Annette's Acre

Yes, I’m alive and well. Just a tad busy.

Life #1 – Stitching along on Blackbird Design’s Beneath the Sunlit Sky

I’ve managed to complete Part III of the SAL this weekend, which puts me right on schedule to finish the end of November (if I can manage to keep up, of course). Considering I had put only a minor dent in the first part as of the beginning of October, I’m quite happy with the progress. I will say that I love how the 40-ct fabric looks and feels, but using a Qsnap and magnifier makes it slower going.

Life #2 – Work is still Work

On Friday, I was able to take a bit of a break and participate in a “Team Building” outing with my peers. I scoured north central Phoenix for things like an unopened Starbucks straw, a pinecone, the furthest out-of-state license plate (my team won with Alaska), pictures of singing firemen, a golf scorecard, and dozens of other items. As you may have guessed, it was a scavenger hunt and it was an absolute blast! Six teams of six piled into six limos and had three hours to gather as many items as possible. My team came in third and we had a great time.

Life #3 – My First Fantasy Team

I’ve been participating in a Fantasy Football team with some of my cohorts from the project team I’m working on. I was hesitant to join the League as I enjoy watching playoff football, but tend to lose interest early on in the season of regular games (partially because we always get the less-than-exciting Arizona Cardinal games on TV). The organizer assured me that this would keep my interest high…..and he was absolutely correct. Of the 10 folks in the League, I’m doing pretty well for my first go. I was quite lucky in the draft and drew some very good players (Randy Moss, Dante Stallworth, Anquan Bolden [A Cardinal - go figure]). I’ve got a 5-1 record and until this week was in the overall lead….though I suspect I’ll be in the #2 spot after a week where my boys didn’t quite live up to their potential. Team name? The Nettes!

Life #4 – Merry

This week the latest Merry Gentry book came out A Lick of Frost and it was so nice to actually have some story movement and real *plot* as compared to the last installment.

Life #5 – HD DVR

Tuesday we had our new HD DVR installed from DirecTV. First thing recorded: House. I am in heaven. I’ll never miss another episode!!!

Life #6 – Car Woes

My sweet Jeep is at the dealership after simply quitting on DH on Saturday. She had taken me to and from the salon (nail appointment) but when DH tried to go to do a couple of his errands she had none of it. Luckily he’d only barely made it out of the driveway and was chatting with a neighbor when she expired. Unfortunately, the initial diagnosis from the service department is less-than-heartening and truthfully, downright insulting. I have faith they will see the error of their assumptions and my Jeep shall be returned to me no worse by the end of the week……..keep your fingers crossed, please.

Life #7 – Morganville

I also finished the first of the Morganville Vampire series Glass Houses by Rachel Caine. Short-ish novel and while not as zippy or as well developed as the Weather Warden Series, it was still good.  It’s also suitable for my 17-yr old to read, unlike the other.

Life #8 – “Next Five Starts”

There was a thread on The Wagon earlier this month asking about “your next five starts.”  I didn’t want to put too much thought into it because I was focused on catching up on the SAL (see Life #1).  Now that I’m caught up, I feel I can answer the question….in no particular order:

1. Happy Pumpkin Fob by Shepherd’s Bush
2. Moonlit Garden by Blackbird Designs
3. Attic Needlework by Little House Needleworks/Crescent Colors (a special design for my LNS)
4. Tuscan Garden Mandala by Chatelaine
5. 12 Days of Christmas by Teresa Wentzler

Life #9 -  Question

Do you ever get the feeling that you need to *do* something but just can’t figure out quite what it is?  I know I need to get back to a more “normal” schedule during the week, but how on earth I’m going to accomplish it…..I’ve no idea.  Every time this project looks like it’s going to let me go, something happens that makes me question if anyone would step in and pick up what I’ve been doing.  I know I’m not irreplaceable but am I recoverable?  At least with the car challenge this week, I can skip the 2-hour commute each day……

I have two glorious days off.

My kids are on Fall Break (which I don’t seem to recall ever having when I was in school….) today (Thursday) and Friday. K is out both days, Z is only out on Friday (charter school).

Today was a day for K & I. A visit to the doctor (checkup for her, routine blood test for me), then a trip to the mall to have watch batteries replaced (I can’t go for the month of October without wearing my Jack Skellington watch!), lunch at Chik-Fil-A and a visit to the kitchen store (mini muffin tins, a cookie scooper and a palm tree cookie cutter). Finally we headed to the local used book store and turned in a bunch of books and CDs to get more books….

I had to marvel at the books we did pick up. All are books I read when they were first released and K is just discovering:

• Redemption of Althalus by David Eddings
• The Cutting Edge by Dave Duncan (the only book in the series “A Handful of Men” we found)
• Deryni Rising, Deryni Checkmate and High Deryni by Katherine Kurtz

Nothing for me…..unless I want to re-read any of these. And I just might have to

Otherwise I intend to watch baseball, stitch, read and play video games for the next three days! I need some rest, relaxation and recharging.

First, the important stuff……I have a Happy Dance!

Santa’s Midnight Ride by Dutch Treat Designs.

I have a square glass-topped coffee table  that this will look quite nice on for the holidays

Next, my Neptune/Poseidon piece is home from it’s UFO RR tour:

Thank you ladies (Allie, Haze, Debbie & Margaret) for the great progress!  I’m tempted to work on him to finish him….but I will resist temptation in lieu of:

Noah’s Ark by Teresa Wentzler for The Wagon’s October TW SAL.  Hopefully by month end I’ll be as far along as I thought I was before I pulled the WIP out today….hmmm

Finally, thank you all for the great words of encouragement for my current gift-knitting project.  However, as said recipient is now planning her own project for the little one, I have no choice but to come clean (just in case it would have any impact to her plans).

Here’s where I’m at:

I’m doing it log cabin style, doubled worsted yarn on 10.5 needles.  It won’t come out perfectly square, but more of an oblong.  My plan is to be not quite crib size, more suitable for a stroller or car seat throw.  The yarn is acrylic for easy care and so so soft, perfect for a new little one due in December   The strip on the right is navy, not black and I’m just trying to keep colors from touching, no other plan involved