to me.




5. On the other hand, one of my goals, and Shane's, is to be debt-free before retirement so we can afford to buy an RV, either a 5th wheel or a bus. Being able to afford fuel to actually take it on the road will be an entirely different challenge.