My Halls Are Decked!

My house is decorated for Christmas. I do not have the same "Bah-Humbug" attitude I had last year, but I am not entirely into this season! I spend much of my time pulling this little one out of the Christmas tree! Dozens of times a day she is in there!She is certain I put the tree there for her enjoyment! Finally I just left her in there this afternoon, and eventually she came out! Remember how I could not figure out WHO took those pics of the kitties? Well, um, it was me. I was reminded by one of the kids. Thank goodness I did not accuse someone of fibbing! I really thought one of them had...I am not naming names!
My mother in love is having open heart surgery tomorrow to replace a valve. She is such a sweet lady and a huge blessing to our family. Please say a prayer for a fast and full recovery and for the actual surgery (in the morning). It has been crazy-busy here this week. Charlotte got braces on her upper teeth this morning. She gets the lower ones on January 4th. She also got her hair cut a couple of weeks ago....just below the shoulders....and layers added. Her straight hair is now FULL of curls! It was the strangest thing! I need to get a pic for you all...the back is all ringlets of curls! I thought the girl had used a curling iron, but no...it is all natural. She NEVER had curls before. Weird.
I have been writing on my food/weight loss blog (in fact I wrote this entire blog post, pictures included, over there before I realized I was on the wrong blog!). If you want to read it, you can click on the fruit tree on my sidebar and it will take you there. Lots of changes in my diet and I am down 24 pounds since August 2nd when I joined WW. Anyway, I thought it best to separate these subjects....of course this blog is a hodge podge of everything in my life.

I won a giveaway at Debi's blog! What a great giveaway to win!!!! 30 fat quarters!

I plan to make a quilt for Emerson's birthday in September. TJ has his Sailboat quilt here and Em needs a special quilt for at Grandma's house too!

Debi also sent pillowcases for the kdis. She does this for them every winter, and she sent them in the Spring, Summer, and Fall one year, so they have all the seasons. They love getting their holiday pillowcases every year! Debi is so loving to my kids!

She also made me 2 Infinity Scarves! I am HOOKED!!!!I either have to learn to make these, or commission her to make more for me. My mother wants some too! They are such a classy accessory. I wear lots of solid colored long sleeved tops, so they are perfect for making something plain look more stylish! Thank you Debi!!!
Well that is about it for now. I am looking forward to a quieter weekend. No grandkids til the 19th and then I get to see them all week! I am thinking I will get some sewing done. Tomorrow is filled with housework and laundry, so I will deserve the time to play. See you soon!

The Prize

When I was a little girl, our centerpiece on the kitchen table was often a pig, much like the one in the picture above. It was made from a bleach bottle and it was the "prize". My mother belonged to a weight loss group named "Tops"...I am not sure what that stands for, but it is still around today. Her, or her best friend, Jeanna, would usually end up with the pig. The pig was given to the member who GAINED the most weight that week. Poor Mom and Jeanna. They were not at all successful in their Tops venture, but they sure had a lot of fun! I think they always went out to eat after their meetings! Well, now Mom and I are in Weight Watchers, and, though we DO go out to lunch after our meeting, we eat healthy, point friendly foods! I got a prize last weigh in....my 10% key chain. (meaning I have lost 10% of my body weight...if I tell you how much, you could easily figure out my weight and then I would have to hurt you!) It was a goal I have had since I started on August 2nd, and I reached it...not as fast as I thought, but I did it! The powers that be at WW tell me I am doing just what they want...losing steady and slow. I am averaging 1.5 pounds a week. My next goal is only 2 pounds away....a charm to put on that key chain! It is all down hill from there!

I got a prized package in the mail yesterday....what a surprise that was! Copperswife made these beautiful knitted dish cloths for me and the gorgeous fall kitchen towel! It hangs on my oven door with everyone being informed NOT to use it...it is too pretty!Thank you, Cher!

I did a little deep cleaning in my make up/skin care bins. Gosh, how do we collect so much "stuff" we never use? I put all my skin care and make up that I use everyday and found a cup with my name on it, that I never use, and put my pencils, mascara and brushes in there...some hair spray even fit there. It all looks so much nicer and there is nothing there I don't use. The prize here was I found a $55.00 set of day and night serums that I forgot I had! They are not that old, but I had misplaced them somehow!

I saw this stitched on a pillow recently....

"Put some lipstick on!! Everything will be just fine!"

Somehow, I doubt that is true, but it sure can make you feel better! LOL
Now an update on those prized kitties! Sassy is TOTALLY warmed up to Cammy. They play together, sleep together, and eat together.

Well not so much eat together, cause Sassy is a hog!Cammy can not eat dry food yet, so she gets soft food several times a day. Sassy thinks she needs it too, so I give her a "little" bit outside of her full can of Fancy Feast in the mornings. Still I need to use 2 bowls. Cammy looks like she is getting a bit of chub herself from the back view LOL! She gets her kitty shots next week, on Sassy's birthday, the day after Thanksgiving.
Sassy has become a kitten again! She is so playful again and they love to play hide and seek in the box!Cammy wears out and needs a nap in the comfort of someones arms....there are always a pair ready to oblige her!So that is all the prize news here at my home! See you again soon...are you all excited that Thanksgiving is just next week?! I am!!!!

Set for Winter Quilting

I was going to share our day trip to Galena today, but blogger started throwing a tantrum, so I will have to save that for next time. I did get these pictures loaded before the fit began, and this is plenty long enough for a sit down! It has been a long week and it started out rough for me. If I ever doubted God's timing, it was not on Monday. Just when needed, the mailman brought a special package!SASSY!!!! Get off of there!!!!That's better! This incredible wallhanging arrived from Linda. The delicate words, stitched by hand, spoke of friendship, and touched me more than words can express. My absolute favorite quilting design, was included....double crosshatch! I LOVE IT! Thank you, Linda! Monday's cloud lifted and Tuesday and Wednesday went by like a blur...Tuesday I had my day out with Mom. It was a good one. I weighed in at WW and lost 3 pounds, plus got my 5% sticker! Big milestone....now on to 10%! Wednesday, we headed to Galena with the kids. Another excellent day. Thursday was basting day! I have a love-hate relationship with basting day! I had already marked the top. I think it will look great and the sashing stencil I chose fits well.

AGAIN with that cat! She loves a quilt of any kind!One of the things I DREAD about basting day, especially with a huge quilt like this, is the pain I know my back will suffer because of all the bending. Because of that, I usually take a couple of days to baste a quilt of this size. This time I spent 8 bucks and purchased these risers to lift my table up to counter level.BEST 8 bucks I ever spent! I did this entire quilt in one day with ZERO back pain. Granted, it took me 12 hours and about 200 yds of thread, and though my legs ached some the next day, that was nothing in comparison of days of back pain! I am now set for winter quilting!
Today, I plan to add some major quilting in that quilt and have a nice relaxing day. Tomorrow, the grandkids, my son, my sister and her family, and my parents, come for the day and after church, we will take them all to Chuck E. Cheese to celebrate Em's birthday. Next week will be busy too. My Mother in Love is having a valve replaced in her heart on Wednesday, so I plan to be there all day, and then running up to see her as often as I can as she recovers. I have perfect peace everything will be fine, but if you think about, say a prayer for her. ♥

Off to have that perfect quilting day!

Spring Is In The Air

Hee Hee...Poor Sass looks like a goofy cartoon cat in that picture! She was looking at birds flying over head through that big glass door.

The birds are out in large numbers lately, singing, and flitting around the back yard just to torment the poor girl! It feels like Spring! I have seen many of you are doing your Spring cleaning. I haven't really started that just yet. Still a bit too cold outside. I did a MAJOR clean and organizing of the library one day last week though. It was really bad. All these books came off, and went back on in a much more organized state. TJ and Emerson were here Saturday night and Sunday. They both LOVE the books here and I read to them every visit. Emerson noticed the difference right away. She is a "detail" kinda gal!! She went over and brought me this book, saying, "read it." This book had been on an upper shelf before, so she noticed it right off. We read a bit of it, though it did not have enough pictures to satisfy her. I noticed in the front flap, it was her Daddy's book, won during a Vacation Bible School contest when he was only 4 years old! Awwww....such memories.

You know that old saying, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder"? It is SO true. I miss Sweetheart so much, that on his days off, I am like a love sick puppy!! He had a "honey-do" list this weekend and got to all of his jobs....with a little help, of course!

Let's talk quilts for a minute. Today the mailman brought me this....

Is this wonderful, or what? I LOVE it. Remember the little Bear Paw I made for my Girl Scout leader? Well, she sent this to me as a PIF gift. It is a Friendship Star variation. I am so excited to have it. Her hand quilting is so beautiful and the colors are perfect. I put it on the hutch in my studio. My own quilting has been going well. I finished the 3rd PIF just yesterday.

I will show you a full pic when it is received. It was mailed today. I still have a couple more to do, but I am taking a little break to work on something else. I have been wanting to get the leaves appliqued on the border of the Underground Railroad Sampler for quite some time. That time is now! It needs 93 leaves so I got those all drawn out onto freezer paper and cut out.They are all pressed on to the fabric, ready to be cut and stitched.I was certain I did not have enough fabric, and if I had not found those triangle pieces, I would not have. A sweet blogging friend, Glenda, sent me some similar fabric that would have worked, but it looks like I will have enough. I will use the fabric Glenda blessed me with to bless another in an upcoming PIF gift.

So, I think I will go watch Dancing With The Stars and cut leaves. Sounds like a wild night, eh?

I will leave you with a pic of Sassafras...she is birdwatching even before I can open the blinds in the morning!

Around Here

Poor Sassafras. We have had some company this past week. My sister-in-law, Sherry, and her boys are in from Colorado. We LOVE having them visit. This time, they brought their new puppy, Tobias. Oh. My. Sassy was NOT amused! She survived, and is none the worse for wear.

It has been a hectic week. Where to start? Let's start with Zach, shown here with the Lego 3D glasses he built. Zachary keeps a pig pen of a bedroom. Well, Charlotte does too. I think I was the same as a girl. Anyway, I have given Charlotte all kinds of incentives to keep her room clean. She would prefer to have it messy. Whatever...her choice. I decided to give Zach a shot. I remember it worked with Kyle, who now keeps an immaculate bedroom. I offered a television and DVD player. No cable..or ANY television channels....JUST DVD's and those would be handed out by me. There is no keeping DVD's in your room. You may watch them only if your school work is done, and your room is clean. I did a complete deep clean of his room, and moved furniture, to give him a fresh start.
This happened last Wednesday. Almost one week later and his room is still just as clean. He makes his bed everyday (to the BEST of his ability, and that is fine with me) and there are no dirty (or clean) clothes laying all over the floor. WOO HOO!! Maybe....just maybe, this will pay off.
I also finished my 2nd PIF (Pay It Forward) gift last week. It has been mailed and received.It went to my Girl Scout leader. Mrs. Hancock lived across the street from us and was (and still is) a gifted seamstress and quilter. I enjoyed my time in her living room during the scout meetings. She taught me how to make Porcupine Meatballs (which I make for my family to this day), she took us to sleep in a cave full of bats...that was creepy, but quite fun, taught us to cook an entire meal over a campfire in just tin foil, and she helped me attain MANY badges. Goal setting was birthed in me through Mrs. Hancock. I truly love her influence in my life.
I had the grandkids Friday afternoon til Saturday morning. It was SO good to see them. They are so missed for those 2 weeks. Emerson is talking like crazy and she made a microphone out of Legos and stood on the fireplace singing LA LA LA LA over and over again LOUDLY....she is going to be an American Idol contestant someday!! LOL After the kids left, I watched this....

It took me 7 hours to get through the 5 hour movie, but I LOVED it. It is my all time favorite movie EVER. (I got it used on Amazon for 4 bucks! It was in perfect condition)

Sunday was the "big day." Zach and I picked up Bud and the kids (in a hail storm, mind you) and took TJ to Walmart to go birthday shopping. He is an easy shopper and knew exactly what he wanted in less than 10 minutes. Then we took Emerson to Paw Paw for a nap, met up with Aunt Sherry and her boys, and headed to Chuck E. Cheese for a birthday lunch!

I must have heard, "This is the best day of my life." 20 times!! SO worth the horrid weather. Thunder, lightening, hail and torrential rains. UGH! We came home for a family celebration of cake and ice cream Hey...if you see those EXPENSIVE candles that have the colored flames and your son says, "But mom, you have to get them for TJ...you are a grandma that loves." DON'T fall for it!!!!

Though I am a grandma that loves, that was a real rip off!!Emerson attached herself to my mom very quickly....she always does.She LOVES "Old-Grandma". They colored together much of the time.That is Sherry back there holding that mop of a puppy. Sass spent the day in the basement!! LOL It was a good day for TJ, and that was the goal!

The kids went home last night, but I will get them next week for much of their Spring Break. Saturday night til Monday and again Tuesday til Wednesday. Sad to say, my son is moving next weekend. He finds it impossible to maintain a 3 bedroom home for just himself, so he is moving to the town where his job is. This will save him MUCH gas money and his rent will be half of what it is now. He is able to create a home for his kids too....this was the most important thing to him. He has a friend who just bought a house and he was blessed enough to be asked to share it with full reign to make the kids a part of it. It is just 5 minutes from his job...but a good 35 minutes from his mother. He has lived within a few miles of me for the last 7 years. It will be a tough adjustment for me. Even though I will see him just as much, I will know he is not just down the road anymore. Still I am happy for him to be relieved of the added financial burden. :)

That brings us to today. My friend Alesha (visit her blog...her Sunday post was SO GOOD)asked me recently if I would want to trade soap for jewelry....ya think??!! Of course I would! She makes the MOST gorgeous jewelry! I picked these turquoise/copper earrings in trade for 3 bars of soap.Poor picture quality, but they are beautiful! I LOVE them!

Alesha also sent a bracelet for Charlotte.
SO cute!! Charlotte loved it!! The sizing was perfect! Thank you, Alesha!You can find Alesha's creations at Alesha Kay's Shop. She also makes custom pieces. She made the jewelry for my 30th Anniversary Open House and it was the highlight of my "look".
I could share more, but goodness...if you made it this far, God bless you!!