Okay, You Caught Me.

...Hi, my name is CW and I am a procrastinator. But no more... at least for now. 5 of my friends and one family member are pregnant! Yay! I'm going to be doing 7 birth samplers between now and however long it takes. Why 7 when there's only 6 pregnancies? One of my friends has an older son who I'm also making one for so he doesn't feel left out.

There is the possibility of doing 4 more since my friend R has two boys from a previous relationship and her fiance W has two boys from his previous marriage. I've yet to ask if they want any for the boys because, well, I'm swamped. Also, this is a surprise gift for her. It's also a surprise for my Aunt S. and Uncle S. H,K, and B all know and are loving the idea.

Up first, starting tomorrow is the sampler for B's baby girl. It's called Brier Rose and is designed by Janlynn. I think her and her husband W will love it!

One last announcement. If you like to read creative writings, please check out my other blog The Cryptic Scribe Scribbles at http://crypticscribe.blogspot.com. I'm doing a 31 posts in 31 days challenge, so I have no excuse for not updating. Seriously, you can threaten me if I forget.

Undead!

Yes, that's right. CW's back. Where did I go you ask?

My life basically disintegrated around my ears. Mr. CW and I are no more. I wish him all the best and hope he knows nothing but good in life. It took me a while to become a functioning member of society (interwebs and real) but I think I have a pretty good grasp.

While this was happening, I switched schools. The world load became prohibitive of any outside activity. I've been stitching pretty steadily since the Winter '09 semester ended in May, but, well, I still lacked the motivation to write my blog in an entertaining way. No one wants an "Oh, Woe is me" post.

So... in the next few days, I'll be posting a bunch of updated work, work from new projects, the works.

A, B, C, D, E...

I saw this on Confessions of a Craft Addict (look left for the link) and figured, 'Hey, I have a huge update later, so why not do two today?' This is the ABC's of me.

Accent: Midwest meets Southern. It's really odd.
Book that I like: Wow, there are a lot. World War Z by Max Brooks was darn good.
Chore I don’t care for: Any of them. They're Chores!
Dog or Cat: Dogs. I have 4.
Essential Electronics: Cellphone!
Favorite Cologne: Anything that Mr. CW wears.
Gold or Silver: Silver
Handbag I carry most often: A small black leather clutch that I adore.
Job Title: Poor college student
Kids: Not yet.
Most Admirable Trait: Mr. CW said it's my kindness. Sure, dear.
Naughtiest Childhood Behavior: Sneaking out at night to play with the horses.
Overnight hospital stays: Many. Migraines suck.
Phobias: Spiders!
Quote: There is madness in love. But there is always some reason to madness.
Religion: pagan
Siblings: Ninja-baby
Time I wake up: Whenever it's convenient.
Unusual Talent or Skill: picking things up with my toes.
Vegetable I Refuse to Eat: Brussel sprouts.
Worst Habit: swearing like a sailor
X-rays: Tons.
Yummy Stuff: I'm addicted to hummus. Truly.
Zoo Animal I Like Most: Tigers!

Back later with my announcement.

Y'all can't get rid of me that easy!

I'm ba-a-ack! Miss me? Thought I fell off the face of the planet? Well wonder no longer, dear readers. CraftWench is back.

My life has been, to put it bluntly, circling the drain. Mr. CW's grandmother passed away (may she rest in peace), D-san (the ninja baby) decided giving the entire family a heart attack by not breathing was a good idea, my migraines are packing a huge punch, my computer is still dead, and finals happened. D-san is now being treated for apnea and finals are over. Two out of five ain't bad, I suppose.

So what does this mean for the craft-corner? No progress was made... at all. I dropped everything to deal with what life threw at me, until two nights ago. I picked up my hummingbird cross stitch, took my frustration and turned it into something positive.

I've decided to donate my hummingbirds (that one was bittersweet as it was meant for my grandmother) to a friend's rescue to auction off at a fundraiser. (http://www.arfchicago.org/) Check them out, they're a great organization.

So to get back into the swing of things, I'm answering the newest SBQ:

For seasoned stitchers: Define a stitching term or acronym for new stitchers.

Well, my favorite term has always been SABLE. SABLE means Stash Acquired Beyond Life Expectancy. I... am so there. Between what I have acquired on my own or through my pusher (Mr. CW), and what I inherited, there is no way I will ever finish.

No. More. Wires and Computers!

Okay, it's done. The ultimate implosion that was imminent has now happened. My two year old laptop decided to bite the dust today. Pictures that I was going to post today- gone. Saved patterns- gone. Can't we all just go back to the old fashioned way? You know, paper and pen?

So... in lieu of my planned post, this is more of a to-be-continued. Sorry.

Ayo, I'm tired of this technology.

So... I'm back after a slight crash of the computer, I'm back. Nothing has changed on the crafting front, but I did get one of my research papers done. So... on to new things!




When you stitch a pattern that you have downloaded do you print out the pattern or do you stitch directly from your computer screen?

I actually save them on a disc and print out copies as needed. I always have a working copy so I don't mess up the original. This makes things so much easier. That way, I have it stored neatly, and I don't have to go back to the site/search my hard drive for it or deal with trying to count on the screen.

Something Old, Something New... You Know the Rest.

For my old:

I'm recycling an SBQ question that I never answered. This one was suggested by Ternezia and is:

If you were a cross stitch designer, what would your design style be?

I think if I were a cross stitch designer, my style would be realistic wildlife. As much as I love dragons and unicorns, a beautiful tiger or deer is what will catch my eye every time.

Now for the new:

Baby D is home! He came home on Monday and things have been kind of whirl wind since then. Welcome home, little guy.

Also, I got a wonderful package from Mary at Confessions of a Craft Addict (link on the left) after winning a drawing for her blogiversary. Thank you so much! I can't wait to pull out my sewing machine and start on that bag while listening to my cd.

And something borrowed:

I found this meme on Incoherent Scribblings (also linked on the left) and decided to do it.

In a Word. One word answers for every question.

1. Where is your cellphone? - Desk
2. Relationship? - Wonderful
3. Your hair? - Red
4. Work? - School
5. Your sister? - No.
6. Your favorite thing? - Crafting
7. Your dream last night? - Weird
8. Your favorite drink? - Cappuccino
9. Your dream car? - Spyder
10. The room you’re in? - Computer
11. Your shoes? - Nike
12. Your fears? - Tarantulas
13. What do you want to be in 10 years? - Loved.
14. Who did you hang out with this weekend? - Matt
15. What are you not good at? - Math
16. Muffin? - Lemon
17. One of your wish list items? - Dragons
18. Where you grew up? - Midwest
19. Last thing you did? - Type
20. What are you wearing? - Pajamas
21. What aren’t you wearing? - Socks
22. Your pet? - Numerous
23. Your computer? - Gateway
24. Your life? - Happy
25. Your mood? - Fair
26. Missing? - Matt
27. What are you thinking about right now? - Food!
28. Your car? - Huge
29. Your kitchen? - Yellow
30. Your summer? - Far
31. Your favorite color? - Crimson
32. Last time you laughed? - Today
33. Last time you cried? - Weekend
34. School? - Gah!
35. Love? - Matt

And finally, the something blue:

My next project is the Carebear- Grumpy Bear. He's blue.

What do I do now?

SBQ time:

After you stitch a pattern or kit, what do you do with it?

Once I'm done, I usually frame them and either give them to someone or keep them for myself. Either way, I feel better when they are somewhere the Corgi known as Cheyenne can't chew them when she gets mad at me. (Trust me... it happened more than once. I've had to rebuy a few kits and a Mobile speed pass.)

On a different note, little D finally ate for the first time today! Yay! So things are looking good. Mom O' CW was released from the nut house-- I mean hospital today, and the doctor said if we cross our fingers, believe in magick, and clap our hands to show our support for fairies, he'll be able to come home Sunday. Until then, we'll be driving up and spending the day with him.

Thank you to anyone who has been praying for the little guy. It seems to be helping him a lot.

Food!

Swiped, with love, from View from an Alternate Dementia.

01. CHEESE or CHOCOLATE? Chocolate is preferable to most things.
02. BLUEBERRIES or STRAWBERRIES? Blueberries!
03. COFFEE or TEA? Coffee if I have to have either, with cream and sugar.
04. CORN MUFFIN or ENGLISH MUFFIN? English
05. PANCAKES or FRENCH TOAST? French toast is the love of my life.
06. YOGURT or CREAM CHEESE? Yogurt. I will eat cream cheese on a bagel though.
07. RICE or PASTA? Both, but more often rice.
08. CAKE or PIE? Cake.
09. GROUND BEEF or GROUND TURKEY? Turkey please. I don't eat red meat.
10. HOT DOGS or HAMBURGERS? Um, a turkeyburger? Hot dogs are too close to mystery meat for me.
11. JELLY or MARMALADE? Jelly
12. AMERICAN CHEESE or SWISS CHEESE? Ew. Swiss I guess.
13. DIET SODA or NO SODA? No soda.
14. LEMONADE or ICED TEA? Lemonade
15. CHERRIES or GRAPES? cherries
16. CHOCOLATE QUIK or STRAWBERRY QUIK? Neither!
17. WAFFLES or PANCAKES? Both.
18. WHITE BREAD or WHOLE-GRAIN/WHEAT BREAD? white
19. PEAS or CARROTS? Uncooked carrots
20. PUDDING or FRUIT-FLAVORED GELATIN? pudding
21. COLD CEREAL or HOT CEREAL? cold cereal
22. KETCHUP or MUSTARD? ketchup
23. MUSTARD or MAYONNAISE? mustard
24. MAYONNAISE or KETCHUP? ketchup
25. BLACK OLIVES or GREEN OLIVES? Neither! Ew!
26. ONION or GARLIC? I'm allergic to both.
27. PLAIN BARBECUE or BARBECUE WITH SAUCE? Dry rubbed
28. SCRAMBLED EGGS or FRIED EGGS? scrambled
29. EGGS or EGG REPLACEMENTS? eggs
30. MEAT or VEGETABLES? meat
31. CHINESE TAKE-OUT or PIZZA? chinese take out
32. SUSHI or DELI SANDWICH? deli sandwich
33. WHITE CLAM CHOWDER or RED CLAM CHOWDER? White because I've never had the red.
34. KEY LIME PIE or LEMON MERANGUE PIE? Lemon Merangue
35. PIE & ICE CREAM or CAKE & ICE CREAM? Cake and ice cream, though apple pie with vanilla ice cream is a close second
36. WHIPPED CREAM or CAKE FROSTING? whipped cream
37. HONEY or MAPLE SYRUP? honey

Happy Birthday to a Princely Boy.

Happy birthday, puppy-man! My Lhasa Apso, Prince, turns 13 today. It seems like just yesterday we were bringing home from the shelter at 8 weeks old.

Passing the Time

This SBQ was suggested by Outi (http://snowprincipe ssa.livejournal. com/). Thanks for the great question.


What is your favorite past time while stitching? Do you just enjoy silence, listen to music/audio books or do you "watch" TV/movies? Do you have specific favorites you listen to/watch while stitching?


Usually when I am stitching, I'm watching a movie or a favorite TV show. They are almost always something I've seen 5,000 times. That way I can "watch" without focusing on the details. I do have favorites. For TV, it's House. For a movie, it's a comedy, one I don't have to think too hard about.


On another, slightly unrelated note, I now know that the CW house is expanding in a masculine way. I officially have a baby brother. Sweet! Now, if only I can keep my parents from giving the poor boy a cringe-worthy name, it'll be all good.

A cute meme I found on View from an Alternate Dementia

I thought this was adorable and wanted to play along. I hope she doesn't mind. Besides, we all need an off-topic day now and then.



How to name your band...

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:RandomThe first article title on the page is the name of your band.

• Mine turned out to be http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barcelona_School_of_Film

2. http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3: The last four words of the very last quote is the title of your album.

• My quote was "Never be haughty to the humble; never be humble to the haughty." Jefferson Davis

3. http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7daysThe third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.



4. Use your graphics program of choice to throw them together, then post the result.And the result is:





That has to be the most random band I have ever seen. They would probably be Emo. What do you think?

My blog will be back on topic tomorrow. I plan to update the baby drama and also post pictures of my current WIPS.