You Know The Universe Loves You When....

1. Your ex-husband (yes, Mr. CFP) calls you to "take care of some financial business" and starts talking to you about how AWESOME you are and how much he misses you and keeps saying that it would be cool to start over and you are so great, beautiful, and blah, blah, blah...AND YOU SHOOT HIM DOWN by saying that over the last year you've really learned a lot, including how much crap you put up with him and now it's really not anything that you want to put up with anymore. Good-bye!

2. The President's son (a fellow teammate) tells you that he had a conversation with his dad about you and it turns out the conversation is similar to things you've been saying for the last 4 months! Something to the effect of "Hi, I'm not being challenged enough...give me more to do!!!". (This may mean more work ahead, but hey, at least I'm NOT going to be dealing with #1 above!)

3. The laptop that you have been lobbying for, since you can't get your office moved closer to where you REALLY work, is on its way. It's a hand-me-down from Sales, but will fit the bill nicely. I was told today that its inevitable, though a definite date is not set.

4. The Fuzzy Feet are complete and felted, though still drying. And a new project, a hat (new endeavor) is on the needles and half-way done! (Still no sheep...But I have until 4/23/06 until Rodeo Season starts!)

5.You drive by the place where Cowboy Bob works EVERYDAY and you're to the point that you don't care if he's there or not...you don't even bother to acknowledge his existence...you just don't want to deal with him ever again! POOF...He is just the figment of a VERY BAD dream...

6. You realize that you are having people over this weekend and that the house is really not in that bad of shape and can probably hold off cleaning until later in the week...Shopping for food is Friday!

7. You come to the true realization that all is good in the world. You have tons of fabulous friends, an awesome family and a life to be proud of.

Today definitely cancels out my "crabby" day yesterday....To all of you who fell victim to me yesterday...I'm in a better mood today...does that make it better??

Happy Scarf Face

Is that the face of a happy scarf owner or what??? (Never mind that the ends of the scarf are touching the floor after being wrapped 2 times!....She'll grow into it!?!)

Help I Fell Off And They Made Me Get Back Up Again...

Yep, It's official. I fell off my horse yesterday during lessons. The key word here is fell, not thrown (or throwed, as I hear often...). And I was riding Mack...as in "Mack Truck"...he's a cross between a Quarter Horse and a Draught horse, so his legs are shorter than mine! And the name "Eyeore" comes to mind with him often! Anyway, I am fine, though sore all the way down my right side. My shoulder got the full brunt of it, so it will bruise nicely! At least I got that over with...

Thanksgiving was fun, though very low key. We ate at Mom & Dads and only 8 of us were there, as Tim & Diane hosted her family at home. And after dinner MA & Jim had to go to his parents' and Dave & Stacy had to go to Turkey Bowl and Matt had a very bad headache, so I dried dishes. (good thing it wasn't the 12 as we have had in the past - that's lots of drying!) During the day, the "kids" had pulled out a puzzle - one of the fun ones of 500 pieces with the impossible design, so Mom & I got "sucked" in and got a good part of it done. After that we watched The Polar Express (I knitted my 2nd Fuzzy Foot) which was cute and had great artwork, though we commented that there really was no plot....When I got home that night, my neighbors were out around the chiminea, so I stopped by for a couple of drinks and a couple of shots of Goldschlager...My hair STILL smells like smoke!

So the Christmas decorations are all up now. I didn't go all out, as I don't know what I like in this house yet. The Snow Village is up in the kitchen and the tree is up in the living room. Next weekend is my open house, so I should be good to go for that. I have no idea how many people will be coming by, but it should be fun...

This weekend is Aubrey's party at MaMar & PaBob's house. It will be fun to hang out with them...the scarves are complete and the gifts are wrapped.

Let the Christmas Season Begin.....

T'was the Monday Before Thanksgiving and All Through the House...

It's the Monday before Thanksgiving and I feel like I should have more on my list than I do. As of now, I just have to make 2 pies to take to my parents' on Thursday AND one is NOT going to be Pumpkin! It's going to be a little quiet there...Tim & Diane are hosting dinner for her family at their house, so it will just be other 4 of us. Matt will be home for break by then, so he'll add some comic relief to the mix!

This past weekend was actually quite relaxing, though busy. I had a CTMH Party at Lucille's church on Friday night. There were 6 people there and I was able to make some contacts for future parties. I was able to make my STTT Bonus with CTMH, so I have $75 in free product coming my way! (AND, not that I really care, but I found out some things that were said about me that weren't very nice during the break-up over the summer, but no one really believed what was said...I guess it pays to be cute and charming as always!)

I CANTORED DURING RIDING LESSONS on Saturday. And I actually meant to do it! I only got about 1/2 way around the arena and Bailey about put me into a pole, but I stayed on and kept my balance! I think I get to ride Mac this week, so probably no cantoring...Will need to work on getting him to stay moving for the most part. (the name Eyeore comes to mind!)

So I got Aubrey's scarf finished and it's long. Ok, it's 72" long and she's 2! It's something she can grow into... One skein of yarn was too short, but I didn't want to stop in the middle of the second one.(Patton's Melody in Fun N' Games) Anyway, they live in Chicago, so it can wrap around her a couple of times to stay warm! Ellena's scarf is in process and will probably not be AS long. I'm not going to use the whole skein - I don't think I'll have time before going up there on Sunday. (Need to clean and decorate the house for my Open House/Warming Party on Dec. 3)The green Fuzzy Feet will probably be going to Shauna, as she is begging me for them. I did buy pink wool for another pair, so I'll be keeping those.

I got to swim tonight, before going to the parish council meeting. I put in 2000 yards in about 40 minutes, which I thought was pretty good. (So I cheat and wear fins when I swim, but it keeps my heart pumping!) Still tons of cute guys there...need to go running tomorrow night!

I have no clue what I'm doing the rest of the week. I was talking to a friend of mine about going to the Singles party in StL sponsored by "It's Just Lunch" on Weds night, but her son is coming in town from college, so I don't know if she'll want to go. I did fill out a form for them on e-mail and they called last week. They guarantee 14 dates in a year for a cost of a cool $1500! Anna says she would also guarantee me 14 dates in a year for $1500, so I don't know if that's a good deal. Anyway, I think I want to try things on my own, or with the help of friends for a while, until I get really desperate. I'm going to "let it ride" through the holidays and see what 2006 brings...I'm always up for a new year!!

Under Construction

I am posting pictures of the contstruction that's going on under my office. (left pic is the break room, the left is the women's locker room, DIRECTLY under me!) They have to replace all the drain pipes from the break room and locker rooms, which are under my office. I have been listening/feeling jack-hammers and dealing with dust and exhaust fumes for a week now, with at least 4 weeks to go!...NOT FUN!!! (but helping in my quest to move offices or get a laptop to work closer to the production floor!)

Aren't We The Little Joiner??

So I joined the YMCA in town yesterday.(Actually I was a member for a couple of years, but quit when I moved to Sullivan...) It was a birthday gift to myself, so Happy Birthday to ME! Well, now that I've paid for it, I guess I better go. So I put on my new tennies...

Ok, not really new, but I bought them before I moved along with a cool discman some cute shorts and haven't really used any of them since then. I went running/walking tonight for about 30 minutes and I'm going to pay for it tomorrow. I'm in better shape than I thought, but need to tone! And there are a TON of cute guys that go there...hopefully none of them will notice me until I'm a bit more toned too! I think I'm going to swim later this week...I really miss that. (Yes Dad, I really do swim 1500 yards in 45 minutes...that's 60 laps!)

The CTMH Open House went well - I had 8 1/2 people come by and make stuff. (The princess came by with her mom...) Here are some samples: (The Fall Candle Holder was made for my mom...Cherie just wanted to see it...)

I sold about $350 in product, though I ended up buying a bunch of stuff myself. I'm now $81 away from my bonus of $75 in free product! I also signed up for Auto Ship of the new catalogs, so I should be getting them in early December... And I scheduled a gathering in January! I have a gathering Friday night at Lucille's church which should be fun. We are making Christmas cards and gift tags. (Still need to come up with a design for mine this year!)

Dinner on Sunday was fun too. The chili and Sante Fe soup were a big hit - too bad it wasn't as cold as it is now! UnfortunatelyDave was sick and we couldn't get Stacy to come out by herself...(we really just wanted to see her anyway...) Alison took a picture of me with my cake, that I didn't make myself. Dad picked it out and it had little bees on it - cute! I received gift cards from my favorite stores which was cool! (Yes, I know there weren't 33 candles...no two same colored candles were next to each other on the cake either...Thanks Mom!)

Tomorrow night I am going with some DG Alumnae sisters to see Wicked. It's sold out and we got great seats, so I'm excited to go. We are meeting for dinner at Cheesecake Factory, so it will be a luscious girls night out all the way around!

So check out my new "bling" in the sidebar when you get a chance. Apparently these are the "latest craze" in Blogs, so I joined in, of course! Add your location to my map and check out the local weather. (For those keeping score at home...it's REALLY cold here, but no snow yet!)

As for the knitting, I have 1/2 a scarf for Aubrey done and 1/2 a scarf for Ellena done. I need more yarn for Aubrey's scarf, which I may try to get this weekend. Bought more yarn for another pair of Fuzzy Feet, but still have to finish my first foot. (I'm seeing an open weekend with lots of knitting and NFL games on Sunday!) Also bought more sock yarn for Toe Up Socks, but haven't found time to start them...soon I hope! (How many days/projects until Christmas??

The Basement Workshop Is Ready To Open For Business!

The basement is finally organized and ready to go for my open house tomorrow. Here is the before picture:








And the after pictures. (That's actually in the room off to the side of the main room...it has a large cut-out in the side of the wall and the door is 5' tall, which I surprisingly KEEP HITTING MY HEAD ON!) Did I mention the part where I am an organizational freak and LOVE baskets and anything organizational??








Tomorrow should go well. I have between 10 & 15 people coming over to "play". We are stamping on tumbled tile coasters, tile magnets, ornaments, candles, note cubes and gift bags. I have a bunch of stuff to make for Christmas too! I need to start my Christmas cards for the card party I'm supposed to go to tomorrow night too!

So I got a bunch of comments on my last blog entry, which is cool. It was fun to put together and has put my life into perspective...good stuff! Good to know people are reading it too.

Did go by Chris' Yarn store in Chesterfield before my birthday dinner. I got some chunky self-striping yarn for Aubrey's scarf, another ball of sock yarn (Anna - thanks for the pattern...will have to try it!) and another ball of Chunky Gallway for another pair of Fuzzy Feet. Still need to finish the first ones...but I'm prepared! I also re-felted my purse again tonight...it's closer in size to what I wanted, so that's good.

Tonight I ran over to the Circle Starr ranch to hang out with the kids on the ponies. They did really well and I was able to impart some of the wisdom that I have learned through my horseback lessons...it makes sense to me now! (Thanks Robyn & Anna!) Here is a picture of Cowboy Chaser X and the Princess with me before the Rolla Rodeo in July 05. (It was pink day for Breast Cancer...they usually wear white or blue shirts, though Princess wears the purple or pink chaps, hat & boots all the time!)



Also, I asked my brother Matt to design a logo/mascot for my blog. He made up chariactures for our family for the yearly letter last year, which were a riot, so I can't wait to see what he comes up with! (Have to wait until after Thanksgiving though...he is getting ready for finals!)

Wish me luck for tomorrow. Dinner with the family is on Sunday...chili and taco soup and VERY casual...hopefully the Rams will be playing well and we hope it doesn't storm too much tomorrow!

Just Another Day

Today is my 33rd birthday. For some reason, I think that this day is a big deal, but not everyone feels that way. (Ok, I'll admit that Mr. CFP used to go all out on my birthday and I miss that! Thanks Dave, Stacy, MA, Jim & Dad for taking me to dinner!)

So, while I was being down this morning (for really no reason), I started thinking of all the events that I have exerienced, all the people I have met and things I have learned over the last year and it's actually quite alot...:

1. I was able to spend the holidays with JUST my family and stay as long as I wanted. I didn't have to leave early to get home if I didn't want to and didn't have to referee anything.
2. I got to attend my god-daughter Aubrey's 1st birthday party (and looking forward to her 2nd)
3. I had a blind date on New Year's Eve and got presents from him on Valentine's Day. (didn't last long though...but I learned a lot from that)
4. I got divorced and was able to get my name back....Winters..."like the season"!
5. I figured out that I DO NOT look good in short hair...though I do look best as a blonde!
6. I have a job where I am respected and I feel like I contribute on a daily basis (been there 1 year now & I had57 SOPs written & approved over the last year)
7. Ft. Madison, IA is really cold and really boring in February.
8. I am a VP for the DG Alumnae group, the Ladies' Sodality at Church and I am getting involved with the TU Alumni group.
9. Transmissions are really expensive...and sometimes not worth replacing.
10. I sold a house, moved into an apartment, bought a house and moved all in 6 months....(I don't recommend it and fish hate it!)
11. I met Anna & Wayne who are great people and helped me through a tough time. Now that it's all over, they are really fun to hang out with.
12. I learned how cool horses are and I am learning to ride and can even saddle a horse (with some help.)
13. I bought my first pair of cowboy boots - Ariats...they are SOOOO comfortable.
14. I have a freqent buyer card at Orschelin's and most of the yarn and scrapbooking stores in the area.
15. I moved back to Washington, where I think I belong...Ever since driving out here in the jeep back in 1999...I've always had a place for it in my heart.
16. I was "engaged" to the wrong man, for all the wrong reasons. If I had trusted my gut instincts earlier, so many things would have turned out differently!
17. Family is so important and won't turn their back on you...but you have to treat them like friends and respect them. And they will be honest with you when you aren't the best friend that you can be. It's worth it to keep these relationships real.
18. I am re-acquainting myself with ME. For as geeky as I can be, I'm actually very cool to hang out with. I am Ok on my own, though I miss being with someone SOMETIMES... but at least my house stays clean!
19. I learned to knit and am now part of "the cult". Thanks to Anna & Robin for inducting me.
20. I was accused of being dominant and was actually proud of that...There is nothing wrong with being an Alpha Female. And I have met a bunch of them...Kerin, Anna, Robin, Mary, Ingrid, Jan, Shelly....
21. Chicago is such a fun city to visit...so much to do and so much character.
22. I am an Independent consultant with Close To My Heart. I have finally figured out how to turn my hobby into a business.
23. I met Lucille, who is a combination of what both of my grandmothers would be if they were both still alive.
24. I was able to look at my Faith from a different perspective. It's amazing what you come to realize when looking at it from there. Who knew that a Catholic could learn so much from her Baptist friends. (All the people I met at Morse Mill are great too...)
25. I learned to navigate South St Louis and Jefferson Counties.
26. I found that I am not as bad of a golfer that I thought I was.
27. I was able to spend some great time with my Grandpa Nafziger and get a hold of some great old photo albums. I treasure the scrapbook from MaMoo from 1916.
28. I learned to create an oil painting, that my brother the art major was impressed with.
29. I went to my first rodeo and became a "groupie" to a couple of Mutton Busters who now call me "Aunt Shannon". I have learned a lot AND can talk knowlegably about roping, riding, clowning, etc.
30. A coat of paint will do wonders to the look of the inside of a house.
31. Sullivan is an interesting town to work in...different from St. Louis...the people are a lot friendlier and it's easier to get things done...not so much politics and red tape.
32. I have great neighbors and friends that have been so supportive and have invited me to be a part of so many things.
33. I like the thought of being 33. I feel it's right where I should be right now!

Today may have been just another day....BUT

This year has been an extraordinary year!

Now We Know...

Just how many days until Christmas....(See cool ticker at the top of the page...)

2 Scarves, 1Pair Fuzzy Feet, 1 Felted Hat, 2 Purses, 2 Sheep....

Do You Ever Stay Home??

Hey, I was home on Friday night and actually almost felt odd because I was! I think I am finally settling into the routine of "real" life and I'm not sure what to do with that. I'm not complaining, I just am not sure how to act when I am not dealing with dumb boys, a house that won't sell or a major move! It will settle down soon....I just need to relax!

With that being said, this weekend was a blur! I did stay home Friday and work on the basement (almost done!). Yesterday was the St. Louis Knitting Guild Workshop which was fun. The sock class was interesting and I like the pattern, though I don't feel like I learned a whole lot new from that class. (I think Anna & I learned more from Robin who was sitting between us trying to get her own sock done AND show us where were going wrong - THANKS!) My sock is really cute and I love the striping yarn I used. Here is my "proto-type"...

The afternoon class with Carol Hurt was FABULOUS! I think I learned more with her in the first 20 minutes than I since I started knitting!!! Such great tips and tricks she had! And her finishing techniques were really helpful. I probably could have listened to her talk all day and soaked everything in...what a great resource!

Then I even stopped into Hobby Lobby afterwards and bought some needles that were on 50% off and a cute Magic Stripes yarn from Lion Brand. I actually stayed up late last night to try it out, but I think I got the sizing all wrong, so I frogged it. I will try a bigger cast on next time!

After the workshop, I went over to my friend Lisa's house where they had a "drive-in" movie night. They had a bonfire in the backyard, then set up the computer and projector to show a movie on the side of their barn. We watched Haunted Mansion with Eddie Murphy. It was really cool, as there was a storm in the distance, with low thunder and lightning, so it added to the "aura" of the movie. It stormed not too long after the movie ended, which made for an interesting night...

Today was the quilt bingo at church and it was fun, though I didn't realize Bingo was THIS hardcore...There were a couple of crabby players, but overall it was fun. (Can someone explain to me why a player would need 10 DIFFERENT colored daubers to play??) We gave away 13 of the 20 quilts, so it was fun.

So when I got home tonight, I was letting the pups outside and my neighbors behind me starting yelling at me to come over. It was early and they are pretty cool, so I threw on a pair of jeans and went over. It was Cara's birthday and they had gone the wineries to celebrate. She had gotten a chiminea for her birthday and they were firing it up. I brought down a beer and sat and chatted with them for 3 HOURS! They are great people. We figured out too that all of our birthdays were within10 days of each other! The one neighbor Joe & Katie were out for the evening and his birthday is tomorrow. So us "girls" decided to TP his house....at 7PM on a Sunday night! (Good thing that MO HP officer moved out of the neighborhood!) Joe got home a little later and was annoyed, but vowed revenge...looks like I may have a mess on Thursday morning... They are soooo much fun to hang out with...I can see lots of fun for years to come!

This week looks to be as busy as ever...so to answer my question...NO....and I like it that way!

Blah, Blah, Blah, It's Thursday Night....

Ok, So I finished the wallpaper border the other night and it looks good. Still don't have anything on the walls, but oh well! I still have 4 boxes of "stuff" sitting in here too, but it's out of the way, so I'll worry about it later... (here's the office...the desk is an antique desk that came from Dad's shop - at some point it was off a tanker ship out of the Atlantic...don't ask how they got it in the room...they tell me touch up paint is involved...)

I started working on the basement and I actually emptied a couple of bins and put everything out on tables. Now I just need to find a home for everything and set up the room for my workshop. Still don't have a definite count...it's somewhere between 5 and 12 people!

I finished the heel turn on my 'Fuzzy Feet'. I missed some stitches and ended up with an extra one there too...good thing they are going to be felted! It actually looks like the picture too, which I was REALLY nervous about! Of course most everyone on the FFAL is already finished and working on their 2nd or 3rd pair...apparently they aren't confused by the pattern, have a day job or they just knit 24/7... Or I'm just really slow and can't figure it out!

Today was Happy Haircut day for the furballs. They actually enjoy going to the groomer, in fact she said they walked right into the kennel and they got "Perfect Angel" scores from them too. Um, are you sure you have the right Westies? Brodie is far from an angel!! They do look cute though. But they put the goofy scarf on Brodie and a bow in her hair - she fought 10 minutes trying to get it out - she HATES anything in her "fuzz"!!

This Saturday is the St. Louis Knitting Guild workshop, where I am taking a sock class and seaming with Robin & Anna. I guess they get to harass me over the fact that I'm not really that good at understanding patterns. And they can revel in the fact that they have gotten me to be a part of their "cult". It's one of those things that you "just wouldn't understand" if you weren't a part of it. Who knew that 2 needles and a ball of yarn could be so addictive! (Ok, so I just have to mention that my friend Bill sent me a link to an article about a product prototype for electronic needles that COUNT FOR YOU!!! They are sooooo cool! Too bad they are not on the market yet...I know a couple of knitters that could use them...)

Only 53 Days Until Christmas?!?!

I truly cannot believe it's November 1st already! I just got to the point where I don't write 2004 anymore! And my birthday is in 8 days, and for those of you keeping score at home, I'll be 29!

The Rams game was a lot of fun. They won, though none of their starters were really playing. About 1/2 way through the 4th Quarter, my brother Dave called to see where we were sitting. He was straight across the field from us, but I couldn't hear him over the crowd noise! After the game, I came home and made iced sugar cookies for work, which I have been doing every Halloween since I graduated college...

I got some more work done on my Fuzzy Feet, thanks to Anna and the Fuzzy Feet Along. Those patterns are so confusing at times...I wasn't anywhere close on my guess! Here's where I am at right now with the heel...I'm getting ready to start the heel turn...hopefully I can figure out the Pick-Up & Knit!

I'm still working on the scarf that I'm making out of the Debbie Bliss Alpaca/Silk in an oversized Moss stitch too. It's going slow, but it looks pretty cool.

I think I'm going to give it to my brother Dave, but not sure yet. My sister Alison got the other scarf I made and now everyone wants something. (This is the same group that gives me trouble for being "crafty"...crazy bunch of artists and art majors!!)

Like I said earlier...only 53 days until Christmas and I'm not seeing a pair of Fuzzy Feet, a scarf, a felted hat, 2 purses and a bunch of dog toys being done by then... Looks like it may be Christmas in July this year!!

So tonight is straighten the office and hang my wallpaper border. It's come a long way from the original paint job from when I moved in:

(No, the manequin is not mine. This picture was taken before I moved in.) I actually ended up painting every room in the house over the first 2 weeks I was here, as I couldn't stand any of the colors! (The woman actually liked color alot and had done a great job decorating...unfortunately it wasn't ANYTHING I would have chosen!) The office is now a turquoise color and the border is a tropical scene. (Mom will hate that I have a "theme" room...I still haven't abandoned the horse themed bathroom...shhhh don't tell her!)

Once I finish this room, then I can start working on my scrapbook space in the basement. I have until the 12th to get it all put together and get my samples for the Stamp Camp. I have 2 people confirmed and a lot of people with "definite maybes", so we'll see how it goes...

This weekend is the St Louis Knitting Guild Workshop and the Quilt Bingo at the church - St. John the Baptist, Gildehaus.

It will be busy, but what do you expect?

(Anna, you should be impressed...I have pictures AND links this time...)