Thursday, November 16, 2017

Organizing madness...

Hello everyone!  It's one week to Thanksgving.  Are you ready?  We're heading to Moses Lake to spend the day with Jeremy and Alicia and the boys since none of our kids will be out west this year.  But our church had it's annual Thanksgiving potluck last Sunday after church.  Here is the fellowship hall all decorated and ready for the feast to begin.  There was so  much turkey, ham, stuffing and all of the trimmings that I think everyone went away 10 lbs. heavier!
 I used to be in the kitchen for this every year but some of the younger ladies are dong it now and it's wonderful to relax and enjoy the festivities.  Lots of us pitch in for the clean up afterwards so no one get "stuck" with it all.
 Mandy sent me this photo and asked if I recognized this dress.  It was the dress the flower girls wore in her wedding!  I thought that one of them had given it to Piper as a hand-me-down, but no!  Brad's mom found this one at a garage sale!  Isn't that crazy.  The wedding was in Oregon and the garage sale was in Nebraska!  It fits little miss perfectly.
Thank you for all of the well wishes for Mandy and Piper.  They are both much, much better.  Tamiflu is amazing!  And just in time too, because Piper has a new baby cousin.  This is Brad's mom Marilyn with Piper and her newest grandchild, Shelby.  Piper is thrilled to have her "own" baby to play with.
 I was asked to make a hat and scarf for a friends granddaughter who is moving here in December.  She doesn't have any warm weather clothes and so she definitely needs some winter things.  This is a pattern I adapted from a favorite baby blanket pattern to scarf size.  you use size 10 needles so it goes fairly fast with a 4 row pattern repeat.
 This close up shows the stitch definition a bit more.  The red heart is a progress keeper.  I haven't decided on a hat pattern yet.
After watching some organizing podcasts and being totally frustrated with our bathroom cabinets I decided to organize and purge.  A trip to the Dollar Tree and $7.00 spent and I'm really happy with the results.  This is my side of the bathroom vanity.
Here is Dennis' side.  Much less "stuff" and the cleaning products are in there too!  Guys just don't seem to collect as much do they?  Although to be fair, that shoebox under my side on the left has travel size toiletries that we've picked up on trips and at Bath and Bodyworks.  I use them in my purse, knitting bags, etc.  I have a weakness for nice smelling lotions.
 The top drawer of the vanity which always seems to become a "catch all" drawer. 
Then, since I was on a roll and still had a few of the storage items left, I tweaked my yarn closet a bit.  I keep cards and wrapping things in here too as well as completed items not given away yet.  On the left side of this section behind the closet door is a set of plastic drawers that holds my cross stitch supplies. You can't see that in this picture.  On top of the shelves where you also  can't see are two more plastic totes full of crochet cotton thread.  Those white tubs at the bottom left hold all of my specialty sock yarns. I try to arrange the yarns by weight.  Baby, DK, worsted, etc.  Now this may not look like much yarn, but this isn't all of it.  Hold on.....
 I have three tubs in the top of our master bedroom closet that have 18-one pound balls of worsted and baby weight yarn, 6 balls in each tub. I use lots of this in my charity knitting as they usually prefer acrylics over wool for washability.  I try to buy it when it's on sale.  There will be a serious dent put into this yarn in the near future.  I want to get some baby blankets done soon.
Under the television in the living room is this bookcase with cloth bins.  It's full of the yarn that I use almost exclusively for the mittens for the school children.  I have no idea why I bought white.  I never, ever have used white in mittens for children!
 Here is a basket with the scraps from the mittens.  I'm going to use these somehow I just haven't figured out how yet.  Maybe some mittens with stripes although that adds a lot to the knitting time.  That's my childhood teddy bear guarding the basket. :-)
I also have three shelves of yarn in the bookshelves downstairs!  It was given to me by a lady at church who moved and didn't want to take it with her.  It isn't my favorite yarn to use, Lion Brand Homespun.  I find it splits when knitting and crocheting with it but I will find a use for it.  I promise.

Chloe is shedding her summer coat.  I put a TV remote next to this pile of hair I brushed this morning so you could get an idea of how much hair she's losing.  I have done this every day this week.  I don't know how she isn't completely bald!  She's so good though.  It must feel wonderful to be brushed and get all of this hair off of her.  Yuck!  I love my dog utterly and completely, but I don't like the shedding at all.
I had my endoscopy done on Monday morning.  It was a little rough.  I think I've told you before that I have never been sick to my stomach in well over 40 years except for when my heart stopped.  Mandy tells me that's not unusual for that to happen.  Other than that, I really don't remember the last time.  It was long, long before I married Dennis.  Well, I was sick, sick, sick when I came out of the anesthesia.  They removed several polyps in my esophagus and have sent them off for testing.  Otherwise I think everything is okay.  They fiddled with my meds though while I was there and I've had chest pain off and on since Monday.  Today is better so I'm hopeful that all is on the upswing.  Sometimes it seems like nothing goes easy for me and I'm not sure why.  I have my semi-annual visit with the cardiologist on Tuesday so if anything is still off, I'm sure he will catch it.

We've had a gray and gloomy week of rain that washed all of the snow away.  I kind of like it.  I've been huddled inside, getting some cleaning done, knitting on my mystery  project and watching Hallmark Christmas movies.  Yes, I'm one of those.  I love the corniness of the movies.  With all of the yuck in the world, the innocence and guaranteed happy endings is a bright spot and an escape.

I have two Knit Picks orders on the way.  Yes, I said two orders.  Looking at the photos above, it sure doesn't look like I need more yarn does it?  I plan to make lots of socks though and I want to re-knit Taci's new pattern with some nicer DK yarn than what I used for the first one.  One order should be here tomorrow and the other next Monday so I'll have some yarn goodness to show you next week.  It's my Christmas present so I don't feel too bad.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and are staying warm wherever you may be.

"Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name." 1 Chronicles 29:13

Blessings,
Betsy



21 comments:

  1. Sometimes I feel the same way about dealing with medical stuff. It's ALWAYS a problem in one way or another. I hope you continue to feel better. Good luck at the cardiologist.

    Moving really helped me organize my stash. Now I need to set aside time to start working off the stash and getting it down to manageable levels. Right now I have just TOO much.

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  2. You are very organized, Betsy. I really enjoyed seeing all of your storage solutions. It's always interesting to me to see how people organize things. I don't watch many home shows on TV, but if they had them just about organizing, I'd be hooked! Maybe they already have that, I'm sure I can't be the only one who likes it. How cool about Piper's dress, what a nice coincidence! I didn't have any children in my wedding (there weren't any to have, actually), but I would have liked to choose dresses with them. I love little girls' clothing. I just got a box this afternoon with some things from Carter's that I ordered for my daughter, including her Christmas dress. I will be so sorry when she is too big for their clothes. She's small for her age, so I feel like I got an extra year or two most moms don't get to enjoy with clothes for little girls. The clothes change so much in the big girls' sizes and not always in a good way. I hope all your medical results come back healthy. Hopefully you'll have a break from medical stuff for a little bit now. After my son's appointment next week, we should have a break for a little while and I'm very excited about it. Hope you have a good weekend!

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  3. Hi Betsy! Your church banquet looks amazing all set up, you must have a large congregation! Is that about 100 place settings? Piper looks so cute in those polka dots and how amazing it was found so far from where the wedding took place. The girl you're knitting the scarf for will be very happy with that, I'm sure. I look forward to seeing what hap pattern you use. I want to make a new knitted hat, too. It was fun to see your yarn stash again, it makes me feel better knowing what I have in my craft studio.. lol. I hope your health issues mellow out fast.. you've got a big holiday season ahead of you! ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

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  4. Hi, Betsy, I hope you are feeling much better as the days go by! It's nice to see someone else with a huge stash; it's so hard to resist a good yarn, isn't it? Love that photo of Piper; she sure is a cutie. Hugs.

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  5. Your stash is so nicely tamed!! Miss Piper looks like a princess in her chic new dress. It must be so nice to have a granddaughter to spoil!

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  6. Nice to see that your church banquet went so well. Looks like Piper enjoys being a new cousin!!!

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  7. I have used little baskets to organize goods in my bathroom cabinet and am a big fan of the cloth organizers on my craft/bookshelves, too. [I need to do a better job at purging out stuff though :) ]
    It is amazing that God blesses us even with wonders like the pretty little dress, isn't it. I just started a little crochet book bag for Sarah's second birthday on the 23rd, and I love seeing the beautiful scarf you are making. May the Lord bless your health, my friend. xx

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  8. Oooh, I can tell that Piper is going to love helping with the new baby.

    I need to spend some time organizing my yarn. I have it sorted by weight, but it needs corralled.

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  9. Oh I absolutely love Dollar Tree! I recognize some of your storage items because I have some of the same ones. Great minds think alike!

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  10. I keep trying to organize but it just never seems to stay that way. The more baskets and containers I buy, the more I seem to need and then there's no place to store all of them. :/ Never ending saga. Sure hope you get those chest pains under control.

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  11. Nice organization of bathroom items. I've been recycling junk mail as soon as possible. Got another calendar in mail that I don't want. Need to go thru a stash of clothes and find another of my winter hats. Chilly here with windy conditions and rain. Rained a lot Wed. Wow...you've got your own yarn store! Lots to choose from. I hope things are ok with your health. Always something. I'm still have g trouble with my throat after talking at work. Good thing my 3 day weekend is here! Have a good weekend my friend!

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  12. Good morning! Finding that flower girls dress at a garage sale was pretty neat! I think your yarn stash looks something like some quilter's material stash! You certainly get a lot knitted though! I hope your cardiologist visit goes well. I have one coming up soon. Metoprolol has been added to my list of meds now. Have you had to take that one? Good job at organizing under your bathroom cabinet. We were given a notepad at our ladies meeting last night. The verse at the bottom is a good one! "The Lord has done great things for us And we are filled with joy" Psalms 126:3 Have a joy filled day! Nancy

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  13. I love all your projects. The scarf will be most welcomed, I am sure. You are always up and about doing something, do you ever rest? Little Miss Piper is so adorable and growing so tall. I will keep you in my prayers. You are part of the army of The Lord, and fighting the good fight against evil, the devil will always try to attack you, either in your relationships or your body...but I pray in agreement with you, that His love will surround you and protect you from all evil. You are such a bright light to love to this world. Keep on shinning my sweet friend. I can't wait to see what you get from knit picks, they have such lovely yarn. Blessings to you and yours always sweet friend. :) ((hugs))

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  14. Great post as always Betsy, sorry you had issues having endoscopy, my darling mother always did and lots of pain with it too..
    ... in life God sends rough and smooth, both are to help us lean on Him alone each day more fully and not upon our our strength, and to fill our heart with joy in it all ( “in everything give thanks for this the will of God in Christ Jesus, concerning you”). The joy may not always seem to be there but I’ve learnt it is there even in the blackest hardest trials and I do thank God in it in the end.
    I’m going through another rough patch after few good weeks, it’s life as ordained by our Father Besty. Rest and rejoice in Him.. for He giveth us songs in the night...
    Cute Piper, what a blessing that dress and how good God is, as my friend says, coincidence is God’s way of remaining anonymous, I love that.
    Great knitting, well done as usual and think organising is wonderful. I so need to do t here.
    Hugs prayers, Shaz in Oz.x

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  15. Well I hope Santa sees how good you have been with cleaning! ]
    Im sorry you were nauseous. I always ask for zofran. It is a real help to those of us who are pukey all the time. I hope your cardiology appt goes really well. HUGS

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  16. Oh, sweet friend! I am SO sorry you had to go through that awful sickness from the anesthesia. Bless your dear heart! I do trust Jesus that all will come back perfectly benign, and hope you never have to go through that again. That sounds just awful. Your things look so nice and organized! Seeing all the yarn is just such proof of your giving, kind heart. I can't imagine how many lives you touch and bless through the beautiful things you create. God bless and keep you and heal you! Praying for you!

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  17. I hope you are feeling better; I am a bit behind in my blogs!
    Nice job in the organizing front-the yarn looks wonderfully enticing! Nice scarf!

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  18. Okay Betsy I can fully admit your yarn stash far surpasses mine in size. I am in awe of yours! Hope you are feeling much better by now, how horrible to feel so ill after the test. We have had our version of the fly here with Little Buddy and my husband down. I had a mild, mild version of it thank goodness. I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving. I forgot to say the story of that dress is priceless, Piper looks adorable.

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  19. You are SO organized... I have a good friend who is a quilter/stitcher/knitter/seamstress like you --but oh my goodness, is she EVER messy and unorganized... GOSH--you wouldn't believe her home.... ha... BUT she is extremely talented!

    Piper is just so darn cute.... Love that little dress on her...

    Looks like you will enjoy Thanksgiving with good friends. I have family coming here and then we'll see more family on Saturday....

    Happy Thanksgiving.

    Hugs,
    Betsy

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  20. Next time get a golden doodle or labradoodle. They don't she'd much.

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  21. Goodness, what a week for you it has been! Anesthesia always makes me sick too, but the drug they used on me for my carpal tunnel surgeries, I didn't get sick at all! It was propofol I think. I will be praying that all turns out well for you and the biopsies! Such a crazy time for you! How funny that the same dress that fits Piper was found at a yard sale! And I know what you mean about dogs shedding, it is so bad this time of year as they are putting on their winter coat. How wonderful to have such a blessed Thanksgiving time at your church, and to be able to relax and enjoy it all! Such a blessing! Many hugs to you today dear friend :)

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