I caught something last night.....

Here it is in all its fishy glory. Guess what we had for dinner tonight?

I got to sew!

Not for as much time as I would've liked, but any time is good time. Especially in this house. The neighbor up the hill just called and she is a single mom with two girls. I suspect that she has a pretty hard time. Anyway, she asked if her 9 year old could come here next week Monday thru Thursday while she works cause some plans with the grandparents fell through...I had Brianna come one day, and she and Olivia about drove me bonkers, but of course I said yes being the masochist that I am. That and I know how hard it can be to not have a sitter...Woo-hoo...four kids now...I am thinking of it as a good karma opportunity since no money will be involved. We are going to be spending a lot of time going to the beach and the park and enough said about that.

I finished this big ole quilt and I am so glad...I think the top was done about a year ago and it was moldering away on a shelf in my bedroom. I love the actual quilting, but I hate putting them on the quilter. I quilted really heavily around the center and then I washed and dried it and I love all the puckers...It looks so quilty and old fashioned. I also started another scrap quilt that is going to be cool... I am using a lot of bright colors...I have all the pieces that make the block all cut and sewn and one block done...I am not ready to show it yet. I cut out an apron too but I haven't sewn anything yet. Maybe tonight? we will see...I also have to show off this adorable little card that Sherry made me..I love the little parasol girl. She reminds me of things that my grandma had in her house. So sweet and old fashioned! Thanks Sherry!

pink charms finished and Gone fishin'

I have the pink charms all done now and I am in the process of making the tags that they are attached too. I have five done and seven to go. I like how these turned out, especially since I just kind of did it with no real plan. The scariest thing was drilling a hole thru the tile. I cracked a few plain tiles before I got the hang of things. I think they are really cute tied to the little pink tags.

We all went fishing for salmon the other night so I am posting a couple of boat pictures too. No bites, but we still had fun. It was a beautiful evening to be out on the water.

Today, I am going to sew darn it! It has been crazy around here again. I have been taking care of all three grand kids every day and today Stacie, my oldest daughter is here and I am passing the mommy torch to her. I bought an apron pattern and fabric and I am going to try it out. I joined to apron swaps so I decided I better make a prototype. I also got some batting and I am going to put a big quilt on the quilter and work on it. We will see how much I get done! Andrew has a tummy ache so this may be hard! Cross your fingers, I need a sewing break!

fried clams and pink charms.....

What a funny title huh? One of the great things about the island is you can go out and get your own seafood... on our getaway this last weekend, I was talking about this to the kids other set of grandparents and they were amazed since they are from the Midwest. We went and dug clams again yesterday and I thought I would show a picture....These are butter clams which are very tender...you don't have to pound the heck out of them like razors and they taste a lot the same. I cook them in the shell, you just cut the stomach out and then dip them in egg and then panko and fry them fast in hot oil....yummmmm. Obviously, these are not good for your little arteries, but occasionally they are ok...So here they are, clams in the shell!

I also started to work on my charms for the pink charm swap...I am making twelve all together...ten will go to other charm swappers and two will go to bracelets that are part of the pink auction with proceeds to go to breast cancer research....my base is scrabble tiles, and I didn't realize how small they are until I started....these aren't finished, but I thought I would just show a little peek..I think they are kinda cute.....and pink...

An award.....

I received an award from Pearl at http://pearlssentimentaljourney.blogspot.com/ and I have been slow to show it cause I don't know how to link from just showing the name so I am doing it the hard way probably! Oh well, it is getting done and that is what counts. Pearl is a new blogging friend and I really enjoy the fact that she is always upbeat, her pictures that she posts are great fun and she wrote the kindest words about me on her blog when she gave me this award..Thanks so much Pearl. The award is the Arte Y Pico award and the link is http://arteypico.blogspot.com/ .

The rules for accepting this award are:

1* pick 5 blogs you consider deserving of this award for creativity, design, interesting material and a contribution to the blogging world.

2*Each person awarded has her name and a link to her blog to be visited

3* each award winner shows the award winner and shows the name and a link to the last blog that presented the award.

4*show the link to the Arte Y Pico blog

5* show the rules

OK! Got thru that part, now the five people....Marie from Z quilts....her art is beautiful and varied and she is really branching out and I love to see the variety of things that she creates...

Marva Plummer Bruno for Purple Paints...Anyone that can sketch their own foot and have it look like a foot is great in my book...she is good at alot of things and makes beautiful jewelry too.

Helen Bailey...she was my inspiration for starting a blog to begin with...I used to read hers and see the new techniques and think, "gee, I want to do that too" she donates a gzillion quilts to sick newborns and kids and makes beautiful fabric atc's and postcards..She is a great person and fabric artist

Jenna Louise from Quilt Crazy Gal....she is a new blogger but I get a real kick out of her...she is very bubbly and her fabric pieces are full of whimsy and imagination. I really love that!

Also Fannie from Imagine and Create......I love her neocolor quilts and she really puts a lot of heart and thought into what she makes. She has a great bear pattern that I gotta order too, darn it!

All of these artists blogs are listed on my sidebar...go visit em!

October journal pages for debby and tiny magnets....

I had a set of journal pages due for my friend Debby from my "color me silly" group...Her theme is the months of the year and I had picked October. I got to work on it last night and I had to incorporate Halloween. I know nature is beautiful in the fall and the weather is the best, but the kid in me was screaming "trick or treat!, trick or treat!' So here it is.....I used alcohol inks for the first time, they are very messy but I like the look on the plastic clock face. I also made some tiny little magnets on paper mache' stars. They are simple but kinda sweet I think. Today, I have a craft planned for the kids. I am going to let them make pencil holders out of some cans. We will see how this one goes. Maybe I can clean a closet while they are creating!

Back home!

The kids and I got back this afternoon from a four day visit to Portland. Man, it was good to get away but I am glad to be home.. It was hot there...darn hot, and I am not used to it. We have had hot weather, but there is always a breeze. We had a great time visiting with Aunts and Uncles, cousins and the other" grandma and grandpa....I ate a zillion bing cherries, got treated to a pedicure (thank you again Cinda) and enjoyed a little bit of quiet while Alex and Jessie helped with the kids. We also went to a craft store / fabric store and I saw so many cool things! It is a good thing it isn't in my neighborhood, I really would have to go to work around the clock. I am posting pictures of a couple atc's I made...they are felted around postage stamps and all the materials came from Helen in a goodie bag that she sent me from the UK....

Happy late fourth of July!

Wow, has this seemed like a long holiday! Ours started on the third and we are finally winding it down. Our little town has quite the celebration the day before the fourth. I took all three kids down to the park on the water about 4 in the afternoon and we got home about midnight. There was entertainment, and exotic animal show ( we petted pythons) food vendors and those big bouncy things you jump in for the kids. After dark the fireworks show started and we all enjoyed it....On the fourth itself, we had our own picnic and bbq and I cooked off and on almost all day and then about 7 we went out in the boat and pulled crab pots....We hit the score on the dungeness...Actually came home with 39 crab..We cooked them outside while the kids lit off their own fireworks . Then the last few days we have done some visiting with friends and running around....Not much in the art or thread department happening but a lot of good food and memories!

I forgot to post the journal pictures!

Two posts in one day! I guess that will help make up for all the times I don't post at all! This is my layout for my altered book 'being a woman" I used retro fabrics because the focus is on four generations of women....The picture is of My great grandma, grandma, my mom and myself....I am the only one left now...I lost my mom to breast cancer at age 56 in 2002....the other page shows a funnel and the beads stand for all there talents and eccentricities and it is pouring into a three year old me. They are so much a part of me and I have picked up different things from each of them...I just wanted to show that I am honored to be a part of these beautiful " in many ways women"......

Blackbird chair and more fabric journal art

I have been busy around here the last week! Most of it was not art or sewing related either...I have been painting the living room and it is pretty big...Everyone teases me the way I do it., but for me it works...because of the kids, I use a brush and do a section at a time and that way there isn't so much mess either. It looks really nice..the paint in the container looks just like a chocolate milkshake. I saw Andrew eyeing it and had to tell him it's paint and I put a Mr. yuk sticker on it. Last weekend was so hot and beautiful here. After the winter I am not complaining. On Sunday, we took the boat out on Honeymoon Bay and went out to Baby Island. As the name says, it is a little guy out in the middle of the sound. As we got closer, we saw harbor seals on this gorgeous white sand beach. We don't have that kind of sand here so I was puzzled by it. The kids were thrilled by the seals, especially the big daddy in the middle of his harem...I yelled out "AR AR AR" (my version of a seal call) and they all got in the water so we decided to explore their little beach. The seals were so cute, they were afraid of us, but they wanted to keep an eye on their spot so they formed a circle about 200 yards from the boat and you could see their little seal eyes watching us. We didn't stay for but a few minutes cause I felt guilty..They are so darn pathetic out there! The beach is incredible....it is made up of a zillion pieces of white shells from the seals eating there over time...I could've sat right down for a couple of hours and just looked at it up close. (except for those eyes and of course the seal stench, though there was no poop) They are actually making the island bigger. How cool is that? There also is one tree on this tiny little thing and in it was a bald eagle....We all admired him too. We stopped on the way back at a little cove and got out and played in the crystal clear water...Liv and I found a hermit crabs and we found some baby dungeness crabs too. I tried to get Andrew to let me put one in his hand but he wasn't buying it...Anyway, it was a great day and of course, I forgot the darn camera! On Saturday, the kids and I went to a garage sale and I got this little wooden chair for ten cents....I couldn't wait to do something with it but it took me till Monday to get to it. Olivia and I first painted it a bright blue with some red...It was really putrid in my opinion, so I went over it with gesso....several times and then it evolved into this blackbird chair...The blackbird piece is actually a mini quilt...I drew him and painted him with neocolor two's and then stitched him up and then I sprayed him with a water bottle...the back is this really cool bamboo wood paper...there is some on the front under the button too. The crocheted flower was made by Sherry and it came with my summer swap pkge....I didn't adhere it cause I put a pin back on it and wear it on my jean jacket when it is not on this little chair...Wish I could find a few more of these chairs, this was really fun to do!

A year+ in the making....fabric book is done!

This is the fabric journal that I did for the group "Color me Silly"....I did the cover, the back page, a two page spread and the sign in pages and then the other 11 artists did their layout. The theme was " to be a woman"....and from there, I left it open to interpretation. This is the book that spent about three months lost in Canadian customs....Boy was it worth the wait...it is wonderful and I am beyond thrilled with it and man, is it big, as in thick!!!! The pages are 9x12 and I made all the pages of timtex covered with muslin and then I made buttonholes on the pages...then each finished page was glued to the back of the prior page....I had no idea how I was going to bind it all together, but I figured when it came back, something would come to me....Little did I know how big this book was going to get!!!! Finally the other day, I decided to look for something to use in the hardware store and I found the perfect solution....in the plumbing section....metal hose clamps! I spray painted them pink with metal paint and then threaded them thru the pages, tightened em up with a butter knife....(too lazy to look for a screwdriver) and wa la! I did cut off the edges and bind them with electricians tape and then I covered the tape with yarn...the edges were too sharp to leave uncovered....I love how it looks...just like a real book. I am showing a picture of the cover and the sign in pages...On the sign in, I had everyones photo in atc size and then each person decorated it and wrote a note or two....The sign in pages I just love! I styled it after a french memory board. The front cover I used all kinds of vintage stuff including a bit from a 40's cookbook that is a riot....I will post more of my treasure later!

baby quilt done!

I redid the borders and then finished tonight. I think the other version had too much blue for a girl and I had one of the circle blocks in the wrong place anyway so I decided to go ahead and change it to an orange and red border. I like it, it's very bold....Now I need to make a label and then it is off to the new baby....

Summer Swap arrived and a Birthday Girl.....

Yesterday I had Olivia's birthday party at the park. It was a whole lot of fun and there was a whole lot of wind but we did good. She loved being the center of attention, and a good time was had by all....The kids and I came home and took a nice long nap...No coaxing needed, not this time anyway. She didn't want a "store " cake, she wanted pretty pink cupcakes, so that is what she got. I sang happy birthday to her about a hundred times. She actually asked me to stop at one point. I know I can be obnoxious. The other great thing happened today! I got my summer swap package from Sherry. HOLY COW! I feel like the luckiest person in the swap! She made some beautiful tags that I love and a couple of summer cards that I am going to hoard, she sent me some charm squares that Liv is eyeing, a pack of note cards in organza and a beautiful bag that I am sure she made herself...I love this bag!!!!! In fact I put all my junk in it and it feels right at home. Look at the picture of this loot...I felt like it was my birthday. You can find Sherry at http;//ificouldsetmysoulfree.blogspot.com

First Day of Summer!

Olivia has been asking and asking when summer is...I told her it is officially summer today and she wanted to know if we could go to the lake and swim tomorrow...Sure, in 60 degree weather. I will just sit and watch. We are all anxious for the sun and hot days. Today was nice though, just not nice enough to swim. I found the cutest elephant cookie jar at a garage sale and had a great moment of deja vous! My grandma had him when I was a kid and she always kept treats in him for my sister and I. He is in perfect condition and I got him for three dollars...Liv and I made cookies and filled his little tummy right up. I am also showing a picture of an atc that my friend Helen sent me to cheer me up...I love it! She knows all about my love of all things pink, so of course it is pink....and it cheered me up and was a nice surprise! Thank you Helen. Last of all , today I pieced a baby quilt top for another internet friend who has a new grand daughter on the way. I love this fabric...It is called cats on the loose and it is by Nancy Woolf....I love the bright colors! Saundra picked the pattern, it is a free pattern called "Baby Bright Quilt" and it is on the Robert Kauffman website. I am going to quilt it and bind it tomorrow.

Petals quilt done and talk with a two year old....

Well for this little family, today was the start of summer vacation...I know a lot of moms get nervous and prefer when school is going...I like having the kids home...For one thing, I get to sleep in! Woohoo! Olivia was all sad about leaving her first grade teacher...I just love when a child gets a really great teacher. It makes all the difference in the world as far as school goes. She took her a card and flowers and was so excited to give them to her. I signed her up for a day camp today so she still gets to play with other kids...We are a little bit isolated in our neighborhood and I want her to keep her friendships over the summer. I got the petal quilt done too and that felt pretty good....I free motioned the heck out of it and just played around with different patterns...also used buttons for the center of the flowers. Even though the colors are not really "my kind of thing" I like how it looks... Andrew has three favorite new words lately...WHY, BECAUSE and Nutting (nothing)....You wonder where this comes from, and then we have a conversation that goes like this...(..me:)"Andrew, you need to get your shoes on."( him: )"Why?"

(me:)"Because we are going to the store, where are your shoes?" (him) Why?" ( me:) "Because" "where did you last see your shoes?"( him: )"nutting" What do you mean nothing, why don't you know where they are?" (him:) (you guessed it...) "because".......the moral of this story is "don't ask, just go look and save your breath....."

petals on the edge....

that is the name of this quilt pattern.....I think I bought it a while back and it ended up with my friend Laura...She brought it over and said " this is a definite Melinda style quilt, and I think it must be yours..." . The cover of the pattern shows it all done in batiks with lots of nice hot colors and it does look like me...This example that I have made up does not...I challenged myself to think out of my color box and to use only scraps and I did both. It gave me something to do, what more can I say. Tomorrow I am going to put on borders and then quilt it up...I might do some embellishing too...What am I going to do with it? I have no clue...really. Yesterday the kids and I had a fun day. We pulled weeds in the weed patch (they thought it was fun....dirt and bugs and idle chatter...) and then took a picnic to the keystone ferry park. It is right on the water and the ferry goes right into the cove. Andrew was thrilled as he loves any kind of vehicle, boats included. We threw the stick in the water a zillion times for Cooper and built sandcastles... I have learned to appreciate every second of sun and blue sky we get and to get out and do something in it...Today I spent the day getting ready for Olivia's birthday...she is all excited about having a party. We are going to have it on Sunday at the park/ playground, so hopefully we will see some sunshine that day. tonight I got an email from my sister Julie sending me pictures of her baby shower...The one that my invitation said wasn't until This coming Saturday...The one that I mailed her crown and quilt for today! AAAARGGGHHH...I was so proud of myself getting it out on time too...darn it. I sent her a picture of her crown anyway and she laughed her head off and said she loves it. She says that she is going to wear it when she is in labor..That would be worth a trip to Utah to see! haha....

Journal pages....

These are for Janis's "snow and ice' themed book...This really took me a long time all the way around. From the idea phase to actually putting it together. I had fun though and I like how it looks really journally. Besides, I just adored this story as a kid!

Thank you all for your kind words!

After sharing my heartbreak, to get your messages and emails was very thoughtful of all of you and I really appreciate it...

I got my sisters baby quilt finished and ready to mail on Monday. Also tried to make a crazy quilt atc with hand embroidery. Extreme emphasis on the word "tried"! I also am posting a picture of the pink swap goodies I got in the mail yesterday from Carla J. There is some Laura Ashley stationary and a pink art glass necklace on silver...It is very pretty and in the light the glass is beautiful..Thanks Carla...

Baby shower by mail....

I have been working on my little sister, Julie's baby shower gift. A quilt of course...She is due the twenty fifth of August but the shower is next week in Utah. Obviously her present is going to be mailed. She is having a little boy which she is pretty excited about. I made her a crown too since she is such a little queen bee. I am going to make her friend, the hostess promise that I get a picture of her crabby little face wearing it. You have to know her to understand. I have been busy around here with boy scouts and brownies and hall painting and a little sewing but mostly I have been hiding away. Tomorrow is my daughters birthday. My baby who I don't even know how to get a hold of. ...the drug addict. This is such a heart breaking subject and awful personal for a blog post but it is weighing on my heart and mind. I have almost had the kids a year now and I guess I was hoping that they, of all things, would bring her around. Guess I was wrong. I walk around feeling like instead of a heart I have a sack of cement in my chest. It never goes away, sometimes I just can hide it better than others...Not doing so good today I guess....Sometimes being a mother is the saddest job in the world....

A sandbox and a summer package

It has been a long week. We are once again battling coughs and fevers and rainy, icky days. Where or where art thou summer? I am about ready to burn an offering to the sun gods....hehee.. Andrew and I were going to go to walmart on Saturday to get him a "little tykes" turtle sandbox and we were on our way when I saw a big garage sale and we stopped and there one was...for four bucks! Woo-hoo....He thinks it is pretty darn cool. I put it on the deck right by the slider so he can play and I can see him. He has only dumped a bucket of sand over Coopers head once! The little troll....I also fixed up my package for Sherry who is my summer swap partner and will get it in the mail today...I used all recycle stuff...I think it looks ok...I am not the best gift wrapper out there. I also have been making tags, which I like doing. They are quick, easy and pink...How do you beat that combo? I was double tagged by Marva and Fanny to list six unimportant things about myself...so here goes.

1. I tried out for Jeopardy and was one of three who made it...I chickened out about going on the show though..

2. I memorized trivial pursuit cards to study for the try outs...I have a good memory

3.I hate wearing shoes, though I don't mind flip flops.

4.In my adult life, I have never lived anywhere for more than three years. I don't redecorate, I move...I think I have nomadic blood and I actually like to move into a new house.

5. In keeping with the nomadic theme, if I was rich, I would travel to obscure places all over the world and never settle down anywhere. (it's my dream, the kids can go with me right?) I would mingle with the real "people".

6. when I was a kid, I either wanted to be a missionary in Morocco or a scientist like Marie Curie..

Now I am supposed to tag six people...I like being tagged but I don't like the tagging part.....So I tag everyone on my "blogs I visit " list on the sidebar...Go see em', see what they write or if they write at all!

Memorial day weekend...

It was a fun one and a busy one and the weather was sweet...for the most part. Saturday, the kids and I hit some garage sales. It is the season, they were everywhere. Liv was on the lookout for "the big score" according to Liv which means stuffed animals, her passion. She found them. Andrew found a "hot wheels size' school bus and I found some cool crafty stuff and a new keyboard as my old one is a sorry looking beast. It now as a new home in the garbage. The kids dad, Mark, came up on Saturday Evening and they were happy about that. Yesterday it was a group effort in the garden, we finally planted tomatoes and some flower seeds, then off to the beach. There was a pretty good breeze going or otherwise it would have been darn right hot. We all got in the water anyway and had a good splash and then the kids and I built fairy houses out of little pieces of wood and dried seaweed...A clam dig and bbq followed....Today was a pretty quiet day as we were up late last night. The kids watched a movie and I sewed...The other day I made a skirt for Liv from the new Better homes and Gardens "Quilts and More" issue and today I made a very pink quilted pillow....It is 18" and really pretty....I also cut out a couple pairs of shorts to sew up for Daniel. He is growing like crazy right now and eating like a horse or maybe two...So anyway, Happy Memorial Day everyone..........

finishing a quilt top........

I worked on my Washington shop hop 06' quilt top today....I just cant seem to get the thing finished! I have told myself I can't go to this years shop hop, unless this quilt is done. I did make some progress today and thought I would post pictures...I have a blue and red big border to add to all sides and of course it needs to be quilted and bound, but I thought I would show my progress so far. Maybe it will inspire me to finish the darn thing, who knows? I didn't use any kind of a pattern, just built it around the blocks...I have said before that I am about charm, not about being precise...After looking at it, I realized that if I had planned, I probably could've had matching points all over the place but sadly, I am not much of a planner either...Oh well, maybe in my next life...

second atc....

the first post didn't include this picture for some reason! Darn thing!

Flower Atc's....

Olivia had a big Brownie (girl scout) camp out this weekend and Andrew and I tagged along. We had so much fun and the weather was just perfect...I have been washing clothes and putting things away all day, but I did take time to make a couple of Atc's. We are having a flower themed challenge on Fab atc's....I just used free motion sewing and jazzed them up with crystals...We sure get some beautiful cards out there in our group! Once I get caught up on the laundry, I am going to start a skirt for Liv. There is a really cute and simple pattern in the "quilts and More" Better homes and gardens this month....back to the washer and dryer!

garden pages for Heather H.

I am in the second year of a round robin for my "color me silly" group...This year we are just mailing out pages for others books instead of the whole books...I think in part it is because my book and another persons book got lost in Canada for quite a while and then the postal expense...it IS easier, but I miss seeing every ones books...This layout is for a garden themed "Mary Mary Quite Contrary,"book...I stumbled around a bit trying to think about what to do but in the end I just started playing and quit thinking...I used organza to print the vintage girls on.I like the look of it.

Summer Swap....See icon on the sidebar!

I am playing in a Summer Swap hosted by Karla...We are supposed to swap a ten dollar limit summer themed gift with another player..I finished mine today...It is a Tussie Mussie with Dried rosemary and lavender in it and I have a couple of surprise summer goodies to include and wrap all pretty...It has vintage bathing beauties on it, old sheet music and beads and buttons...I had fun making it. This is the second one I have made...the first has been given as a gift...If you click on the sidebar for the summer swap you can find out more info about the swap.