A mystery liquid fell from the sky.

Apparently, that's what Mike says whenever it rains. Not because it doesn't rain often, but because Texans are such horrible drivers in the rain. It's true: traffic around Austin slows down as if it's a giant snow storm.

It has rained twice this week in my 'hood, and we couldn't be happier about that. Yes, when it started last night, I wanted to get a picture. If I was wearing different clothes, I would have danced in it too.

Happy Anniversary!

Today, my parents celebrate their 39th year of marriage. Congratulations, and enjoy the next 39!

I couldn't resist bringing a little Sign Language into a post: I love you both!

Blankets for Babies

I'm not going to lie. Crocheting scarves is the only thing I used to be able to do. Then two years ago, I learned how to crochet a circle. Naturally, my next project was making collegiate koozies.

Last December, crocheting gave me comfort. I crocheted a hat & scarf, but needed a bigger project. I made a simple baby blanket - shades of pink from just one skein. There was nothing to it: I just pretended it was a really wide scarf.


Then my sister got pregnant (insert some sort of sarcastic "way to go") and I wanted to step up my skills. I can't give my little nephew a "wide scarf." I wanted to make it more special. I went online to learn how to crochet granny squares, picked my favorite (and the easiest) pattern, and started going at it. I combined the idea of quilting (the checkered pattern) and crocheting together, and came up with this yellow & white piece. Not too shabby, huh?


I found out another friend was pregnant, so I crocheted another blanket. This time, I alternated the blue and white rows instead of making small squares and stitching them together later.


And now, a neighbor is expecting a boy - any suggestions? Should I pick a new pattern?

Can I get a fist PUMP, KIN?

So you might be wondering where my blogs have been. I took a blogcation, but I'm back! And right-o you are. I know at the very least my folks laughed at my title -- and even more after my sister explains why fist pumps are 'in' - please do not actually watch the Jersey Shore.


I planted some pumpkin seeds that have taken over my backyard. Due to only getting ONE pumpkin so far, I had to do some research, self-pollination, and that whole "talking to plants like you're crazy so that they grow" thing. Here is a little tutorial.

There are male flowers (the one with the bee), more likely to appear in the beginning of growth. They can't do anything but stand tall, and attract bees. Then the female flowers grow (the next picture - not from my backyard, but you can tell it looks different). The female flower is closer to the stem, will die if it is too hot (which is true this year), and has an undeveloped gourd under the flower (check out the third picture - this flower is not ready to open yet).

Once pollinated (I pollinated this pup by hand via a Q-tip), the gourd will grow and the flower will die/fall off. And now I will play the waiting game until it gets big enough to carve. This is the 2nd pumpkin in my patch. Now that the weather has cooled to be under 100, there are more female flowers growing. At the very least, I should be able to make pumpkin pie in November!

This last picture is the 1st pumpkin in the patch. It's about the size of... a small pumpkin.