9 socks, sewn – DONE!
9 socks, cut out – DONE!
8 legs and a head, stuffed – DONE!
Legs sewn on, face applied, DONE, DONE, DONE!
I have finally completed a Socktopus! It has been so long and it feels great to have created something new! Picking out the colors, working my sewing machine, and carefully sewing on those soft, chubby legs. It’s wonderful to look at it’s sweet smiling face and be proud of something I’ve made once again. I almost don’t want to sell it – Almost! 😀
Missie
Patience is a virtue. I was not a virtuous person today at all! All I can say is, it is difficult being pregnant and the mother of a teenage daughter all at the same time. Most days are fine. Today was not, but most of the conflict was on my part and my crappy hormones. I’m such a wiener, so here is a picture of me in front of a wiener truck.
Tomorrow, I will be more virtuous and less nagging. 😛
Have a wonderful Wednesday!
Missie
My family and I have been working hard on getting our condo ready for sale. My daughter and I cleaned window sills and ceiling fans last Thursday. I have been detailing certain areas like my kitchen sink and base boards. I am highly motivated to tackle any little thing that can make a difference in selling our condo.
My Studio is mostly packed up and my husband’s office is now occupying part of my space. It has all worked out nicely so far. I don’t do a very good job of finishing organizing things when I start them. My workspace was in a large space and I was only using about one-third of the space. So, having my husband move his office into my workspace was really not a big deal. We did all that moving yesterday. Up and down the stairs, dusting, vacuuming, and cleaning in general. I was ready for bed around 8PM.
We had to move my husband’s office up into the loft (my studio), so we could move the living room furniture out for new carpeting. When we moved in 4-5 years ago, we really liked our condo. We noticed the carpeting wasn’t perfect, but thought a good carpet cleaning would make a difference. It did not. The last owner had dogs, dogs that affected the carpet. She probably had the carpets cleaned after she moved out. As we lived in our condo, we added our own spills and stains to the carpet, and the stains of the last owner came up through the carpet as well. We decided to go the whole nine yards and just replace the gross carpet.
After moving the office furniture out of the old room, it was time to go purchase new carpeting. We took a sample of the old stuff with us, because we have to match it up with bed room and stairs carpeting that will not be replaced. We came pretty close on the match-up and think it will blend in nicely. We were also told, if the pet stains were bad enough and soaked into the carpet pad, they would come up through the new carpeting. We will need to replace the carpet pad and shellac underneath to seal away the urine stains.
Today, we moved all of the living room furniture into the old office room. We went to Menard’s to purchase the best rated shellac – B-I-N® Shellac-base primer by Rust-oleum. We purchased it on sale for about $36.00/gallon.
When we arrived home, neighbors warned us of a special visitor close to our front door:
A female snapping turtle comes to lay her eggs in our mulch every year, we were told. We were all amazed. I had never been so close to a turtle before! It was fabulous!
My husband wanted to get right at shellacing the floor. He cut long strips in sections of the room. When he rolled up the carpeting it was disgusting! You could see the brown stains that soaked through to the bottom. I have read before how carpeting is not a healthy flooring option because of the chemicals and the bacteria it traps. This was a first-hand look at our germy carpeting. New house must have little to no carpeting, or we will remove it.
All this hard work has been motivating me to get back to work on giggleFritz creations. This morning, while waiting for my sister to pick me and my daughter up for the Farmer’s Market, I got to work on some new Socktopus guys. I plugged in my sewing machine, got out some socks, scissors, and stuffing and got to work. I hope to have some guys in the giggleFritz Shop and Etsy Shop soon.
Now it is time for a well-deserved cook out with a bonfire and s’mores!
Have a great weekend!
Missie 😀
Let’s play catch up!
Last Sunday my sister and I ran our first 5K of the year, Silver Lining Boys & Girls Club 5K for Kids. We ran the whole thing, without walking, in 36min 23sec. That isn’t a competitive time, but our main goal was to run the whole thing without walking. We met our goal and are very happy with that!
Last Thursday we were at the doctor’s office and had ultrasound pictures done. We are expecting a girl! We are very excited and it was so emotional to see all of the pictures of the tiny baby! She is a silly wiggler baby and we cannot wait to see her in October!
My husband and I have also decided to try and sell our condo so we can buy a house. We need more room, and even if we don’t sell this year, we need some home improvements anyway. So, we will be painting, cleaning and replacing carpets, and moving things around. Not much has been getting done here at giggleFritz and Co. and now I fear even less will be created. But, it is a short-term break while my family and I handle some important changes.
I am supposed to be cleaning and packing up my work space/studio as I type. So, I am off to keep that happening. The sooner we get done, the sooner I can create some more neat stuff!
Have an awesome Monday! 😀
Missie
A new snack favorite! I was craving chocolate and had none on hand. I found half a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips in the ‘frige, poured a mug of milk, and started to throw back some chocolate. The chips were pretty good, but I started to think deeper. Peanut Butter! But, I needed a crust, so graham crackers were just the thing. I had three squares of these things, and they were exactly what I needed. I’m sure these are not new to many people, but this is the first time I’ve enjoyed them. They need a name, not just, “These Things”. I will call them “giggleFritz Smores”.
GiggleFritz Smores
Graham Crackers
Creamy Peanut Butter (I like natural)
Chocolate Chips (I used semi-sweet)
1. Spread peanut butter over crackers.
2. Sprinkle chocolate chips on top of peanut butter.
3. Enjoy!
Yesterday, I had to pick up my daughter from school, she was not feeling well. She spent a good deal of time sleeping and trying to feel better. It was actually a good day to be home sick. It rained all day long and became cold – perfectly normal weather for Wisconsin in May (heavy sarcasm here). It was a perfect day for homemade chicken soup.
I’ve been doing more cooking in the past two weeks and it feels great. It is good to get back to smelling fresh, cut up vegetables and herbs. The morning sickness was so bad my spice cabinet made me want to retch. How sad was that! Back to making soup. So, I found some frozen vegetable broth and cooked chicken in my freezer, cut up some fresh carrots, celery, and onion, and pulled out some simple herbs and made soup. Oh, did it smell magical! The mixed smell of simmering oregano, pepper, chicken, and vegetables made me feel so alive, yet calm. I was hoping the aroma would help make my daughter a little more cheery too. Some warm soup, grilled cheese, and an old movie after lunch contributed to a peaceful nap taken by both mom and daughter. I love it when simple things remedy crappy days and tired souls.
Here is the chicken soup recipe I use:
Homemade Chicken Soup
Prep Time: 25 min Cook Time: 34 min
Ingredients:
32oz (4cups) chicken broth
2 cups water
1 medium carrot, peeled and diced
1 medium rib celery, diced
1 medium onion, cut into thin wedges
1 tsp dried majoram, or oregano
1 bay leaf (I don’t use)
¼ tsp pepper (or less)
2 cups cooked chicken or turkey, chopped
1 cup flat noodles, or noodles of choice
2 Tbsp fresh parsley, or 1 Tbsp dried parsley
1. In a large sauce pan, combine chicken broth, water, carrot, celery, onion, marjoram, bay leaf, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 10 minutes.
2. Increase heat to medium-high; return to a boil. Add chicken or turkey, noodles, and parsley. Return to a boil. Reduce heat to medium. Cook, loosely covered, 15-20 minutes or until noodles are tender. Remove and discard bay leaf.
Click here to print or save recipe: Homemade Chicken Soup – Printable
Have a wonderful day!
Missie
I was out shopping yesterday. I had to run a few errands and I stopped at Hobby Lobby to look at their $0.99 McCall’s patterns. I was looking for a pattern for maternity clothes. I didn’t find any patterns for the clothes, so I went to look at paper punches that were on sale for 40% off. I have been making my own tags for craft shows, but I thought it would be less time consuming and look nicer on my products if I would use a paper punch. I looked a long time, compared prices, bought my paper puncher and went home.
I didn’t have enough time yesterday to use my new paper puncher. This morning I started to rip open the package and try out the new puncher to make some tags. As I was pulling the plastic carton away from the cardboard, I noticed a warning at the bottom of the package stating the punch contains lead and can lead to reproductive problems and birth defects. Well that is just great! Here I am 15 weeks pregnant and I just purchased a product that could kill or deform my baby, wonderful!
Needless to say, I am mad. Many people buy these punches to make photo albums and birthday cards. Are you supposed to wear gloves when using this thing? Lead can still be transferred to the final product. I am grateful that someone made The Paper Studio add that warning, but why are we manufacturing these types of products with lead, products that are harmful to ourselves and our kids? I am fed up with this cheap China crap! It makes me wonder what else in my house is laden with lead and other chemicals.
Paper puncher is going back to Hobby Lobby. I have washed my hands thoroughly of lead. There is no lead poisoning fun!
On to safer projects!
Have a great day! 😀
Missie
I haven’t written anything in a while, due to being so sick. Family and friends ask me all the time, “Are you feeling better, Missie?” I am still just as sick. However, sometimes I don’t know what to say. When I am sitting still and have no distractions, I FEEL the sickness. When I am moving to get things done and I am out of the house doing errands, I don’t notice how I feel, as much. So, when I run into people and they ask, “how are you feeling”, the truth is, “I’m better now I am talking to you”.
Because I feel better when I am moving, I try to never stop moving. Typing this at my computer makes me scared that shortly, I will want to go lay down. I think I will be okay for a while, because my exercise high is still in effect.
For exercise during pregnancy, I am using the Couch to 5K program I have used for the last few years. I wrote about the program last year and explained a little about how it works. (Click here for the post from last year on the old “Thoughts of giggleFritz” blog.) My sister and I ran two 5K’s last summer. It was more motivating to train for those races than just running alone. I asked my doctor if it would be safe to start running that program while I am pregnant, and he approved of it. This morning, my sister and I started week three of the program. It is not easy, but I feel so much better for a few hours after running. I am also hoping it helps me bounce back more quickly after delivery.
I better be off and moving. I have too much to do before I conk out later!
Have a great Monday! 😀
~Missie
I can’t help being blue lately. There is no getting away from this morning sickness and exhaustion. To make matters worse, the Wisconsin spring weather this year is beyond dismal. It’s like the sun has died! It has been raining, thundering, and lightening the last two days. The cold and dampness is making me more depressed. I have been in bed nearly the whole day.
I can’t help but think of the poor women who go through this and have other children to take care of. Also, the women who go to work every day feeling so miserable. My heart goes out to them and I give them tons of credit! This whoosy girl couldn’t do it, she has enough trouble making dinner.
I hope I am feeling better in a few weeks and posting happier thoughts.
Keep looking forward to spring!
Missie
I am getting ready for the next craft fair at Kimberly High School in Kimberly, Wisconsin, Saturday, April 27. I am not a whirlwind of production, but I am slowly making new things. I am now 10 weeks, 5 days pregnant and white soda, soda crackers, and my Ipod are my very best friends while working. In a few weeks I should be in tip-top shape, though.
Have a great Monday!
Missie 🙂
