Panicky feeling I’ve forgotten something or screwed up something horribly. It’s been growing for days. Zut Alors!

Freebie Friday will return… eventually…

Only 8 more shopping days til Chrimbo! Somebody hand me a paper bag! I’m hyperventilating!

Don’t just stand there, WRAP something!!

Gotta remember to breathe… breathe… work on next freebie friday list… breathe…

And now back to work!

The Games We Play:

• Auditorium - For when you are feeling zen, but you know… competitively.
• Kingdom of Loathing - For geeks who grew up to laugh at themselves.
• Poptropica - A fun kid’s game that doesn’t require you to buy a stuffed animal - or anything else!

Funny Stuff - Cheer Up Chucklehead:

• Cake Wrecks - Just in case you’ve just gotten the internet and hadn’t heard of this one yet.
• The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny - This one might not be kid safe. Unless you’re one of those parents. (Call me!)
• Natalie Dee - One of my favorite webcomics evah. The links at the top take you to my other faves!

Paper Crafts I Keep Meaning to Print Out, and You Should Too:

• Paper Museum - This site is in Japanese (I think), but it shouldn’t be too hard to figure out. Not that I’d know…
• Paper Craft - A flickr set to make you drool.
• Paper Flowers - via craftershock.com -  I love love love these.

Recipes You Need to Make:

• Pumpkin Cloverleaf Rolls - Made these last week - big hit with kids and adults!
• Black Bean Soup - Eat with a bit of sour cream and cheddar the first night. The second night mix with ground beef and/or a can of refried beans and stick it in the oven til hot. Cover it in cheese and put back in for 5 minutes. Eat with tortilla chips. Wonder how you ever lived without it! Keep mixing it up and changing it and this will feed you for a week.
• Chicken and Dumpling Casserole - Another whole family favorite, you can add a cup of canned  corn to make it a complete meal.

Why I Love Mail Time:

• Free Chocolate - The only thing better than chocolate is free chocolate.
• Free Garbage Bag - This is the best bag I’ve ever used!
• Free Flashlight -You never have enough flashlights when you need them!

I know. I missed Freebie Friday! The silent flood of email rebukes me. But what can I say? It was a holiday. And there were better things to do…

Gah, what a week.

I don’t think I had a single beverage yesterday that a toddler didn’t put a toy/hairband/used tissue in.

Really.

But we made it! It’s Friday! It’s got to look up from here. Or else! Aah hah hah ha! Ha! Oh… oh dear. Yes. Perhaps some sleep is in order.

And that’s how you know it’s a meme!

I was tagged by the ultra arty supermom Shannon at Unmitigated Bliss with the Kreativ Blogger award/meme/listy thing, and challenged to enumerate 6 things that make me happy.

Lately, this is easier said than done. It’s tough all around, and the moogly house has been no exception.

But!

In the firm belief that focusing on the positive will help in hard times, I humbly submit my list. But as I am incorrigable, I am changing it to…

wait for it!

Six Things That I Am Looking Forward To and Consoling Myself With Right Now:

1. Today is the last day this week The Producer is working late - it’s been a loooong week.
2. Tonight is The Office night!
3. I am almost finished with my holiday shopping… I think.
4. Ravelry
5. My Mood bag finally arrived!
6. Only 2.5 hours til kiddie bedtime.

Tag, you’re it! At sillymortalmama, Bazanna’s Insanity, and Veloute!

Zee Rules (all bendable to your formidable wills and wiles):

- List six things that make you happy
- Pass the award on to 6 more kreativ bloggers
- Link back to the person who gave you the award
- Link to the people you are passing it on to and leave them a comment to let them know.

Fin!

Need something weird to read?

Do you like to play weird games?

Are you worried that you smell weird?

Enjoy odd combinations?

Have some unusual wallpaper you’d like to cover up?

All this weirdness might be keeping you up at night. Maybe you’d like to get some sleep… weirdly.

But really, if life isn’t weird, what’s it worth?

Oh yeah…

$5325.00The Cadaver Calculator - Find out how much your body is worth.

Happy Friday!

Only  6 weeks til Christmas! This morning’s craft is making the gift tags. Scrap paper + stamps I already have + a much used but still working stamp pad = another step on my way to a frugal crafty and enviromentally friendly holiday! I’m going for that elegant but homey look… I’ve got the homey part in the bag! But I do like them. They’ll get a hole punch and then strung on the gift with some of the re-purposed ancient yucky yarn  upcycled crocheted snowflakes I made to use as toppers instead of bows. Like so:

Those are currently in a closed container with a lavender sachet in a desperate attempt to remove the weird smell. Yay Christmas!

But don’t worry, the boys are well taken care of this morning.

We’re s0 lucky Pixar doesn’t charge by the hour!

There are 3 great things about freebies.

1. They are free!
2. They let you try new things!
3. It’s fun getting not-bills in the mail!

But, there is one bad thing. All that packaging! And ye olde enviroment should be on everyone’s mind these days, even as our empty pockets get heavier and heavier. (Erm… or something like that… ) So instead of giving you links, today I’m giving you a free pattern for a crochet’s washcloth/dishcloth/facecloth/absorbent-thing. These are great because they use very little yarn, they get both kid’s faces and kitchen counters super clean, and they take the place of paper towels. We’ve been paper towel free for over a month now, and I’m loving using something so soft and fun so much better!

Basketweave Scrubby Cloth

Yarn: any kitchen cotton (I used Pisgah Yarn & Dyeing Co., Inc Peaches & Creme Ombres)

Hook: Size H 5.0mm

Abbreviations:

fpdc front post double crochet

bpdc back post double crochet

Row 1: 20 dc

Row 2: Ch3 (counts as 1st dc), fpdc in ea of next 6 sts, bpdc in next 6 sts, fpdc in next 6 sts, dc in last st.

Row 3: Ch3, bpdc in 6 sts, fpdc in 6 sts, bpdc in 6 sts.

Row 4: Repeat row 2.

Row 5: Repeat row 2.

Row 6: Repeat row 3.

Row 7: Repeat row 2.

Continue in pattern to desired length. End with row of sc, ch 1, turn, and sc all the way around. Put 3 sc in each corner and work evenly on sides. Finish off.

Let me know if you have any questions! You are free to make as many as you like for gifts and personal use and charity crafting. Please keep my name attached to the pattern. Copyright Tamara Kelly 11/7/08

Two facts about me you may not have known:

1. I love to vote. I love politics, I am obsessed, and I love election night - have since 1998. Staying up late on election night, watching returns, celebrating (or more often crying) the next morning… I might get an ulcer, but I can’t stay away.

2. I hate being sticky. Sticky faces, sticky hair, sticky fingers - I know that these are the benchmarks of parenthood. Yet they are my nemesis. When I was a child my parents repeatedly read me the book Sticky Stanley. This book featured a candy-loving young man who ended up sticking to everything. I loved this story. And it horrified me. I am a damaged puppy.

So to engender some sort of election night excitement in my own impressionable youth, I decided that this year we would have our own election. Queenie and Boy-o nominated their favorite meals a week ago: Queenie chose pancakes and eggs, and Boy-o opted for hamburgers and fries. Tonight was the vote, and tomorrow is the meal. Suffice to say I’m glad we voted early this year - taking fussy bored children was difficult enough. If they’d also been sticky I would’ve lost my mind.

But if you haven’t voted yet PLEASE go vote tomorrow! Get a babysitter, wash your hands, and VOTE!

Unless of course you were planning on voting for that other guy.