I have been dying to try making my own stamp from an eraser, ever since I saw the tutorial on Two Cheese Please. And I finally did. It was awesome!
I used a Speedball cutter that I had in my art supplies. It’s the kind that has all of the cutter tips in the handle. Very cool tool to have.
I didn’t know what to make at first. Then, I decided to make something I could stamp on the kids’ school work when they do a good job. I thought this little light bulb guy was fun.
Ten years ago, I was just starting my last semester in college. The D was going on 2 and Big E was only a couple of months old. I was in therapy trying to get up the strength to leave my abusive relationship with their father, which I did four months later.
I would have to say that was a time in my life better forgotten.
Five snacks I enjoy:
Popcorn (oil popped with lots of salt and some butter)
Ice Cream
Corn Chips with Guacamole
Cheese and Crackers
Bananas
Five things on my to-do list today:
Post something on All Things Hold Together
Work on my home study paperwork for the state (due at the end of the month)
Get Big E to have something to drink. (You would think I wouldn’t have that problem with a 10-year-old)
Supervise the kids chores
Call my sister and see how her driving test went
Things I would do if I were a billionaire:
I hate to sound like a goody-two-shoes, but it has always been my dream to have a lot of money to give away. I would love to buy an RV and travel around the US getting to know people in different areas of the country and helping them out with our fortune.
I would also want to buy a small place on a nice piece of land here in Vermont to come back to.
Five jobs I have had:
Teen Helper at a daycare
Prep and lunch shift at an independent pizza house
Supervisor at Petite Sophisticate (even though I am not 5’4” or under)
Back end support in a commercial loan office (worst job ever)
Independent consultant for PartyLite
Five of my bad habits:
Spending hours online only to realize that I forgot to do what I came online to do
Letting the kids watch too many shows on the computer
Going over my grocery budget
Not following my own schedules
Leaving my home study enrollment to the last minute!
Five places I have lived:
Prepare to be wowed…
Rutland, VT
Pittsford, VT
Waitsfield, VT
Orwell, VT
Burlington, VT
Oh yeah, I meant wowed at what a loser I am!
Five people I would like to get to know better:
Who are under no moral obligation to answer this just because I’m tagging them…
I have a tattoo of a morning glory on my chest. I got it after I finished college, left my ex, and got a good full-time job, to remind me of everything I went through and how strong I can be.
I ran for City Council (and lost) twice.
When I was growing up, my mother would not cook with cheese because she hates it, so every year I would ask for a lasagna for my birthday because it was the only time she would make it.
I bought a tee shirt the other day that says, I [heart] geeks. And I do.
When I was in third grade, I won a Mr. Yuck! Poster contest for my slogan, “Don’t you get the picture? Kids and poison aren’t a good mixture.” The prize was a $50 savings bond.
Today was the custody hearing. Thank you for all of your prayers. I was so much calmer and more at peace than I have ever been when dealing with my ex.
Things went well from the perspective of the kids. They were overjoyed that the court did not order any visitation. But, I was saddened at the way that decision came about.
When my ex found out that the judge would not make them go to Florida, he became increasingly angry, as noted in the ruling. It ended with him making threats and arguing with the judge.
The judge, who had determined that visitation was to occur every Saturday when he is here in Vermont each year, removed all visitation until he can “place his son’s welfare ahead of his anger.”
The situation is really sad because it is so obvious to me that he needs help and, since he is unwilling to get the help he needs, the children will probably never have a meaningful relationship with him.
At least they are safe for now and we can continue our work with Deon, who is doing great, by the way.
I am looking forward to getting back to life as usual.
I have been making soap using a pre-made base for quite some time now, but what I really wanted was to make my own soap from scratch.
The soap making process involves a chemical reaction between oils and sodium hydroxide (lye). It is important to have accurate measurements of the oils and lye in order to make sure that all of the lye is fully saponified, since lye is caustic.
Since an accurate digital scale can cost upwards of $50, I figured that soap-making would have to wait.
Then I starting getting ad revenue from my blog, She’s Right, so I used some of it to buy a scale.
All of the soap-making books and websites I have read say that you can buy lye in the grocery store. As it turns out, since lye is used to manufacture the street drug meth, there are now lots of regulations on it and many stores no longer carry it. Not the grocery store. Not The Home Depot. Not Lowes. Not Wal-Mart. (At least around here.)
So, I ordered some online from a website called Summer Bee Meadow - and got scammed! They took my money, but did not send my lye and coconut oil.**
Then yesterday, I found 100% lye drain opener on the ACE Hardware website. I called a local store and they had it! I went and picked up a 16 oz. can of it today for under $4. That is enough to make 7 1-pound batches! Yea!
I cannot wait to get started!
** I filed a complaint with PayPal and I received a refund. Steve from Summer Bee Meadow claims that I was not scammed. His explanation is in the comments section of this post, along with my response. I’ll let you decide.
So much for my plan to start blogging more. It’s been a week!
I might as well tell you what’s been going on. My ex has filed for custody of the kids (which won’t happen) just as the kids decided that they never want to see him again! They are very stressed out at the thought of the court mandating visitation, so until the hearing (a week from Tuesday), they need lots of extra attention.
The D was so depressed, I sent him to my mom’s for a couple of days. She said he just laid around and didn’t even eat!
It is hard to see one’s children hurting.
I am going to try to get up earlier, so I can blog. I need it. I need to do something for myself, but there are times when one must put herself last for a bit. That’s okay, though.
The other thing is that I have been so busy with the kids that I don’t have any thing to post about, like recipes or crafts.
I was just fortunate to have a couple of hours to myself and I spent all of it redesigning She’s Right. I just took a month off and now I am going to a weekly format starting Monday.
So that’s my story. How have you been?
Welcome
This is the place where I blog about crafting, cooking, homemaking, my faith, life in general, and whatever strikes my fancy.
Thanks for stopping by my corner of the blog-world.
Cast of Characters
Charity: the bloggess and crafty homeschooling mama of three The D: the energetic 11-year-old son Big E: the artistic 10-year-old son Little E: the comical 5-year-old son
and Bob: the non-blogging, not-so-crafty husband and dad
