Confession.

Okay, So I like Bonnie Raitt. I know. Leave me alone.

I played "Love Me Like a Man" at swing tonight. I really enjoyed listening to it. No particular reason. She's just awesome.

The men that I've been seeing, baby
Got their soul up on a shelf
you know they could never love me
When they can't even love themselves

But I need someone to love me
Someone to really understand
Who won't put himself above me
Who’ll just love me like a man

......

And I need someone to love me
Darlin’ I know you can

Don't you put yourself above me
You just love me like a man

deviantart.com/whitneychristine

Wonderfully and Beautifully Made

Next Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, and the beginning of my 40 days without makeup. I am not going to like it. As my twitter friend @blissspa said, "I have nightmares about leaving the house without concealer!"

I have, however, come up with a few exceptions to the "no makeup" rule.

1. I will always wear SPF moisturizer and chap stick. I'll come out with a ton of wrinkles if I don't.
2. I will wear mascara to work. Don't want to scare the children.
3. I will not remove myself from any of my typical social situations. (class, knitting, swing, pub church, hanging out with friends, or dates (I wish)).
4. I will not say or think that I am ugly.

That being said.. I'm trying to clear my skin up as much as possible from now until D-Day. My friend Caryn let me use this little bottle of pink miracle goop that's supposed to dry out blemishes. It looks really silly on, but man, it's awesome. Like the shower hair?




So, Katie. What you give up for Lent is supposed to bring you closer to God. How does that work? Makeup is a mask. It's hard to show other people or your God who you REALLY are without forgoing vanity. Forgoing vanity is true beauty.. and after all.. we are wonderfully and beautifully made.

A Hairy Situation

My wonderful room mate commissioned my mad old lady hairdo skills for her appearance at a "Clue" party as Mrs. Peacock. Her hair looked like this... a cloud of hairspray followed her around the entire evening.

Stupid Cupid..

When people call February 14th, "Singles awareness day" I want to puke. I suppose it's okay if you want to have that pessimistic outlook, but it's really not for me. Just because you find that your Valentines Day doesn't involve roses, chocolates, feelings of obligatory niceness and perhaps some additional... benefits, does not mean that a negative outlook must be adopted.

I do like the idea of Valentine's day, don't get me wrong, but I don't like the way that the theory is sometimes put into practice. A certain feeling of, "I have to love you today" is implied, and further a "I don't have to show you that I love you any other day" looms over the whole situation. I would much rather a special someone show me they love me, and I them, every day.. make our whole lives special.. instead of just one day that THE MAN has decided we all have to spend more money than we have and play nice.

A giver by nature, I have planned my Saturday in a way that shows love without all the frills. In the morning, I'm going to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity for the first time. I'm not really much into building.. we'll see how it goes. In the afternoon, I'm giving a tour at the Dr Pepper Museum to some girls from the Methodist Home, and in the evening I get to spend some time with my THREE Valentines: Zoe, Sam, and Olivia. I look foward to their chorus of... "You are My Sunshine.."

I am single and I feel that I am loved more than some of the people in a relationship I know. I have wonderful friends and family who show me every day of the year that they care for me as well as a roomate who I know loves me because I need to take the recycling to the bin.. in a really bad way.

Valentine's day, for me, isn't about the obligatory niceness or... benefits. It's a day that I am reminded how much I am loved and how much I love others, and how I need to continue to give and receive that love all year long.

Renaissance Euphemism Fun

"And like a good little girl she should keep her chamber of Venus tidy.

If she is intelligent, and well brought up, she will leave no cobwebs around, but will burn or destroy them, tear them down and sweep them up, so that no grime can collect anywhere."

- The Romance of the Rose

Still Stitchin'

A few of my latest creations.

This scarf is for my friend Thad. He is a Marian brother. It's wider than I would make a scarf for myself, but he's got to be manly.


I didn't use a pattern, it's just a bunch of v-stitches. Until I think of something more clever I'll call it a holy scarf.





This pill purse pattern I got from CrochetMe.com I think it's pretty cute. It was quick and fun! It's really good for leftover yarn!

Are you stitchin'? Let me know!

I Cleaned My Room

I cleaned my room, I forgot how cool it was!
I dream of living in a vintage home.. right now I have to made do with just the inside being vintage-inspired.
I mentioned to a few people that I'd take pictures to let you see how it turned out after I moved in May. A little late, but here goes nothin'.

Here's my side of the bed. Crosby (center)sleeps on the other side.




My previously mentioned dress form.. outfitted for winter.













Re-vamped $50 dresser.













Trying to get just the right picture.












Another view of my re-vamped $15 bed frame with a quilt my great grandmother made and a really sweet Ella poster on the wall.

It's Lara's Fault

I'm succumbing to peer pressure.

25 things about me.

(deep breath)

1. I'm not a natural blonde.
2. I really like my feet. My toes get proportionately shorter as they go, they're little, and I don't have toe cheese. They're pretty cool.














3. I have three friends who are priests.. 2 Jesuits and 1 Marian
4. My roommate is my best friend. We've lived together for more than 6 months and we're still friends. It's pretty cool.













5. My favorite color is green.
6. I love children, but don't really think I want any of my own. I care for a brother and sister, 7 and 10, two and a half year old triplets... they are all so wonderful and I am changed because of them in my life.














7. I have add. I'll fool ya though.
8. I'm entering a misunderstood profession. Social workers do work in school, they do learn things, and they have issues too.
9. I was born in the wrong decade. I want to live in the 1940's. War and all. I love everything about the decade. The clothing, the culture, the music etc.














10. I still have trouble with basic addition. I'm starting to do flashcards. It's really bad.
11. I have friends who are adults. Some of my peers think it's wierd. I think it's awesome.
12. The first time I meet you, I'll have you summed up within the first 30 seconds. I'm totally right 99% of the time.
13. http://postsecret.blogspot.com <-- my favorite blog. period.
14. I encourage people to just be honest with eachother, but it's the number 1 thing I struggle with.
15. I feel like if I make my bed, it makes my room look cleaner, no matter what's on the floor.
16. I hate reading.
17. I struggle with meat. It's so wierd. I firmly believe that we, as a species, worked hard to climb the food chain and we should eat meat. I just have trouble with it. It wiggles.
18. There are a lot of things I like the smell of, but I don't like the way they taste. eg. coffee, beer. 19. I'm a bargain hunger.. seriously. I bought a beat up dresser, bed frame and two nightstands for $100 after borrowing a sander and a can of paint they are beautiful!
20. Wooh, I'm almost done!
21. I don't like receiving flowers. I take that back. I got some for my birthday that were awesome. Other than that, it's a waste of money, but I'll buy them for myself.
22. I love old dishes. I'm collecting pices of light blue harkerware to use after I graduate.



















23. Pearl earrings are my everyday staple.
24. I like to sleep surrounded with pillows and blankets.
25. My mom is awesome.

Stitching up a Storm

I thought I would update on my projects.

This sweet poodle skirt I made for one of the kids in my life that needed it for some cotillion something-or-other. I don't totally understand the whole thing, but she needed a poodle skirt, and I would not let her be seen in one of those tacky, store-bought, felt atrocities.

This little number is purple flannel, a store bought poodle applique (a time crunch prevented a hand made one) topped off with a black sequin leash. It's just presh.




This is my new room-mate, a 40's dress form I found on Craigs List. It adjusts in dozens of places instead of just 3 like the trash companies are making now. She needs a name, suggestions?

Although she is nameless, she's got some bod, huh?

For My Next Trick...

I think I'm going to make this next for the babies. Yes?