Saving the Planet – One Dustbunny at a Time

December 28, 2008 By

duster

Lately I’ve been trying to become more aware of my “footprint” and be more respectful of the environment. Recycling is hard but I’m working on it (with three people that just toss things and can’t master the “sort” concept I have to choose my battles, right?). I’ve been trying to reuse things and avoid the disposable. My knitting lately has consisted a lot of swiffer cloths and not just because they’re all I can handle thankyouverymuch. They work great, they’re machine washable and they definitely serve a purpose in my messy, messy house. The other cleaning device I dig is my swiffer duster because it reaches the ceiling fans easily and does a good job. I don’t like buying the disposable duster refills though so I tried to make one. Here’s the result. If you like it and want to duplicate, I’ll tell you that you can raid the remnant bin at your friendly W-M*rt and make several for just over a dollar. I got creative and bought a second half-yard of polar fleece. No, I don’t know why. To make it, cut a piece of fleece just big enough to go over the prongs of the duster and then cut four 5 x 7.5 inch (it’s not precise, trust me) pieces of polar fleece. Put the four big pieces in a stack and then put the small piece on top of them – about two inches up from the bottom and roughly centered. Stitch up the middle and then along each edge of the small piece and cut the fringe. It’s fleece so it won’t ravel and is machine washable. If you have a quilting or “walking” foot, I recommend using it but it’s not essential. It just makes it easier (and helps me justify what I spent on the walking foot about four years ago).

Apparently I’m crafty.

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Seasons’ Greetings

December 26, 2008 By

So here we are in the post-Christmas haze. Two hour naps are getting old and so are cranky children. Christmas morning was kind of awesome with the Khan around but after about noon, everyone was ready to move on to the next something. Whatever that was.

I’m working on our 12 Days of Christmas but a monkey wrench went into that today when the stupid commissary was closed. We’ll pick up food for the pantry another day. Tomorrow’s St. Stephen’s Day and, while lots of ideas involving Stephen Colbert have rambled around in my head, nothing is materializing. I am realizing how little I have in common with my own damn family. Most everything that I think is fun they’re not interested in and, since I’m not much of a cheerleader, I’m losing the battle. Anyone interested in helping take care of all the junk food in my house and playing some games (Nintendo or otherwise) tomorrow should just come on over. I’m bored and no one wants to play with me. I may fall back on statistics to occupy my time and that’s never good. Yes, of course, I’m knitting but after awhile my hands start to hurt so I can’t (unfortunately) spend all day with DPN’s in my hands. I’ve finished three projects in the last two weeks and that has got to be a record even if two of them are swiffer cloths.

I have resolved that 2009 will not suck as much as 2008 did. I hope I am right. More on that later. I’d love to know people are still reading my bloggy nonsense.

Happy Boxing Day!

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Monday Quickie

December 22, 2008 By

Jayne Hat

I finally finished a knitting project. Hooray! This is Ogre’s hat being modeled by the Great Khan.

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Guess What’s on Everyone’s Mind at Our House?

December 19, 2008 By

The Khan and the Emporer meet Santa

You bet! Today’s the last day before Christmas break and, while I don’t have a ton of Christmas spirit, the fellas are geeked. The Czar is even helping 1SG keep my present a secret. They shopped yesterday. Alone. I was worried. Then 1SG comes home with this “Academy Sports” entry in the checkbook. He’s sneaky. I’m sneakier and I balance the checkbook. I didn’t see “Academy Sports” online. I saw “Helzberg Diamonds”. Maybe this is getting interesting after all…

Funny story: Last week the Senator had an orchestra performance. He wanted to stay afterwards for the handbell choir’s performance. One of the pieces was “We Wish You A Merry Christmas”. He leans over to me and says “Mom, there’s a word in this song. Well, it’s kind of like a swear word.”

Sing with me: “Now bring us some friggin’ pudding. Now bring us some friggin’ pudding. Now bring us some friggin’ pudding and bring it right now.”

I had to clarify. Then I had to explain both figs and figgy pudding. Maybe I shouldn’t have corrected him.

Filed Under: Army Life, Frivolity, kidspeak

Well Hi there!

December 18, 2008 By

I’ve been meaning to move the blog to my own hosting for a while so I could feel like I am not wasting my money. So here we are. Leave a comment and let me know how you dig the new digs ;)

Filed Under: Blogging

I Don’t Really Like to Play Tag

December 11, 2008 By

But I will do whatever JP asks me to do so here you go:

List these rules on your blog. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird. Tage 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their name as well as a link to their blog.

Let them know they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.
1. I hate school.  I really do.  I enjoy the act of learning and the process of learning, just not the environment, I guess.  A lot of what happens in school is a total waste of time but a lot of value added activity is missing.  That is what I don’t like about it.  The higher you get, the better the value-added activity gets but the learning style of the learner must adapt to the teaching style of the teacher and that is frustrating.
2. I have always wanted to be a teacher.
3. I think that a house is not a home without at least one pet.  ~hugs my puppies and my wonderful (shithead) cat~
4. A perfect evening for me includes dinner that I made with Sarge’s help and a houseful of people for games and conversation.
5. I love to meet new people, make new friends and try new things but I seldom have the opportunity.
6. I don’t think we’re done adopting children.  In fact, if I had the money right now, we’d be going for a pair of girls who’s Russian last name means “Bastard”.  I probably need to figure out a different way to help the children of the world.
7.  I put on amazing vocal performances on my way to and from school.  I wish Nintendo would make a good karaoke type game.  They have a couple but I ain’t singing High School Musical songs.  In the words of the Emporer:  “High School Musical is gay.”

So now I am supposed to tag seven people.  I don’t know if I know seven people that have blogs!  I’ll do my best:

Ian, Tal, Becca, Mel, May and Sarah.

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On The First Day of …

December 9, 2008 By

Bah Humbug!  I’ve been saying for a few weeks now that I really hate Christmas.  While that may not be entirely true, I was forced to analyze my reasons for frustration in the holiday season.  I may even have blogged on these before but they haven’t changed and who reads the blog anyway, right?

I think my primary frustration comes from having family on both sides that puts the fun in dysfunctional.  We’re not close, can’t explain why and see no need to really try and resolve it.  Honestly, I have felt like an outsider inside my own family since I was quite small.  As a result, I crave for my family to be closer.  We are but sometimes it seems not quite close enough.  And, of course, factor in that the older four brats have flown the coop and the holidays seem like a big, fat, letdown in the making for family time.

I also hate presents.  I hate shopping for presents.  I’m intimidated by how much some people give their kids and, while I have never really felt the urge (or had the ability) to keep up with that I always wonder how that makes my kids feel.  I also hate that presents take the focus of Christmas away from what it should be which is faith (although I am losing mine lately but that’s another post), friends and family.  Having a shitty family has set me up for disappointment for quite awhile.

The other part I don’t like so much is that once Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are done, that’s it.  Typically the days between the 25th of December and the 31st are just nothing but wasted opportunities for fun.  So this year, because I am really digging deep to make these holidays not suck, I have come up with and will be implementing the first annual 12 Days of Christmas.

Here they are:

  • 24th Christmas Eve (@our friends’ house for cards, cocktails, whatever)
  • 25th Christmas Brunch here will also involve opportunities to play with all the video games and other toys that we’ll be getting.  (ROCK BAND!) So come over and get your nerd on.
  • 26th Boxing Day: Grocery shop and deliver purchases to food pantry
  • 27th St. Stephen’s Day: Surprise friends with treats or maybe dinner?
  • 28th Denzel Washington’s birthday: Movie Festival!  Not necessarily Denzel Movies since a lot of them aren’t really Khan friendly.
  • 29th Celebrating the birthday of the inventor of the chicken nugget! Nuggets and fries for dinner and game day!
  • 30th Rudyard Kipling born 1865: Watch Jungle Book, my favoritest Disney Movit today.  Also: Severus: Harry Potter!
  • 31st Hogmanay, 14TH Wedding Anniversary: Dinner party,Games, make sure I am showered with gifts and accolades and treated like a Queen (yeah, right!)
  • 1st New Year’s Day
  • 2nd Ogre/Crunchy and the Queen (hopefully) here for more video games and family time
  • 3rd Kindertag (kids can plan the day) Sarge and I will be here for our anniversary.  It is rare that we get away like grown ups.  I am very excited.
  • 4th Anniversary of the Battle of Reading.  I realize this has nothing to do with books but the kids will never figure it out since we’ve blocked Wikipedia.  I shall curl up with a good book, read some stories to the Khan and whomever else wants to listen and everyone picks a favorite snack for lunch and dinner that day.  I will have to work to make some of them healthy.

January 5th will be “Haul my Fat Ass to the Gym” day.

Cheers!

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