What Does My Name mean?

What Kristen Means

You are a seeker of knowledge, and you have learned many things in your life. You are also a keeper of knowledge - meaning you don't spill secrets or spread gossip. People sometimes think you're snobby or aloof, but you're just too deep in thought to pay attention to them. You are wild, crazy, and a huge rebel. You're always up to something. You have a ton of energy, and most people can't handle you. You're very intense. You definitely are a handful, and you're likely to get in trouble. But your kind of trouble is a lot of fun. You tend to be pretty tightly wound. It's easy to get you excited... which can be a good or bad thing. You have a lot of enthusiasm, but it fades rather quickly. You don't stick with any one thing for very long. You have the drive to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. Your biggest problem is making sure you finish the projects you start. You are the total package - suave, sexy, smart, and strong. You have the whole world under your spell, and you can influence almost everyone you know. You don't always resist your urges to crush the weak. Just remember, they don't have as much going for them as you do. You are a seeker. You often find yourself restless - and you have a lot of questions about life. You tend to travel often, to fairly random locations. You're most comfortable when you're far away from home. You are quite passionate and easily tempted. Your impulses sometimes get you into trouble. You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone. You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together. At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible. But for the important things, you pull it together. You are very intuitive and wise. You understand the world better than most people. You also have a very active imagination. You often get carried away with your thoughts. You are prone to a little paranoia and jealousy. You sometimes go overboard in interpreting signals.

What's" Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

I'm in TROUBLE - but the good kind.

While on my way home from work today, I took the scenic route due to an accident on the Interstate I normally drive - and found a FABRIC STORE!!!! You know the kind - where the owner is the one cutting your fabric, and a yard of fabric is well cut, well priced ($6 a yard average) and she is so helpful with your fabric selections:)

All this, for $23.00:

So I was able to make blocks 5 and 6 of the Quilt A Long tonight.

And for some reason, the one with all the triangles was easier for me to do - go figure.

There really aren't any good fabric stores within a reasonable distance of us, and the closest one in Wooster they were asking $16 a yard for their fabric - needless to say, I won't go there, and they went out of business earlier this year.

We had some fierce storms last night - but for now, I think they are done. Todd's at fire practice tonight, I'm debating if I sew some more or fold the 11 loads of laundry I did over the weekend. Somehow, I think laundry may have to win the war for now. Todd's mowing hay tomorrow night, so hopefully he won't need me and I can continue with sewing stuff:)

Kris

Still my little boy

Last night, as I was putting dinner on the table, I called out to Tyler to ask him what he wanted to dip his sausage in (his favorite meal is our smoked venison sausage links with mac n cheese). After receiving no answer, I went looking for him, and here he is:

Guess he was tired out from the weekend....

Kris

Help, Please

I acquired this quilt a while back, and absolutely fell in love with it:

However, it is so badly damaged, I'm not sure how to fix it!?!?!? Or if I should even try?????

I cannot bear to cut it up to make something else useable with it (while I love the idea that Christina did, I don't have a laptop and it makes me just sick to my stomach to think of myself cutting this quilt top up.)

Fortunately for me, the damage seems to be limited to the setting squares - I'm thinking maybe some white muslin that I was a million times and just applique new squares over the ruined ones (there are 3 or 4 ruined setting squares that I can find - and a few loose seams that I can fix). The quilting design looks like a simple flower, I think I can duplicate that.

I know the family history on this quilt, and know it was once loved, which may be adding to my reluctance to cut it up and repurpose it, but....

This quilt will never be used, but I am a sucker for anything old so. .. . . there you go.

Anyone have any suggestions?

Kris

P.S. by the way - it is freaking hot here - 94 degrees and high humidity

Garden Update

After a couple weeks, and a bit of rain, this is what my garden is looking like now:

Rather pitiful, so far….but I have high hopes for it. All the cooler weather we had right after planting probably didn't help much. The individual plants looks pretty good though. Ignore the weeds - I took these pictures before weeding the garden.

The good news is, everything (except for the zucchini plants I brought which were in horrible shape when I brought them) have lived. I went today to find eggplant and cherry tomato plants and to plant some zucchini plants and spaghetti squash from seeds.

I did get out there and hoe around all the plants - with all the rain the weeds are taking off - last night. When Todd gets home from work today, he's going to rototill between the rows as well.

And this is our sweet corn:

Only 3 rows of sweet corn came up (Todd planted 4 rows) but I am intending to keep an eye on it to try to keep the raccoons out of it. Unfortunately, it is so far from the house, I don't think I can put electric fence around it to keep various animals out, but I'm wondering and thinking that maybe I can run a couple low wires off the horse pasture (the edge of the cornfield is about 15 feet from the fence). Of course, then I will have to remember to disconnect the wires when I mow over there -and that could be a problem.

And, my wonderful rosebush. Todd brought this for me for Mother's Day when Jessie was 1 (2000). This poor thing has survived so much...4 moves while we were putting an addition on our house, bugs and pests, extreme cold and extreme droughts. For a few years I thought I was going to loose it, but this year I think it has finally adjusted. I love the blooms - and I love to leave the window open right above it, and you can smell it through the entire house. One mild winter (before all the moves) it was still blooming in December on Jessie's birthday.

Have a good weekend everyone!!

Kris

Jessie is FREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After what - 9 weeks, 10 weeks? has it been....the cast came off and it looks like it just might be off to stay. Hallelujah!!!!

Of course, now she is terrified to walk on it, so she is still using the crutches for balance and support, but her doctor is hoping that by Monday she will be *walking* around. No running until she can walk to the end of our drive and back (1/2 mile round trip) and she can walk up and down stairs.

But now we can go swimming and she will hopefully within the next week be away from the TV and out playing (yes, I've been a bad mommy - go play the Playstation rather than try and walk around outside and fall down).

And its a good thing the cast is history - she wore a hole through the heel in the last week and was down to the padding (she wasn't hard on the cast at all, was she??)

Kris

A need to vent (it could get dangerous here)

First, I love, love, love our school system. A great system, great teachers, awesome families (the ones we know anyways), great district (can you tell I like them). But. . . .some of the administrators I want to string up by their you-know-whats til the cows come home.

We have some very good friends of ours, who have a daughter in the middle school. A very wonderful, quiet, shy girl. She's been having some trouble with some other girls in the school. Her mom and sister we in D.C. the week before Memorial Day on our school trip, and when she ate lunch on Friday, these other girls put stuff in her lunch, and then at the end of the day told her it was rat poison. Can you all imagine getting that call as a parent, that your daughter believes she ate rat poison???? Dad took her to the ER where they spent a good many hours, to find out it wasn't rat poison, it was little acrylic or silicone beads. Mom is frantic in D.C. trying to get home, the administrators are called to let them know what is going on.....

.....and the administrators decide this was just a harmless prank - girls just having fun. HELLO HERE. I think he is on drugs. So this wonderful girl goes to school on Tuesday after her father has been calling the administrators, only to be cornerd by the girls who did this and told to "shut her mouth or they would make her pay for it." And the girl who put the beads in her food gets her choice - 3 days in school suspension or she can just end the school year early (and what do you think she choose?). Our handbooks say zero tolerance for abuse, bullying and pranks. The wonderful girl was afraid to go back to school for the rest of the year, and when her parents asked said Administrators how they should deal with next year, were told - why don't you just open enroll her in another district.

This is no different than a kid bringing an unloaded gun onto school property, or someone thinking they can bring a prescription narcotic in and do the same thing to someone else.

The family was on Channel 19 News out of Cleveland. They are livid, heart broken, disgusted, furious. Families in support of them have been calling the school for days on end to voice their outrage. I know there is going to be bullying and violence in the schools - but I am so digusted with administrators who push it off as harmless pranks.

I called 1 of the administrators last week - and specifically asked him about the schools zero tolerance policy - which he said is in effect and basically he thinks it doesn't apply here - that this was just harmless fun. Then I asked him - so when another kid brings an unloaded (or heaven help us, a loaded) gun to school - that will be just fun? What kind of message are we sending to kids - that there will be no consequences to their actions? That they can pretty much do whatever their little hearts desire and walk away free as can be? I sort of went off on a rant with him - that I want my kids to be safe at school, and not be subjected to this kind of treatment. Although I know in my heart - Jessie would have flattened the girl - no questions asked (which also would have been fine by me - there is a difference between standing up for yourself and being a bully). I have kids that don't have a shy bone in their bodies (Tyler used to but he is getting better).

And...where in the heck were the parents???? Oh wait .... I know, the one mother drives a bus for another district and pulled some strings so her kid got off scot free...... (as Jessie said to me upon hearing this - Mommy, I wouldn't want to have to face you afterwards if I did something like this - you would be so angry at me - guess she knows where I stand - haha).

And we wonder why there is violence in the schools......

Kris

(like I said, just a little need to vent here)