The Weekend in Pictures

Whooooo are you??

I got these cuties at Hobby Lobby this past weekend when I got my yarn.

John has been bringing home lots of plants that have been on sale at "the big orange machine", as he calls it. These sweet owls were also on sale, so I snatched them up! Anyone who knows me knows I love anything bird related. I don't have many (or any) owls though.

I put a succulent plant called a Paddle Plant in each planter.

If anyone has any good tips on caring for these plants, please fill me in. I tend to have a brownish, blackish thumb when it comes to plants. I would like for these guys to survive.

Look what I've been buying...



I am seeing a color theme here. I don't know what it is about blues, but they just appeal to me. Tuesday Morning had yarn in their flyer last week, so I knew I wanted to get over there to get some. I went today and found the yarn on the far left as well as the solid blue baby yarn. I got the chenille yarn at Hobby Lobby on clearance this past weekend. The yarn on the right is a soft, fuzzy yarn I found at Wal-mart when I got the pink yarn I am knitting AK's scarf with. Speaking of...



It's gotten a bit longer since the last picture. This is only my 3rd knitting experience. I think I may have pulled my stitches too tight because it's pretty thick and dense, not very flexible and squishy. Anyway, I hope it turns out good in spite of that.

Back to the yarn...



I have this yarn that came with my Knit a Washcloth kit that my Mom gave me several years ago. I plan on trying another washcloth soon.

Now, hold on to your socks. Here is the yarn AK picked out for me to make her next scarf (because every 5 year old needs multiple scarves).



It actually looks better in this picture than it does in person. If I had to describe it using one word I would say BRIGHT!

I can't wait to use all of it in various projects. I just have to figure out what to make!

The Weekend in Pictures

I have seen other blogs feature a "Wordless Wednesday" or other days where they just post pictures on their blogs. I thought I would start that on Sundays. I will post pictures from our weekend. If you have any questions about what was going on in the picture, or where the picture was taken...just leave me a COMMENT! Have I mentioned that I love comments? I check for them several times a day :) Here we go!

Have a great week!

One Small Change for March

It's that time again...the end of one month and the beginning of another. That means it is time to reflect on my One Small Change for February. February's change was to switch from plastic water bottles to reusable stainless steel. You can read about it here. This change has been successful, but not as easy as January's change, which was surprising to me. The hard part for me is having to wash my bottles every night. I was trying to get by with only buying 2 bottles. I had three, but one makes my water taste funny, so I'm down to two. I am not a fan of washing dishes. It ranks up there with putting away clean laundry and emptying the dishwasher...shudder. I get tired of scrubbing my water bottles every night, but I have done it! I have not drank out of a plastic water bottle except for when we went to my cousin's son's birthday party. They had bottled water for guests. I plan to continue with this change, but I will have to add a couple of more bottles to my collection. That way maybe I can just wash every other night!

So I have been thinking about a change for March, and I decided my change will be to use reusable bags for shopping. I do this already...sort of. I have a good collection of bags, but I always seem to leave them at home or even in the car! My plan is to use them everywhere I shop, not just the grocery store.



I bought 5 of the Earth Saver bags off of eBay a year or so ago. I looked there today, but the seller does not have anything listed right now. I get compliments on them from store clerks because they stand up when they are open. They are made of a burlap material and have a waterproof lining. They hold a lot! I also have a couple of bags I bought at Publix during Christmas. I feel weird taking Publix bags into other grocery stores. Should I worry about that? Is it bad manners? Comments??

Scrub a dub dub

I finished! I finished my first knitting project. It is by no means perfect...very imperfect actually, but I finished! I am now the proud creator of a misshapen, slightly holey, knitted washcloth!

Take a look for yourself...



You can see I made a few mistakes, and I forgot whether I should be knitting or purling a few times, but it just makes it that much more unique...don't you think?

Now, I just wish I had known I was supposed to weave in the yarn tails! I tied them in knots :) Maybe that is my next lesson.

For the Birds

We had beautiful weather this weekend. Although I am not a big "outside person" I finally decided to get off the couch and go outside with AK this afternoon. She was anxiously awaiting the return of her friend EG. He and his Daddy had gone to ride motorcycles and had promised to call when they got home. While she made grass salad in the bird bath, I tried to get a few pictures of my little feathered friends. I was more successful today than I was during the Backyard Bird Count. I caught this little guy several times...




There was also a pair of house finches hanging around, but they were pretty wary of me and wouldn't come to the feeder until I was far, far away. I did zoom in and get a few shots of them in the tree...




I heard this guy before I saw him. He kept his back to me, but you can see his black and white markings in this shot. He is a downy woodpecker...



All of a sudden I heard squeals of joy! AK had seen EG and his daddy drive by in their truck.



EG came over to play and I got this cute shot of these to BFFs.



After this, my bird photography session was pretty much over. I was held hostage in the backyard and put in "jail" until Aunt Pammy came to the rescue and took my place. I did witness a bird party going on at the feeders. It was rudely interrupted several times by a red-bellied woodpecker who was enjoying swinging from one of the feeders as he munched and crunched. I wish I had gotten pictures, but maybe next time!