Okay. so it is a late night tonight. I made up 3 batches of soap and I promised to take pictures this time.. LOL

So.. My first batch seized up on me. Darned if I was so po'ed.. I frigging hate it. It was going so well. Then I added a new fragrance oil and wouldn't you know... So.......I rebatched it and made it into hot process. I am not so fond of hot process. The bars just never seem to get completely solid. I mean they are solid, but never super hard like my cold process bars are.. Anyway.. Here is a picture..It smells like wine and is so fragrant...


Okay.. So next up was sandalwood honeysuckle.. It went perfectly. Didn't fill my new mold as I had hoped. I miscalculated how much it would hold, but... Still a nice soap. picture is one right after the pour and covered with saran wrap to minimize the ash.. The second picture is in the gel stage. Notice the creamy edges. Almost a full gel at this point. YAY!!! It also smell heavenly.



Now for my favorite.. This one is scented with coconut fragrance and has a ton of calendula petals in it. WOW!!! Doesn't it look great in the mold. It is going to be sooo wonderful. I didn't use any color in the sandalwood or the coconut.. Those will be naturally a yellowish due to the fragrances..



So.. I will make another 4 or 5 batches tomorrow. I want to get some Neroli made up. To many requests to pass on it this time.. LOL And please disregard the priority mail tape.. LOL I couldn't find the stupid masking tape anywhere. Darn kids took it.. I know they did.. LOL

I also took a picture of some of the veggies and such I have been canning.. Plugging away to get ready for winter. I will get the pumpkin butter done sometime next weekend. Ignore the soap molds on top of them and the mess around them.. LOL I have been trying to get so much done and I really gotta learn to put stuff away as I go..


Now. Here is my Kombucha tea brewing. I couldn't remember if i posted pictures of it, so here it is just in case.. Yummy stuff... Notice the babies growing on top while the mommys are below them..

Okay.. so I am a bog slacker.. LOL.. Sorry.. But.. The girls and I went to a really great concert Saturday night. It was Log Jam 2008 at the LaCrosse Loggers Stadium. We really had a great time. Here are the girls waiting for the concert to start.. LOL









First band was The Ditch Lillies. They were good. Not great, but good. I am not overly fond of those who take other peoples songs and poems and turn them into songs. Drives me nuts, but these ladies were really good. The bass player even had dreads.. LOL



Next up was Renowned Bluegrass singer Dale Ann Bradley. Now this gal can really sing.. WOW!!

Dale Ann has once again been nominated for the Female Vocalist of the Year award. The 2008 IBMA awards show will be held on Thursday, October 2, 2008, at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN.



So.. Last but not least. Michael Martin Murphey.. Yep.. You got it. Carolina in the pines was the final song and my absolute favorite next to Wildfire of course.. LOL He sang both and Macky was thrilled.. My pictures didn't turn out very well for his part becasue it was sark and Pauls camera stinks for taking night pictures.. LOL But here is what I got..





After the concert, we went to say hi to Murph. He was thrilled that we made it. He called at the beginning of the week to ask if we could make it to the concert. Of course after finding out about it, there was no way Macky was going to let me skip it.. LOL So.. Here are Macky (redhead), Katie and Murph..





All in all it was a great night. Even though the gnats were horrible and we got soaked in the rain.. LOL We still had a great time.

Yeah.. I was featured in an Etsy Treasury. How stinking exciting. Thanks to Libby I was able to get a picture of it. My very first one that i know of.. LOL

Mine is the rainbow tam on the bottom.

Today is Courtneys 15th birthday. I cannot believe how fast they grow up. Sheesh. I am really getting old.. LOL

6 months until she gets her drivers permit. sighing here.. Brittni drove me crazy with the driving. Courtney will be worse.. LOL I just know it. I am already planning who I am going to backdoor into taking her driving. It just plain scares me having to teach it. Thankfully I have several months to plan it out.. LOL

Brittni is almost 18. September seems to be coming up really quick. She of course is taking the age thing to the max. Don't blame her, but she is really expensive to keep in gas. LOL Her friends talked her into driving her car (with my gas) all over the countryside looking for a beach that wasn't packed on a hot weekend.. WTF!! It takes $60.00 to fill her tank and I swear they burned $40 of it. They never found a "free" beach, so they ended up at a hotel pool.. LOL Did I mention it was only about 2 miles from our house?? ARG!!

Macky is as stubborn as ever, but gotta love her. LOL She is so upset that her summer school papers didn't get turned in. WE found it crumpled under the seat in the car today. She really wanted to participate in the fun activities, but so far she has been pretty much active. Birthday parties, sleepovers and the constant flow of friends here.

Katie is of course still getting into as much trouble as she can possibly find. I swear she just never stops. Course, you can't blame her. She cannot seem to help herself. she certainly acts before her brain engages.. LOL But. She is just to darn cute. How do you stay "serious" when they look at you with sparkling blue eyes and the most innocent look?? ARG!! LOL

Kids.. you gotta love em.

On another note. I hope all you flood victims are okay. I cannot even begin to imagine it. Our parking lot was flooded pretty bad. We had to rent pumps to get the water out. We found another leak in our basement. We are supposed to get more rain in the next couple days, but I am praying for sun. I love a good storm, but darn it.. I hate having to wade across the parking lot to get to the impound lot. LOL

Okay.. so as soon as I find my stupid camera cord, I will upload the pictures of the parade to you can see our wreckers again. And also the pictures of the new hats I have knit and crocheted. I made some really cute watermelon hats and a very cute pumpkin hat.. LOL Adorable!!

Hi all,
I just wanted to let you all know that there is an alternative to paypal. And the best part is ... it is basically free to accept payments. No fees for credit card payments.. How cool is that.. Just click on my link (this helps me too. I get $10.00 credit for each person that signs up under me.) and you will get a $25.00 sign on bonus. Now.. Keep in mind that it works just like the bank. They do ask for your SS number, but all banks do. You can choose to sign up with a bank account or strictly online money for receiving and spending. How cool is that.
Anyway.. check it out..


I know this is a shamelss plea for free money, but hey.. who doesn't like free money.. LOL God knows I spend enough of it.. LOL

Okay.. So I was cleaning out the old computer discs and found some pictures that I figured I would post to share with you all.. They are all from a while ago, but I do sew.. LOL Honest I do..

so.. It has been a while.. Updates...

I came down with Bellsy Palsey.. Really sucks and no you cannot have picture of it.. My face is getting better, but not as quickly as I would like..

To keep myself occupied, I have been doing alot of crocheting and knitting.. Here is the cutest pair of shorties...


I added a cute pocket to it just because.. LOL

Here is a picture of the new embroidery machine I got at WalMart.

It stitches nice, but not as nice ans my ULT.. I love how small it is though. Much easier to transport.. I will keep this one at home so that I have something to do in the evenings.. LOL

So.. I am off to start another pair of longies.. Haven't decided on a pattern yet, but working on it..

Okay.. so you all know how I told you a while back about a webiste called Big Crumbs? Well.. it works. No kidding at all..

I am an ebay aholic.. LOL I love to shop online. I have already made back $5.67 I am not saying you will get rich, but I figure.. I will be able to get something for free eventually.. LOL

So.. aside from that I have been feeling kinda poor. On January 11th I discovered I had the beginnings of Bells Palsey. Now if that isn't a kick in the butt itself.. It is the 4th time I have had it. PITA!!

For those of you that do not know what it is, it is when the 7th cranial nerve that runs thru your temperal lobe bone swells up and cuts off the blood flow to the millions of nerves in your face. Hence a complete paralysis of the face.. No blinking, no smiling, no anything..

I was put on steroids and an anti-virual. Both of which suck.. Weight gain, heartburn, acid reflux.. all the goodies.. Including no sleeping.. LOL

I am however getting a bit better. Just gotta get past the open eye syndone.. LOL
so.. I am off..

alt="Click here to join Soapmaking101">
Click to join Soapmaking101


Hi all,
Click on the link above to join the coolest soapmaking group ever. Everyone is super nice and it is a great place to learn to make soap.
Hugs, Lana

Just wanted to wish all my wonderful friends a super duper MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! No matter what your chosen path is.. I hope it was as wonderful as mine..

Here are some pictures for your pleasure..
Never guess what we are watching.... Could it be... oh yes.. Harry Potter... LOL

Patiently waiting for everyone to arrive!!

We ARE NOT snooping.. LOL




Oh my Gosh... It is a wireless mouse.. Wonder what this could be for... LOL

Gosh.. What is this?? Could it be a laptop bag???

What is this.. Oh yea!!!! A laptop...

And the other kid got one too.. Who says I spoil my kids.. LOL

Santa figures I am ready for my own Disney Princess TV and DVD player..

My very own camcorder.. YIPEE!!!! I really wanted this you know...

Can life really get any better??

Yep.. I even got a present..

Another satisfied critter...

I didn't want to get to picture heavy, but as you can see... Nobody wanted a redo.. LOL They are all happy, life is grand...
Merry Christmas to all...

Okay.. I joined the BIGCRUMBS bandwagon.. LOL

Here is my link..

Click here to help me make money and you too.. hugs, Lana

Seriously.. It really works.. Help me make some extra cash by buying on ebay. You make money too. On your purchases and the purchases of anyone who signs up under you..
This is not a joke and it really works. Not a fortune, but a few extra bucks. A couple bucks is a couple bucks.. LOL
Hugs, Lana

Sneak peaks at some completed projects.. I am so happy to have these done. These are a group of hats made for preemie babies done on the knifty knitter looms. Fun, but not the same as hand knitting. LOLThis gem is a crocheted mushroom made with chenille yarn. So soft..
Now this hat was a test pattern for a pilot cap. Very nice and easy to make. even for beginners. Made with Patons soy yarn.
Okay, now these are all made with Baby Bee Dreamy Baby Chenille yarn. They are soooo freaking soft. I loved making them. Crocheted of course..
Now that sharing time is over... Oh yeah.. not yet.. LOL Here is the start of my Harry Potter Prisoner of Azkaban sacrf.. So what happened was this.. I bought a slew of yarn and had it set aside for this project. Forgot and used some of it on another project. Then.. I started this scarf without remembering that I used my stash and only had one skein left.. LOL SIGH Now i will have to take it to the store and try to color match.

Happy ThanksGiving all!!!!!!

I just wanted to pop in today and let you all know that I am thankful for all your friendships..
You have all been great and I appreciate your support..

Hugs to all... Now go eat some Turkey or Tofurkey and pie!!!

Here are my Etsy banners. How stinking cool!!

This are my new website logos. I absolutely love this stuff This is my new business card. Is it really cool or what.. LOL I love it. Summer did such a fntastic job on it.

So can you tell I am excited..LOL I just had to share..