Week 25

Do you ever have a week that you’re so busy that it actually seems like it’s longer than a week? That’s the way this week seemed to me. It was vacation week for both of us and we decided to stay close to home, but wanted something to do that was special. We’ve been to Branson many times, but a person can go many times and still not do and see everything. That’s why we chose to go to Branson again.

Monday we got up early, got packed, and took off for Branson. Shoney’s for breakfast was our first stop once we got there. After we ate, we went to the Apple Tree Mall. It’s a HUGH store with booths that they rent to individuals who have antiques and crafts to sell. I out-shopped hubby, who waited for me in the car after about half-way through the building. I LOVE looking at other people’s junk and crafts! I bought some wood pieces to paint (I NEEDED more items to paint!), and a pretty candle holder that looks like an old-fashioned lantern. The base is wood and it has an etched-glass globe.

 

I saw a lot of other things I wanted, but I’m getting so much stuff in our little house, that I didn’t buy anything else. My problem is that I want everything I see!!

Then we thought we’d find our motel room. We ordered the tickets on-line and was sent a map with our motel marked on it. We looked and looked in the area that was marked on the map, but finally decided that it was marked wrong. We had to stop and ask and sure enough, the motel was several blocks in the other direction. (Should have been a warning to us!) We got our room # and had to go to the back of the office DOWN the hill to our room. It was so steep that I had to keep the brakes on the car all the way down!

Our room was small and had a funny smell and it had a king-sized bed. We had to keep turning the air conditioner off and on because it didn’t do it automatically. I was putting our clothes away, pulled open a drawer, and there was some dirty clothes from the previous tenates, we assumed. The remote to the tv had a bad channel/change button, so we struggled with that the whole time we were there. To top it all off, the next morning after my shower, (and my hair was all wet!), we discovered that there wasn’t a hair dryer! Hubby had to go hunting for one.

There were some good points to the motel, though. The bed was comfortable, we had hot water for showers, and we got a good breakfast each morning. It was also located on “The Strip”, so we were within walking distance to one of the shows that we planned on seeing. We’ve decided that we won’t be staying at this motel again, however.

After a nap, we freshened up a little and took off for the Dixie Stampede. The show started at 5:30, but there was a pre-show at 5:00. We missed that because I forgot about it! I was really disappointed because it was a magic show and I know Hubby would have enjoyed it. But we had a great time when the show started. They serve the meal while you watch the show. We have to eat with our fingers but here’s plenty of napkins and they even bring you a warm, wet towel. We got plenty to eat and I ate almost ALL of it! The show was great! If you ever have a chance to go to Branson, be sure to check out the Dixie Stampede!

It was about 8:00 when we got back to the motel. We decided to go for a walk because of the big meal we had had, so we tracked up “the hill” to the street and walked for several blocks in both directions from the motel. All the shops had already closed, but we did some window shopping. It was a nice evening, weather-wise, so we enjoyed our walk. It was funny when we went back to our motel room–”the hill” was so steep, we almost had to run to keep up with ourselves going down to our room. I wish I had taken a picture of it from the top!

The next morning after our “free” breakfast, we decided to ride “The Ducks“. That ride has been in Branson for-ev-er and I’ve always wanted to ride it. It was quite a ride!

“Capt. Foghorn” took us on a tour through the mountains to the top and we could see Lake Taneycomo and the mountain tops in Ark. from there!

Then back down the mountain and onto Lake Taneycomo. 

Entering the Lake.

After we were floating, Capt. Foghorn let all the kids have a turn steering.

 

Someone parasailing while we were on the Lake.

The ride was a lot better than I was thinking it would be. It lasted a couple of hours and the driver was full of interesting and funny stories the whole time.

After we got back to our starting point, we back-tracked the route we had just taken on the “Duck” ride to some places of interest we noticed along the way. We stopped at a winery and took a wine-tasting tour. I’ve never had wine before and I’ve always been a little curious about what it tastes like. I didn’t like it! They also gave us a sample of some concord grape juice that they also bottle there, and I liked that so much that we bought a bottle of it!

On down the road was a craft mall, so that was our next stop. Needless to say, we spent the rest of the afternoon there!

We went back to the room and rested a while, then we walked to the Baldknobbers show. That’s the oldest show in Branson. The music was great, but the comedy was terrific! I laughed so hard I got tears in my eyes! I looked at hubby a few times and I could see his belly moving up and down, so I think he enjoyed it also.

The next morning after breakfast, we decided that we’d had about as much fun at Branson as two old fogies can stand, so we packed up and left. On the way out of town, however, we stopped at yet another flew market. Hubby wasn’t interested, so I went in by myself. I tried to hurry because he was waiting for me, but I probably could have spent the whole day there!

 

I bought a few things that I just couldn’t live without, including this rag doll to add to my collection. See the little bucket and butter churn? She also has cows appliqued to her dress. Her wings say “Butter Me Up”.  Most of  the fun for me is just looking and remembering some of the items I see that I recall from childhood.

After we got home, hubby thought the yard needed mowing, so he did that while I put everything away and did some washing, etc. For some reason, chores don’t go away when you’re on vacation.

The next day, we took a ride up north and took a tour through Fantastic Caverns. Hubby had never been there even though he’s lived his whole life here! I’ve been a couple of times only because I was one of the adults that went with my kids’ class on a field trip. That’s been a long time ago, so I was a little anxious to see it again. This is one of the largest caves in the nation and the tour is a jeep-driven tram tour.

We had to duck our heads in a couple of places, but at least we didn’t have to walk. It was very interesting and we both enjoyed it. We each bought a souvenir rock!

I had to go back to work Sat. and be there by 5 am. We’d signed up for another Branson trip sponsored by a local radio station for Sat., so when I got off work at 1:00, we loaded up on the bus and started to Branson again. We went to the Yakov Smirnoff show first. He’s a comedian from Russia who’s been an American citizen for 20 years. He’s very funny, but he’s also very patriotic and had some serious, touching moments in his show. Very Good!

After that, we piled back into the bus, headed for the Plantation Restaurant, had a buffet dinner, and then to the Acrobats of China Show. These are kids from 14 to 23 years of age and they put on a show to beat all shows! I couldn’t believe how some of these kids could twist their bodies into literally a pretzel! Wow, what can I say! It’s the best show I’ve ever seen!

This picture was taken of us at the restaurant. The picture isn’t that good, but I LOVE the frame! It’s glass, too!

We got home at midnight, so, since I got up at 3 am, that was a loooong day for me! I slept till 8:30 the next morning! I was off work, so we had a nice lazy day just visiting with the in-laws and taking a ride in the country. I think I’m glad that it’s back to work and getting back to a routine again. Boy, vacations can be tiring!

Week 24

Week 24

I had lunch with my dear friend, Carolyn, this week. We’ve been friends since high school. We got married about the same time and had children about the same time. We both had three kids each and our third ones were born just two weeks apart! Our busy lives have just about separated us, but lately we’ve decided that we need to see each other and talk more. So we have a standing lunch date once a month now. I so look forward to meeting with her each month!

She’s a true, from the heart, quilter and she’s volunteered to help me finish up this green quilt. I got all the blocks sewed together and that was the easy part. Now I’m on a mission to find some fabric to finish it up and then she’ll show me how to use her long-arm quilting machine to get it quilted! That will be an experience but I’m looking forward to it! Talking with her this week has me all reved up to finish my quilt.

I also had lunch with my oldest daughter and her two boys this week. We met at the one Mall that we have in town. It was a nice visit and I got to catch up on what’s going on with them. They’re all excited about a vacation trip to the mountains next month. I don’t blame them — I wish I was going! After we ate our lunch, we went to Andy’s for some ice cream and more time to visit. It was a wonderful afternoon!

Hubby’s birthday was this week and I’m on vacation from work this week (YEAH!), so we spent the whole day together! I took him out for breakfast to his favorite place — Shoney’s! We love their breakfast bar! Next stop was to get him some new walking shoes. He walks on the treadmill every day and wears out a lot of shoes! He’s never been to the Nature Walking Trail that’s been around forever right here in town, so that’s where we went next. It took us about two hours to walk the whole distance. We both enjoyed the walk and saw a chipmunk, fish, squirrels, deer, turtles, a lizard, all kinds of birds, etc. We were getting hot and tired by the time we got back to the beginning, so it was nice to see the air-conditioned car again! He said he enjoyed it, though, and that we would have to come back again.

The rest of the day was just relaxing and enjoying being with each other. We sit in the swing out back with some lemonade, had Subway sandwiches, and watched a movie that I got him for his birthday. It was a good day!

Father’s Day was this week also. Hubby’s very fortunate that his Dad and Mom are still alive and fairly healthy. His Dad is the only Dad I’ve ever had. My Dad died when I was three and my Mom never re-married. I’ve known my FIL since I was 15, and he’s been a great dad! He’s a bit pushy and controlling in his ways, but he’s always been there if we needed anything and helped us so many times I can’t count! He’s not an affectionate man as far as hugging etc., but he does love his family and has always taken care of them the best way that he knew how.

I baked him a hugh chocolate chip cookie and wrote “Happy Father’s Day” on it. We took it to him when we went to visit them on Sunday. He hates for anyone to give him anything. “I don’t want you to spend your money on me!”, he would always say. So we try to think of something to give him that he would really like — and I don’t know a man that doesn’t like chocolate chip cookies! Hubby’s brother, his wife, one of his nieces, and one of his sister’s and her husband came over while we were there, so we all had a nice visit.

Hubby didn’t get to see any of our children Sunday, but two of them live in another city and the other one has so many things going on in her life, it’s hard for her to get everything squeezed in sometimes. They remembered him in other ways though.

We’re going to have a busy vacation week — a lot planned!

Week 23

There’s not much to blog about this week. I’m not even sure what I’ve done this week. One thing I’ve been doing is going through my packed closet full of UFO’s, sorting, taking inventory, and choosing some projects that I think I can get done by the end of next month to put in the fair.

The first bag I took out was a knitted sweater for myself that I started at least 15 years ago!! I just keep hanging on to it thinking I’ll finish it one of these days. One thing about knitting sweaters, I usually finish them. I’ve probably made more sweaters than anything else in my life of crafting and needlework. For some reason, this one has had me baffled. The pattern wasn’t coming out the way that I thought it was supposed to, so I put it away. Once in a while when I go through my stash of UFO’s, I get it out again and look at it. I forget where I was in the pattern, and am too lazy or uncaring enough to figure it out, so back into the bag it goes. At one point, I decided to frog it and so I slid it off the needles, but I didn’t have the heart to unravel it. I was using five different skeins of yarn at the same time, and frankly, the thought of pulling all that work out made my arms go to jelly! (The front was about eight inches from being done!)

Well, I was determined that this was going to be the deciding moment — to frog or not to frog! I layed it all out on the table in front of me, used some patience, read the directions again, put it carefully back on the needles, and for some reason it looked to me like it was falling into place! I started knitting on it and I got the front done!!

I made one small, minute, tiny, very un-noticeable mistake that I didn’t discover until I was several rows away from it. The thought of ripping out all of those yarn sections for several rows made me start to hyperventilate! You can see it if you look close enough at it, but you’d almost have to know where it is. (I’m a perfectionist, anyway I used to be. The older I get, the less of a perfectionist I seem to be. Is it laziness? Or maybe I realize more and more that it really doesn’t matter that much! It’s just a material thing.) It bugs me a little, but I can learn to live with it!

Well, I got really excited about FINALLY finishing the front, so I started on the back. In the directions, the back is supposed to be made just like the front. There’s no way I’m putting this pattern on the back too. It would probably be another 15 years before I get it finished! So I’m making the back in a solid color. I have the back about half done now, and I’m determined to stay with it until I get it done! Besides, the worst is over now!)

About the only other thing I’ve done this week was make a pretty Halloween floral centerpiece out of one of the jars that I got varnished last week. What do you think?

Pretty cool, huh?

I’ve also knitted some more dishraggs. That’s all for this week, folks. Have a great week!

Week 22

Here’s a picture of some new books I got this week. Why do they keep putting out new books? Don’t they realize I’m just about out of room for new books? Someone really knows that I’m a collector of books!

I LOVE the one titled “MaryJane’s Stitching Room” by MaryJane Butters. It’s full of “….nostalgic patterns with simple step-by-step instructions for projects to wear, for gifts, or to bring down-home charm to any room of the home–all with her unmistakable farmgirl flair.” It has a Tatted Button Necklace that I’m just going to HAVE to make! It has a lot of other ideas and patterns for “..a treasure trove of projects”. I can’t wait to start on some of them. If you have a chance to get this book, you won’t be sorry!

The “Knitting The Easy Way” book is a good book for beginning knitters. It has a lot of good items for anyone who knits, but the first 28 pages are full of instuctions, diagrams, and info on getting started on knitting. After I copy a few of the patterns, I think I’m going to gift this book to someone I know that hasn’t been knitting too long.

Speaking of easy patterns, I’ve been making some really simple dishraggs from cotton yarn from some of the patterns in this book. I can make one in a matter of a couple of hours. I’m using up some more of the BIG bag of my cotton yarn stash that I have and, at the same time, spending some quiet time in front of the tv being productive. I like doing that. I hate wasting time!

These other books I bought to read. I started out strong at the beginning of the year to read more, but somehow, I’ve slacked up a lot. (Gee, I wonder why!) I keep buying books to read, but the pile to read is getting higher than the pile that’s been read! I read one of Debbie Macomber’s books and liked it so much that I’ve bought more of hers. She incorporates knitting into some of her books, so why is that appealing to me? (Grin) The other one is a mystery, and I love mysteries, especially when they revolve around knitting!

From the shop out back, I finally finished a project that I was painting for a friend at work. She wanted a snowman and a gingerbread man in the same picture.I found this pattern in a book by Sue Jernigan called “Holiday Heartwarmers”.  I had a terrible time with it and had to re-paint it several times before I finally was happy with it. I painted it on a small blackboard and trimmed the gingerbread man with little peppermint candy buttons. The buttons are separate  little wooden knobs. It doesn’t look too bad and I think she’ll like it. She knows I’m not a professional! lol

I also got a lot of my projects varnished that I’ve had sitting around since before Christmas. I like to wait until I have a lot to varnish, then do it all at one sitting. By doing it that way, the first projects I varnish get dried enough to put a second coat on by the time I get around to getting the first coats on all of them. Then I can just keep going and not have to “wait” for them to dry.

That’s all for this time. Have a great week, and keep those needles clicking or the paint flying!