Final 8 in 2013 Update

I'm coming to terms with the fact that I will not be accomplishing all my 8 in 2013 goals but I do feel pretty good with what I did get done.

My 8 in 2013 goals were:

• 2 cross stitch patterns (Woodland Sampler and Wee Little Stitches Star Wars people) 
• 2 quilts (One for Molly and finish up my Pinwheel Quilt)
• 2 knitted projects (a Year in Temperatures scarf  and my Smitten Advent Calendar) 
• 2 photography challenges (Fat Mum Slim's January Challenge and Documenting Chicken Nugget in Utero) 

I am not going to finish the two quilts. I haven't even started them and with less than two weeks left in the year, it is not going to happen. I am hoping to catch up on the Woodland Sampler but figure I can always finish it in 2014. I did finish one of my cross stitch goals and two of my knitted goals (well the scarf needs the last two weeks of temps but they haven't happened yet). I'm also nearly done with Documenting Chicken Nugget in Utero and I have done almost all of Fat Mum Slim's photo challenges this year. 

While I did not accomplish all that I set out to do, I still feel pretty good with my goals. Next year will be goal-less. I'm having a baby in a few days and I am not going to set myself up for failure. 2014 will be spent getting to know Chicken Nugget, playing hard with Molly and having fun as a family. Crafty goals can wait. I'll craft when I'm able. 

I'm Smitten with my Smitten Holiday Advent Calendar!

I did it! I finished my Smitten Holiday Advent Calendar! I have to say once I got on a roll with the mittens, they actually went really fast. The problem for me was keeping my attention focused enough to make all 24 mittens. 

I ended up making four mittens in six color variations: white, red, green, white/red stripe, red/green stripe and white/green stripe. I really like how they all look together! 

So now I've crossed another goal off my 8 in 2013 goals:

• 2 cross stitch patterns (Woodland Sampler and Wee Little Stitches Star Wars people) Need to catch up on the Woodland Sampler. The final pattern comes out in two weeks!
• 2 quilts (One for Molly and finish up my Pinwheel Quilt) Need to start this goal!
• 2 knitted projects (a Year in Temperatures scarf  and my Smitten Advent Calendar) I'm done with the Smitten Advent Calendar and only a few weeks behind on the scarf. 
• 2 photography challenges (Fat Mum Slim's January Challenge and Documenting Chicken Nugget in Utero) These are either done or fully in progress!

8 in 2013 Update

I started the year off with a bang and dove full force into my goals. As the year trudges along, I feel them slipping a bit and am putting on a big push to get them done!

For review, here are my 8 in 2013 goals:

• 2 cross stitch patterns (Woodland Sampler and Wee Little Stitches Star Wars people)
• 2 quilts (One for Molly and finish up my Pinwheel Quilt)
• 2 knitted projects (a Year in Temperatures scarf  and my Smitten Advent Calendar)
• 2 photography challenges (Fat Mum Slim's January Challenge and Documenting Chicken Nugget in Utero) 

I've finished two of my eight goals (Fat Mum Slim's January Challenge and Wee Little Stitches Star Wars). I'm steadily working on four of my other goals (Woodland Sampler, a Year in Temperatures scarf , Smitten Advent Calendar and Documenting Chicken Nugget) but I have yet to really get going on my two quilt projects. 

I need to get caught up on my Woodland Sampler, a Year in Temperatures scarf and Smitten Advent Calendar before I tackle the quilt projects. I am currently up to June on the Sampler (ermm, OK I still have to do April's square) and July on the scarf. I have 9 more mittens to knit for the advent calendar.  I'd really like to get all caught up on these in the next month so I can focus on the quilting projects. So much to do with my self-imposed goals! Off to craft! 

July Photo A Day (and June too!)

I've been keeping up my Photo a Day habit (only missing a photo here and there). I thought it would be nice to show off July and June's photos.

July's Photos

1. Happiness is...#fmsphotoaday a stop at the wading pool while strolling Greenlake., 2. Shoes #fmsphotoaday, 3. Cold #fmsphotoaday Met the ladies for drinks and my Diet Coke had a mustache straw!, 4. Red, white or red #fmsphotoaday Rose Destruction! Some sweet lady gave Molly a rose. 5 seconds later she destroyed it., 5. Love #fmsphotoaday, 6. Fav Smell #fmsphotoaday, 7. Where I Was #fmsphotoaday the Ballard's Farmers Market!, 8. Path #fmsphotoaday Molly on the path to swimming lessons., 9. 3 Things #fmsphotoaday 3 Toothbrushes, 1 for each of us, 10. Smooth #fmsphotoaday Smooth Roving, 11. What I Wore #fmsphotoaday  I swear I changed more times today than usual. This is my final outfit. Comfy PJs, 12. A Bad Habit #fmsphotoaday I've been better lately but there was a point where I was getting a No Water Chai Tea Latte every single day. $$$ I got one today because Molly wouldn't nap so I resorted to the car where the nap gods got her and I got a quiet mo, 13. 4 o'clock Walking with Molly and Pop-Pop #fmsphotoaday, 14. Edible #fmsphotoaday Eggs Benedict, 15. Outside the Window #fmsphotoaday Molly spent a long time waving and shouting bye-bye long after our friends had left., 16. Bottle #fmsphotoaday my current favorite water bottle, 17. Inspiration #fmsphotoaday This may look like a mess but it is inspiration to me! I started sorting my yarn for a major destash today and I'm so excited about it., 18. Number #fmsphotoaday, 19. Building #fmsphotoaday FUN through art!, 20. Hot #fmsphotoaday my latte was perfectly hot this morning (and pretty too!), 21. Fav Food #fmsphotoaday Always Mexican! I'm happy Seattle has some ethnically diverse Mexican food., 22. Grey #fmsphotoaday, 23. Starts with D #fmsphotoaday my two-headed deer!, 24. The everyday #fmsphotoaday, 25. Black/White #fmsphotoaday

June's Photos

1. Starts with B #fmsphotoaday Babies!, 2. A Moment #fmsphotoaday just hanging in the backyard with the family while dinner cooks., 3. On the table #fmsphotoaday the breakfast table, 4. Environment #fmsphotoaday today was a beautiful day in my environment., 5. Transport #fmsphotoaday Molly riding in her favorite car!, 6. Bright #fmsphotoaday, 7. Animal #fmsphotoaday my brother's dog, Phoenix who I accidentally dumped water on after I snapped this shot., 8. From down low #fmsphotoaday, 9. Me! #fmsphotoaday Enjoying the sunshine!, 10. Something Funny #fmsphotoaday Molly has some new sunglasses and they are hilarious!, 11. Greenlake Ducks #nofilter, 12. Kitchen #fmsphotoaday The one room that never remains clean no matter how hard I try to keep it clean., 13. Texture #fmsphotoaday Melmo!, 14. From above #fmsphotoaday, 15. Family #fmsphotoaday Molly and Grandpa, 16. Centered #fmsphotoaday I am centered when watching Molly and her little friends, especially when they hold hands., 17. Street #fmsphotoaday, 18. What I'm Reading #fmsphotoaday Flavia DeLuce! My favorite girl detective., 19. Cute #fmsphotoaday I'm biased but I think this is the cutest little girl., 20. Lunchtime #fmsphotoaday This is how lunchtime ended for a grumpy little girl today., 21. Enjoying Life #fmsphotoaday After enjoying some fro-yo, we took Molly to the water park.  She was thrilled!, 22. Last #fmsphotoaday We're in the (hopefully) last stretch of the basement re-do. As a side note, I'm so tired right now and we still need to do the bathroom floor!, 23. Negative Space #fmsphotoaday a mitten, many more to go., 24. Sharp #fmsphotoaday my knitting needles are sharp., 25. Empty #fmsphotoaday

I'll be uploading August's Photos here based on prompts from Fat Mum Slim!

Chicken Nugget - 15 weeks

When I got pregnant with Molly, I thought about doing a weekly photo shoot to show the changes in my body. Then I got self conscious because honestly, I am soft and squishy. I have nice padding on my belly for a child to rest their head which is nice for a child but poor at showing pregnancy changes. 

This time however, I've decided to document it anyway. Sure, I'll never have the cute basketball bump that some women get but I do get a bigger belly. Heck it is already bigger! I moved into maternity pants way sooner this time around. My regular pants got uncomfortable very quickly! 

My week changes on Thursdays which is funny because it changed on Thursdays with Molly who also happened to be born on a Thursday. I think we like Thursday around here. I'm going to post my weekly photos on Saturdays since I have some graphic work to do once I take the photo. I can't wait to see the whole set ending with an outside Chicken Nugget! 

8 in 2013 - Smitten Holiday Advent Garland Mittens

I've been diligently working along on my Smitten Holiday Advent Garland Mittens and I am almost halfway done. I have 11 completed mittens and one on the needles. I am. however, questioning my original plan for the color combinations.



Originally I planned to knit four mittens in each of the following color combinations -Red, Green, White, Red/White Stripe, Green/White Stripe, Red/Green Stripe to end up with 24 mittens. But now I'm wondering if I should knit six in Red, Green, White and two each in Red/White Stripe, Green/White Stripe, Red/Green Stripe.



I posed this question to a knitting friend who gave me even more ideas! She suggested six of each stripe combination and four of each of the solids. Then in true creative fashion, her husband told me to mock-up the design which only led me to more ideas.



In the end, I've decided to pose the question to my readers in a simple blog poll. Please vote and let your friends know! I need to make a decision and I need your help.

   

8 in 2013 - Pixel People - Star Wars - Enemies Finished!

In January, I talked about my 8 in 2013 goals and over the weekend, I finished another one! I finished the Wee Little Stitches Star Wars Enemies cross stitch.



I've been differing on this project and on Saturday night, I decided to just finish it. Now I need to decide what to do with it. I don't see Scott enjoying a framed cross stitch project in his office so I'm thinking about making it into a pillow for the guest room/craft room. He uses the room for exercising and could enjoy the pillow there.



This was a fun and could have been a quick project. Wee Little Stitches has a ton of these kind of cross stitch projects. I'm trying to resist purchasing them all!



My 8 in 2013 goals (and their status)

• 2 cross stitch patterns (Woodland Sampler (I'm behind on this but plan to catch up this week) and Wee Little Stitches Star Wars people)
• 2 quilts (One for Molly and finish up my Pinwheel Quilt) - I am nowhere near finishing these projects but once my craft room is back together, I hope to be able to get working on them.
• 2 knitted projects (a Year in Temperatures scarf  and my Smitten Advent Calendar) - I'm also behind on my scarf but that would be easy to catch up on. I haven't knit on mittens in awhile so I think I need to figure out a weekly goal for myself so I can get this done. I mean there are only 24 mittens to do and I think I have 6 of them already done.
• 2 photography challenges (Fat Mum Slim's January Challenge  and something else that I need to decide on) I've decided on my new photography challenge and expect to be starting and announcing it in a few weeks.

May Photo a Day

Another month of daily photos from Fat Mum Slim prompts! I had a great time taking these photos and am looking forward to continuing on with another month of daily photos. I'm really having fun stretching my photography skills as some of these prompts are hard and give me quite the challenge. This month I'm going to try to take more photos with my Nikon than with my iPhone even though my iPhone is a great camera.

Interested in joining us in June? Find the prompts at Fat Mum Slim!

1. What I Bought #fmsphotoaday, 2. Morning Ritual #fmsphotoaday All the coffee!, 3. This is really good! #fmsphotoaday sun + Molly = good stuff!, 4. In my cup #fmsphotoaday COFFEE!, 5. Paper #fmsphotoaday wherein I read Louise Penny, a Canadian author whilst in Canada!, 6. Broken #fmsphotoaday a broken pedal on a tricycle, 7. Something that starts with F #fmsphotoaday BCFerries, 8. Shape #fmsphotoaday Beach Logs have great shapes!, 9. A snack #fmsphotoaday Gelato makes a perfect vacation snack, 10. Stars #fmsphotoaday, 11. A Smile #fmsphotoaday Molly had the biggest smile when we let her play at the train table after breakfast., 12. I Ran Like A Mother! And my fans cheered like family!, 13. Sunset #fmsphotoaday, 14. 7 am #fmsphotoaday Morning drinks and playtime, 15. Need #fmsphotoaday I need my iPad and knitting (and a better memory to post photos I took on the proper day), 16. Mailbox #fmsphotoaday We have a funky mailbox, 17. Season #fmsphotoaday Spring is alive and well in Seattle., 18. Want #fmsphotoaday I really wanted dessert tonight so I made Banana Cream pudding layered with mini nilla wafers & topped with whipped cream., 19. View #fmsphotoaday one of my favorite views is watching Molly play. She's diapering her dolly here., 20. Light #fmsphotoaday I liked the light on Molly at the playground this afternoon, 21. I care about this #fmsphotoaday pain in the butt cat! Kato drives me crazy but I love him almost as much as Molly does., 22. Change #fmsphotoaday found in my purse (forgot to post this yesterday), 23. PJs (and rain boots) #fmsphotoaday this is how we roll to swim lessons, 24. Go! #fmsphotoaday, 25. US #fmsphotoaday, 26. Fave thing to do #fmsphotoaday is spend time with my smooshies!, 27. Can't Live Without #fmsphotoaday my smooshie (even when he is sick) xoxo, 28. What I'm doing now #fmsphotoaday Walking Greenlake with @kelseym and getting drenched! It was a great walk in the end though full of good conversation., 29. Kiss #fmsphotoaday kisses from momma, 30. Tools #fmsphotoaday these are the tools of my trade, 31. 4 Things #fmsphotoaday Four stuffed animals32. Not available33. Not available34. Not available35. Not available

April Photo a Day

I'm a few days late showing this but here are my April Photo a Days. I'm continuing on with May! I get all of my photo prompts from FatMumSlim. Come join us!

1. Play #fmsphotoaday Molly and I play a lot!, 2. Blue #fmsphotoaday this blue bowl used to hold decorative pieces. Now it is yet another container for toys., 3. Starts with A #fmsphotoaday Apples and Avocados, 4. This happened today #fmsphotoaday Molly discovered the train table at the pool., 5. Something Good #fmsphotoaday My wee cherry tree is in full bloom glory!, 6. Air #fmsphotoaday Playing in the fresh, cold air this morning., 7. Dreamy #fmsphotoaday, 8. On my plate #fmsphotoaday we had buffalo chicken salad for dinner., 9. Tiny #fmsphotoaday my wardrobe only has the tiniest bit of color., 10. A Place #fmsphotoaday At the doctor's with the whiny sick child., 11. Detail #fmsphotoaday, 12. In The Middle #fmsphotoaday Kato always lies in between Scott & I after Molly goes to bed., 13. View from my bed #fmsphotoaday there always seems to be a cat butt in my view., 14. Water #fmsphotoaday, 15. Alone #fmsphotoaday I am never alone anymore but when I am, I knit, read and catch up on Ravelry., 16. Favorite Color #fmsphotoaday I don't really have a favorite color but if I did, it might be pink!, 17. Busy #fmsphotoaday Molly is a busy, busy little girl., 18. Hello #fmsphotoaday oh hai!, 19. Button #fmsphotoaday Selecting buttons for Molly's re-do sweater., 20. On my mind...#fmsphotoaday, 21. Fire #fmsphotoaday This Liesl Cowl is on fire!, 22. Blur #fmsphotoaday Molly was a blur of energy at gymnastics today., 23. Time #fmsphotoaday Tonight was my monthly happy hour with my PEPS ladies. It was time for a beer., 24. Someone I saw today #fmsphotoaday I saw Miss Molly all day. She was full of vigor and toddlerness., 25. Life is ... Fun and Messy! #fmsphotoaday, 26. Childhood #fmsphotoaday is playing in the sand on the beach., 27. Earth #fmsphotoaday secret kitty!, 28. My Sunday #fmsphotoaday Ran 8 miles then came home to this adorable child who was full of adventure!, 29. What I wore #fmsphotoaday it was chilly today so I bundled up with my new Lucy sweatshirt, 30. Glasses #fmsphotoaday I need to wear my reading glasses more.31. Not available32. Not available33. Not available34. Not available35. Not available36. Not available

Temps! High Temps!

My temperature scarf is coming along nicely. It's been a nice 5 minute break from the day. My routine has been to first visit the NOAA National Weather Service Forecast Office website to see what the high temperature was the day before. Then I sit and knit one row of my scarf in the appropriate color. 

As you can see, it has been a cold January around here. Not as cold as some parts of the country but chilly nonetheless! This project has jump-started my creative juices. I'm already thinking of doing a scarf next year that reflects the LOW temps. 

But first I need to concentrate on this project and weave in some scarf ends so I don't have to face them at the end of the year. 

8 in 2013 - 31 photos from January

Earlier this month, I said I was going to complete the Fat Mum Slim January Photo a Day Challenge and I did it! Not every photo was well thought out or even well executed but all were done! I had so much fun that I plan to continue on with the challenge by doing February's Photo a Day. You can see all the photos on Flickr.

And that is one project from my 8 in 2013 challenge completed!

8 in 2013

I've been thinking about the 8 in 2013 challenge and how I want to personally tackle that challenge. I've decided that I am going to complete 2 things in 4 different crafting arenas.

• 2 cross stitch patterns (Woodland Sampler and Wee Little Stitches Star Wars people)
• 2 quilts (One for Molly and finish up my Pinwheel Quilt)
• 2 knitted projects (a Year in Temperatures scarf  and my Smitten Advent Calendar)
• 2 photography challenges (Fat Mum Slim's January Challenge and something else that I need to decide on)

I'm really excited about these challenges/goals. I'm a very goal focused person and having plans laid out is quite thrilling for me. I have many more goals and challenges floating around in my mind but I've decided to narrow it down to keep myself in line. Sometimes limiting oneself means that you actually accomplish something instead of just starting a lot of things. I'm very good at starting and only OK at finishing things.