Yer Mom

There, I said it.

SMS Giveaway Day

Sew Mama Sew is having a giveaway day on Monday and to be a part of it I have to have my Giveaway Post up by Monday at 9am EST. Well, with how my weekend is planned, I won't be making that deadline unless I post now so here it is.

What do I have to give, you make ask? Lots of stuff. Well, lots of yarn. Lots of handspun yarn! 

 First up for grabs you see that first attempt at cocoons. 130 yards of local wool that I got raw. Yes, it was dirty and stinky and now it is pretty with pink bubbles in it. It is imperfect, but a lot of work has gone into it. You might think I would be a little more partial to my first attempt at something like this, but I'm not. You can have it.

Next up is 1q25 yards of superwash merino wool, tencel, and Angelina sparkle plied with yellow cotton sewing thread. You can't really see it in this picture but there is a lot of sparkle. 

The third option is 80 yards of wool that I got from the Sheep Shed Studios. It is a 3 ply, self striping white/brown and black. I think this will work up nicely, like tweed. I've made a lot of this kind. I love Navajo plying!

Rules:

I don't really care if you follow me. In fact, I would probably prefer it if you didn't. I'm not promoting a shop or this blog or even my spinning really, though it will be on sale at the Roswell, NM Farmer's Market this summer if anyone is interested.
 I just like giving things away. I like making other people happy, and when I make someone a winner chances are I made them happy. 

I also really like mail. So on to the "rules!"

1) I am limiting this to the USA and Canada only. Sorry all you foreigners, but I do have a budget.

2) The winners have to send me a postcard or letter in return. Hey, I told you I love mail. I'm not requesting anything else of you or trying to sell you anything. If I don't get anything out of this then why should I send you something?

3) Giveaway closes May 25th, as per SMS rules. 

4) Make sure I have a way to contact you if you are the winner! 

5) Basically just leave a comment on this post to enter. That's all you really need to know, right?

The third yarn will only be sent if I get enough comments. How about... 150? That's not irrational, is it?

I will probably try to find some extras to shove in the boxes for the winners, but I have no idea right now what extras might make it in there. Maybe some super dooper awesome Wildtree All Natural Foods samples? Maybe, we'll see.

Oh, and if you leave a comment that I like enough you may get a little treat even if yo don't win, just because I am cool like that.

AMAZING

AMAZING

I am amazing. You see that poncho? I made it. No, I mean, I REALLY made it. From scratch. The only thing I didn't do was shear the sheep. But I did get the fleece raw, wash it, comb it, dye it and card it, spin it,  and crochet it. You know why I did all of this?

AMAZING

Because she is amazing.

 

They are amazing.

ALSA Fundraiser

This is the letter I wrote to our Christmas list this year:

Dear friends and family,

You may have heard that our sister Kim has been sick for several years with ALS. Our family participates in a fundraiser for the ALSA each year.

Recap: While attending college and working multiple jobs in Idaho, our sister Kim was diagnosed in 2000 with ALS, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. They believed she had had it since 1997, when she was 19 years old.

ALS is a neuromuscular disease that basically kills the cells that carry message from your brain to your muscles. There is no known cause or cure.

The ALS Association is a non profit organization that helps people who have ALS and the people who take care of them. They are the only not-for-profit voluntary health agency dedicated solely to the fight against ALS.

You may have also heard that Kim died this past April. Despite the fact that the fundraising we do now does not directly affect a member of our family, we still think it is important to raise money for the ALSA. Let’s just think of it as a “thank you” for the support they gave her all those years she suffered. There really is no way to repay them for all they did for her physically, emotionally, financially etc, but we might as well try to compensate somehow, right?

Here’s what we’re doing to raise money this year:

Recipes: Kim was always fabulous in the kitchen. In previous years’ fundraisers, Kim used family recipes to help raise money for the ALSA. This year, I am picking that back up. For a donation of $25 or more, you will get Kimbo’s Cookies, Kim’s own cookies recipe that everyone swears by. For a donation of $50 or more, you will get Kimbo’s Cookies and 3 of her favorite recipes that our mom made when we were growing up: Cream Cheese Stuffed Jalapenos, Mom’s Peppered Beef Brisket, and Mom’s Rocking Potatoes Salad. Along with the recipes, you will also get a good dose of Kim’s sense of humor and an understanding of why she was loved by everyone she met.

Raffle: This year, we are having a raffle to show our appreciation for our supporters. Here’s how it works: If you sign up as a member (physical or virtual) of our team at web.alsa.org/goto/kimmysladybugs, you will get one entry into the raffle. For every $25 you donate or help raise, you will get one raffle ticket.

Example: If Mike N. signs up as a team member and his friend Bradley N. donates $50 under him, Mike gets 3 raffle entries (1 for signing up, 2 for raising $50) and Brad gets 2 raffle entries and all 4 recipes.

Raffle prizes: (2) Kimmy’s Favorite foods bundle from Wildtree All Natural Foods including Wildtree’s Alfredo Extraordinaire, So Quick and Easy Pizza Dough Mix, Scampi Blend, Lemon Lime Cheesecake Blend, and Heavenly Chocolate Mousse Mix. ($61 value each)

(1) Hanging glass and marble butterfly garden sculpture, from Kim’s own garden.

(1) Set of 2 carbon stainless steel Thomas Santoku kitchen knives.

(5) U.B. Funkeys: Starter kit with Lotus and Deuce.

(3) Disney Pirates of the Caribbean Mix Max Plus Media Player with MP3, game, photo, and video capabilities, 1GB memory. ($64 retail on Amazon.com)

And then some…

To donate: We would prefer if you visited our team website at web.alsa.org/goto/kimmysladybugs and made a secure donation through there. Because the walk is on the 23^rd of October, the last day to donate will be the 22^nd so we can have everything ready to go for the raffle which will take place directly after the walk.

Thank you in advance for any support you are willing to offer to this cause that is close to our hearts.

The Hansen Family

Winners!

So I only got 28 comments, but I'm still going to give the first 2 yarns because I"m cool like that. Yeah, you know you love me. Well, if you're EvaSB or mamaTAVE you do. Congrats, now don't come back (unless you really want to).

I did, however, win 2 of the Sew Mama Sew giveaways, and since I am the coolest and I left an interesting fact about orangutans on another ladies blog, she has decided I deserve a special treat on top of her 2 giveaways. So  I essentially won 3 items! Tempting to give all three of my yarns because of this, but since I didn't even reach my limit for the 2 of them I don't think I will. Darn, looks like I'll just have to keep it. This makes me so sad. [/sarcasm] But what should I DO with it?

Giveaway?

Over at Sew Mama Sew they are having a giveaway day and while I don't really care about people visiting my blog (in fact, I really kind of like that nobody does since I only usually post once a month tops!) I do like sending things in the mail and giving things to people. Unfortunately, I didn't make a blog about a giveaway and send it in to them on time, which was by yesterday, but I still want to give something away! Like some of this yarn I've been spinning non stop like mad for no reason that is just cluttering up my life with more stuff. What am I going to do with it other than hoard it? So here's the thing, I'm gonna go enter a bunch of giveaways and if those pople doing the giveaways come visit my blog they can enter this possible giveaway. Or people from other places can enter too, like if I decide to make a post on craftster or something, because I might, you just never know. So below you see 3 yarns, hopefully. If I get 20people to post a comment on here, I will send one of them the first yarn. 30 comments, I will send the second one, 50 comments (just to be difficult, and because I KNOW I won't get that many and I really like that yarn) and I will send the third. What do you guys think? will this be a fun game or what? (I'm thinking WHAT!?)

March/April Accomplishments

Looks like I forgot to do this last month, hm...

Crafting
March
Denim strip rug
Bat bag
Spider pillow
Caterpillar tote x 2
Butterfly ATC
Fabric/cardboard postcard x lots
Silverware drawer organizer
NM quilt square
Book cover
Sock Monkey
Apron
Rice/lavender heating pad
Flour glove stress ball x 2
Crocheted jar x 4
Alter Leah’s dress straps
Cupcake purse
Crocheted Easter basket for Alice
Crocheted washcloth x2
Yarn of BFL! ~¾ oz
April
Rug with G’s old shirts
Spin yarn: cannot quantify
Thought bubbles
Ribbons for Kimmie’s memorial (~200)
Thought vase
More yarn
Etched jars (wildflowers) x3
Windmill pillow
Daisy pens x3
Bluebonnet photos in glass x2 (mother’s day gifts)
Crocheted frog
More yarn
Curtains for Alice’s room, Russell’s room, Mommy/Daddy room
Crocheted jars x ?
Mend – G’s PJs
Mend Judy’s skirt
Ply Yarn


Home Improvements
March

Patch wall
Backdoor bar
Valve for waterline in front yard!
April
New couch
Clear out shed
Demolish shed

Books Read
March
Cup of Clay by Carole Nelson Douglas
The Misenchanted Sword by Lawrence Watt-Evans
Congo by Michael Crichton
Bio of an Ogre by Piers Anthony
April
A Spell for Chameleon by Piers Anthony
Taking Flight by Lawrence Watt-Evans


In other (read: real) news, Alice is now crawling on all fours, sitting up by herself, clapping, and even pulling up on things. What a big girl she is getting to be!

Also, I think I want to participate in Sew, Mama, Sew!s May Giveaway Day. Not because I want to draw any attention to my "blog" but rather because I like to make things and I have so many things my husband would love for me to just get rid of, what better way than a giveaway? What will I give? An Apron? A small ball of yarn? Ooh, I may just have to surprise you (1 dear reader that I have). I may just have to surprise myself.