Goodbye 2013

It's time to say goodbye to 2013 and hello to 2014.

We had some ups and downs this year, but made it through great.

We had to put Aurora to sleep in January.

I went to my first tatting conference in April. I had such a good time. I can't wait til the 2014 conference. I got to meet people I've only known online for years.

We got a new puppy named Zura in April

Nate and Naina got engaged on September 15th. They will be married in India on August 9th and then in the States on October 25th.

I turned 50 this year. We had a really fun party. We had what I called a drop over party. People came and went. No big deal. No pressure to stay for a long time. The kids all cooked and I think we had 35 guests total that day. It was such a good time.

Jessica and Calvin bought a new home in Upper Marlboro and had another daughter. Makaylee Marie Robinson was born on November 12th. Shawn and I are her Godparents also. Mariyah is a great big sister.

D'Artagnan got a leg injury and went to stay in Ohio for 5 weeks to rest and recoup. He came back and is still limping. He's managing just fine. Sometimes he's ok and sometimes his leg hurts. I think he'll get better.

My SSI was approved. That was a huge relief for me.

We also opened an Etsy store and Shawn is designing tatting shuttles. He is great at making them.
We started doing woodworking and I am having a ball learning how to do all kinds of woodworking. We got a 1952 Shopsmith and it has a lathe on it. I want to learn how to turn wood. I want to make some bobbin lace bobbins. Oh, that's because I am learning how to do bobbin lace now. It is a challenge, but I'm excited about it.

I made most of my Christmas gifts this year. I had a great time making things. I made a purse for Olivia and she thought it was store bought. That was a great compliment. Nate got a knitted scarf and he loves it. Naina got a slouchy hat and some yoga socks. She loved them also.

So, here we are. I am getting ready to say goodbye to 2013 and hello to 2014. I'm so ready for it.

Merry Christmas to all

Good day and Merry Christmas to all.

My husband made me the best gift. He made me a brand new tatting shuttle and a wooden bookmarker. He carved it from a piece of cherry wood.

But today is not about my presents.

Today is about the birth of our precious Lord and Savior. As we sit today and enjoy our gifts, our families, and our meal remember the reason we are celebrating. Jesus Christ left Heaven and came to this sinful, immoral world to give us hope and save us. Please don't trivialzie this day.

May God bless you and your family.

Bobbin Lace bookmark done

Horray. I have finished my firsts official bobbin lace project. I did a bookmark and I only made one small mistake. Well, that's not really true. I made several mistakes, but I caught most of them and unlaced back to the mistakes.
I'm very proud of my efforts.
Now I have to get a tatted bookmark done and I'm finished with Christmas gifts.

Update on CNC Machine

Here is an update on the CNC machine. My brother brought over a cpu with XP loaded on it. We got the machine axis' to move but the spindle won't turn.
I contacted the seller again and they recommended that I change the fuse in the spindle. I haven't had time to do this, but they have been right so far, so I am thinking that this will be the last issue. Now the only thing I have to worry about is how to use the darn machine and get images into G code to engrave. I am thankful that I know a company that uses an engraving machine and they have agreed to assit me with converting images.
God is so good. I credit Him for me getting all of this help with this machine. If it were just up to me, I'd have an $800 door stop right now. I'm totally lost with all of this stuff.

On another note, I've been teaching myself bobbin lace. I'm almost done with my first big project. A bookmark that I am going to give as a gift for Christmas. I am using 14 pairs of bobbins. I was a little intimidated at first, but once I got going it was pretty straight forward. I've learned to unlace, fix mistakes and alter a pattern. I'm having a blast. The hardest part is keeping the tread from unraveling from the bobbins. The half hitch just isn't cutting it with some of the thread. I will have to check with the folks on my FB bobbin lace page to get some advice on that.
I will post a picture once I'm finished.

And another positive thing. I have all of my Christmas gifts wrapped and under the tree. I took Olivia to get keys made for her car. I got some beads organized and got some more storage boxes. I want to start 2014 organized and ready to go. I am going to call this a successful day.

CNC Machine not working

So, The engraving machine is still not working. My brother "dumb downed" the computer to run Windows Vista 32 bit. Still not working. We uninstalled and reinstalled the software. Still not working.

I contacted the seller and let them know that I was having problems with the machine. I let them know all the steps I took to get the machine up and running.

I got an email back from the seller telling me that they will work with me to get a satisfactory solution. They want some info about what I have been doing and what computer I have been using. We think the control box is the issue. The software will send info to the box but the machine won't run.

I just heard from a friend that her husband thinks its the control box as well. I am going to send them the info and see what happens.

In the mean time, I have been working on getting my Christmas gifts made. I got 4 pair of earrings and 4 necklaces done last night. I have several more items to make - one knited, a couple tatted and a couple bobbin lace items.

I am so excited to be almost finished and it's only 9 days left til Christmas. Nothing like cutting it close.

More info to come with the engraving machine.

One of those days

Have you ever had one of those days?

I made a shuttle this weekend for a shuttle exchange with someone on facebook. Shawn said it was probably the best shuttle I've made so far.

Today I packaged it up and went to the post office. I mailed it off and then went over to Target to get some more Christmas shopping done. I got gas for Shawn's car and then came home.

I had a little lunch and then started to work on the round robin doily.

Boy I've had a boring day. I felt just lazy today and didn't do much. I tatted. I walked my dog. I watched some TV, I played computer games. I messed with my kids on facebook.

Shawn came home and we had some pizza because I didn't want to cook.

So then I finished my portion of the round robin doily and then watched more TV. UGH. My day was so dull.

Now it's after midnight and I'm not tired. Facebook is boring. Nothing good is on Pinterest. Ebay had been checked multipul times.

I'm going to bed.

No tree up yet

So, Shawn decided that he didn't want to put the Christmas tree up today. He wanted to work on making Christmas presents. So he did. I hung out with my pets and then tried to get my engraving machine working. My brother and I worked on it for a few hours, then we figured that my computer isn't compatible. He has to take my laptop to his house and turn it from a Windows 64 bit to a Windows 32 bit. He's going to bring the laptop back tomorrow and then I am up and running.

I am getting excited all over again that I will be able to finally make engraved shuttles.

Next I need to use my lathe to turn some bobbin lace bobbins.

Putting the tree up.

I am finally putting my Christmas tree up tomorrow. I usually put it up the day after Thanksgiving, but this year I didn't do it yet. I've been a little distracted. Shawn has been working evenings and I've been trying to get my gifts made.

I'm trying to get into the Christmas spirit. It's hard when you have to deal with someone stealing your credit card number, making a fake card and charging a ton of stuff. Thank God the credit card company is monitoring the accounts. I just wish they would have caught it sooner. The theifs got away with over $650 worth of merchandise at several different stores in Brooklyn NY. It breaks my heart that stores get ripped off because people don't want to be honest.

My neighbor is coming over tomorrow or Sunday to help me FINALLY get my engraving machine working.

I also just found the wonderful world of pen blanks on eBay. I ordered a bunch. They are the perfect size for making shuttles and I am going to try and turn some to make bobbins for bobbin lace. I found a wood shop that is local that throws away their extra or "scrap" wood. It's just the perfect size for what I need. They are going to work with me on supplying my needs. They have tons of exotic wood that they have been giving to their employees to burn in their fireplaces. WHAT? They are going to hook Nate up also. One strange thing happened when I was at their shop. Their mastif bit me in the rear end. No skin was broken but I'm a little sore and bruised. Strange for a mastif to be aggressive. I was more shocked than injured. Despite the little dog incident, I'm happy that I found them. They sold me over 100 blocks of Zebrawood that are the perfect size to make either 2 shuttles or turn for 1 bobbin. They also gave me a bunch of exotic woods to try and use. I'm so excited to try everything. I just need to have the time to do everything. I think that once my neighbor comes over and helps me, my engraving machine will be running non stop.

I'll keep you posted.