ARCH

This weekend Sully earned his ARCH title in APDT Rally. To earn this combined level championship title, we had to earn 100 points and get scores of over 190 in both level 1 and level 2 five separate times. Some people were surprised that we hadn't earned this title before now since we've been competing for a couple of years but we usually only compete one day even if the trials are 2-day trials. (This is both budgetary and I also like to spend at least one day of the weekend at home with my husband.) He also won a third place in his second level 2 run. This weekend we were busted for crooked sits and did fairly poorly on a couple of bonus exercises but still scored over 200 in all four trials.

Now we may take a break from APDT. I enjoy the shows, the people are so friendly and the courses are challenging. But....it's a LONG day! And this weekend I found myself getting annoyed at the A-levels (which is a terrible attitude to have, I know!) whose dogs seemed...not quite ready for the showring. They begged and pleaded with their dogs to sit, their dogs barely knew heel position, and I know maybe it was the stress of a new place, maybe they can complete all the exercises perfectly at home. But these are minutes (MANY minutes) of my life I will never get back and I spent them under fluorescent lights, being annoyed and getting a headache. In AKC (obedience, not rally), that just wouldn't happen. People know their dogs, when they're proofed and ready and don't enter a dog that is clearly not ready. They understand that your time in the ring isn't for practicing and training your dog! But for the most part, I really enjoy watching the teams, there are some that I just can't help but smile when I watch them!

What will we be doing instead? AKC Graduate Novice (first attempt at the end of October) and further training in AKC Tracking. We may go for our AKC RAE title but AKC rally just isn't as challenging as APDT.

In non-dog news, I start clogging lessons this month! I have wanted to reward myself for keeping up my healthy habits and a dance class seemed a perfect fit! I hope it's fun!

A Funk

I'm in a funk. I haven't had a good day since last Sunday, when I got my eyebrows waxed at a salon that was having a fund raiser-all proceeds from Sunday went to the Humane Society! Before:After: So nice and even now!
Since then, it has been terribly downhill. No, nothing huge. I haven't wanted to go running all week but gosh darn it I did it anyway. C25K finished! I'm not done running, I think I'll stick with 30 minutes 2-3 times each week for a while. But it's just not as fun when you have to force yourself out of bed instead of springing up excited to start the day.

I heard dripping in the closet where the heater is. The NEW duct work for the central air was dripping with condensation and the floor was soaked! So I had to call and have them come out and insulate ALL the duct work they just put in. Not terrible because it's nice to have that done and they also fixed the light in the basement that mysteriously stopped working after they were down there putting in the lines to the bedrooms.

I took my rings in to be re-sized (so they would stop flying off my finger in the shower) and I just had a bad feeling about the whole thing so I went back and got them the same day, without them being re-sized. They weren't going to done in time for the family reunion coming up this month and I didn't want to go without them!

My neighbor keeps bugging me about our barberry bush. Yes, it's huge and prickly! But I don't have the tools to deal with it or the money to pay someone else to. At least it's purple and kind of pretty. I bet it's also the world's largest Barberry hedge on earth, it would be a tragedy to prune it back!

And work, I don't even want to talk about it! A. because I don't want to get Dooced and B. Ugh, I don't want to think it about it unless I absolutely have to!

Luckily, it's a short week this week because we're going up North for the family reunion this weekend! I hope the prospect of two four-day weeks in a row cheers me up!

Fair Time!

This post is far overdo, today was the day we picked items up from the fair so it's all over. That is due to another major event this week besides the fair! We had central air (and the new ductwork that it required) installed in our house! No more window AC units! Now our wonderful 50's house has ALL of its original windows back in place and I am loving it! But on to the fair!

I've been enjoying stories about other people's experiences at the fair. Like these wonderful recipes and sketches from Lillian. nd I can't wait to see what Sarah's first State Fair entry experience is like.

We'll start off with the best! My doily, seen here on my lap.First place!The judges really liked my degree of difficulty, they called my pattern and gauge of thread "painful."
This chicken-scratch apron, which you may recognize from the Make-Do Mail, won second place.
This embroidered pillowcase (Mike chose the pattern for it) also got second. You can see in the next picture that the first place embroidered pillowcase also won the Champion ribbon and it was gorgeous so I don't feel bad being runner up to that. It's too bad you can't see it at ALL for all the ribbons!
Also first place is last year's cross stitch Christmas ornament.I make a new one each year (see them here). I almost made some mini knit stockings too! Someone else's won second place, as you can see.
The rest of my projects placed mainly 3rd or 4th. My knit capelet (which I was not super happy with) was 3rd, as well as my fabric headband (no picture but it's from this pattern).
My pink and brown dress (which I found hanging backwards so I won't think anyone really understood how it fit!), vintage fabric apron, and mittens from recycled wool sweaters were all 4th.

Some things didn't make it to the fair this year:
I wanted to use my new Looper Loom (Potholder loom/lap loom/etc.) to make a stuffed animal from a vintage pattern I've had for a while. I picked up two of these looms at a garage sale and then at a completely unrelated garage sale I got a big bag of loops! I had an old pattern for making stuffed toys from the squares that they create so I gave it a go. I didn't have instructions for the potholders so I searched the net and found some fun links! Sadly, I didn't get this done in time so next year, I will take one!
Fun patterns for potholders from Weavezine

Make your own loops

Nifty houndstooth skirt made from potholders

And for those serious about their woven-square creations, Eloomanation has tons of vintage patterns and info.

Failed potholder-I had started a paper-pieced Christmas potholder a while ago and decided to finish it. Well, it didn't go so well, the binding was a fiasco and looked terrible so it didn't make the cut.

Zucchini-I ate then all before I even thought to take them to the fair! Ack! Oh well, they tasted good!