Incurable Packrat!

I admit it! I'm a packrat! It's a horrible disease and I've got it bad! Mom says I come by it honestly because my great aunt has it, my mother has it and now I've inherited it! I try so hard to not save everything and to purge when I can. It's a never-ending battle and I'm always on the losing side.

Especially with my craft supplies. I love crafting and have always done it. I always will. Even if I haven't croched or tatted for years, I know I will again someday. I have a closet full of craft stuff that rarely gets used. I have a room full of supplies that are for my current hobbies: Sewing, Stamping and Scrapbooking.

When I say current, I'm not sure how honest that is! I haven't really sewn anything for 2 years when I sewed the flower girl dresses for my wedding. I've machine-embroidered a couple of baby blankets and that is it! But April is Renaissance Faire season, so I know I will need to sew some new costume things this year. So, I can still call sewing current, right?

Today, I swore I was going to get rid of one of my large boxes of fabric I have stored. I have 5 of those plastic rubbermaid containers that sit in my room. They would be level with my crafting table if I only had 4 boxes. So I dutifully opened each box and sorted through them this morning. I sent one small bag back to Mom's because she is more likely to use it . One small bag will go to Goodwill. And one small bag has been cut up for RAKs (Random Acts of Kindness) for my crafty friends.

Nope—I didn't get rid of even one box! But I was able to put the fabric that was sitting on top of the table away. Wish me luck with my sewing next month—maybe I will sew enough costume pieces that I can get rid of that pesky box!

One of those questionnaires

Once in a while, someone passes out a questionnaire in my email. Here's my answers!

Four jobs you have had in your life:
1. Survey Researcher
2. Substitute Teacher
3. Fabric Store Clerk
4. Counselor

Four movies you would watch over and over:
1. Mary Poppins
2. Princess Bride
3. Amelie
4. Blue

Four TV shows you love to watch:
1. Don’t really watch TV!
2. X-Files
3. Travel/cooking/ channel
4. discovery/Nat'l geographic channel

Four places you have been on vacation:
1. Japan
2. Tahiti
3. New Mexico
4. Georgia

Four websites I visit daily:
1. NADAguides.com
2. gmail.com
3. yahoo groups
4. msn groups

Four of my favorite foods:
1. Lasagna
2. Lobster
3. Sushi
4. Mexican food

Four places I would rather be right now:
1. At home kissin’ the little cat!
2. Someplace warm and sunny
3. Day Spa
4. Tahiti

Things I learned from Grandma

My grandmother died of lung cancer when I was only nine years old. I was really "grandma's girl" and I still miss her. Here's some funny little things I learned through her.

• Nothing beats a good mystery novel!
• If you don't want to cook, there's always KFC!
• When weeding the garden, pull all the largest weeds first—that way if you get tired, your garden still looks nicer and then you can go play!
• Afternoon naps are so refreshing!
• It's always more fun to play cards if you have pretzels to snack on!
• Have a hobby and enjoy it whenever you can!

What's that smell?

Last week I got one of those email questionnaires from a friend. One question that really made me think was to list your favorite smells. Here's some of my answers:

• vanilla
• cinnamon
• hot wet concrete next to a swimming pool in Summer
• jasmine breezes on a warm evening
• Random's fur
• the smell of a heater or dryer
• my shampoo that smells like mint gumdrops (Aveda Rosemary Mint Shampoo)
• fresh copies from the copy machine
• the smell of a summer thunderstorm
• the first freesias of spring
• a new box of crayons
• a bag of lemons
• Monoi Tiare' soap from Tahiti (Monoi Tiare)
• Rosemary from the garden
• lavendar sprinkled with morning dew

Please feel free to list some of your favorites, too!