A pillow from Budapest and a peek.......

It is hot here and windy so I haven't been outside much....It is almost too hot to be upstairs creating or sewing even with the a.c....I still love that it is summer though...I just do more at night and that works just fine...
Today is my happy little Olivia's birthday...She is nine years old. It makes me want to cry...I see her turning into a young lady and it makes me sad. She had a special day with her mom today. They went and saw Eclipse and her mom got her a phone....I don't know what I really think about the phone thing, but it is not my call anymore...We are having a party for her on Friday....



Happy Birthday Miss Pea!

I took part in Jamie's pillow cover swap and two days ago I got a package in the mail from Hungary....Katie cross stitched this wonderful bear pillow for me...I always admire handwork, cause' I have no patience for it all....Thank you so much Katie for all your work and thought that you put into this for me.......







For the last couple of days I have been working on a swap project off and on...It is turning into something, but that part is a secret....here is a little peek....











and here is a little close up peek....all the details are free motion embroidery...If you click you can really see it.....









In the next few days I have vowed to get my red, white and blue blocks done , pieced together and quilted in time for the fourth of July...I wonder if the kids will cooperate...It make take a good bribe...mmmmmmmm

Summers here!

Ninety degree days and kids in the sprinklers.....













Baseball games and setting up a big pool for the kids. Lot's of wet towels and bathing suits hanging on the line.







My oldest Grandson, Daniel who is eleven has joined the party until the middle of August. Yesterday the kids made clay sculptures and apple stamp paintings and I made this little table topper.....















Barbeque's and picnics and great garage sales! I got a vintage white chenille bedspread for a dollar! It is being cut and sewn and turned into a summery white tablecloth.....
And Summer mail.....A "just because" gift of wonderful 40's pink fabrics and lace from Victoria.










And a pink enchanted package from Sandy....Another ornament for my pink tree!










Happy Summer!

Alphabe Thursday, W is for Wistful

It is Alphabe Thursday hosted by Jenny Matlock once again...Click on the link on the sidebar to find out more....

This weeks letter is W and there are a whole lot of W' words to choose from. For some reason, I keep thinking of the word "wistful", so that is what I am going to write about...I think it is a beautiful word.

The definition of wistful is a sad longing for something lost. A yearning for things that were.

So have you ever watched a movie or a show that makes you feel wistful?
One of the ones that brings out that feeling in me is "Peggy Sue Got Married"









A comedy of sorts, which is a funny choice for a movie that makes you wistful, but she gets to go back in time.....She goes to a class reunion and has a fainting episode and wakes up as a teenager again but with her adult mind intact...Can you imagine?
This is where the wistful part comes in for me....There is a scene where she sees her Grandma and she knows in her adult life she has passed on and she grabs her and hugs her while crying....Oh, to go back and get a second chance to see ones loved ones lost....Who would you see? What would you say and do?

I would visit my great grandparents..Especially my great grandpa and ask him to tell me all his stories again...About when he came from France with no English and no family to start a life in America....I would still tape record it all but this time I would lock away the tapes so my sister couldn't tape over them....I would tell him how much his scrapbooks and his stories mean to me and that I know they will have a big impact in my life.

I would spend time with my middle school best friend...I would treasure every second giggling and hanging out....I would tell her to not ever ride in the back of trucks and to always wear a seat belt..I would take a zillion pictures of us together so later I would have pictures to remember...Especially from the night of our first real dance....

I would tell my two best grandmas in the world how much I love them and let them hug me as much as they wanted too...I would let my favorite grandma cook "hotcakes" for me and I would eat as much as she wanted to feed me...I would have my other grandma teach me to sew..I would bask myself in their love.

And last of all, My mom! To look at her in a child's body with adult eyes...I would try to figure out the mystery of her...Who she is as a woman while at the same time I would memorize every second...The smell of her, her expressions, the touch of her hand...The love she felt for me, her firstborn..I would wrap it all up, tie it up with a bow and open it when I didn't have her anymore and just breathe it in.

This is wistfulness at its best.....
What makes you feel wistful?

What I have been doing...a pictorial

Made a bird, paperbag vintage poetry book a wallet and a bracelet from paper lunch bags.

Sewed up some little wallets.

Camped for a couple of days...

Built a weatherproof fairy house for the garden.

A clay pot became a Toad Abode

We turned a giant shell and a stump into a bird bath.


I smelled my roses...the first I have ever grown and I have them in numerous colors!

I played in the gardens.

I sewed up a little bunny quilt

and I painted a hat and boots on the trailer.....

Alphabe Thursday, The letter V'

Boy, thursday comes fast! This alphabet meme is hosted by Jenny Matlock..Click on the sidebar button to see more........

Those that know me, know I am opinionated, but I also try not to be controversial on my blog. It really is about life and art and kids and not so much about my views. Today, though I am going to state my opinion, so here goes.....


V is for get a vasectomy and give her a vacation!
What the heck am I talking about? The Duggar family...








I dont watch this show on TLC, it disturbs me...I appreciate family and children and I am all for procreation, but come on...you have procreated a small village at this point.....The plus side of this family is the parents love the kids and the dad is able to feed all those mouths....and yes, they have the right to choose this. I am just worried about two things...First of all the mother.....I watched her on an interview one time and it seems that her womanhood to her is all tied up in pregnancy....What is going to happen when that is over? I would also worry about the wear and tear on her body..Can you imagine what it has done to her? By continuing to get pregnant as an older woman she puts herself and a baby at high risk and is that fair to all the other children? My other issue is when you have a big family like that, you have to be taking some of the older childrens childhood away from them....I had a friend who was the oldest girl of eleven kids and she was a mom by age 9...She was so envious of just being able to be a kid. This mom and dad have 18 healthly children, and one sick one. They just need to love the ones they have and quit making more...If the mom cant make the decision, then dad needs to step up...Every time I look at him, I just want to say, "get off her already..." Am I the only one disturbed by this?

Dresses and cards.......

Two days of terrible, awful weather and then the last two days were gorgeous....I loved every second...The kids and I were outside a whole lot which wears them out so it is a good deal all around...By about eight, I herd them upstairs, put up the baby gate and I get to do a little creating...I really am all caught up on everything now...It is a great feeling.....Yesterday I caught up on the monthly dress up...



It is hosted by Margaret at http://aliceandcamilla.blogspot.com

The whole idea is to make one paper dress a month until you have a years worth of dresses...I was putting them in a little decorated cigar box/ wardrobe, but they are too cute to hide. I have them hanging on a ribbon clothesline in my sewing room...I was soooo behind....the last one I had done was in March..So here we go! Here is April....









I did it in greens and purples to represend Spring, grass and Lilacs which I love....Then came May.....











A suede bustier with a hoop skirt that holds a nesting bird...perfect for May..All the birds around here started gathering nesting stuff last month so it is the first thing I thought of...And last of all, June....









A wedding dress with lots of lace....

Here are all the dresses I have done so far:











You can see all the participants dresses by clicking on the blog button on the sidebar....

Yesterday I got the best envelope from The Netherlands....my friend Rianne send me these wonderful handmade cards to use in my swaps....We had a trade between us, and I told her I would love some of her creations...There actually is more! They are so bright and pretty that I hope I can stand to give them to other people...Arent they awesome?










Thank you so much Rianne, I love them, you are amazing!

Lazy days happen....and a quilt row

We have the most terrible weather happening...Just the last couple of days the temperature has dropped and it is wet and windy...It feels like I am on the Oregon Coast again.....
We just had little Trace today and it was kind of fun to lounge around and play with him. We call him "Stealth". He is super quiet, so it is peaceful but he never quits moving...He has big expressive eyes and is a real snuggler....He has pretty much wrapped himself right around both our hearts....he really has Grandpa now, since one of the few words he says is "gwampa" plain as day....He makes so many funny faces, it makes me laugh......Here is a little collage of all the faces he made in the kitchen in about two minutes time...I think the frown was when I took his pacifier out of his mouth....When he smiles, he curls his lip like Elvis.









I am so glad we have gotten to know him! He is a day brightener, this little guy.....
I also got to play upstairs...I have about ten things in various stages of finish. I did get my Round Robin Row for Hetty done and mailed off on Friday....Her theme is water and my row is the one with the boats....I embroidered a little captains wheel and a fish on the middle block just for fun...I was going to do more but I was out of stabilizer...I think her quilt is going to be very pretty....I love the rows together so far.....







Some day I will attempt to paper piece again and do something like the birds....I really love them. They were made by Hetty herself. The fish were done by Jeanette.....I love how she used the batiks.




I also got an award from Elizabeth at http://alteredbooklover.blogspot.com

I had to laugh at the award...After my bear story, she felt compelled to give it to me...Thanks so much for making me laugh too girl!








Here are the rules:
1. Express gratitude to the blogger who bestowed the award unto you...
2. Display the picture on your blog proudly.
3. Be nice and provide a link to the person who gave it to you:
4. Tell six outrageous lies about yourself, and at least one outrageous truth, or switch it around and tell six outrageous truths and one outrageous lie. So you decide which is/are truth and which is/are a lie.



okie, dokie......

1. I have one green eye and one blue eye and most people dont know it until they meet me...

2. My idols are Barry Manilow and Elvis and I have a whole room in my house devoted to their collectables..

3. I ride a Harley Fat Boy and I have a full set of leathers.

4. I once got mad at my mom and dad, ran away and really did try to join a circus but they said I had no talent and called the local cops who took me home.

5. I fell off the top of a motorhome onto the pavement and almost killed myself.

6. I have an alter ego that has written two romance novels that you or someone you know has probably read.


Thanks so much Elizabeth.......If anyone wants to play consider yourself tagged!

Alphabe Thursday.....U is for Ursa

It is once again Alphabe Thursday hosted by Jenny Matlock at http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com

Good evening Mrs. Matlock....How was your day? I am ready to give my take on the letter U...I didn't bring you any offering today. I hope you understand and don't take umbrage with it......

U is for Ursa....Latin for bear. There also are constellations, Ursa Major and Ursa Minor....When I was a little kid I was fascinated by the sky and spent a lot of time looking into my telescope finding the great bear in the sky....He looks like this:












This U post is an Ursa story though....A real bear story.
I grew up on the Oregon Coast in a place called Rockaway Beach...We lived a few blocks from the ocean and a few blocks from the mountains...It was a great place to grow up. Small town values, everyone knew everyone, lots of kids and Natures playground....One of my favorite places to play was in the woods...I have always had an active imagination. ( my mom would've said too active.) It could and did turn into a whole different world....I was the boy in "my side of the mountain", or I was in Switzerland wandering the Alps....you get the picture....Now to get to the woods you walked East and then the pavement turned to gravel as you passed the last developed block. My sister Cindy and I weren't allowed to go past the logging gate, but we found a trail along the side of the gravel road....It was bordered with trees and you had to really look to see the entrance...We would leave the road and enter the path....The sunlight barely came thru the fir trees and you couldn't hear our footfalls as the trail was padded with pine needles...We would eat salmon berries and red huckleberries and play wildlife explorers...Our dog, Chopper would come along and enjoy his romp through the woods. Then we would get to the best part....The creek...Fresh water with a gravel bottom and a miniature water fall....in an instant in my eyes it became Niagara Falls, or a tributary of the Amazon...We made homemade fishing poles and fished (without bait) or we caught crawdads...It was paradise, my secret place. Now technically, we weren't breaking any rules, but my dad wouldn't have been happy we were playing back in there either...I was nine and my sister was seven and I am sure I threatened her not to tell...or bribed. My dad was super overprotective and in his mind, danger was lurking everywhere. So one day off we went on another grand outdoor adventure, Chopper in tow. We took off down the trail without a care in the world. We got to the creek and all of a sudden, Choppers ruff went up and he started growling..I got nervous....my sister was jabbering away oblivious so I put my hand over her mouth to listen...I didn't hear anything but I smelled something terrible...I looked across the creek on the other side of the trail and found myself looking into a bears face....As I was taking this in my sister bit my hand and yelled, "PEEEEYewwww...something stinks..." The bear moved and she heard it and it changed to a scream of terror. (so much for backing away quietly.) Now in Oregon the bears aren't big....They are not grizzlies by any means but when you are 9 and weigh about 50 pounds they are HUGE! I pushed her and we ran....as fast as our little feet could move....the bear was running beside us and our dog, the hero was keeping himself between us and the bear. He was half Samoyed and had a big neck ruff which the bear would bite at but couldn't get a hold of...we came out the trail entrance with the dog and the bear...My sister had both hands in the air running and screaming at the same time...I was just running...We shot down the gravel road, hit the pavement and eventually ran right into our yard...The dog and the bear were still on the road. I shot thru the door, screaming "murder, bear, dog!" " Chopper, bear, call the police HELP!!!!".....My mom came out from the bathroom with curlers in her hand...not even a look of concern on her face....She said, "Mindy, when are these stories going to stop...Last week it was piranha in the creek and before that it was killer bees and an ax murderer on the loose." My sister stood there speechless and I am sure somewhat shocky...some help she was...We heard a noise at the door and both ran screaming from the room...I may have bravely told my mom not to open the door from under the bed....She did, and there was Chopper not a scratch on him....I told the bear story over the next two days to everyone who would listen...Finally my dad was fed up and told me that it was enough about the bear...






When he said enough, he meant it....I couldn't believe it..The best adventure ever and I was labeled a liar. (storyteller?) That same night our neighbor up the street, a lady named Murphy who did hair called my mom...She lived on the corner of THE gravel road...The conversation went something like this...

"Linda? Hi it's Murphy.."
"you wont believe what I saw the other day in broad daylight!"
" I looked out my window because I heard noises and there was your dog Chopper fighting with a bear....right in front of my house...."

My mom let out a yell and hung up the phone! She called the sheriff, the fire department and the game warden......Me? Vindicated and with a great story to tell too..... The bear?








He went to a new home away from people.....


Life was sweet.

Quilt kit giveaway....

My friend Joanne at http://splittingstitches.blogspot.com is having a giveaway...Run over there right now! Run, I tell you...it is ending soon....She won an Accuquilt
Go cutter and she bought beautiful fabrics and it cutting them all out with her new cutter to make this beautiful quilt kit....
here are the fabrics:








And here is the quilt it will make.....Isnt it pretty?










I love this giveaway, I hope you do too, but not too much, cause I want to win!!!!

Pillow cover and Mermaids.....

I got a little overloaded on swaps and have been catching up. What is it about online swaps that are so addictive? I have to stay off swap dex or I go crazy. I would say it is about getting stuff, but it really isn't. It is about being creatively challenged and trying to put something together that someone who you don't know might like....I put a lot of thought into these things and I put a bit of myself too....I think that is why I love them, the whole sharing, giving thing.
I am part of the pillow cover swap hosted by Jamie at http://modifiedmix.blogspot.com
I love sewing pillow covers and changing things up, so of course this was a "gotta join this one" thing. The swap calls for a 16" pillow cover that will fit a pillow form....I chose beige prints with one red and cream print and this is what I came up with.....







I have to say usually my photos are pretty good, but this one doesn't do it justice....I cant get the colors right! oh well, you get an idea....I love this pillow, it is very soft and sweet looking, but at the same time bright too....I also made a little puffy hanging heart and a tag to match and in this photo, the colors are truer.





The pillow pattern was from a BHG quilts and more, The bag, pincushion and pillow edition.....It was a super easy pattern and I love how it turned out.
The heart pattern was emailed to me by a quilter who made a ton of them, but I don't remember who....I could make these little hearts all day. I love sewing collage!

I also finished up Mays Enchanted Ornament Swap hosted by Val at http:yarnigrasswapperspot.com (told you I got behind, though this was sent out on Tuesday in my defense...)( I hate being late for anything!!!!)
The theme was mermaids and I really struggled with this one....Not sure why, I like mermaids and I have made them before. I made a fabric mermaid ornament with sewn details....











A mermaid tussie mussie filled with goodies like vintage buttons to hang.














Also, shocking as it may be, I may a handmade ocean themed card to send along....I very seldom make cards and it was kinda fun.....kinda.











Now I am heading back upstairs to make my row for Barb's row robin.....I had to laugh, I found a pattern and I was sure it was turtles so I went in and bought fabric for turtle blocks...I get home and it is boats.....Sometimes my mind scares me....