blessings and blossoms

crashing after being too ambitious?!!

2012-02-08T12:23:00.000-08:00

does that happen to anyone else? so with the new year, I had sooo much ambition and sooo many plans! I knew I was probably setting myself up but decided to jump in, too deep!
I joined Heather and planned on doing my whole house with purging and organizing a major area each month, I did great starting my craft room, I am still doing ok with it, need to organize some more scrapbooking things and paint it and then I will be done. I am also starting Feb home project, so Iwill have to do 2 this month!

I had dreams of doing many sewalongs and quiltalongs, which I did start but of course still behind on a few but haven't been actually participating on flickr and such.

Then I told Zach, my son that I would do that 10K with him January 28, well in Dec, I ran 1 time, nice huh? January, I ran 3 times, how is that for training for a 10k? the week of Londons run, which was on a Saturday, well the Tues before, I thought (my first mistake!) that I should try to run 6 miles to make sure I could do it, not a smart thing, not to up your mileage from barely running! but I did okay, ran slow and just made sure I could run 6 miles, and almost peed my pants! seriously! well come Saturday, I was a nervous wreck but I promised Zach that I would do it and I did! I ran 6.28 miles, my goal was to do it in under an hour, I passed the finish line in 59.17 !!! that is a 9.32 mile pace, but oh well, could be faster but it could be slower and I am proud of myself for doing it. Zach was so sweet and ran with me at the end, he did GREAT, he placed 3rd in his age group and 13th overall out of 533 people! (I think I placed 181 out of 533)

(no I do not normally tuck my nike ipod in my chest area but I was tying myshoe and stuck it there stuck it there really
quick and just forgot about it!)
Here comes the crashing part, I think I just over did it, running into town with my mom, babysitting, upping my mileage, lack of sleep and trying to do tooo many things, I got the worse head cold, the worst one I have ever had. Its gone now, thank God, it was a doozy and totally knocked me out of commission. God has a way of slowing us down huh? and helps us put things into perspective :)

All is good and I am back up and running in all areas of my life!

Friday sewing!

2012-01-13T05:07:00.000-08:00

well I would have more projects to share but at the last minute I joined a new Bible study and then a bunch of other things came up, just now finishing up my courthouse blocks from Randi's sew along, thought I would be done yesterday, didn't happen, that is okay though, my Bible study is really good, it's Heaven by Randy Alcorn, at first I was on the fence about joining it..not sure why, but then God kept nudging me and helped me and then a friend mentioned about not letting Satan win, so I went and it was great and also with a great group of ladies!

I made a scallop bunting/garland! my friend Rebecca has a little girl and she likes me lol so I made her a little zippered pouch and the bunting, after I made it, I almost didn't want to give it to her! lol I love the colors I used. I think I am gonna make one the same and hang it in my craft room

have a nice weekend! Jim is off for the next three days...lots of horse riding gonna go on and Zach is attending DNOW with the church youth group :)

Linking up to Amy's Sew n tell AND Crazy Mom Quilts finish it up Friday :)

Cadet and Speedy

2012-01-12T14:01:00.000-08:00

Its been a while since I shared a post on our 2 oversize pets, Cadet was not feeling well for quite a while so there was no riding for over a month, we did our DUH (Down Under Horsemanship) training a little just to work with them a little and keep up some of the training, we had the vet out again and she gave us the go ahead on riding! yay! we took them out last Saturday and they both did great! Of course, I forgot my camera so today I took a few of them :)
Here is the sweet, flamboyant, very stubborn and onry Cadet. He is a big ol' boy, 17 years old, 16.1 hands and about 1300 pounds! He is a Morgan (old style, from what I hear, I guess Morgans are smaller now).

Here is Speedy, he is very sweet too, he is a very loyal horse and has to build trust with you before he lets you in, he has a dark side but only shows it once in a great while and gets in big trouble when he does! He is about 13 years old, 16 hands and about 1,150 pounds. He is Quarter Horse and Thouroughbred

Not sure how we ended up with 2 big horses, but they are keepers and most of the time they made us look like we know what we are doing. Jim is a lot more daring with Cadet than I am with Speedy, and sometimes I worry that I will ruin Speedy when I carry a nervous trait with me when I ride, most of the time I do pretty good but I know Speedy senses it.

Both are geldings, both are dominant and neither one, in 8 months has given up being the dominant horse, at times they bite and kick through their panel (we have a 50x50 corral split in half with panels so they each have 25x50) but usually ride together beautifully, EXCEPT that one time when we were loping and Speedy took off with me like a crazy horse and kicked out at Cadet and Jim, I thought I was going to fly over Speedys head and Jim was trying to hang on while Cadet was dodging a kick while loping. At the time I was so scared and didn't get after Speedy as quick as I should have....he better watch out because now I am more experienced! ha!

One of my goals is to possibly try gymkhana, I am nervous and I know Speedy has done barrels before, is he gonna go crazy on me like some of those horses do there and get all wound up? will that dark side come out? or will he be the good boy that he is *most* of the time?

We sometimes think we need to get another horse, Zach kind of wants a horse of his own horse but worries with just graduating high school, starting college and a job in just a few months, will he be too busy? should we just get one anyways? if one horse is sick or injured we would have a back up? hmmmm...still not sure

These 2 act like they don't like each other half the time and then when one leaves, they have a fit! hopefully they can find a happy medium :)

And speaking of horses, some friends, John and Ranae, that also do DUH, are now doing Podcasts, go check them out! They are way ahead of us in the horse training area but have definetly been an inspiration to me!

Courthouse Steps...a sew along!

2012-01-10T08:09:00.000-08:00

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you Eph 4:32

I feel like I am starting the new year out pretty good in the sewing area of my life, I got a lot of my craft room done (not all, still lots to do) and all my pretty fabric scraps are organized and also my goal of sewing a lot more this year and doing more sew alongs and quilt alongs :) Randi at Fresh Squeezed Fabrics is helping me out on sewing more while I participate in her sew alongs this year, go check her blog AND her shop. I have never done the block Courthouse steps, so this should be inspiring and fun!

anyways here are my scraps, we are supposed to pick 3 colorways, I have 4 colors ways though, so thinking maybe I will do a small quilt with all 4 colors OR maybe just stick with the orange, aqua and green? let me know what you think, the orange, aqua and green are my favorites but just loving my grey scraps right now, I think I am thinking too much and want all my favorites in here! any thoughts? I hate to not use the grey but does it stick out too much? I kind of think so...

Organzing and playing

2012-01-05T05:14:00.000-08:00

I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except thru me. John 14:6

trying to play along anyways! I am wanting to scrapbook and sew really badly, my stye of a craft room is being rehauled, when I say rahauled, I mean rehauled! I am tired of having my room so cluttered and overfilled and sooo unorganized! I won't get rid of too much but I really do need to go thru and put like with likes, purge (a little) and move things around. This room is on my Better Homes Challenge list. My room is just 10'X10' and one whole wall is counter high cabinets with cabinets above. Trying to make the room hold years of scrapbooking things and now a couple of years of sewing items and fabric and a little of embroidery and other small crafts is challenging! I do need to remember this room is small but also trying to maximize space. I have an oversize kitchen table that holds my computer and sewing machine, which is so conveinent when reading a tutorial online but the table is large and I am wonding if I should keep it or not, lots of deciding going on in the next couple of days regarding this room. I will share pictures soon!
Right now there are sew alongs and sewing with scraps, and the different weekly shares that bloggers do, and I need and want to be doing these but I must focus on this room but perhaps just sew and scrap a little ;) There are a couple of quilt alongs that I really want to start but I might wait for one to start maybe in a month or so just so I am not setting myself up for failure and give myself a chance to get most of this project done.
Are you organzing like a mad woman like me?
I can't post this post without a picture so here is one that I took yesterday! Zach definetly has an adventerous side and he doesn't get that from me, I am glad Cadet is a good boy! not a great picture since I snapped with my cell very quickly!

New year goals and such :)

2012-01-02T07:32:00.000-08:00

Like everyone else, I can't believe it's 2012, 2011 flew by so fast it seems, I really hope that 2012 goes a tad slower and that I still remember to slow down and enjoy all it's blessings and just to remember God is in control of it all.
Of course like most....I want to make new goals, start fresh and all that, but of course I could have done that 6 months ago (hee hee!) but didn't, so with everyone else, I have a few to list...

as far as personal goals

read my Bible everyday
take time to read a book a month (I used to read tons, last couple of years, not so much and I really miss it!)
sew more...in Dec, sewed more than I did most of the year, I need to make the time, mostly sew more quilts
exercise more...I do pretty good but the past couple of months, I run really good for a month or 2 then quit for a month
open that Etsy shop?!!
scrapbook more (I miss my scrapbooking)
organize and print my pics
practice my ASL more
my house projects (big and small)
more horse training and riding...and perhaps gymkhana?!! (I need not to be a weenie about this!)

Speaking of house projects, Heather is doing a Better Home Challenge, kind of exactly what I need!
I have big projects I do want to conquor but also A LOT of organizing and getting rid of *stuff*.
You can list 12 areas/rooms and do one a month, on the bigger projects is what I am going to list, but I have areas that I have a list also that I want to get done in the next 2 months or so in each room. On the big areas, its for bigger projects and/or cost of those areas.

my big area items are

Living room/dining room area
craft room
our bedroom
Zachs room (now that he is getting ready to graduate and start college)
kitchen
hallways (and hallway closet)
outside (back)
outside (front)
outside (side pasture area for horses)
outside (new garden area)
front bathroom
front porch area

PHEW!!!

This week, Jim goes back to work (Tues) and Zach goes back to school (Wed) and it's been fun having them home for over 2 weeks, but I do look forward getting back on a schedule and getting started on different projects (home and sewing) and having my house clean again!

Christmas sewing and pictures!

2011-12-28T12:39:00.000-08:00

Surely God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid Isaiah 12:2

How was your Christmas? ours was very good! we didn't go crazy overboard but everyone was happy and mainly happy that we can be together. My mom came over for the day too...I sat with her a bunch and we talked while I was pretty pathetic finishing up her table runner binding...geez huh?!! I am even more of a dummy since I forgot to take a picture of her table runner, but I used Sweetwaters Pure line, mom LOVES browns and blues together, especially if they have a letter print on them.

One of our grandaughters just lost her first tooth and the other has lost a couple but I thought I could make them tooth fairy pillows, Madi knew exactly what the little pocket was for when she opened the pillow :)
It was my first time using an alphabet on my Bernina, kind of fun figuring something new with it!

this is Madi's

Here is Raelynns

I also did a few little mini zip pouches using Noodleheads lil cutie pouch tutorial, they are super cute and super fast to make...I made a total of 4, forgot to take pictures of 2 of them (since I was rushed before gift giving and thinking of a last minute gift) but here is 2 of them

I have sewn more in the past month than I did in the past year, isn't that pathetic? that is all gonna change for 2012, I am so excited to be sewing so much!

gotta share some family pictures (of course!)

here is Zach, me, Jim and my mom

this picture is our 2nd Christmas day family picture, Taylor, me, Jim, Madi, Steph and Zach

Jim and Zach are both off for another week or so, they each had 2 weeks of vacation, the house is a mess and there is piles and piles of laundry to do, I have so many projects I want to do to the house and sewing related projects. I think my craft room (pig stye) will be one of the first rooms to be totally revamped, I had and have a bad mess in here right now, with piles and piles everywhere, also Jim was shooting cap guns in the house yesterday and one of the dogs went crazy and tore up my craft room even more...I have a counter that is 10ft long, of course it had piles and piles all over it too, well when the dog went crazy he tried to climb on top of that counter while procedding to pull everything down off it, I guess that is my hint to do this room first, I will have to take a before and after picture for you all!

hugs!

Baby Kailee Quilt & Baby Aiden Quilt

2011-12-21T16:10:00.000-08:00

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see Hebrews 11:1

Two baby quilt orders for a high school friend who has 2 grandbabies and wanted a handmade quilt for each one, we used the hourglass block since it reminded her of a quilt that her grandma had,

Here is the Kailee Quilt (her grandaughters name)

I used the chenille for the backing, it's looks beautiful but I did not like sewing and quilting it!

Here is the Aiden Quilt (her grandsons name)

I finished them pretty fast considering it's so close to Christmas and do have to say I am a bit proud of myself...it lets me know that I can accomplish a lot of quilting if I just do it and not procrastinate :)

anyways, now off to finish the several sewing gifts I need to do and all the baking I want to bake!

is it horrible that I can't wait till January? I have so many things I want to do regarding my house and all my sewing and scrapbooking!

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL!!!

Right Now...

2011-12-17T05:26:00.000-08:00

Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you 1 Peter 5:7

Joining in with Chrissie, over at In HIS grace, have you been to her blog or shop? if not...go check both out! she sure is inspiring, not just with her art and her cute family but her love for Jesus too.
She started a sort of slam book knock off idea :) Love it! anyways I meant to join in last week but got too busy with Jim being home but here is mine for this week :)

I have a bunch of sewing projects I need to share but will show you those early next week, but I forgot to show you what great deal I got around black friday, I do not leave my house on black friday! ha! I had not planned to do any shopping online but then got an email from Burgandy Buttons about their black Friday specials, I went and told Jim about it and he handed me 2 checks that he had been hiding from me lol, I couldn't be upset that he was hiding them from me since he then gave them to me for fabric shopping, well lookie what I got...

a whole fat quarter bundle! I have had charm packs, jelly rolls and layer cakes but never a fat quarter bundle! lucky me huh?!! have a nice weekend!

oh, and a few people have asked about my running, well....I was doing sooo good running before Thanksgiving and right after Thanksgiving, now it's been 2 weeks since I haven't ran! yikes, I promised my friend Bobbi that I would go today though :) wish me luck!

Added this verse to the top of my blog because it has really helped me deal with my panic attacks and a friend just confided in me that she is starting to have them :( anyone who has had panic/anxiety attacks knows what I am talking about.

Finish it up Fridays & Sew & Tell

2011-12-09T10:39:00.000-08:00

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God
Eph 2:8

Some sewing going on! more productivity, yay! can't believe I am able to do both of my Friday link ups with Crazy Mom Quilts and amylouwho :) (go check both links out!) I am on a roll and the sewing must continue for the couple of orders I got in and the Christmas gifts I want to finish up :)
First up is another one of these totes for my friend Mo, on this one I added a key fob, I have another started for myself too :)

I also finished up this quilt top, it's for a friend from high school who has 2 grandbabies and wanted me to make one for each one, she loves pink and browns and wanted the hourglass block because it reminds her of a quilt that her grandma had :) it's been a lot of fun to sew this one :)

I almost don't want to send it off when I finish it!

I definetly see me doing one of these hourglass quilts for my home too :)

ps...I just found out another cute blog that is sharing sewing projects, go check them out!

confessions of a fabric addict

Sew & Tell and Finish it up Fridays

2011-12-02T05:01:00.000-08:00

in all your ways, acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight Proverbs 3:6

This week has been a little more productive in the sewing area of my life than the past 2 weeks, Jim was off for about 2 weeks and I did no sewing...with small orders that came in and gifts I want to make, I was panicking a little bit....(okay, actually A LOT!)
so this week with Jim going back to work and Zach went back to school after Thanksgiving, I got these little burp cloths done for my sweet friend Libby who is having a little girl soon, Libby has the BEST eye for color combinations, so I knew I better choose something cute with great colors, so I went with the Riley Blake Quite Contrary by My Minds Eye would be perfect for little Chloe :) they are backed with a type of chenille that is sooo soft, I will be making more of these. Also finishing up another tote for a friend and a baby girl quilt :)
I am linking up with Amy's Sew & Tell Friday, have you been there to check out the other projects shared? if not, go! you will be inspired! I used to post over there but then Fridays got soo busy with Jim being off on Fridays but I am working it out so that I can play along more frequent now! I have missed sharing over there! plus my friend KT is being featured there! Also linking up to Crazy Mom Quilts Finish it up Fridays, this is my first Friday over there, (been a fan of her quilts forever though!) so it will be fun to start playing over there too!

How was your Thanksgiving? ours was good, simple and easy going with lots of cooking, If Texas Roadhouse would have been open, I was tempted to tell everyone to meet there to eat and then bring pies to my house, but they were closed, so I cooked, and baked and baked and cooked more! lol it was totally worth it and I do love to cook/bake. Here are a few pictures of the family from different days :)

of course a dog (1 of our 4) always has to sneak into a family picture

Zach and I ran the Turkey Waddle Thurs morning, it was a lot of fun, I ran my fastest 5k! (yay me!)

Zach ran really good too, considering getting over pneumonia, he did great!

well I have a lot of sewing catch up to do...I best get busy!

fabric & horses and...

2011-11-12T09:05:00.000-08:00

Then call on me when you are in trouble,

and I will rescue you,

and you will give me glory."

Psalm 50:15

running, ASL, scrapbooking....all my favorite things to do, so....I am going to share a little of each in this post :)
first we will start off with fabric...look at these yummies! a little Ruby (charm pack) and some yardage of those scallops and a little bit of Little Apples :)

then the oversize pets, these 2 have brought A LOT of fun into our lives :)

Speedy

Cadet

now onto my ASL and scrapbooking...not much going on in either of those areas! Since I am taking a loooong break from school (since I got horses and am paying for Zachs dual highschool/college credits) but I have been practicing my asl a little and have been doing a little scrapping for my friend Wendy, but I am hoping to use some of my newer purchases soon on me!

anyone else want to be a good runner? I do...I try lol! ... I have taken months off here and there but this week I really jump started my running again, Zach says I have to run the Turkey Waddle 5k Thanksgiving morning with him and then he wants me to do Londons Run 10k in January! yikes! wish me luck, I am not too worried about the 5k, but the 10K???!!!!! very worried!
everytime I see this picture floating around the internet, it reminds me of me running! hee hee!

anyways, thats it really...I recieved some sewing orders in so that is fun (and challenging) but also need to finish up a bunch of Christmas gifts! 6 more Saturdays left till Christmas!

Since all these things are lovely (maybe not as lovely as God and family, but they are blessings in my life) I am linking up to Life Made Lovely.

18?!! EIGHTEEN?!! already? seriously?!!

2011-11-02T06:41:00.000-07:00

6 months (look at those little legs!)

almost 2 years (the bluest eyes)

almost 3 years (again, look at those little legs!)

almost 5 years (so sweet)

5 years (camo'd out hunting)

9 years (with his bestest buddy Cleo)

10 almost 11 (first deer killed)

11 years (chubby cheeks)

12 years

14 years (where did the chubby cheeks go?!!)

15 years (high school)

16 years (becoming a man)

17 years (strong, in so many area's of his life)

17 years old (3rd deer killed)

I will get a picture today of him turning 18 years old, I am not old enough to have an 18 year old kid!

Zach seriously has been the best kid, I don't deserve such an easy going kid, he is nice, smart, funny, stubborn, responsible, outgoing, tall (6ft), tenderhearted guy. God blessed me so much when he gave me Zach, I am the luckiest mom!

Joyful...

2011-10-24T09:35:00.000-07:00

Be Joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

I LOVE that verse, I was reading A Holy Experience this morning and she had used this verse, I know the verse, I have read the verse a lot of times, but today it really speaks to me...God is good, always making sure we have comfort....

I just have to brag....I have the greatest kid out there! he has his own struggles in life (peer pressure and such)...one of his struggles right now though is trying to get over pneumonia, especially with his love of running, it's the end of the cross country season and it's his senior year, he had to miss this last meet, he is trying to run 1-3 miles a couple of times a week but he is struggling with that..he has sectionals this weekend and coach wants him to run, Zach wants to run, I want him to run, I feel so bad that he doesn't feel back to normal yet.

Also I am so proud of him...the youth pastor where we attend church has challenged the teenagers to try to start up their own Bible group ...so Zach and James (a good friend to Zach) are gonna try to tell friends today at school to meet them at Taco Bell (we do not eat taco bell but whatever...lol) and see what happens...it will still be a blessing for Zach and James :) proud mom here...

Here is a little sewing I have done also :)

that flowe was so fun to make!

anyways, trying to keep my sanity with the gazillion things going on, the sewing, the horses and my running and of course God, is all helping me :) (still trying to decide if I should commit to my first 10K ?!!??!!)

linking up to Life Made Lovely, Sew Modern Monday and Sew Chatty

Monday...Monday....

2011-10-17T05:42:00.000-07:00

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God 1 Corinthians 10:31
(maybe you will be stuck with that song in your head all day! hee hee! maybe the verse will be also!)

what a week last week was, Jim went out of town for 3 days to Nashville TN, how lucky huh? well it was for work but he had a little bit of play time too, anyways, I thought I would sew all day and all night so that I could possibly do that little craft fair that I was telling you about, well, that Mon and Tues, Zach was running really high fevers, (over 103) Wed morning he woke up and went into the bathroom and I heard the worse, loud noise and I ran into the bathroom and Zach had passed/blacked out! he was dizzy and confused for a few min after that, I was so scared! I got him to the doctor and they did blood work and an ekg, the ekg ended up showing 2 small abnormal results, blood work was normal and Thurs morning we saw the cardiologist, which he was more concerned about the high fevers (we do have to have a test done on Zach on the 27th of Oct with the cardiologist, please keep him in your prayers) also we had to go in for a chest xray, and within 45 min of having the chest xray, they called and said it was pneumonia, not happy about that but at least we have an answer and know what is wrong, so running around all Wed and Thurs to Dr. was crazy for Zach and I...he is feeling better, thank God for strong antibioctics :) He is so bummed since he can't be running his cross country meets :( anyways...not whining here but I obviously didn't sew as much as I wanted, mainly when Zach was sleeping... I did sew a few totoes :)

Here is one of my favorites (I LOVE that bird fabric)

linking up with Life Made Lovely, Sew Chatty, The Girl Creative and Canoe Ridge Creations, join in!

Sewing...what a concept, huh?!!

2011-10-10T05:28:00.000-07:00

Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD Psalms 31:24

I FINALLY sewed, I have the fabric (insert fabric hoarder), I have the BEST machine (Betty), thread, a list of tutorials and patterns to try out, BUT the lack of time, or putting my sewing for me, ahead of other things is why I haven't...
some things that have been keeping me busy....I can't really complain because watching my son run his cross country races and riding horses are also at the top of my favorite things to do :)

the recent promp from my bestest buddy Rebecca, has been trying to convince (force lol) me do a craft fair, which would be a first for me (yikes!) when she told me about the craft fair at her church, I didn't think I could do it since Zachs cross country team has a meet that day...well of course, 1 week ago...I found out the meet was not going to happen that day...(insert grrrrrr!) I could have had an extra 3 weeks to be sewing my heart out! well I figured I will see what happens with my sewing this week...how much I get done will determine if I do the craft fair...I really don't think I will be able to do it (it's THIS Saturday!) I only have a few things sewn so far, and I don't want to show up with not enough, BUT of course Jim had to go out of town for 3 days so maybe I can sew all day and all night?!! we will see what happens :)

I LOVE this apron, (this is not what I will be selling at the craft fair, mainly totes, zippered pouches) , but ever since I saw this free tutorial on One More Moore's blog, at least a year ago, if not longer, I have had it on my list of to do's, go check hers out, it's so cute! I am in love with the fabric I used also, its October Afternoon, Farm Fresh, since my first craft love was scrapbooking, I LOVE that a few of the scrapbook companies are making fabrics in the lines of some of their papers :) how clever are they?!!

I am linking up to Life Made Lovely, Sew Chatty, The Girl Creative and Quilt Story, join in!

horses, thrifting, cross country, family, books...I live a good life :)

2011-09-15T16:55:00.000-07:00

first up is horses...Jim and I have been trying to ride 2 times a week when he is off on Fridays, sometimes we can still squeeze riding 2 times a week if we do a quick ride before church, but now with cross country meets every Saturday morning and with it being hot it hasn't been happening, but when the cooler weather comes I can see us always riding 2-3 times a week :) poor Zach hasn't been able to ride because of cross country practices so maybe when the season is over he can start up again

Here is Speedy and I...
I have been a bit nervous and a few things have shook my confidence but trying to get past that! still wondering if I should try a bit on Speedy, not sure about this whole hackamore stuff :) Speedy is really coming around and adapting to our family and is starting to show more affection, I have been working with him quite a bit so he has been testing me quite a bit too... this is just in an area about 2 miles from our house...

lots of thrifting lately, it's been fun...(I know Jim is probably cringing if he ends up reading this)
I love my kitchen items especially!

I mean...LOOK at these cute plates?!! I wish they would have had the whole set!

found a few cute skirts, they fit pretty good but I know if I just lost 10 pounds they would be perfect on me with no hips buldging out :)
love the embroidery work on this one ($4)

this one is just a simple skirt, pretty casual but super comfy! ($3)

I am in love with this shirt, seriously! it's soo cute with my jeans and boots, Jim says I look like a peasant or a ragamuffin....whatever... ($1.99)

This stack of pillowcases that I might make into an apron and that top flowery fabric is a girls dress, I figure I am going to cut it up and use the fabric though...

now onto Cross Country...this first picture is Zachs race up in Scottsdale, he did really good and felt good, some good friends came to watch him too, it was a good day!

these next two pictures are up in Payson, Jim ditched work for 2 hours and we drove up there to watch Zach run, it was beautiful weather and it was green, beautiful area up there, Zach did good, after the race, Jim and I had a dinner date at Chili's :)

Usually Zach is too tired as soon as he finishes a race to stand around a take a pic with ol' mom, but this day he did :) I am making sure I really enjoy everything with him right now, with this being his senior year and he is busy, busy and gone soo much, I can't even imagine what this next year is going to be like....I have to stop talking about it or I will start crying ;) (seriously though I will!)

he is headed to California this weekend to go run cross country!!! (I wish I could have gone! lol)

finally finished reading this book, it's really good and perfect for me in the area of my life right now

Just started this book, I want to see the movie so bad since I have been hearing how good it is

Been sewing a teeny tiny bit but I messed up but will share that on the next post and hopefully will have a few other projects to share....yes I really do sew (and scrapbook!)

I am really blessed and have a good life, much better than I deserve :) God has been very busy in my life lately though...I am excited to see what happens in a few areas of my life :)

right now...

2011-08-09T16:34:00.000-07:00

riding Cadet and Speedy a lot lately even though it's so hot, we just get out early in the morning :)

I just started this book (again)....it's the kind of book that is right where you are in your life...(for me personally anyways)

some misc sewing that has been done for my friend Jen, 4 camo pillowcases and 2 camo throw pillows

a little something extra for Jen

playing catch up with 2 quilt alongs and keeping up with friends, school is in and Zach is a senior this year! (re: the book I am reading! ha!)

building a nice big hay barn to hold several squeezes of hay (if we want) right now there is just 1 squeeze (64 bales) of alfalfa and about 20 bales of bermuda (and 1 of 4 German Shorthairs needing to help)

getting ready to build a pasture for the 2 oversize pets and start Clinton Andersons DownUnder Horsemanship program (yikes! I am a little intimidated, hope I can do it good)

doing some running, my toe is doing great! I can't wait for fall, I want to start my fall garden, I am in the mood to organize and purge of a lot of my stuff, I would love to sew and scrapbook lots more but between cross country, horses, family, we will see if I can squeeze it in!

Strawberry Fields

2011-07-15T19:02:00.000-07:00

not literally strawberry fields but Moda Strawberry Fields by Fig Tree :) Oh how I LOVE this line of fabric...
I have 3 charm packs of this line, a few fat quarters (not bundles, I WISH! just a few separate fat quarters) and I want more!

this is my first project I did with it is this table runner

I love the tumbler template by Missouri Quilt Co, super easy to use and very little waste using a charm pack/squares.

I just joined Crazy Mom Quilts quilt-along AND sewtakeahike yoyo-along should be fun and I am looking forward to both of them since I didn't even start the last quilt along I joined in, except for buying the fabric part! the yoyo along will be nice to do in front of the tv or on the road :)

I also have some camo projects to share also that I made for my friend Jen, they were fun to do since I usually just sew camo for my two guys, so it was fun to sew camo for someone else :) thanks Jen!

Also want to share a few other fun pictures, the horses were being goofy while Zach and I were feeding them watermelon right before church :)

I am happy too since I am able to run again, after being stepped on by a horse, I wasn't able to run for a while, so this past week I ran 3 times! feels good....

a horse is a horse of course of course...

2011-07-08T04:57:00.000-07:00

may that song be stuck in your head the rest of the day! ha! ;)

sometimes I think Jim, Zach and I have lost our minds getting 2 horses at our age, well I am not old but Jim is ;) Zach isn't....but....we went about this pretty fast, thanks to Rebecca my sweet friend really making this dream come true, she started it all and gave us Cadet :) (love ya Becky!)

just wanted to share some pictures....(yes we are rednecks letting our horses pasture in the front and back yard :) when we moved here we never planned on having horses so none of our property is laid out for horses, we are working on that though and want to make a nice little pasture for these two :) (you can see their corral in the back)

Cadet and Speedy

the herd....ha! 2 horses, 4 dogs and 1 cat, they are all learning to get along

                                               Speedy and the cat don't even mind each other!

                                               I guess we were always meant to get horses,
                                               our dogs have always had 2 horse trofts to drink
                                               from since they get in it too to keep cool here in
                                               the AZ summers :)

I got stepped on by Speedy 2 weeks ago (welcome to the horse world right?!!)....it was sort of my fault...he ripped my big toenail off in the process, very painful when you get stepped on by a horse ;) we have been riding at least 2 days a week, sometimes 3, until my foot got stepped on and I couldn't get any shoe on but 3 days ago I finally got my boot back on! yay!

well hopefully I will have some crafty things to show you on the next post
HUGS!

i know...i know...

2011-06-15T17:17:00.000-07:00

dont' have to say it....yes I am a procrastinator.....when things get busy the blog is the first to go :)
anyways...onto more important things!
what has been keeping me busy? well I guess I can share a few pics to explain it all....

picture I don't have.... it just requires lots of prayers for a special little boy that lives next door :(

2. (the diaper bag that took me way too long to sew, will show more pics later)

3. track

4. building a big project ;) (will show for what in a post below)

5. then we had Zachs first prom...awww.. her name is Rachel, isn't she cute? enough about her ;) ...look at Zach! isn't he so handsome?!!

6. then we got Cadet :)

7. more track...

8. Roosevelt Lake trip (fun times!!!)

(good friends visiting us at lake)

9. Mothers Day...

10. and even more track :)

11. Then Speedy arrived :)

phew! more to come :) thanks to you all that wonder where I have been :)

(Dee, check your email )

What does AMH Little Folks Voile and the flu have in common?

2011-02-23T19:44:00.000-08:00

well really nothing except now that I have the flu, these super soft fabrics do have me wondering what I am going to do with them! I really need to think of a quilt pattern or blocks to use! any suggestions?!!

aren't they so pretty? I often read online how soft they were and they really are!

yes I do have the flu, well I think I have the flu, from what everyone is telling me, it sounds like the flu! I don't think I have ever had the flu or a flu shot and I guess it got me this week :(

I feel so behind on every area of my life right now being stuck here pretty much in the bed or on the couch but I did do a little organizing and I also went through a lot of paper work to purge. The organzing was happening in my craft room, I really needed to focus on it so I could be more productive in here! it was bad, it's not quite done yet but getting a lot closer now. I guess my whining and complaining on my last post about being so behind caught up with me now having the flu...it has forced me to stay home and be produtive here :) I do feel pretty spoiled though, all I was thinking of this week while I have been sick is that I am so grateful to be able to be a stay at home mom so that when I am sick, I don't have to leave the house. (thank you Jim!) It's pretty nice!

(I will have craftroom pics soon!)

PS... where is my brain?!! I just remembered after writing this post that I received an award from a sweet friend, but I want it to have it's own post so I will post about that on the next post.....I swear it's the flu....(thanks Karen, love ya!)

my creative side.....

2011-02-08T07:32:00.000-08:00

is not what I want or where I want it to be.....do you ever just feel so stuck? I mean I have the drive to be creative and Lord knows I have a good amount of fabric and scrapbooking supplies to be creative, I also have Betty , poor Betty, she needs a better owner! what woman wouldn't die to have her?!! I have not spent enough time with her ;) it's mainly because of one barter project that I am stuck on, sooo close to being done, just about done! but I feel like I am not "allowed" to work on much else until this is finished and it's driving me crazy, it's hanging over my head! I did make 2 pillowcases for a friend and waiting for some fabric to come in to make her some curtains.

I am behind on my ps i quilt, quilt a long, I STILL have 2 projects to finish for family (I am a horrible daughter and sister! lol), I really want to start a new quilt for Zach, 1 have 2 other quilts, actually 3 (I just remembered a pinwheel quilt that I started a year ago) that are cut and somewhat pieced. I have a *to do* list of fun stuff to make for myself, my home and friends, not even gonna mention all the scrapbooking pages I want to do :)

sometimes I start to feel a bit overwhelmed with all I want and need to do but it's a good thing because I love what I am overwhelmed with!!! you know what I mean? I have my crafty, outside and inside the home endeavors :)

it's so beautiful again this week where I live (last week was cold) but overall we have had a very mild winter here in AZ, I am itching to start my garden, and plant honeysuckles and more bareroot rose bushes, which need to be done this coming weekend. Last week I trimmed up hedges, weed eated and we sprayed for weeds. I want to work on my *pretty* side area of my house (Jim cringes when I mention this project!)
On the inside of the home, I want to repaint my craft room, revamp my laundry room, which is one room that is NOT working, it always becomes such a mess! redo my pictures in the living room and hallway. I am on the hunt for a type of buffet type of furniture from goodwill, yardsales that I can redo, I am still purging, mostly trying to get rid of 10-15 things a couple times a week, I have been organizing 1 or 2 small projects a week, things are looking better!

Here is a picture I need to share with the family...

Zach ran the 10K in Londons run and did great! GO ZACH!!!

I also got to spend some time with my sister Laurie before she moved toWisconsin to start her new life

that was a lot of rambling! hugs

oh and my book that I am reading that I told you about last week, One Thousand Gifts is so good and I have only read the 1st Chapter, it had me crying in 2 places in the first chapter, I have to be careful because I really want to read ahead but since I am doing it with my mom and a online community over at (in) Courage I am trying to be good! go get it and read along with me!

One Thousand Gifts, Move More, Eat Less & and crafty stuff :)

2011-01-27T13:05:00.000-08:00

The Fedex man just brought me this book today!!!   my mom and I are doing this study!!! It's sort of an online community book club. Can't wait to start reading it! you should too!!!
here is a section to what the book is about....
"One Thousand Gifts beckons you to leave the parched ground of pride, fear, and white-knuckle control and abandon yourself to the God who overflows your cup. It invites you to wake up to God's everyday blessings, and discover, as Ann did, that in giving thanks for the life you already have, you find the life you've always wanted."
To live your life fully right where you are now. I really need the reminders sometimes!



Another thought I have been pondering is....CathyZ's Move More Eat Less, oooooh! I soooo need this!
I mean I know I need to do both, I know how to do both, dang, this last year I lost almost 13-15 pounds (depending on the day) and have gained just about all of it back, how dumb is that?!! BUT I knew January would be a good month (along with everyone else in the world) to start..well now it's almost the end of January and I'm finally starting! I did run only 2 times this week but I have eaten better all week (except for today, don't know what is wrong with me! ha!) but I feel really motivated again, plus it helps when your 17 year old son says almost everyday "mom, you going to run today?" yes he runs a lot, he loves track and cross country and is running a 10K this weekend, but he is not 41! runnning is hard, I miss running as much as I used to run, now running is hard again (again, kicking myself for not keeping it up). This week I ran at the gym BLECH!, I can't stand going to the gym but considering since I haven't been running as much, I figured I would give my body a break and run on the treadmill instead of the road, the treadmill is sooo much easier (to me anyways). I want to lose the weight I gained back of course but I want to feel better physically and mentally, it helps so much with my lovely panic attacks :) The farthest I have even ran is a little over 5 miles but I really want to be able to run a 10K! that is my goal again :) So there is my accountability to you! Join me on this too?

Now something crafty related..... YAY!!! I have not scrapbooked in almost a year! scrapbooking has always been my first love and I miss it so much but a few friends and I have a challenge to scrapbook a page this weekend so look for a picture to be scrapbooked, I am so excited! Lord knows I have enough supplies to have my own personal little scrapbook shop :) now just to decide which pictures to use :)
Oh and my sewing....I have to finish up one very important project! can't say on here but it's a cute project! one area is giving me fits though...sooo wish me luck. I am also sewing some curtains and pillowcases for my friend Jen and then have 2 gifts to finish up for family members :) and 2 to finish up for friends :) plus my quilt along that I am doing, got the fabric cut and sorted into groups, yes I am behind...but that is okay :) plus the list of aprons and pillows and such for my own home :)

Check this out....do you love tumbler quilts? I do! but since I can't afford an accucut go cutter I found this


how clever huh? the tumbler ruler this one is for using charm packs and they have one for layer cakes too

the first fabric I am using it on the 3 Sisters Park Avenue fabric, isn't it so pretty? I have 4 charm packs to cut with that tumbler ruler now to just decide which border fabric to use and the binding and backing. I might choose 2 border fabrics, one skinny and one fat.



The other fabric I have my eye on is this Tanya Whelan Fabric, Delilah. isn't it just beautiful?!! now to figure out what I want to do with it when I get it, not IF I get it, but when..... :)


                                             (pic borrowed from sew love fabrics)

Road Trip! (very photo heavy)

2011-01-24T19:40:00.000-08:00

I LOVE road trips....Zach loves road trips....Jim does NOT like road trips! (unless it's for a hunting trip) soooo when Jim had to go up to Page, AZ to work for the past 9 days, Zach and I decided we could take a road trip to see him...I mean, we get a nice free hotel paid for by SRP (that Jim is staying in) and we get to play all day and feel a little guilty doing so while Jim works but he tells us to go have fun since he is not into doing all the driving around anyways :) each night we get to have dinner with Jim and he was happy because he said he likes to have my big butt next to him when he is sleeping, not sure if that is a nice compliment or ??? he could leave out the *big* part of that comment! hee hee

so anyways...Zach and I had so much fun, lots of fun music, jerky, bugles and chocolate covered raisons! basically we traveled 800 miles, took 285 pictures and spent too much money eating out but the trip was priceless. We left here on a Saturday morning, and Page AZ is 5 1/2 hours from where we live, I like to stop and take pictures of everything and eat so it actually took us about 6 1/2 hours! that night we had dinner with Jim and his co worker Alex. Sunday morning, Zach and I went to Hanging Gardens hike, nothing was in bloom since it is winter but it was a nice little hike and so beautiful!

Next we went to Lake Powell/Glen Canyon Dam and Tour of it, very interesting, since Jim works on similar dam equipment at Roosevelt it was neat to see this, the elevator ride that we went down was a little intimidating and scary for me but it was so beautiful and just plain cool

these ravens were everywhere ang HUGE!

where Jim was working

after that, we had lunch and then went on the Antelope Slot Canyon tour, BEAUTIFUL and AMAZING place, if you ever have a chance to go, GO! the formations were formed due to rain and wind. Our tour guide was so cool, he really took the time with Zach and I and told us exactly where to hold the camera to get the best shots and he took some cool pictures of us too.

Arizona waterfall

The tour guide made it look like Zach was holding fire...

do you see the elephants?

Monday morning we headed into Utah, since Utah is only 8 miles from where we were and since we have never been, it was a "must go see: on our list, here is our proof!

we had decided since we had such a long trip home that we would just start getting on the road to go home...then we saw the turn off for the Horse Shoe Bend hike that we had been wanting to see and was on our list too, we thought "we are this close and who knows when we will be back, lets just do it" well you hike about 15 minutes and then all of a sudden there is the huge (scary) canyon, very intimdating but so beautiful and so worth the hike (easy hike) you would never know it's there...it's just amazing....God is amazing for creating such beauty!

This is not my picture because I do not own a wide angle lense (it's on my list of wants NOW!)

we were FINALLY on our way home with still a long drive....then we see the turn off for the Grand Canyon (South Rim), we just kind of looked at each other and kept saying back and forth if we should go or not, knowing it would really put us behind on time, well OF COURSE we had to go!!! Zach had never seen the Grand Canyon (yes we are lame and have lived in AZ and hadn't seen the Grand Canyon, I had many years ago just driving by so it wasn't the real thing) it was so cool because it costs $25 to enter into the Grand Canyon, when we drove through the gate to pay, the nice man said "it's MLK day and today is free!" yay!!! we were meant to come! The Grand Canyon is beautiful, stunning and just amazing! It was super cold though and soooo windy but we had so much fun!

It was THE BEST TRIP!
okay I know that was VERY picture heavy but some of the family needed to see those :)
hugs....

Pieces...

2011-01-14T19:28:00.000-08:00

Pieces of life (Jim & Zach), home, school, sewing, scrapbooking, computer.....all are keeping me so busy! I love it all and sooo thoroughly blessed! not enough sewing going on and definetly not enough scrapbooking (I really miss it!) and not as much running as I need and should be doing! but those are all secondary to God, my family and keeping up my home :) school is going good, I love it and like I always say, it's hard and very challenging but so fun learning something I love! then there is the computer, which I let take too much of my time!

for those few of you that read my little blog, you like my new banner? isn't that little bird so cute?!!Michelle designed it for me and she also did an etsy banner (in case I ever get brave enough to open up shop!) Thanks again Michelle! you are such a sweetie for everything! check out Michelles portfolio

A few things I wanted to blog about is my one little word for 2011, I have thought about a few different words to choose right before the new year started and this year my word is going to be STRONG. Last year it was intentional. I have so much work to do in my personal areas of life to be strong in and I know if I completly rely on God, I know I can do all the things I want to do in life :) Just like one of my favorite verses, Phil 4-13 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

Now on to the craftyness!



a quilt a long! PS I quilt - quilt a long I am doing! I acutally decided to do the same fabric that she is using, why? because I LOVE everything that Sweetwater produces! look at this yummy sunkissed fabric!



It's going to be paired with another Moda Bella Solid White Jelly Roll and the backing and binding will be these fabrics

                                                                  backing


                                                                 binding


I am a little behind this week starting it due to me ordering it late but I will hopefully play catch up next week :) Don't laugh Di, I will do this one! hee hee!

Another craft challenge I want to do is the Craft book Challenge, anyone of my crafty friends know that love buying any craft related book, from scrapbooking to sewing to embroidery (my latest crafty adventure!)
anyways, I figure I can do that challenge plus use up fabric and all my scrapbooking paper, join me!!! lets encourage each other!!!

Anyways, enough babbling!

Sew & Tell Friday!

2011-01-07T08:25:00.000-08:00

Well I actually have a few things to share! yay me! I think the week of Christmas I did more sewing than I have done the last 2 months!

I made several of the zippered pouches

and some pillowcases for the grandaughters :) the apple with red polka dot is for Raelynn, the aqua/green is for Taylor and the grey with the white and yellow flowers is for Madi

linking up to Amy's Sew & Tell go check out the other creative gals!

I have lots more to share and talk about but I will wait for another day :) have a nice weekend!

Happy New Year!

2011-01-03T15:40:00.000-08:00

I know it's Jan 3, but I consider this my first day of the new year! my schedule is back on track, I did love Jim and Zach being home for 2 weeks but I like my schedule too, just the thought of getting the house back in order, decluttering, making new plans, life changes or resolutions, getting organized and starting new crafts! it's all very exciting to me and I feel so inspired :) I really should pretend to have a "New Years" every few months to keep myself motivated! ;)

Here are some things I want to do, change, conquor...or whatever.... lol

I would love to run more again, if a person gets pretty much in shape and loses almost 15 pounds, why would they quit and gain the weight back? it was not easy for me to lose those 15 pounds either, this girl likes to eat :) yes that dummy would be me! geez, I was really dying running the 3 miles today, someone kick me next time okay?!! but at least I ran today, it's a start! :)

I would love to find a church family again, I miss our old church, I miss the people, thank God we still are able to be around some of them! I know it can't be the same again but I get sick of bouncing around from a few different churches, I love that Zach has his youth group to go to and that we attend that same church, I just want to feel at home there ya know?

I really want to keep up my blog, can I handle posting once a week?!! ha! maybe I can bribe others to do it with me since they have blogs and don't keep them up either, you out there know who I am talking too :)

My garden...oh I miss my garden! I love to garden, why have I not gardened lately? I miss my huge abundance of cherry tomatoes, I miss all my trials of new veggies, I miss thinking of my dad and mom since they loved to garden so much, sooo I am going to do my garden and keep it going, I am not going to let other things get in the way! I am going to start preparing the soil in about 2 weeks, March will be here soon!

Decluttering....(rolling my eyes here) yes I NEED to declutter every room of my home or I am seriously going to end up on that show Hoarders ;)

Crafting...I really miss my scrapbooking since sewing has taken over! I want to scrapbook more and still sew!

I would love to use my camera better! anyone who has this nice of a camera should know more about manual mode! especially since I have had it a few years now...again, I am lame

I want to keep learning my ASL! I LOVE it, sometimes I get so fustrated when something doesn't come easier to me but I am loving everything I am learning, it's so fun and inspiring and it's something that I have ALWAYS wanted to do and am actually doing it! its a dream come true...seriously!

and of course, work on my confidence and my worrying. These past few months I have been letting the worrying really control me and get in the way and run my life and emotions. I really need to remember I have no control over what others think or do, I need to live my life, but between relying on God and doing things like learning ASL and exercising more I think my confidence will rise and my worrying will lessen? I hope so!

The one that I might slack the most on is my learning to use my camera better...the others are what I used to do just need to start again!

Anyways...enough of all that! Christmas was good, nice and quiet. We did go to San Manuel on another day to see the kids and grandkids, we had a really nice time, as always... :)

Aren't Madi and Raelynns little crocheted hats the cutest on them? my friend Dianne made them! Thanks again Di!

oh and one other thing, Jim put some new shelves up in my craft closet and I have been organizing my craft room, I am sooo inspired and can't wait till I organize all my crafty fun stuff! I will show pictures soon!

middle of Dec?!!

2010-12-14T14:30:00.000-08:00

geez and I behind or what? procrastinator is becoming my middle name :)

anyways here is out hunting picture from late Oct, I don't think I have shared it yet? maybe...

This past weekend (one before last) Zach had the opportunity to go to ATF (Acquire the Fire) and had a great time!
Poor Jim has been working a lot of overtime! I mean we are sooo very blessed to have him have such a good job and is working but all the overtime comes when it's so nice out :)
My signing is going wonderful! I had THE BEST week last week and today signing! last week I had to sign a VRS paper to my old class while I was able to watch them sign songs, it was so much fun, then we went for lunch and we all had to be deaf and not talk, since my teacher (he is deaf) was there :) it was so fun and I just love learning ASL, I can't believe I am learning so much now compared to being in the actual classroom, the private lessons are perfect for me!
There is a tiny bit of sewing going on..not as much as I would like, I really need to get my rump busy this weekend and next week :) these lovely fabrics came in the mail.....lucky me huh?!!

HUGS!

Friday sew & tell again!

2010-12-03T07:10:00.000-08:00

I love Amy's Sew & Tell every Friday, the gals always give me that encouragement I need to start and/or finish a project and I love being inspired by all their creations! This week I have just a simple project that I did, mine was a trial because a family member wants one of these so I decided to make one for myself first, I love my colors I used from the Dream On line, so bright and cheery! Moda Bake Shop had a tutorial for a grocery bag dispenser, it went together very quickly and easy, gotta love that!
Go check out this weeks sew & tell !

I plan on sewing a lot this weekend, I kind of sort of HAVE to, I am so behind on Christmas gifts and with Jim having to work some overtime and Zach being gone to ATF I figure this is a great weekend to get a jump! Hope your weekend is lovely!

pinwheels, fabric and books!

2010-11-17T13:56:00.000-08:00

3 of my favorite things! anyways...I have done a little organizing with my fabric, finally! after Jodi at Pleasant Home encouraged us to get our fabric scraps organized and start sewing with them, I did and it feels so good! I was surprised that I had a lot more red and pink scraps more than anything else when I really love to use oranges, blues and greens. See how my fabric is squeezed onto those shelves? I now realize that I need these huge shelves strictly for fabric, not the tons of scrapbooking paper I have and binders and paper work for ASL :) I have been inspired more after organizing and refolding some fabric and have started making some of the items on my Christmas list

Here is a block for my pinwheel table runner, I am using lefover vintage fabrics from cutting blocks for a simple vintage quilt that is in the works

and if you want a good read, get this book! I want to start some of those quilts that she has in the book, but they might have to wait till after Christmas!

Thats about it here, just doing some major ASL studying since I have had family here and other things going on, so I am playing catch up, I hate it when I get behind.

later!

sew & tell

2010-11-12T06:34:00.000-08:00

Well it's been a while since I have participated in Amy's sew & tell Fridays but with a new blog and different priorities in my life getting prioritized, I thought I would get back to the swing of things :)

Here is my zippered pouch that I am wanting to share, I love it! I finally conquored (well somewhat) my fear of zippers and this gal's tutorial helped me! I have been on an aqua kick lately (who hasn't been?!!) but pairing it with grey (another kick) I just love the combination :) I finished this yesterday morning and almost accidently put it in yesterdays post! going to make a bunch of these for Christmas gifts :) I have such a long list to finish up, yikes!
Go check out the other gals creations, such inspiration!

so I am linking up over at Amy's sew & tell

breathe.....

2010-11-11T13:23:00.000-08:00

Goodness! well I started a new blog to make a fresh start, thinking I had my time a little more managed, well....life got crazy and busy again. School is still going on, I LOVE learning ASL, hard? YES, fun? YES, challenging? YES. Its really great and I have the best teacher, thank God he is super patient and very helpful and understanding!

I wanted to post yesterday (Wednesday) because I wanted to start a "Wow God Wednesday" post, the Christian Radio Station that I listen too, KLOVE 105.5 (Phoenix area), does that every Wednesday, also on Mondays they do a "Make a difference Monday" anyways, I have a story to share with ya, my sister Laurie (black and white swimsuit) went into the hospital 2 weeks ago, she was pretty sick but hanging in there, on a Friday she went downhill fast, she was doing horrible, my mom, Zach and I drove up to Flagstaff to go visit her, I tried to prepare myself for what I was going to see, I knew they had put her on a ventilator to breathe and she was heavily sedated but I was not prepared for what I saw, Laurie did not even look like her, she was so very sick, since Friday I had been praying to God, begging Him to give her another chance, to heal and help her. Sunday when I was there visiting, doctors and nurses told us that she might not make it through the night :( I felt so scared, scared for Laurie, her daughter Amber, scared for my family, how would we go on without her? Sunday and Monday we got great news, she had 2 good nights and seemed to be improving a little, Tuesday they took her off the ventilator, Wed night I was able to talk to her on the phone!!! she can't talk much and it's hard to understand her but she even joked how there were cute guys in the hospital LOL she is doing so much better, it is a miracle!!! God answered prayers and I am so very thankful to Him. It was a Wow God Wednesday! Laurie is doing good and improving, she has a long ways to go but I just want to thank you, those who prayed.

Also, Zach turned 17 years old! the only thing he really wanted was a morph suit, Zach doesn't ask for much so I caved and got it for him :)

yes weird but all the cross country kids are getting them and from what I gather and have been finding out that they are quite popular at colleges and even around town.

We also did our deer hunt, Jim was sucessful and Zach was not, but that was okay, we had a good time!

So with all that, that is why I haven't been around! ;)
Thats it for today! it was a tad bit too long of a post but I had to get the family caught up on whats going on!
later!

My creative (pigsty) space and sew scraps along

2010-10-19T14:11:00.000-07:00

okay...I NEED to get organized to be able to finish creating the Christmas gifts I have started and to be able to keep creating for the heck of it! this is what happens when you try to redo your whole room and not finish it for months, when you try to cram so many different hobbies into one small room, I think my room is 10X10..... prepare yourself.... it's quite scary....just sayin...... I am only sharing these pictures for accountability purposes! I figure if I embarrass the heck out of myself somehow it will help, Lord I hope it helps....Dianne you with me?!! hee hee oh and help me decide on a new color for my room too! maybe a blue this time? or a simple beige so I can change out the curtain or colors?!!

my fabric, oh my.... there is other fabric that is scattered around the room and in piles, I just didn't show it all to you :)
why when I pull some fabric out I don't keep it neat?! I really need to find a better system that works for me!
also on the bottom shelf is most of my scrapbooking papers, does anyone really need that much?!! apparently I do :)

my sewing/computer area...I just got this really nice table at a yard sale for $20 and loved the idea of having my sewing machine and computer next to each other but the table is deep so I collect a lot of "stuff" behind that whole area...once again...need to find a better system and not allow anything there except my sewing feet and that cute 3 teird basket :)

my built in cabinets! LOVE them, why don't I keep them uncluttered? most the time you can actually see the counters, most of the time.... lol this is where I do most of my scrapbooking, I just have so much stuff from so many years of scrapbooking... I seriously *might* belong on that show hoarders! LOL my space is clean I just have so much of it :)

Please hold me accountable! LOL

also Jodi at Pleasant Home is starting a Sew Scraps Along and I hope this will help and motivate me also.
You should go visit her site also,she is posting some scrappy projects and they will help you use up those scraps but she is also linking to other gals who are doing some giveaways of fabric scraps on their blogs. How nice huh? very generous people out there!

wish me luck on this room! hee hee :)

Next project is on the table!

2010-10-16T06:16:00.000-07:00

YUMMY vintage sheets, well most of these are fat quarter size except for 2 of the prints, those 2, I have a full sheet of the goodness! I keep thinking I am just going to do a simple block quilt with these prints and use a Kona or Moda solid for the backing and bindingm just choosing which colors are going to be the hard part!

and how cool is this?!!

Egglands Best Eggs are supporting breast cancer! They are a little extra but that is okay :) because if you go to their website they have coupons too!

I am hoping to sew tomorrow (Sunday). We have a busy day today with Zach running in a cross country meet and then dinner with some friends tonight, first I need to tidy and organize my craft room just a little, it'scary in here!

I am so blessed (and a new blog, finally!)

2010-10-12T13:25:00.000-07:00

I just have to say that I am very blessed! over the past year I have really found out who is there for me! I just have to say that I have some great family and friends to lean on! God is good :)

I have been wanting to switch to blogger for a while now and I finally started to do it! I was being a great procrastinator taking my sweet time adding my projects to this new blog. When I had my old blog she sews and scraps , it was fun and I really did like typepad but with different and new changes (and some changes I had no control over), happening in my life, I kept thinking it was a good time, plus blogger is free! I am all about free!

so anyways...on with the new! I still have more to add, especially pictures that I want to keep on here for family that do look at my blog :) have a wonderful day everyone!
oh and especially for the family that wants and needs to see more pictures of Zach (and one of all of us!) that I have not posted, here ya go!
first day of being a Junior in high school!

our 13th anniversary!

Zach running cross country

Sewing and Crafty stuff

2010-10-11T20:38:00.000-07:00

more transferring of the old blog to the new :)
a new tote for my ASL school books :)

a gathered clutch made from a tutorial by Noodlehead that I still need to perfect!

My ragged edge squares quilt

I love the binding I used..... :)

pillows

Kitchen curtain - going through an aqua/red phase

palette pincushion, idea from i heart linen

a simple pillow for mom, she is just like me and loves anything text

a table runner that makes me smile :)

camera strap!

simple purse

key fobs

lots of crayon rolls!

one of my favorite projects....my clothesline bag! LOVE IT!

simple coasters

another crayon roll

cute storage bag from Pink Penquin

little bag for mom

and more coasters....

scrapbooking and crafty stuff

2010-10-11T17:26:00.000-07:00

Just transferring some stuff from the old blog to the new :)
HOME frame-for my mom :)

weekly blessings journal

crock re-do

asl project

sketch

misc pages and projects (some for the scrapbook store)

older page...look how young Zach was!