I finally found time to finish my Letter Meme! :D

Comment and I'll give you a letter, then you have to list ten people/places/things you love that begin with that letter, afterwards post it on your journal and fill out letters of your own.

ningyouundoujou gave me the letter W. Challenging!

1. Womanhood- I'm proud to be a woman! Being a wife and mother are the most amazing experiences I could ever ask for, and something I could never have if I was a man.

2. Water- Pretty much all I drink is water and coffee. Sometimes I'll have juice or chocolate (not white!) milk, but not often. Water is nature's perfect drink. Why should I want anything else?

3. Whipped Cream- So, you have a good dessert, like pie or cobbler. Add whipped cream, and it makes it a great dessert! Simple, no?

4. Waffles- I am a master waffle maker. My mother relenquished all waffle-making duties to me when I was fifteen.

5. Winter- I don't like cold or snow, but I do like Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the hubby's break from school, so it evens out.

6. Wine-colored Velvet- I'm not sure what it is, but I have an obsession with deep red velvets, and absolutely no use for them.

7. Windows- Natural light is the best kind of light, I love a house with lots of glass.

8. Water Pistols- Or garden hoses. Hand me something that shoots water, and you'd better run unless you're looking to get wet. When I was young, even my own grandmother was not safe!

9. Washable Toys- Mikayla is learning to stick things in her mouth, so I have begun checking all of her plush toys to see if they're safe for the washing machine!

10. Wearable Art- Crocheting and jewelry are my personal fortes, but I love to admire other people's work too, and get inspired.

We MIGHT get to go to Naka-Kon. Maybe. We will be getting our tax refund before then, and we have decided that if Micah can get his work shifts covered it will be our Valentine's gift to each other. I'm about to die waiting! We don't find out until Sunday or Monday if Micah's shifts can be covered. ARGH! I've never gotten to go to an anime convention before, and one of my two favorite VA's is going to be there.

Sadly I won't get to take any dolls. If we get to go, we ARE taking Mikayla (she refuses to be babysat for a couple of hours, much less a couple of days!) and I am not going to try keeping track of my dolls when I'll be carrying a baby around. Besides, she'll be adorable, she has a Moogle poncho to wear.

Besides being totally antsy about Con potential, I am ticked off because I got out my camera today and there are NO charged batteries in this whole stinkin' house. I don't know how that happened.

So, ATT was supposed to have our internet set up and ready to go when we got home from KC on Friday. Obviously they did not, and while I won't get into the full story, let's just say it took a lot of forceful language to get them to set it up yesterday instead of next week. And already, the downgrade from cable internet to DSL kind of sucks. It saves money though, and it's way better than no internet at all! I didn't even get to use it yesterday, I had a bunch of errands to run and then a migraine at night. Yuck.

Hopefully today I will have the time and some decent lighting to take pictures, because I have Allison's commission finished but I need her approval before I send it out. Jasmine's mini dress is nearly finished too, just have to sew on the last details. It was a lot of fun, I need to crochet "punk" things more often! In the evenings after Mikayla has gone to bed I've been working on chain mail, which is tons of fun but really, really time consuming. I'm making my own rings, too, so it's kind of hard to get the sizing just right, but I'm getting better every day. I still don't have a finished piece to share. Hopefully soon. I'm disappointed, though, because it's impossible to make truly "scaled" pieces of chain mail for dolls. Once you get past a certain point the rings are too small to hold all the other rings, and the minimum size is bigger than I thought it would be. Oh well.

Tomorrow should be a good day. No errands to run and no set plans. I'll just get to relax for the first time in a week or two. Kansas City and spending time with my family are both fun, but I'm honestly a homebody and it will be nice to be alone.

I got a book and tools to make chainmail and chainmail jewelry! Gah, I want a boy doll to model for me now. And an SD. And a yo-SD. I'm so excited!

In high school I got REALLY into Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders of Pern series, along with a few friends. We used to roleplay on the old MSN groups. So, after finding my Dragon Lover's Guide to Pern while cleaning my craft room, I had a sudden urge to go look into the old game, maybe play again. Come to find out, MSN groups was deleted in February of 2009. I'm not even sure where to start looking for another DRoP RP group. I'm not just a nerd... I'm an OLD nerd, who can talk about their obsolete forums and old fandoms. Sigh. It's probably for the best. I should be focusing on my novel instead of putting my writing energy into RPs. But ugh, I'm stuck.

I started on the Lati Yellow dress for herroyaldemones last night, and now I'm almost done. It's going much faster than I expected! I'm loving the color combo she chose and I'm thinking I'll have to make another purple dress for Issie to keep when I'm done with my commissions. I don't use purple often enough, and I'm not sure why. I guess I just don't think of it when I play with blue, pink and green so much.

I'm really excited because Micah agreed that we can go to a bead store while we're in Kansas City! I haven't been to a dedicated bead store since the one we had locally shut down. I miss that place so much. What I'm really hoping to find is tiny metal beads or charms that I can use to make doll jewelry with. I do a lot of bead shopping online, and it's pretty easy to gauge the size of normal beads from measurements and descriptions, but charms are another story. Really though, I hope they have a big bin of beads that I can dig my fingers into. I have a bead problem but I'm okay with it!

I got to go clothes shopping today, because since I had a baby I am fat. :P Okay not really fat, but some of my tighter clothes just don't fit the way they used to. The best part about the clothes shopping is that I didn't have to pay for any of it- my mom took me as the last of my Christmas gifts. Getting new stuff puts me in such a good mood!

I've been really productive on the doll front lately! Still no face-ups... I might have had time for them, because Mikayla is taking longer naps instead of frequently cat-napping, but the weather here is really nasty and foggy so my MSC would have been gross. But I'm making clothes! Right now I'm in the process of making a cute lolita-esque coat for Brynn. I will need to find some lace to finish it off, though, and finding doll-scaled lace is a pain in the rear, at least here. There are no craft stores in the immediate area, so I have to deal with whatever Walmart has, and that's not much. :P What I'm really excited about, though, isn't even for me. Allison (herroyaldemones) and Jasmine (dark_skada) have commissioned dolly clothes from me and I'm going to have fun with them. I am going to learn to make a Lati Yellow sized headband for Allison, and if it turns out as well as I'm hoping, I might have to make more. Jasmine's commission is for a mini-Dal dress, and I get to attach chains and stuff to it, so it should be pretty amazing in the end. I'm kind of surprised at myself, being so psyched to make things that aren't for me.

What I'm really excited about right now, though, is a mini-vacation we have planned for next week. Hubby's grandmother had her hip replaced shortly before the baby was born, so she hasn't been able to travel and hasn't met Mikayla yet. They live about three hours away in Kansas City, which is too long for a day trip, so we've booked a hotel for two nights. In addition to seeing Micah's grandparents we'll have time to do some shopping and such. I'm not even super worried about Mikayla, because she's great in the car and so far has done well when we take her shopping or to restaurants. I think it's going to be a good week. :D

So I'm having to call my computer dead for now. Micah thinks he can fix it, but I'm not allowed to use it until we can afford to fix it just in case I burn something out beyond repair. He was nice enough to install my favorite games on his computer so that I can borrow it, but my ability to take and share dolly photos is seriously compromised. This makes me sad, because even though she's still blank I really wanted to take some pictures of Brynn. I got my Wicked Stitchery grab bag and there's this one outfit that is perfect for her. I also crocheted a lolita-inspired set that happens to go perfectly with a couple of the pieces, even though I made the crocheted set before my grab bag arrived. I'll definitely have to look into getting more Wicked Stitchery items in the future, it's great stuff!

I'm still looking into taking commissions on doll jewelry/crocheted accessories,because Micah says that if it's for money-making purposes I can store as many photos on his computer as I want. But I may have another opportunity coming up. I had put out a few feelers in the community to babysit one or two children so that I could make a little money but still stay home with Mikayla, and a church friend has given my name to one of the high school teachers who is adopting a little boy. If that happens, I might still take a few commissions, but it would be on a much more limited basis and more for fun than anything. I'm trying not to get my hopes up on the babysitting job, though. I have lots of experience with children, but I'm not a licensed daycare facility and I don't have many references outside my family. Right now I'm just going to sit back and see if I even get a phone call.

Mikayla's ear infection is definitely clearing up, and she's a much happier baby. Without the ear infection it's all the more obvious that she's having problems with something which I still suspect is reflux, so after her follow up appointment about the ear infection I'm taking her to a new doctor. I'm very thankful for Medicaid, because we would be hard pressed to afford health insurance and there is no way we could afford to pay for all these appointments out of pocket.

Life is good (except for frickin' cold).

I'm totally whining tonight, please feel free to ignore this if you don't want to hear it.

( Whine whine yadda yadda... oh, possible sales stuff. )Now to make sure this isn't just a post of me whining, here's a photo I took of Mikayla. Her grandparents and great-grandparents got framed copies of it for Christmas. This was about three weeks ago- she already looks different! :)

2009 was a year to remember, for sure!

January: Surgery. Fantastic. :P
February: We applied for a small business loan. We didn't get it, but God knows best.
March: Found out we were pregnant! Biggest surprise of my life!
April: Turned 22, and had my first OB appointment. Saw my little bean wiggling around already and almost cried.
May: Bought our first house and moved.
June: Micah was in a car accident, fortunately he wasn't hurt. It actually ended up being a good thing- we got a better car in the end!
July: Found out we were having a girl! Bought our first pink outfit.
August: Our second wedding anniversary and the first anniversary of my little brother's adoption. On the same day!
September: Micah started a new job. It sucks in some ways but it's a steady paycheck with benefits.
October: I quit my job for "maternity leave", but I'm never going back. :P
November: Mikayla was born! Definitely the highlight of my year.
December: Our first Christmas as a family was great. We're about to spend time with friends we rarely get to see. It's going to be a nice wrap-up to an overall good year.

Apparently I'm going to comment on all of Fairyland's new releases from now on, since I stalk Fairyland like mad.

I'm disappointed that the only attention the MNF got was a new fullset, and Woosoo no less. I didn't think Woosoo was all that popular? I could be wrong, but I don't see many of them around. I want bits of his outfit for future-Karsh, though. And the other new fullset, LTF Piki... I really think they must be trying to regenerate interest in unpopular molds by making new fullsets. I really dislike Piki and I think it's a rather useless fullset. I'm still waiting on my Pipi girl, too.

The new LTF mold, Leah, confuses me. She's basically Ante with very, very slight changes. So slight that at first glance I thought she was a new Ante fullset. I do think I like her a little more than Ante when I study them side-by-side. Leah's eyes have less droop in the outside corners and her lips are slightly less puckered, and I think it gives her a more thoughtful expression. But I still can't look at her and not think that they're just cashing in on Ante's popularity- AGAIN.

I dislike Cupid's transition into PKF form, because I think they over-emphasized the sharpness of the lips. I rather like Puki Cupid, and I don't think PKF Cupid looks enough like the original. Perhaps this will change when I see some owner pictures, because Fairyland's photos are all washed out and white and BLINDING. ARGH. Plus there is a ton of blue around the eyes and it's creepy.

I think that I would really like PKF Icis, except that she looks an awful lot like Lati's Kuroo. This is the second doll Fairyland has released recently that reminds me of one of Lati's molds (the first being Puki Ruby) and I don't think it's a coincidence. There are enough differences that I'm not about to point fingers and yell copycat, but I think Fairyland is clearly grabbing on to trends. I want to see some creativity out of them! There's nothing really innovative out of this update. I'm disappointed, Fairyland.

Too many Christmas celebrations... three with my family and two with Micah's, and that's less than usual because a couple of them got combined and two others were cancelled. I'm not even halfway done and I'm tired. My family is too big.

My computer is being a total pain in the rear lately. Freezing, stalling, not loading, and wireless problems. I thought the wireless adapter had finally gone out for good, but my husband managed to fix it. I'm only about 90% sure the fix will last, and much less sure that the rest of the computer will keep working right. It's annoying because this computer is pretty new to me, even though it was a factory refurb before that. If my husband wasn't good at fixing computers I probably would have had to give up on this thing already! Stupid thing. Technology, for all its wonderful blessings, can really complicate things.

Holidays are super stressful, but lucky for me I've been given kind of a pass this year. Everyone understands that I'm dealing with a newborn and our budget is tight. Instead of bringing treats of my own to the holiday gatherings, I'm helping my mom bring a little more than usual. She certainly doesn't complain about me bringing the baby over to visit, much less about the extra set of hands. Low-budget Christmas gifts were easy to choose, since parents and grandparents are getting 8x10 photos of Mikayla and all the aunts (I have five :P ) are getting 4x6, and everybody gets a couple of wallet size. So easy- everybody loves babies.

Mikayla has been so fussy lately. I'm actually getting worried about it, and after Christmas I'm going to call her doctor. I think she might have Infant GERD (reflux), but I can't be sure because if she does it's "silent" reflux that doesn't have the excessive spit-up that most babies with reflux suffer from. She has a lot of the other symptoms, though, so I need to get it checked on. She will sometimes cry for hours and refuse to be comforted. It's so hard to deal with! Thank goodness Micah is on his school break now, so he has more time to spend at home and help with the baby. He still has to work, but it doesn't seem nearly as much.

Naturally, I probably won't be around the next few days because of Christmas. But I doubt anyone will blame me. :) Merry Christmas, or whatever you celebrate this season, may it bring you joy!

Mikayla is going through a growth spurt and wants to eat twice as often as normal. I am tired and have gotten nothing done for the last day and a half, because we are going through this cycle of eat-fuss-eat-sleep (lightly)-fuss-repeat and I'm lucky to have my arms free for ten minutes at a time. I adore my baby but she is SO MUCH WORK. Even outside this growth spurt, she is a little colicky and needs constant comforting. I don't mind it really, because she's worth it, but I get tired. I really value the times when Micah is home to play with her for a while, but that's not often. Thank goodness he has a five week break from school coming up after this week. I'm looking forward to it.

Despite my complaints I really am doing well as a mommy, and I love it. My mother is always asking if I need help and I'm always turning her down because I can't imagine anything more natural than caring for my baby, even if I'm tired sometimes. It's everything I ever wanted.

I took a few photos for a contest on the RequiemArt forums, and found a moment to snap a couple photos of Mehka while the camera was out. I totally exploited the baby for the photo contest, where the theme is "Cozy". It's Mikayla's first internet appearance outside Facebook. These are the 'rejects' from the mini shoot, slightly blurry but cute.

( Baby pictures! )

Mehka is still blank, but that isn't keeping her from having a lot of personality. I'm still experimenting with posing, but Mehka is a lot easier than Brynn because she's not as limited in her poses.
( MNF love )

This pose is for you Allison. The MNF A-line body can pose with the best of them! *unabashed temptation*

I got the last Wicked Stitchery grab bag for the order period! I almost gave myself another day to think about it, and then just decided to go for it. The worst that happens is I get some things I don't like and have to turn around and trade or sell them. I still have a little money left in my Paypal account, so I'm going to buy some other clothes for the girls too. I just have to decide what, and from where. I'll probably wait until my grab bag arrives so that I can see what kind of items I still need.

I think I'm going to have to take DZ Mo off my wish list. I like the mold, but I think that Drake is going to have to be a JID. He needs to be tall and muscular, and the JID body fits the bill perfectly. h_u_s_h_e_d just posted pictures of her new JID Ryan next to her MNF Seorin, and the proportions are just what I need. There are two problems: first, that there simply isn't a mold of JID that's perfect for Drake, and second, Iplehouse doesn't have a tan option. They have released some of their dolls in a slightly darker "real skin" that might work for my purposes, but of the JID boys released so far only Ryan has been offered in real skin and that's a limited edition, anyway. Drake needs some heavy mods and I would prefer not to screw with a limited doll. I guess it's a blessing that I won't be able to afford him for a while, because I'll have to think on this. I'll look around JID owner photos a little bit and hope that Iplehouse will release a new, perfect JID boy.

Naturally the baby has kept me really busy as of late. I love her to bits and pieces, but she's demanding. Considering that she can't do anything for herself yet, she has a right to be needy, and it's definitely a labor of love.

I'm learning how to work around her, though, and I have some little projects I want to do. My main priority is crocheting up some little critters to decorate kids' gift bags, and of course I have to have those done by Christmas. I have eleven cousins to make them for, and maybe my brother. After that I'd like to try a doll hat pattern that I've been working on, because Mehka and Brynn would look too darling in a cloche hat. Less officially I want to do some more sewing and jewelry making for my dolls, but I don't have a time schedule set for that since I don't even know what I'm making yet.

I've got a little money in my paypal account and I have decided that unless I end up needing it for Christmas shopping (which I shouldn't, I think I'm almost done), it has to go toward clothes for my MSD girls. They have four outfits among them, and Mehka and Brynn don't really have any clothes that suit their styles yet. While I would really like some HDS clothes, I keep balking at the price, and the fact that they probably wouldn't ship for a full month or more. I looked at picking up a few pieces from Dollmore, but the shipping is horrendous! I've scoured Etsy and found nothing I liked. Searching through the DoA marketplace makes me dizzy. If I make up my mind fast enough, I might get a $50 grab bag from Wicked Stitchery, but frankly I'm nervous about it. What if I just happen to get a bag full of stuff I hate? Eventually, I have to make up my mind...

Perhaps I'll decide during a 3 AM feeding session.

Dear Fairyland,

When you put a tiny resin nubble on a doll's bits and call it a boy, it is no longer okay to put said doll in a long wig and lacy dress for their fullset. I don't care what you would call that garment if asked, it is a dress and it has matching bloomers. Give the poor boy some pants.

Sincerely,
A concerned individual

Really. That's a boy???

Nabbed from little_joni

You know how sometimes people on your friendslist post about stuff going on in their life, and all of a sudden you think "Wait a minute? Since when were they working THERE? Since when were they dating HIM/HER? Since when???" And then you wonder how you could have missed all that seemingly pretty standard information, but somehow you feel too ashamed to ask for clarification because it seems like info you should already know? It happens to all of us sometimes.

Please copy the topics below, erase my answers and put yours in their place, and then post it in your journal! Please elaborate on the questions that would benefit from elaboration. One-Word-Answers seldom help anyone out. (:


1. Name: Johnna, though I have just as often gone by Cherry and I'm pretty used to answering to both. The story on the nickname is a long one.

2. Age: 22, too often mistaken for 17 or thereabouts. Through my pregnancy and even at my daughter's first doctor's appointment, a lot of people have assumed I'm an unwed teenage mother. -_-;;

3. Location: Missouri, Lake of the Ozarks region. It's not a super exciting place but it's been home since kindergarten. It's a good place to raise kids and we're hoping to stay around here after Micah graduates.

4. Occupation: I'm a stay-at-home-mom at least through January. After that we're going to play it by ear for a while. All I know is that I'm not going back to my old job as a restaurant hostess, at least not at the same place.

5. Partner?: My husband, Micah. We've been married for two years now, but we've been together officially for six years, and friends longer than that. He's frustrating like all men can be, but I can't imagine life without him!

6. Kids?: Just one! She's 13 days old as I type this.

7. Brothers/Sisters: I was an only child for twenty years, but now I have a 13 year old brother. He originally came into foster care in my aunt's home, but our family fell in love with him. He officially came into my parent's home the week of my wedding, and his adoption date fell on our first wedding anniversary. We're pretty close.

8. Pets: One grumpy lizard, a Bearded Dragon named Loki.

9. List the 3/5 biggest things going on in your life:
*The new baby
*Holiday planning and travel arrangements (BIG deal in our family)
*Doll projects and crafts
*The new baby

10. Parents: My mom and dad are pretty awesome people. Not only have they raised me right, they've taken to my husband as if he were one of their own, and of course adopted my brother. They would do anything for us. They're also good friends of ours and we just enjoy spending time with them.

11. Who are some of your closest friends?: I don't feel like I have a lot of close friends. My very best friend lives in California now, and a lot of other friends are scattered around for college or work. It's kind of hard to make friends when your interests lie in such obscure areas as anime (that's not on Adult Swim) and Asian fashion/ball-joint dolls. I have made a lot of friends online though, and I love talking to you all!

Today has not been a good day overall. Baby is fine- I posted on Twitter that we thought she had a blocked tearduct but it seems to have cleared up. But that's probably the only good thing going on.

Micah's mother has decided that she is disowning him. She has always been distant and critical. She didn't want us to get married, and she thinks I hate her. (I can't say I like her much, but I liked her fine before she decided I didn't.) It's just a huge mess that I can't even describe. We've been a little on edge all day dealing with this BS. The sad thing? This all started when I made a Facebook post to brag on her son and how he was really helping out as a new dad. Don't ask how it turned a corner... I just don't know.

So, this has messed up our whole day. It took up the whole morning so I didn't get to go to the post office T-T I've got packages for marryth and h_u_s_h_e_d sitting on my kitchen table, ready to go. I hate having unfinished business.