My husband got me a Cricut Expression for Mother's Day.  He is so awesome I can't stand it!  He spoils me horribly and I love it.  Darin is the best!!

Ok...I've been procrastinating for days and days now about starting a scrapbook.  Last weekend I went on my church's annual women's retreat and for the first time a very dear friend was unable to go with us due to her leaving the area.  I vowed to make her a scrapbook of all the insanity and fun she had to miss out on.  Of course, I've never done any scrapbooking every in my whole life, thus the procrastination.

So today I picked up my pictures from Target and avoided looking at them all day.  Finally, I put Henry to bed (twice, because he seems to come up with new and amazing ways to avoid bedtime everynight) and I got to work.  My husband is out of town for work and I have made the biggest mess all over the living room floor.  But I LOVE what I've come up with!  I'm sure you seasoned scrappers will find my page simple and quaint, but darn it if I didn't crop like a maniac and I'm so proud of myself!

First of all, let me just go on for a minute about how much I love Stampin Up's paper selection.  I love to make cards and I think it was a natural progression to scrapping.  All the colors coordinate so beautifully and I think this first page turned out great!  Now if only I could convince my husband that I really do need a Cricut for Mother's Day...

Ok, knitting and I are back together.  It's been a rough readjustment, but we're gettting on like a house on fire now.  Of course, my embroidery and cross-stitching are sitting sulkily in the project basket, plotting their revenge...

Anyhooo....I need to take a minue to wax philosophically about hand-dyed yarns.  I'm not a fancy gal, as I'm sure you might have noticed, but I love love love to dye my own yarn.  AND since I have a wild 3-year-old, I'm not exactly keen on the idea of harmful toxic dyes in my kitchen.  Thus, I have found joy and contentment with Koolaid dyeing.  The most fabulous discovery since the dawn of mankind. 

This past weekend I was playing around with it and teaching my dear friend, Tiffany, the finer art of throwing wet wool into a pot full of koolaid and letting it boil.  Since somebody had been drinking my stash of dyes (namely my husband, Darin) I was left only with orange and pink lemonade.  I was a little apprehensive because I thought they would turn out kinda blecky, but I was plesantly surprised!!  Yay for new discovery!

So since I titled this blog "Sock-tastic", I should probably ramble a little about socks.  I love them.  I love making them, especially as gifts for other people.  Recently I made a pair for my friend Carrie (that were dyed with some grape koolaid, no less).  There's nothing quite like the reaction of someone who 1) loves to receive gifts and 2) loves the fact that you made something just for them.  I mean, c'mon!  Custom fit socks!  No bunchy heel sticking out the back of your shoe, no pinchy side toe pain.  Just all around fabulocity.  Yay for socks:)

Hmmm...so last night I uttered five words that I never ever thought I would hear myself say:  "I need a knitting break!"  Seriously!  I have been knitting non-stop since last fall and have done very little else.  My fingers hurt!!  Last night, while finishing a pair of hand-dyed Koolaid yarn socks for a friend, I accidentally impailed my finger with a size 0 dpn.  Ouch!! 

It makes me a little sad, since knitting is my one true craft love, but I think we need some time apart.  I mean, really, it's getting to be summer time and I don't want to be bogged down with wool on a 90 degree day at the pool! (Of course...I just discovered Jelly Yarns...how have I been missing out on that for all these years?!) 

So the question I am posting to you, dear readers, is this: Am I craft cheating?  Will my crafty infidelity come back to haunt me in the in end?  I've been keeping my embroidery and cross stitch supplies in a different place so my knitting doesn't get suspicious.  Let's hope I don't catch hell for this!!

Ok, I get obsessed with things really quickly.  Not like creepy stalkery obsessed, but when I find a new crafty hobby I like, it becomes a serious addiction.

I visited some old friends in my hometown a few weeks back and was introduced to embroidery by my friend Susan.  Now, this wasn't some lame-o birds and flowers embroidery, this was a little girl watering her hand grenade flowers with blood.  Seriously.  Check it out on www.etsy.com her company is called Skirt.  So I thought I should give it a try. 

I found Sublime Stitching online and ordered myself a how-to starter kit.  I stalked my mailman for a week until it finally came in the mail yesterday!  Needless to say, I tore into that bad boy like a kid on Christmas.  I LOVE EMBROIDERY!!!  My first go-round was a little pin-up cowgirl.  I only did the outlining, just to get my feet wet.  I love it.  It's awesome.  I'm overflowing with ideas about what I can embroider on!  Yay for being crafty!!!