Meet Dude.

The Dude abides in his twisty slide.

Meet Dude.

He is my black bear hamster.

Yes, I am aware we have 5 cats.

Dude is in my office, away from all felines, on the bookshelf near me so I can enjoy his company while working late. There is no risk of any feline getting in here without strict supervision from me.

Dude has a nice big purple and green cage with a wheel in a tower that he absolutely adores. I know this because he's been running in it for the last 6 hours.

Dude...is made of awesome.

The Dude shows the Monkey what he thinks of her camera.

My Dragon was sweet enough to let me finally have Dude because I've always wanted a hamster. So now, I have one to keep me company on the long nights that I'm up taking calls. I can't wait until he's tamed:)

In other news, we went to the most AMAZING brunch this afternoon. Portage Bay Cafe, for those of you in Seattle, is an organic, fresh, faboo restaurant down off of Roosevelt. I had an amazing Rancher's breakfast with the most delightfully fluffy over-easy eggs, super crispy bacon, tasty chicken/basil sausage, oven roasted potatoes, and THE best challah bread French Toast ever. Dragon had this scrumptious cinnamon french toast with maple syrup and fresh whipped cream.

OMG! So good. So worth the 30m we had to wait for a table. So worth the pricetag. If you live here, and you haven't been? Get yer butts out there and enjoy the organic tastiness that is PBC.

Kratos and Mumbles celebrated their 2nd birthday on the 22nd, although we didn't celebrate it officially until last night. I can't believe that 2 years ago I was helping their momma bring them into this world on my living room floor. My big boys. See how they've grown?

From left, Kratos, Mumbles, Punkin at about 1 month old.

The Birthday Boys...still lovin' each other:)

So they got a nice chicken/fish dinner and some new fuzzy mice to play with! I love my boys!

Aside from that, I'm still forging ahead on my magic scarf, my cabled purse, and my Her Eyes scarf. I swear, if I didn't tell myself to stop, I'd literally have like, 20 projects all going at once. As it is, I need to get started on the Christmas gifts I'm planning. Especially since one of them is all lace.

I was a bad girl, didn't take my vitamins and meds this weekend, but we had so much fun that I didn't even think to take them:) Cordell came over for a while on Saturday (well, over 12 hours) and we had a fun time setting up his character and starting up the game again. Pizza, beanbags, and fun times were had by all!

Later this morning we're taking Bella-car to the mechanic because her oil sensor is finally shot to hell. She's talking more and it's driving me insane. So we're getting her fixed. We'll probably hit the grocery store while she's there. Dragon's going to work a little late so he can hang with me since we have to be there at 8am and he starts work at 9am. He won't be too late, I don't think, and he had an early meeting on Friday. It'll be nice to have him with me at the mechanic:)

I think that'll do for an update for now.

XOXO
~Bella

*tap tap* Is this thing on?

Is this not the cutest face?

Mumbles impersonates Mom after a long night working the phones.

I've been remiss in updating, but I have a good reason! I've been working my happy little ass off in an effort to both pay my bills (current and upcoming) AND to start feeding my yarn addiction again.

Miss Andrea is tempting me like whoa and that squeaky sound you're hearing is me over here wringing my hands in wanton lust at some of the most beautiful fibers I've seen yet. Here...let me show you. First up? The ones I'm dying to beg her to add to my stash...seriously:

Pressed Roses (Hemp)
Is this not one of the most lovely dusty rose colors you've ever seen?

Depression Glass (Tencel)
Something about this color just calls to me. I don't know if it's the darkness, or if it's the way the darkness is made light with the shiny nature of the tencel...either way, it's gorgeous and I covet it.

Wallpaper in Old Rooms (Shetland)
I..uh...have this thing about purple yarns. And, I know I already have too many skeins of purple yarn but frankly? I don't care. I love this one.

Black Cherries (BFL)
See above. But this one? This one is special. This one, provided no one else snags it? This one I am definitely going to beg Andrea for because omg. I seriously adore this like whoa.

And then, we have the ones that ARE in my stash right now:

Blood Ties (BFL)

This color is so decadent. I already know what I'm going to use it on. And I can't wait!!

Learning to Climb (Hemp)
I don't think words can adequately express how much I adore hemp yarn. No really. This lovely skein is already slated to become a fabulous hat that I am almost guaranteed to wear everywhere.

Dark Opal (tencel)
Along with my adoration of hemp comes my utter love for tencel, courtesy of the delicious Andrea herself. I also have an obsession with black opals...and this just combines the best of both worlds for me.

Sam's Eyes (Tencel)
This is the commissioned yarn I asked for. The color is absolutely perfect for what I asked for and it will be turned into a fabulous shawl that I swear to All will be worn at every available opportunity.

Dragon's Tail (Tussah Silk)
This one is for my Dragon. I saw it and immediately thought of him. Plus, it'll be my first foray into knitting with silk. I can't wait!

On Cat's Paws (Merino/Tencel)
One of my favorite poems from childhood, and again with the grey/blue prettiness that is quickly starting to rival purple as my favorite colorway.

Amethyst (Hemp)
Again. With the purple. And the hemp. How predictable am I?

So there you have it. The pretty pretties that I'm totally looking forward to in the coming month. I've been suffering yarn withdrawal due to fundage issues, but with the new job literally swinging along? That won't be a problem anymore. I'm sure my Dragon will be SO pleased. {/sarcasm} But...if I can keep him indulging his comics/collectables addictions, then he can wholeheartedly support my yarn/oils addictions and we'll just be happy as two peas in a pod!

On the work front, things are really great. I've had a rough go of it only with getting my body back into the "work all night, sleep/work all day" routine, but I think I've finally finagled a solution. I cannot even express how thankful I am to have gotten this second job because it is, head and shoulders, a step above any other phone work I've done. It's a well oiled machine (pardon the pun) and every single thing they've achieved is fabulous. I feel like I'm a part of a community who actively WANTS me to succeed. Of course, this means less time to blog here because now I have to keep up a blog for them AND chat with callers AND keep up with SC work...it's exhausting, but I'm still trying to make sure I carve out time every night to do a little knit/crochet.

I may bitch, but lordy, I am blessed. This month has been especially rough on both of us, but I'm overjoyed that there's a light at the end of the tunnel...and it ISN'T another oncoming train.

Add to that these two little morsels of happiness: My brother IS actually engaged to be married, so there's a trip to Florida sometime next year for that. And the second morsel? My mom told me that she and dad are coming to visit this July! *dances* Now, the only down side (which, theoretically SHOULDN'T be) is that somehow *coughDADcough* my grandmother got wind of their plan...and it has now become a family affair. I guess it's going to be my folks, my grandmother, AND my aunt n' uncle along for the ride. So let's just say that July is going to be quite...interesting.

*yawns* Okay, my bebes! I need to get some sleep. My dragon should be puttering around now getting ready for work. I'm super proud of him for keeping a 93% on his numbers at work! Today he's bringing home GS cookies in celebration. *dances* I may not need them for my hips, but my tummy really digs this time of year.

Until later, dumplings!

XOXO
Bella

Happy New Year!

I've been dealing with a sick Mumbles. Apparently, his brother stole some yarn and HE ate some of it. Cue massive bouts of puking combined with lethargy and non-interest in food or water. It's been going on for about 24 hours, and of course, with the exception of emergency vet clinics, any regular vet is closed today.

*sighs* Why oh why does my problem child have to do this on the holiday?

He's puked up some of it so far, twice, and looking at the pattern repeat (as well as how long I was out of the room) he couldn't have swallowed more than maybe 6 inches, 4 of which is already out of him.

I'm just keeping a really close eye on him right now.

As for everything else, we were up, bright and early, at 7:30am to take Trina her Calorimetry. She was extremely squee about it, even putting it on and running outside for a smoke so she could test it (it was coooold and windy today). To say it made my morning is an understatement. Especially when it was to have a smoke break and I was able to bum one off of her (despite my, erm, quitting this morning *blush*).

How is the new year going for all of you? I'm working on my first swatch from the pattern book of stitches, the twisted stockinette stitch. I skipped regular stockinette and garter stitch because, well, let's face it...I think we're all pretty familiar with them both;) I'll post a picture of the swatch when it's done later today!

I have some Sauerkraut and Kielbasa bubbling away in my oven, our traditional New Year's fare, which we'll chow down on with some molasses bread later. So the house smells pretty wonderful right now.

What are you guys up to? Anything?

XOXO
~Bella