Strange Underbed Fellows

It is just plain gloomy outside the Lilac Thicket today.  The snow is almost gone, just in time for the ice storm and 6"-12" of snow they are talking about.  That darn Bryan Busby!  Someone should have his job for this, this...travesty!

So it is the last day of the month, January went by very quickly and February is just hours away.  January has been a good and bad month, but I think the good out weighs the bad.

The Lilac Thicket has been rocking out!  I bought this wonderful Time/Life Rock Music Collection and it is SO great!  I have been rocking out to ALL the great groups of the 70's & 80's.  My li'l old Honda is rocking and rolling all the way to work.  I open the door or trunk and wonderful music tumbles out!  Am I cool or what?  I mean I have it all, cute hair, great music!  It makes me want to weep! 

Okay gentle readers, it is official.  My Stuffed Spud Soup from the above recipe collection was a hit at work yesterday!  Yes indeed, it made it up to work intact in the zip lock bag, which was emptied into the crock pot once I got there.  Here is the platinum recipe:

 Stuffed Spud Soup

2lbs frozen hash browns (I use Mr. Dells)
½ cup butter
½ cup chopped green onions
1-10oz can cream of chicken soup
salt and pepper to taste
3-4 cups Half 'n Half or milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
parsley flakes or chopped chives for garnish


Saute onion in butter, add soup, half 'n half and thawed potatoes. Stir in cheese and heat gently. Garnish and serve. Serves 8-10


My Notes: I just throw everything in the crock pot and heat it up.  I don't let it "cook" long.  This is so good and I make it with Half 'n Half and butter not margarine. 

Okay, I know without any doubt that the curiosity of my gentle readers has been piqued, not only with the title of today's missive but also the odd picture above.  I ask you, what does a back scratcher, a pair of ice shoes and a pink bra have in common?  That is such a good question and all 3 had been missing for suspiciously the same length of time.  Well yesterday when searching for my faux Crocs under the bed I found this trio huddled together.  Oh my gosh...Ménage à trois, right under my very self, while my pure minded self slept innocently above!  What is going on in my home?  What immoral acts are being perpetrated while I am at work?  Has it tainted my girlz innocence?  I will tell you, if this is going on under my nose or literally, my bed, in the most chaste of homes, what in heaven's name is going on in your homes?  Please, I am not trying to frighten my gentle readers, I am forewarning them, the evil is stealthily slithering into your community, your neighborhood and your home!  Be vigilant my faithful friends, be vigilant.  For now the fornicators are separated but I assure you I will be closely monitoring the trio from now on!

So my dear beloved gentle readers I will close out this entry and in doing so, put to bed, so to speak, the month of January in the year of our Lord 2011.  Next you hear from me I may be buried in the Lilac Thicket under a glacier of snow!  God Bless us, everyone!

A birthday hangover

 I had a lovely birthday. Mother Nature was very kind, it was in the 40’s and the sun was bright and cheerful. My mother took me to Cracker Barrel for lunch. I had the chicken livers dinner and it was wonderful. We love to look around the shop, however there was an annoying greeter running around being way too cheerful and well too interested in everything we looked at. I want to privately and quietly look at things, I don’t need her screechy toned opinion about whatever catches my eye. Mom and I quickly left.



Mom as usual made my birthday special with wonderful gifts. She made me a card and it has the most moving words written in her beautiful hand. The green tissue with carefully placed little flowers was just too darling not to include in the picture. I received loafers, I love loafers and have been wanting to look for some but kept putting it off. I adore the loafers she picked and they are SO comfy! She also purchased some snackie poos for me, I haven’t tried either type from Aldi’s but they look delicious and will find their way into my lunch box. A very cute snowman pin which I will attach to my coat! She gave me socks and some “Toastie Toes” to keep my feet warm at work. I received a lovely cotton top, it is navy blue, ¾ length sleeves and it feels so nice being cotton. It should wash up well. She also made a little snackie journal for me. Remember in my blog when I talked about all my favorite foods and snackies? Well she thought I could use it to write down my favorites so I would have it to take with me to the store. It is a great idea because when I try something new, sometimes I can’t remember exactly what it was when I am standing in the grocery aisles. Mom also gave me some money to purchase whatever my heart desires.


So I came home full as a tick and took a nap. It was a lovely day. Today I need to get to the grocery, I have my list ready to go. I also need to swing by the vet’s and pick up my Rosie poo’s medicine for her bad hip.

Well I really like the above design, I think I will add it to my wish list.  Hey, Nashville Market is sometime in mid February.  I love it because...well tons of new designs, which are really eye candy to the stitcher.

 http://www.craftymoods.com/2011/01/cascading-garden-pom-poms.html

Oh I love this garden with the graduated floral looking balls hanging down.  They are tissue paper and so easy to make. 

http://wolfandwillow.typepad.com/wolf-and-willow/sewing-patterns/

I thought these heart shaped coasters would be a quick and easy Valentine present for family or friends.  She also had a couple of cute free backgrounds for the computer desktop which I grabbed.

 http://sewdoggystyle.blogspot.com/2011/01/easiest-upcycled-dog-collar-ever.html
I gotta say I love this doggie collar!  How creative and cute!

http://www.aestheticnest.com/2011/01/sewing-rick-rack-dish-towels.html
Here is yet another really cute idea for a Valentine gift.  Heck you could do this for lots of holidays, St. Patrick's day, Easter, Halloween, Christmas.  It would be very easy to make too!

Well dear friends I really need to skedaddle, I really hate to leave my Lilac Thicket because it insulates me from the often wicked world.  I suppose it isn't the world that is wicked but many of the people in the world who do evil every day.  God and I now have an understanding, I will let Him take up my battles, He never loses!  May you find joy and peace in your own Lilac Thicket!  God bless us...everyone!

Be inspired, be joyful, be blessed

Don't you love men in uniform?  When you see one don't you want to grab 'em and give 'em a wonderful smooch?  Well the man in the uniform is my baby cuz, Shaun and he is laying a big fat kiss on his beautiful wife Katie!  Shaun is the youngest of my Grandma & Grandpa Russell's 16 grandchildren.  Shaun is in Iraq right now, his second tour.  Shaun as 2 beautiful children, Caden and Gabbie.  I am so proud of him, I could bust.  If you have a prayer list could you please add my Shaun to your list?  I don't think too many people can pray for you. 

Today I need to feel uplifted, don't know why but I love the movies that are produced by Sherwood Productions.  There are 3 movies, "Flywheel", "Facing the Giants" and "Fireproof".  I just finished watch "Flywheel" and it did uplift me.  If you enjoy spiritual messages and good movies these are good movies to rent or buy!  There is even an interesting story behind the making of these movies.

I received the above picture in an e-mail and it made me laugh, so I wanted to share it.  I hope you enjoy the humor too!



http://diaryofacraftaholic.blogspot.com/2011/01/daylily-zipper-flower-tutorial.html

I love the flowers that are made out of zippers.  They have a wonderfully interesting look. 

I woke up with a headache that has gotten worse.  I am doing some stitching and may lay down and take a nap to shake this.  All of you have a blessed day, stay strong, stay happy and let God fight your battles!  Here at the Lilac Thicket we send you blessings.

Reflections of 54

Good morning from a sunny and warm (14°) Lilac Thicket.  We have two snoring poohs and a Scentsy warmer with Silhouette scent wafting about our bare branches.  I have been up since about 5am.  My old lady pooh went into the computer room and the door swung shut and bless her little orange nose she was trapped.  "Woof"....."Woof"..."WOOF".  I guess being a stupid human I am supposed to discern the inflection of the woof in my sleep and hop right to it!  In my sleepy state and in the dark I am walking into walls and tripping over the younger pooh trying to figure out where the "Woof" is coming from.  Thankfully I found Rose just in the nick of time, Lord only knows how much longer her stubborn self could have held out without comfort of her water or a soft cushion to lie on!  I do think she may be scarred for the rest of her poohberry life...such a terrible, horrific event to happen to such an innocent!  She is tuckered out and the snores eminating from her are shaking the very windows in the sills!

The progress on my ANN "A Christmas Tree" may or may not be evident from the above picture.  I did work on it yesterday and a bit on Saturday.  I want to start on a darling little design, a complimentary one offered by Tanya at At the Honeysuckle Tree, better known as The Sampler Girl.  She has a nice little design honoring the wonderful PBS Masterpiece series, Downton Abbey!  Are you watching it?  I love it!  My Grandma Roberts was 10 in 1913 and my Grandma Russell was just a year old!  Of course this takes place in England and my Grandmas were living in Illinois in 1913.  You can see the first 3 episodes online at PBS.  Oh, the link to Tanya's blog is: http://atthehoneysuckletree.blogspot.com/

Maybe you have realized I love all that is heart shaped!  The above pic is of a wonderful wreath made up of roses constructed of gathered fabric.  I love this!  Here is the link to the tutorial,  http://sewmuchado.blogspot.com/2010/01/tutorial-fabric-flower-valentine-wreath.html .

So this old gal will be 54 this week!  I can't believe it, where have 54 years gone?  I still feel like a 6 year old little girl inside.  I don't look 54 and I suppose that is good.  When did I get so vain?  I guess maybe I have always had that vanity in me, but I don't flaunt it.  My hair is sporting more and more grey and more and more wrinkles are cropping up, I know some of that has to do with my weight loss but most of my wrinkles are around my eyes and under my chin.  I don't envy the young, I wouldn't want to be 16 or 30 or even 42 again.  I like the wisdom I have obtained from living 54 years.  Not all parts of my journey have been pleasant, especially when I was growing up.  I do have a terrific Mother, she is everything you would want in a good mother.  I have wonderful brothers and a super sister, all younger than me but they and my mother have been lovingly beside me to help me thru the tough times and the joyful times.  I never had children but I would have been a good mother, just like my mom was.  That was God's choice for me though, He had other lessons for me to learn in the past 54 years.  One marriage which didn't work out because I picked the wrong person, don't think there will be another marriage, but I am open to it should a good man come into my life.  I know I don't want to live another 54 years and only the Lord knows the time and day that my earthly life will end, but I fear not, He has me in His loving hands.  I do know I will enjoy this life, this crazy patch quilt life.  So much sorrow but that makes the joys even sweeter!  God bless us everyone!

More snow, more reads, more snoring girlz

No dear readers, this isn't a picture that I posted in a previous post.  This is a shot that I took minutes ago.  We are SO blessed that we had the plow go thru and leave a bank of snow across the driveway yesterday.  I was able to get out several times in the morning yesterday but when the rubber met the snow bank on my way to work I got stuck!  After 15 minutes of futilely trying to get free a man in a truck and several neighborhood boys got me out.  I was exhausted and wet to the bone by the time I got to work.  Thank you Bryan Busby, Channel 9 meteorologist! 



So I took today off and I am delighted with my cool desk thingy that I made out of plastic water bottles, fabric and hot glue.  I believe I am going to attach some fabric yoyo's to fancy it up.  I was using a Caremark coffee mug...I like this one better!

After letting the girlz out this morning, I climbed back into bed and finished "Beguiled".  What a wonderful book, great writing, characters and plot!  If you like Christian Romance/Suspense this is definitely worth the time reading.

This is the next book I am going to read.  It was recommended by the political radio personality Laura Ingraham.  She had Mr. Blatty on her show sometime back.  He recommended that this is one that you really need to sit down and read over a weekend because it has a plot that has to be focused on because of the continuous complex thread thru the book.  I know it is easy for me to set down a book and forget little "clues" I read in a previous sitting.

I am going to sit down and stitch.  The girlz are snoring.  Oh I have a helpful tip...if you have long hair...you might want to put it back in a ponytail if you are using a hot glue gun!  Stay warm and stay blessed!  Our Lilac Thicket is blessed to our buttons!  God Bless us Everyone!



Recognition of my brilliance & insanity minus toilet paper

Well my beloved readers of the lovely and ever fragrant Lilac Thicket, I have gone and done it.  My lamentations over the 2011 Nordic Needle catalog somehow got back to them.  I received an e-mail entitled "Your wrote about Nordic Needle".  Okay that was ominous and I was unsure if legal action might be occurring as I likened the catalog to Playboy magazine.  Here is what the body of the e-mail said:

Hello!  We recently were alerted to your praise blog post about our latest catalog and we would like to link to your post as an example for a new campaign awarding customers who link to us from their personal sites. Please let us know if that would be alright with you. Additionally we would like to give you a $5 coupon off your next ($5 or more) online order for giving the catalog such a great review. :) 
Thanks so much for promoting us so positively and keeping the stitching arts alive!

Whew....that was a close one!  Then appeared at this link: http://www.nordicneedle.net/2011/01/14/write-about-nordic-needle/  the following:

We recently stumbled upon a From The Lilac Thicket blog post detailing her intense appreciation for our latest catalog. ;) And that got us thinking: we’d love to see more posts like this from our customers – it provides us feedback and expands our little niche universe to the rest of the world in a positive way! So, we’d like to create a campaign centered around spreading the word about Nordic Needle. Do you have something good to say about us? Write a praise article about Nordic Needle (our catalog, products, whatever!) and link to us on your personal website or blog and you could receive $5 off your next $5 or more online order! This will be an ongoing campaign, with an undecided end date, so keep those fingers typing and you could be the next lucky winner!

Okay the first thought I have to emphasize is that it was not really an intense appreciation, it was more like a primal, erotic appreciation!  Then the second thought is my little old self got someone to thinking?  Oh my gosh!!!  Someone actually pays attention to what I say, let alone visits my little old Thicket?  Okay, I know Amy does, but she is nutz!  I know Beverly does, but she is nutz!  I know Chari does, but she is...well, just plain crazy!  I mean really no one takes me seriously.  I am amazed and I am honored because really, I love Nordic Needle!  I have been shopping with them for about 25 years.  When I first started shopping you could call over the phone and they would bill you and when you got your order you just paid your bill.  To me at that time it was awesome to have a company so far away trust me.  I have always, always had such great service from them and when I have called, their customer care has been superb!  I love getting their e-mailed newsletters and they really try to make it interesting and involve their customers, make it personal.  I think that is why they have been in business so long and continue to grow, even in this tough economy.  I pray that as long as I am alive and stitching that I never have to know a day that Nordic Needle isn't there.  I really have nothing but good thoughts that go out to the fine ladies who own and work there!  Thank you Nordic Needle for recognizing me, it really means a great deal to me!

Well they are STILL predicting snow.  I called Channel 9 and spoke to Bryan Busby and told him I was giving him one last chance to change his mind about the weather and if he didn't?  Well since the Lilac Thicket wields such power in the blogasphere, as we have seen with the Nordic Needle, I would have to throw my considerable weight around on the web and shake things up for him.  I heard the word "kook" before he slammed down the phone.  Well we will just see if he is ever voted Meteorologist of the Year again, that is all I'm saying!

And so it is time once again for me to surprise and delight you with girlish things I have found on the world wide web that fill me with orgasmic delight!  Are you ready?  Are ya?  Don't you dare yawn little lady...

How delightful and it's glittery and pink, two of the best criteria for all things girlish.  How many little do-dads do you have in your jewelry box that you could attach to a votive candle holder for romantic deliciousness?  Here is the link: http://www.bhg.com/crafts/home/tabletop-ideas/candle-crafts/?sssdmh=dm17.502044&esrc=nwwuf&email=1741221552

Oh-h-h, ah-h-h-h..........I adore this pillow!  I am not about to pay 79.99 on sale from 99.99 but the thoughts of having this beauty sitting on my bed bring me to a new level on naughtiness of mind.  Yes dear ladies, the most fun I have had in my bed?  Sucking up the cob webs off the ceiling with a new vacuum cleaner!  So see, I really "need" this fun little delight to have a toss in the sack with!  I wonder how I could make this?  Here is the link if anyone wants to buy it for me! http://www.zgallerie.com/p-9803-bloom-pillow-aubergine.aspx

Well we are having a crisis here in the Lilac Thicket, I have just discovered we are out of toilet paper.  I have told the girlz, they need to let me know when they take the last roll.  So I am going to have to get dressed and hit the grocery and with the threat of snow, toilet paper is always the first thing to fly off the shelves.  It is comforting to know that should society  break down we all have enought toilet paper hoarded to make sure we cleanse ourselves properly after crapping in the woods.  Plumbing will the be the first of our infrastructure to stop working.  God Bless us Everyone.

All that is Girlish

Good Morning my gentle visitors to my Lilac Thicket!  I hope your day is being kind to you so far.  It is damp and chilly here, a bit overcast and there is a nice steady and cold breeze to contend with that stirs the barest of branches of our Lilac bushes. 

So here is the shampoo and conditioner that I purchased.  I am giving it my well sought after approval.  My hair curled very tightly in the pin curls and my hair was very soft too!  The girls at work (Thank you Queen Mum and Carol) were my sniff testers!  They liked the soft scent!

We had an unfortunate hair event about 5:00pm at work.  There was a building emergency and we had to go and stand outside in the cold damp wind.  The left side of my hair went limp and I was not a happy camper.  Not to mention I never could get warm  the rest of the evening.  When I came home I turned up the furnace to 75°. 

Don't you love the ribbon?  When I was at HyVee (my local grocery) I spied these corsage bows in the floral department made out of the most wonderful ribbons.  I did purchase 3 and brought them home and attached them to a hair combs.  Lovely, lovely cute hair! 

Last night after I sat down I did some stitching on my AAN "A Christmas Tree".  Just showing you a badly focused pic of my progress to date. 

Also when I was at the grocery on Sunday, I spied the newest issue of Victoria Magazine.  Oh how I love it's lush and lovely pictures.  They stir the girlish inclinations of my mind. Yesterday I forgot to take it to work with me to savor between phone calls, but I won't forget today.

I heard the weather forecast, they (the learned weather forecasters who could not predict the weather accurately until after it happens), are calling for 6" of snow, starting tonight.  Well my birthday is next week and it wouldn't be my birthday without a raging snowstorm! 

So my fine readers, I think I will call this a wrap and contemplate getting ready for another brutal day at work, where they just do not comprehend the brilliance that is me!  God Bless us Everyone!

Super Snackie Poohs & Savory Lace Skirt

So today I wanted to talk about my snacking!  For over a year now I have found out that I am a snacker!  I love snacking on things through-out my day.  I have found some good tasting snacks that really have taken the place of bags of Reese's, chips & dip, chocolate cakes, half gallons of ice cream and on and on.  One of the things that I like about the individually packaged snacks, like the 100 calorie snack packs, is that it makes me aware of how much I am eating.  I don't look down and discover that the 12oz bag of peanut M&M's is gone. 

The 100 calorie Oreo Dipped Delight Bars are awesome.  They are a great blast of chocolate and one goes to work in my lunch bag every day. 6 individually wrapped bars come in a box and I paid a sale price of $2.50.

Nabisco Lorna Doone 100 calorie cookies are good.  I prefer the Pepperidge Farm Chessman 100 calorie paks but my HyVee isn't carrying them anymore. The Lorna Doones have 6 paks in a box and generally there are about 11 small cookies in a pak.  These were also on sale for $2.50

The Kellogg's Fiber Plus Chewy Bars, the chocolate chip type are so good.  They are chewy and I have just recently found them.  I buy the box with 10 bars for $4.99 because I eat them daily and they are a better value than the 5 pak box. Each bar has 120 calories.  I have one each morning to break my fast.

The HyVee Rice Crisps, I am going to try.  I really like the Quaker Caramel Corn brand and I want to see if these are equally as good.  There is more in the HyVee bag which is 7oz, the Quaker brand is only 3.5oz.  8 crisps are 60 calories, so you could have double that with relatively few calories.  The cost was 2.49 and there about 13-8 crisp servings in each HyVee bag.  I package 8 in a sandwich bag and throw them in my lunch bag.

Okay, those Weight Watcher English Toffee Crunch Ice Cream bars are AWESOME!  There are 12 ice cream bars in a box.  You have to try them.  I love to have one of these after work each night.  Love 'em!!!!  The box costs me $3.99.  Each bar is 100 calories!

I love the Jello Tapioca Fat Free Pudding Snacks.  There are 6-4oz cups, each 100 calories.  I take one to work with me, but sometimes it comes back home because I get full.  A 6 pak costs 2.77.  I am going to try the Cinnamon Rice pudding.  Just bought some yesterday.

I love, love, love Anderson Erickson Yo-Lite Yogurt!  It is thick and creamy and comes in a variety of flavors.  Each container is 6oz and has 80 calories.  One shopping trip I accidentally picked up the regular AE yogurt and it was awful!  I took 1 bite and threw it away!  Now Anderson Erickson may be a local dairy I don't know, but their skim milk is wonderful and doesn't make your cold cereal go soggy instantly, which I hate soggy Cheerios!  Oh yes the yogurt is 3/$2.19 and is on sale often.

Okay, this is the fluid that must pump thru my arteries, Diet Pepsi!  Zero calories and it is the nectar of the Greek Gods!  Love it!  Portion control and variety have been the keys to my success in losing weight and regaining my energy and positive attitude.  I would love to hear from others, their recommendations to snackie type foods that you like. 

Since I am all girl and love all that is girlish and feminine I found this tutorial for a beautiful black lace over white skirt!  Oh my gosh I could see it worn with a black silk or satin camisole top!  The tutorial to this elastic waist skirt can be found at http://www.theidearoom.net/ !

I pin curled my hair, so will have darling cute hair today!  It is about time once again for me to take all the bobby pins out!  I bought a new shampoo and conditioner yesterday.  I will review it tomorrow.  So here at the Lilac Thicket one pooh is snoring behind me and the other is outside laying in the snow!  Don't ask...  God Bless us everyone!

Progress and a birthday

This is the progress I have made on my ANN "A Christmas Tree".  I worked mostly on the back stitched swirls and am still contemplating attaching the beads as I go.  I have been watching true crime TV and cruising around the Internet today.  The sun was out most of the day, but it has been cold.  I had the front room curtains open to enjoy the true light to stitch by.  It has been a most pleasant Saturday.

http://embroiderbee.wordpress.com/2010/12/29/valentine-freebie-blue-eyed-bees-send-messages-of-love/

I really like the above free design called "Blue Eyed Bees Send Messages of Love".  Really a cute find.






 http://embroiderbee.wordpress.com/2010/12/31/final-2010-freebie-a-happenstance-of-hearts/
Also the above design is a lovely riot of colors I love and the design can be found at the above link.  I love the name of this one too "A Happenstance of Hearts".

 http://www.theidearoom.net/

Okay I love these Valentine Kissing Balls.  The flowers are made from crepe paper streamers.  Love 'em.  Follow the link to the tutorial!

Here in the Lilac Thicket we are celebrating the birthday of my youngest, April Mae June.  She is 7 years old today.  Here is the cutest picture of her.  She used to love my slippers and would sneak out of the house with them all the time.  She is just as adorable today as she was when I took this picture.  God Bless us everyone.

Hot Mama, Girlz, Terrorists, Toyotas & a Novel Idea!

Oh my, amen, it's Friday.  Actually the week went by quickly.  I am working only 4 hours today. I get off at 4:30 which I can't wait to get my work week over with. 

Talk about balmy weather, it is 23°!  Get out the swim suits and the lawn mower, get out and strut our stuffs in the warmth of the day!  I have lots of stuffs to strut too!  OO-LA-LA, hot mama coming thru...NOT!

Alas the warmth yesterday allowed me to pop the gas cap door on my car to fill it up.  I didn't have to take a screw driver to it which is a good thing.  I would have had to explain to the cops sitting in their cruiser eating Quik-Trip donuts and coffee why I was vandalizing my own car!  It only cost me $30 to fill it up, thank you Lord, the tankful of gas will last me 8 weeks. 

I was lying in bed last night missing my old truck "Daddio".  It was a wonderful 1987 Toyota pick up and it looked remarkably like the one I saw on the news many years ago!  It was somewhere in the Mideast and there was a machine gun mounted to the bed of the truck and there were so many terrorists packed into and onto this pickup when it swung around a corner a few of them flew off!  (Centrifugal Force!) Yes, it was a wonderful vehicle and I really could have used a machine gun bolted into the bed of my Daddio.  My girlz are so talented I think I could have trained them to work the gun on my command.  The next time some lady tried to cut me off at the thrift shop so SHE could get the first parking spot, Rosie could have fired warning shots above her vehicle, as I swung menacingly around her.  It probably would have worked well in the parking lot at the grocery, you know those jaywalkers, the ones who REFUSE to use the cross walk and the trot gleefully in front of you daring me to hit them.  Yup, I would just have my talented girl April, pull the trigger of that machine gun with her paw and give that jay walker a whole new part in their hair!  Wow, this could be a whole new marketing program for Toyota!  They could make the machine gun standard equipment.  It would take road rage to a whole new level, don't 'cha think?

No stitching done in the past couple of days but I have found some wonderful freebies and have printed them off.

http://penelopisfreebies.blogspot.com/

I love this mask and it could be remarkably useful.  I just had a thought, I might want to make this lovely mask to wear as me and my girlz cruise around in our Toyota with the standard equipment, daring people to cut me off!  "Yes officer, it was an amazing sight watching that orange and white Britney fire off a few rounds over my head. But the driver wore this elegantly beautiful mask with a stylish black feather!  And she had remarkably cute hair!"

 http://luli.myblog.it/

Love this and it is Italian!  

http://martine290.over-blog.com/

This is lovely and I think the finishing is exquisite!

It is just about time once again for me to get ready for 4 hours of work and dazzle all my co-workers with the sparkling wit and wisdom of ME!  So gentle readers and my ever growing group of followers, may your day be blessed, just as the occupants of our Lilac Thicket shall be!

More projects for my list

Oh my so many ideas and projects and so little time.  If you need a little inspiration you need to visit this blog where there are amazing pictures of stitching.  It is a French blog and it is 2011 Exposition!  Go.... http://blog-points-des-villes-croix-des-champs.over-blog.com/  I wanted to post a pic but couldn't so you just need to take my word for it and visit.

I did stitch a bit when I got home from work.  My upper arm was aching, I think it is from the computer, the mouse and it has created some muscle or tendon issues like carpal tunnel, is it carpal armpit? 

Work wasn't really too bad yesterday, they had hot dogs and chips for us, which is nice.  I had issues with the ketchup bottle, but really who hasn't struggled with a bottle of ketchup in public and been embarrassed when the condiment comes out too quickly and the bottle makes a sound similar to flatulence?

Oh my gosh, if you haven't visited Craft Gossip you really need to. That site just fills me with sweet visions of stuff I need to make but haven't yet.




 http://handmadeportland.com/2010/06/hip-felt-flower-tutorial/
I love this bunch of felt flowers and have visions of them festooning a gift or a hair barrette.  You just can't be sad looking at them.

 http://www.marthastewart.com/photogallery/candle-centerpieces?lpgStart=1&currentslide=1&currentChapter=1

 Don't 'cha just love Martha Stewart.  These candle holders are just paper streamers and placed with double sided tape!  Oh my word...I love you Martha!!!

http://blog.mjtrim.com/2011/01/10/diy-printed-ribbon-hair-bow/

And since I am a lover of cute hair and all the lovely, sparklies, buttons and bows for the hair.  This is so darling and I can see it in my hair on a cute hair day!

http://www.ericas.com/seasonal/specialdays.htm

And finally have you ever seen a pom pom in any other shape but round?  This little gadget makes them heart shaped!  HEART SHAPED!  I definitely could see little heart shaped pom poms as a garland thingy to drape on my fireplace mantel, if I had one!

It is 11am and time for me to get ready to go to that 4 letter word that we all hate so much....work!  So we are trying to stay warm in our Lilac Thicket and we girls here in the Thicket send out prayers for all.

Tuesday stuff that means absolutely nothing!

It is a blasted 6 bleeping degrees here and this is what I had to clean off my bird pooh festooned car yesterday, not once but TWICE!  Yes I had to clean it off again when I got off work last evening because Mother Nature has a sense of humor...NOT!  The sun is out but at 6° nothing is going to melt!  And stop cackling Amy, it isn't funny!

Stitching...none!  I did get my Stitches 'n Things fabric of the month in the mail yesterday.  It is a 28ct Denim Blue Jobelan.  I really like the color too!  So into the chest of drawers it goes, with all the other bits of stitching fabric I have.  I knew I had a good reason for divorcing my ex, needed to take over his dresser drawers for my needlework fabric!  This does not bode well for my next husband does it?

Okay I have to brag a bit.  I wore cute hair yesterday, as I told you.  Plus my black jeans and that cheetah print sweater set Santa gave me.  I had a red winter beret that I wore and let me tell you I did create a mini stir walking into work.  Someone even told me that they thought I was losing too much weight too fast!  Way cute!  Actually since I have been drinking my water I think I am losing weight a bit faster and it may be my imagination but I think the loose skin under my chin is tightening up, maybe I won't need plastic surgery after all!  Oh yes I bought some Suave lotion, lavender and vanilla scent and it smells like heaven.  I took the bottle to work for my desk, I think I need to buy another for here at home.

So here at the Lilac Thicket we are frigid, we are on our second day of cute hair and we smell good!  What more could a girl ask for!  God Bless us all and maybe we will survive until spring!

Psychic Sandi, Stash, Sh-h-h Money

Hey there, I thought I would look in on you and make sure you are behaving!  Well are you?  It looks like you are but you know looks can be deceiving and I should know.  I mean look at that angelic face, does it look like it might harbor a sick and demented mind?  Now be nice....remember, I know secrets about you, that is why you have to send me monthly checks, so I keep my mouth shut!

I think I am psychic!  Yesterday I predicted that school would be called off today and lo and behold, it happened!  You could say that with the continued efforts of the weeny-fication of our country that it was an easy call.  I would challenge that...I am psychic, I think I need a talk show..."Psychic Sandi"!

I don't have much to impart on all you, my fine readers of this mind numbingly ordinary blog.  I have been drinking my water as outlined in my 2011 goals, 6 days in a row even!  I also have cute hair today!  Yes, I pin curled it.  Now I am a psychic with cute hair who receives extortion checks! 

Here are a few designs that I think I might need, yes more stash to hoard in case society breaks down and I need to hunker down into the safety of my Lilac Thicket to stitch while the chaos and madness reigns outside.  I mean I have to think of what I need to survive!

 From Imaginating, Holiday Tweet Hearts!  Aren't those tweeters cute!

 Journey to Bethlehem from Blackberry Lane Designs.

 Charlotte from Mirabilia!

 February Small Band Pillow from Pine Mountain.

Thy Kingdom Come from Cross Stitch Antiques. 

Please don't feel sad, I am sure I will find more thrilling designs that I think I have to have.  I won't forget to share all the meaningless trivia of my life.  I mean don't you all just hang on every post, waiting with baited breath for the next update on my blog?  You don't?  Okay, I just increased the amount of hush money you will be sending to me!  I mean do you really want the world to know that you enjoy running naked thru the cornfields when you think no one is watching?  Oh wait a minute that is me...forget that last statement!  But we all know you are one sick, sick individual!

So here at the Lilac Thicket this psychic with cute hair must get dressed and get out there to clean off the car so I can get to work.  God Bless us, everyone!