I daily have thoughts of selling my three cats and dog on ebay, but they would probably only bring about 50 cents...total.

Wish I could come to the birthday party...I would bring a good red wine!

OMG you are using four dpn!!! (worshipping at your feet while clutching my two circulars---still petrified of those scary evil things!!)
Happy Early Birthday!! You know you'll have to take pics of all the goodies for us!!

When is the official birthday, oh Cancer goddess?

June 22, but the party is this saturday OH MY GOD I am having party anxiety already. It's going to be a very small thing, a backyard BBQ. If any of ya'll want to come, email me :)

And by small, I mean small. Like I am only making hamburgers. And my house is TINY, with one bathroom, and I have to clean it and buy food and ice and I am freaking out, why did I think this was a good idea? Really? You know, us cancers want to have parties and feed people, but we also want to stay home alone and feel sorry for ourselves. It's a constant battle to see which impulse wins out LOL.

I like to think of kiddie pools as staging areas for alcohol.... fill with ice & then beer & other assorted beverages.

la la la me and the comments are having a therapy session, ya'll don't mind the crazy lady

I don't want a party! this is a dumb idea! my house will never be clean enough.

but it will be fun if people get to hang out and drink and eat and just chitchat, maybe it will be fun?

hope I don't drop the food this time. ARGH party anxiety!!!!!!

when you make your cat poop car conversion, send me the schematic. While I'd only be able to drive 1/2 as far as you (only 2 cats), I'd appreciate the gas savings.

What?! No dirt burgers at this party! And to think I was considering making the trip.

"somehow they are manufacturing poop in their little furry behinds" -- tears streaming down face I am laughing so hard

Helps if I fill in the blanks...jeez, what a Monday!

You could always just give in to BOTH of your opposing Cancerian impulses... you know, invite everybody, go insane getting ready, and then- on the big day- lock the door and seclude yourself with all the party booze and pretend you don't hear anyone ringing your bell.

Just kidding, don't do that. Enjoy your party, you will have a grand time!

PETE they were NOT "dirt burgers" they were "GROUND burgers" ahem.

Mary Heather, I love your suggestion!!!

yes, kiddie-pools = beer staging! those things hold tons of ice and tons of beer. You can also add water balloons to them for the entertainment

hey Raurie,

Some of your guests ougta help out with the food situation (see payday) and bring a little something to nibble on ...or better yet......to DRINK.

You provide the sweet tea, the hot coals and the plates.

The swimming pools do make GREAT places to ice down massive amounts of liquid wonderment. Then, after all the bottles and cans are gone.. they ain't too bad for icing down a hot bod neither.

Happy Birthday! (Mine was on June 7th)

Nancy F.

Also - I COMPLETELY understand the need to browse Target in its convenient grid format! How else are you to find all of the wonderful clearance items located at the end of the aisles?
And the Giant Godzilla hat is beautiful and does not look that big to me... maybe we need a wine glass for scale?

OMG I love the crocheted headrest covers! I'd love some for my truck!

Oof, I didn't know "dirt" was dirty. My bad, "ground" burgers.

The "seat cozies" ARE cute, but all I can think of is how badly they would make my hair tangle!

hey happy birthday! when is the blessed event?

i just welcomed laina to boston. if she doesn't melt, she'll do just fine.

Oh my goodness I hear ya on the poop. It is amazing how much they manufacture. Incredible. Whoever thought that such cute little furries would produce so much waste and stank!

Cool, we have the same B-Day! I'm going to be "Still not 40." You? We're also on the cusp of Gemini, "The Twins", giving us not one, not two, but THREE crazy lady personalities to comfortably slide into...

The cats and the poo. Follow this simple rule: "One is like one and two is like ten." When I had one cat, it was no biggie. When the second cat arrived, I thought I was going to die!! The POO!!!

You, having four cats, have infinite poop.

Ok. I'm with Vanessa. Buy the pool. Fill it with ice. Folks can put beer, white wine, ketchup bottles, anything that needs to stay cold in it. Then they DON'T NEED TO GO IN THE HOUSE (except to pee, so only clean the route to the bathroom).

Alternative way to avoid cleaning the house -- only invite people who love you more than a clean house. there will be plenty. Have fun. I'll drink beer in your honour on June 22 (which is also my brother's birthday but I like you better) when I will be flying home to Ottawa from Vancouver and will need one anyway even without the excuse.

Happy Birthday Laurie. I'm right behind you, June 26. And guess what? I'm having a party too. Although, it's at the BEST Mexican Restaurant ever cuz I learned my lesson lastyear when I had the BBQ at my house. But it was WAAAAAAAY fun. You gotta do it! I do have one word for you though CATER! (El Pollo Loco, like mine) =) Wish I could be there, but I'm in SF, can't make it to LA that fast. I'll be at Kristy's though. You should come. =)

Heh heh. Jen looks 12 years old in those pictures. "I like THAT one! Buy me THAT one Auntie Laurie!" ... Sorry, Jen.

A pool is a beer-cozy (in a non-knitted way). Be sure to fill it with ice, water & salt (much colder -- I saw it on "Mythbusters," so it must be true).

Next hat challenge -- crochet. You start at the top (instead of the bottom), so the chances of ending up with scary mushroom head are smaller.

Happy birthday to us June people!! My b-day is this Wednesday, the 15th.

OMG!!! We have the same birthday!! Hope your party rocks. :)

hahaha. Jeff-- When Laurie e-mailed me to tell me I was on the internets, my response was: "hahahaha. I am 12." Spooky how we siblings think alike!

Laurie, I can't wait for your par-tay! Finally you are letting us celebrate your greatness!

Haven't received my invite yet...well, other than verbal that is...LOL. Hey are you going to SNB on Thursday? I'll bug you there.

.......At Target, we have to wander up and down every aisle in order (which means start at the front of the store and walk all the way around the perimeter, then do the middle)......

Holy Guacamole! This is EXACTLY how I shop, and why oftentimes I must shop alone, because my friends know me and apparently don't enjoy not missing anything.

That's super spooky.

I shop at Target the same way. Scary. We should start a club - you, me, Drew, Jen......

We have a Super Target. Do you have a Super Target? It is a Target with a grocery store.

Cancer and Aquarius must be in cahoots... I get the exact same party anxiety!

While at grad school I've stopped having birthday parties... I have "once-a-year-invite-a-bunch-of-people-over-for-dinner-party." (I pretend I'm too grown up for birthday parties... plus, no candles to mark age.... well, there wasn't until people caught on.) Definitely do pot-luck grill. It went over *great* at my place. :) (Much cheaper, too.)

OMG we don't have the same birthday! LOL.
The Hat that Ate Los Angeles - wow that would be some hat! Raow! RAOW! Fear me I am the Hat.....

Even Martha Stewart's Living says its perfectly OK to enlist guest help at the party -- set the table, be in charge of bringing out ice cream in event of drunken hostess (not that you would *ever* do that...), etc.

As for house cleanliness -- I figure that each one of my friends gets one look at a super clean house, the first time they come over, & then I don't care anymore. So just invite people who've seen your house before cause first impression = lasting impression. "My that CTK does keep a clean house." ha ha. Or make new people wear sunglasses inside the house -- they will never see dust or dirt because their vision is darkened!

Well if you do buy a pool you can always fill it with ice, then fill the ice with beer.

That hat is loverly! Beautiful! I am such a baby knitter. So far all I've done is just knit and purl and knit and purl these long, insane things. But soon I will be starting more earnest endeavors, like a scarf for the Best Friend who is leaving me in August to go to school in stinky North Carolina.

/rant

if you find out the answer to your thought at 8:22 am was yes, would you please send me the link to the site... :-)

Happy (early) Birthday!

Once again you have me laughing soooo hard on a Monday ...or any day I read your blog which is ALWAYS!!!! Why don't you pick up stitches with that fur crap stuff and just knit another hat that way and then stuff it all inside the hat for a furry lining thing...
btw, HAPPY HAPPY...

Love the seat cozies! And the pool with ice and beer and other alcoholaneous beverages! Then, when you get sunburned, you can dunk for brewskis and soothe your skin all at once, and call it multitasking.

I am extremly relieved to hear that someone else does the 'Target walk'. My friends think I have issues..lol. I think your hats look great. I keep wanting to drop all my knitting and knit a hat too after reading you blog.

Pictures will be supplied upon demand :)

The hat pics look great; I heart blue.

my sister and i have a similar party anxiety. love planning the party. i love cooking the food. but once people show up....we hide in the kitchen drinking....pretending we have hostess stuff we're doing.

on the cleaning: i figure my friends are more concerned with having a good time than the cleanliness of my house. so don't worry about it.

on the food: costco is your friend. they have lots of premade stuff you can buy, serve on your plates and look like you slaved all day.

here's wishing you a happy, stress-free party! and a fabulous 29th birthday! (right? wink-wink)

6:30 cat wake up?? That's *heaven* compared to my 5:30 am-sit-on-your-belly-and-meow-because-I'm-a-perpetually-starving-cat wake up call! Every day. Harumph.

Happy Birthday!!! I love your blog so much.

Also, I find that when I drink (usually wine from a glass the size of my head) my gauge changes. I'm not kidding. It took me a while to figure this out but it's true for me.

Hope this helps.

happy birthday from one of your crazy blog stalkers! is there any chance of finding out where to send birthday goodies? um, and i'm not really crazy. or stalking you. i do however think you're hilarious (in a good way!) and love to read your blog.

I know this is a TOTALLY radical idea .... but have you ever considered making felted hats? Meaning hats that you knit with wool you are not supposed to wash, you PURPOSELY knit it HUGE and then.... (ready??) ..... YOU WASH IT! In HOT water no less! Actually, it would be even better if the person you gave the hat to was required to wash the hat. That way, if it was still too big, it would obviously be the problem of the washer and not the knitter!

Me too with the Target shopping pattern. Well, really, it's obviously the best way.

Are you doing what She Just Walks Around With It Kristy did -- inviting everyone to your party? Hrmmmm?

Happy Birthday from a new reader! I can so sympathize with the cats. I have three, and i swear I could starve them for days, and they would still be pooping. When does the madness stop?

Great cozy's for the headrests too.

God bless Target and all it's Target goodness...

There's a SATURDAY knitting group at the Farmer's Market?? A knitting group on a day that I don't work? Huh. Of course if I went to the Farmer's Market I'd just do something dumb like buy a bunch of food and that would lead to me actually cooking our meals instead of paying someone else to bring them to me and clean up after me while I drink beer.

My turtle's name is Sir poopsalot.

Damn poop.

Can't help but notice that not many guys post anything here...so I just had to (um, again). Besides, I have a little crush on you. Dude....www.homedepot.com rents rototillers, just go to tool rentals, lawncare, tillers...etc. The pain is getting that mofo from the store to your place. You'd need a truck or trailer, or you could see if they deliver. Best to till before the valley turns to scorched earth temp. --->(sorry...I dont knit)

Happy Birthday!!! I just wanted you to know that while looking at some beautiful alpaca fiber yesterday, I picked it up, and SMELLED it. See. You are not a lone smeller of fiber. And I wasn't aware there was any other way to shop the Target.

I think you should get TOM to come over and help with the whole tiller thing. He seems to know what he is doing. And I bet he likes ground burgers and beer. Get Jen to come too for safety if you like :-)

OMG MY birthday is June 22!!! No wonder I love your blog so much!
(Hi Shelley. All of us cusp ladies wandering around here from one personality to another.)

Remember, things could be worse - you could be turning 40 on June 22, like I am.

Remember too that according to your horoscope (which I am clinging to like a drowning person) we are due for new good things as soon as Saturn gets out of our house! July 16, here we come. (I could tell as soon as Mars came in on June 11. I could. I felt better right away.)

(But I sure wish the comment software would let me make paragraph breaks instead of running everything together. We Cancers are picky that way.)

Ya know..everytime I buy that 45 lb bag of dog food (one dog is 80 lbs, the other 35) I wonder how this turns into 100 lbs of dog droppings in the yard. OMG I bet the garbage man hates us!

Headrest cozies, how beautiful! Thanks for the photos!

You would SO be my hero if you rent that tiller!