My Quick Project

Since the Americana flag banner quilt project was making me brain dead I felt that I needed to make something "fun" to pep me up. Here it is, my Mary Engelbreit themed sewing machine cover. I looked in my jar of bindings (I like to make bindings and label them for future projects) and pulled out some black binding which was left over from a previous project and as it so happened it was just enough to complete this project!

Do you want to make this project?

This is for All of my girlfriends that are interested in the pattern- here you go!

Being the crafty person that I am here is how much fabric you're going to need...

*outside print ½ yard (now if you want to make binding from this fabric then you will need to buy more of it because it does take ALL of the ½ yard)

*lining fabric ½ yard (I used muslin)

*binding took about ¾ of a yard length wise piece that was 2½ wide x length of fabric cut 2 pieces measuring 15 wide x 10½ tall for the front and back of the cover cut 1 piece 7½ x36 wide for the middle piece.

Do the same with the lining now if you want to quilt this..you will need a larger piece of muslin or other lining fabric say about ¾ of a yard and that same with the quilt batting. The quilt batting and lining fabric needs to be cut larger than the outside pieces to allow for shifting.

Now if you make this please let me know because I'd love to see the finished project!

Fall in Love with your crafting space

This is a special area in your home that is your retreat, your own special little haven where you can play with paper, scissors and fabric. This spot needs to be comfortable and functional.

Start with the simplest of things first- Color. Find a color that works for you- be it yellow which is high energy. My first official scrapbook nook was a yummy yellow which was great for that small space. Or your tatses may take you to choose a subtle Aqua which is tranquility, which by the way is the color of my current Scrapbook Nook. Keep in mind that the color you choose will be all around you and can have an effect on making the room feel larger or smaller not to mention your mood. Check out this article on the meaning of color, it delves into the emotions/feelings that are associated with a particular color. I have used this as my reference point when teaching color theory classes to scrapbookers, the class has been a sell out every time I offer it. And for those of you who are wondering...yes I do plan on teaching scrapbooking and other crafting classes once I move to the UK.

Form follows function- that's furniture. I like to start with the basics...shelving is essential to storage, and my favorite shelving has to be hands down the chrome shelves that you see in places like Sam's Club and Cooking Stores. These kinds of shelves are adjustable and can hold more weight than you can ever put on them! Wood is great and all, but tends to warp, metal is your best bet- after all paper, cardstock and wood mounted stamps can be quite weighty. Don't like the color of chrome? Many now come in white and a matte black. Me, I prefer the industrial look, it's also a finish that won't scratch or flake off.

If this is a place where you will be sitting make sure to have a comfortable chair. Too many times I see crafters with the worst kinds of chairs. This is where to spend your money. Get one that is comfortable but also has an adjustable lumbar support and seat height. There's nothing worse than back pain when you're trying to craft. If you prefer to stand while you craft then invest in one of those thick cushy mats, I'm currently looking into that for my kitchen... actually, I'd like to have my entire kitchen floor covered in that stuff, LOL! But that's another story :-)

What I'm getting at is this- make your space comfortable. Look on-line and see what others have in their spaces and how it works for them then think about what will work for you and your space. Don't be afraid to ask people where they found the items that work for them- nice people share ideas and welcome questions. There are tons of great crafting rooms out there to look at- webshots is a great stepping stone, go out and look around and gather ideas!

Quote of the Day

"Strength is the ability to break a chocolate bar into four pieces with your bare hands - and then eat just one of those pieces."
~ Judith Viorst

I see the light at the end of the tunnel

I'm down to the last bit that has to be sewn on my Americana quilt project (from hell). It's the 2 main pieces that need to be sewn together. I'm letting my husband choose the way the piece will be displayed as this is for his office. To hang horizontal or vertical.

Meanwhile...I don't how it happened but my rather pricey ironing board fell apart. It's not broken, it's just that 2 pieces came apart and for the life of me I can not get them back together. So here I am wanting to press some fabric for a quick little project and I can't-ugh! So with that, I suppose that I will have to get back to the hand stitching that's required on that Americana charm quilt. It's cold out so it won't be a "chore" to have to sit down and work some more on the binding. I'll turn on the TV and see what's been recorded on the DVR -hopefully it won't have hiccuped and I have nothing but Battlestar Galactica on it again (insert eye roll here).

And a note to my neighbors (in case they are reading) who are probably thinking that I'm a lunatic because I'm wearing sunglasses in my house- I want to let you know that it's because of the major amount of glare coming off from the snow right now. I'd much rather let the light come in and warm my home naturally and not get a migraine headache from it, hence me wearing my stylish mod sunglasses indoors.

why is it???

That my children always seem to need something done at the last minute? Last nights dinner conversation was interesting. You see, tonight the AFJROTC is having a dance/social and knowing my son I know that he has signed up to bring something in the "eats" category. So I ask him- "So Andrew, you never said if you are bringing anything to the social", my boys says "yeah, I thought that you could whip up a cheesecake so I can bring one in". my reply- "So when were you planning on telling me this?" His reply (with a big cheesy smile) I'm telling you know aren't I?



So before doing anything else this morning...even before having my morning coffee, I made a lovely 9 inch New York cheesecake and it is baking in the oven as I type. I feel as if the first hurdle of the day is over, now I can actually start my day. For my day? Basic household duties and finishing that darn quilt top! I thought that I'd have had it finished in a day, maybe a day and a half but Noooooooooo that's not the case at all!

So here I am looking out of the window seeing the snow falling to the ground and am looking at the warm temperatures (can you feel the sarcasm?) Oh by the way it's now 1º F and with the wind-chill factor it's a whopping -14ºF. In case you were wondering... this is why I'm in need of a vacation! St Maarten would be lovely right about now!

will I ever be done with this quilting project?

I'm making progress on my quilting project and truly am on the "home stretch". I had no idea how busy I would be this week- even with being at home I was constantly interrupted (not that I minded the interruptions, they were very welcome). I'll be able to post pictures (soon) of the project that gave me such headaches. It's actually not a bad pattern, it looks "simple enough" (famous last words right there folks). Now the funny part is that there are not any directions on how to proceed on the cutting and piecing the binding. It calls for ONE fat quarter for the binding and that's it- now I don't have a clue as to how that little piece of fabric is going to make the binding for something that is almost lap quilt sized. Other than my questions regarding the small amount of fabric for the binding, I don't care for the way that the red and white stripe that was used for the picture looks on the finished quilt (and I even bought some of that fabric- what was I thinking?) and with that very thought, I've decided to go with a different print. I plan on making a scrapbook layout on this adventure...so the next time I pull this pattern out I can be aware of what I'm getting myself into, LOL!

It's bitterly cold outside (a whopping -13º F with the wind chill) needless to say I plan on staying toasting warm indoors! I thought about a stroll to the mail box, but I've decided that I'll give my letters to my children to send off for me instead.

Quote of the Day

"The road to happiness lies in two simple principles; find what interests you and that you can do well, and put your whole soul into it - every bit of energy and ambition and natural ability you have."
~ John D. Rockefeller

Life on the Prairie

It's a 2 hour late start for all schools in our little school district because of the snow and black ice underneath of it. I've lived in other parts of the US where it snowed but no place have I experienced the blowing snow like it does here in these parts. The blowing snow makes for large snow drifts, here in my little neighborhood those snow drifts can reach upwards to 7 feet tall and many feet wide. I'm ready for winter to be over, how about you?

I woke up in the middle of the night with my left foot aching something awful! I'm telling you, those sharp pains reminded me what it was like before I had my foot surgery last May. My first thought was "oh no, not again". It's been several hours since that initial shock wave of pain and my foot still hurts! I do believe that it's time for some more pain medication. This is just off the wall. The pain is like an ice pick going through the side of my foot (pretty intense, right?). Lucky me!

It's snowing and that means that my husband took my car (and I use that term loosely), that would now be the Subaru. He doesn't drive "his" car (the Corvette) in the snow and ice (and I don't want him to either). I'll be home today- all day here in the house. There's no escaping the Americana quilt project now, LOL! I bought some homespun fabric the other day for a (yes I'll say it) a new project. Now for me to get this show on the road and get to work on something fun and crafty.

Quote of the Day

"it's not just learning things that's important. It's learning what to do with what you learn and learning why you learn things at all that matters."
~ Norton Juster

It's Wednesday Gromit

It's Wednesday and more over, it's Ash Wednesday. I "thought" that I would be at home all day working on things around the house but alas I've had to go out twice today and will be out again for a 3rd time in another hour or so. Just when I thought that I had the day to myself so I could finish that Americana themed quilt project (basically, I just want to be done with the darn thing). So here I am folding laundry, making beds and returning phone calls. I'm not doing the things that I thought that I'd be doing today, not at all.

I did meet my husband for lunch which was a nice change of pace. When I returned home from lunch with my hubby, I saw that my neighbors were packing up their house in preparation for their move to Alaska (and we thought it was cold here, HA!). It's a stark reminder of what the future holds as this will be in our future and will be happening in a few short months. But for us there will be a few months in-between the movers packing and unpacking OUR household items.

We're supposed to have another snow storm- no I'm not excited about that what so ever. I'm ready for winter to be over and done with. For once I'd like to see some flowers during these bleak months. But I know better than to hope for such things. Heck, we can have a major snow storm in May and be stuck in our houses for 3 days...like we did last year, ugh!

Time for some tea and to think about more pleasant things...a Caribbean cruise/vacation would be so nice right about now, don't you think so? :-)

Quote of the Day

It's not that some people have willpower and some don't. It's that some people are ready to change and others are not.
~James Gordon, M.D.

Fabric Distortion

The issues or problems that I'm having with my quilting project lay chiefly with fabric distortion. You see, I have 20 different red fabrics and 20 different off white fabrics cut into 3 inch squares and then sewn together in lengths of 20 squares each. Did I mention that they are all from different fabric manufacturers? And I wonder why I'm having problems, LOL! When you are working with so many different brands there are other things to consider...the biggest one being the thread count. Some fabrics are made with thicker threads and some are made with more threads and that's where the problems are (grrr). Knowing what the problems are or why I'm having them does not make me any more happy than I was a couple of hours ago but at least I know that it's not something that I did to cause myself this grief...okay so maybe it is my fault since I did buy the fabric. But seriously this is what the pattern called for and I followed it's directions but it never mentioned anything about the possibility of fabric distortion. And what ever you do- DON'T use a steam iron when pressing your seams! Believe it or not but using the steam setting while pressing your seams can make fabric distortion worse! I didn't do that (thank goodness or I'd be bald from pulling my hair out).

I'm going to have a little lunch and get back to my sewing and seam ripping. I may be done with this by tonight or worse case scenario tomorrow afternoon. Then it's on to the sandwiching and then the quilting process. I just might send this out to be professionally quilted, I'm still tossing that idea around in my head.

my new name should be "the crabby quilter"

This Americana flag wall hanging is giving me a major headache! If I wasn't so damn anal I would have just sewed it up and said "There" and I'd be done with it. But nooooooooooooo, I've got to take seams out here and there, sew and then rip them out again because I'm off by less than an eighth of an inch! Yes it's safe to say that I'm feeling rather frustrated and crabby right now. Grrrrrr! But I am determined more than ever to get this project over with!

poke me with a stick!

As I look at the list I typed up yesterday, all I can say is Damn that's a lot of work! I know that if I really try that I can get most of it done... if I don't leave the house and stop hanging out on Facebook chatting with friends.

Now here's something to make you all smirk and a little chuckle...I now remember why I put a couple of those projects aside. As I was working on the flag wall hanging yesterday, it all started coming back to me, LOL! The batik table runner...oh yeah that baby is going to have to wait a bit longer. I'll admit it right now, working with triangles is not one of my strong suits. I need to be completely relaxed and not in a hurry to accomplish anything, that's when I can work with a project that is made up entirely of triangles. What was I thinking when I started that anyway? It was as if I put myself on a collision course with stress, LOL! Yup, up until that point I found quilting to be relaxing- damn triangles!

Now for my other challenge of the day...getting the kids out the door for school. To tidy up the house and then to let my crafty goodness take over and kick out some of these projects. I'm armed with a hot mug of coffee, my camera, my sewing machine and of course my trusty seam ripper :-) If you haven't heard from me in a few hours send out the search and rescue team because most likely there's been an avalanche in my quilting corner and I'm buried underneath of a massive pile of fabric.

Quote of the Day

Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy.
~Norman Vincent Peale (1898 - 1993)

I love Mondays!

I know that most other folks don't particulary care for Mondays, but it's my most favorite day of the week. I look at Monday as being the start of something new and fresh.

It's ever so quiet here today, perfect for me to take out some of those UFO's of mine. What are UFO's? It's a quilters term for "Unfinished Objects", and trust me I have a handful of them!

*There's that Americana Flag wall hanging I started many months ago and got half way through it and stopped (I got side tracked with other projects). So it's my goal to get it finished and put on display in our home office.

*The Flying Geese (that's the pattern) Table Runner done in batik fabrics- it's been cut and partially sewn. I put it aside until I felt more comfortable about working with triangles. This might have to stay in a holding pattern a while longer.

*My tote bags- I've got about a dozen of them cut and ready to be sewn together. I really do need to get on this and get them done and listed in Etsy.

*Tulip lap quilt- all of the pieces are cut, they just need me to sew them together.

*the Peter Rabbit baby quilt top that I finished months ago that needs me to cut a backing for it and then to quilt it.

*the 8 pillow tops that need me to finish them.

*the Americana themed Log Cabin Table runner for the dresser here in our home office. The fabric has been cut and rs ready to be sewn together.

Lets see how much I can get done this week!

Quote of the Day

No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.
Aesop (620 BC - 560 BC), The Lion and the Mouse

Bye bye Prairie Schooner

It's been a sad day for me as my Honda Odyssey minivan aka The Prairie Schooner is now on it's way to St. Louis and from there it will be placed inside of a cargo container and shipped off to England. I'm going to miss my kid mobile more than anyone will ever know...I really love that minivan of mine! From the XM satellite radio to my Parrot hands free cell phone device to it's heated leather seats and GPS down to it's heated exterior side mirrors and the DVD player. I'm going to miss it all! And it's even been modified and is UK road ready! It'll be one big happy reunion in June when I see it again. With any luck, it'll be waiting for me at the airport!

Quote of the Day

Remember that fear always lurks behind perfectionism. Confronting your fears and allowing yourself the right to be human can, paradoxically, make you a far happier and more productive person.
~Dr. David M. Burns

What is Sandie up to today?

Well, I'm reading up on something I want to try.. paper pieced appliqués using the freezer paper technique. I've not tried this before and well, I'm reading every article on it that I can before I get started. You know me, study, study, study so when I'm ready to try it, I'll know it like the back of my hand! I've got a terrific pattern that I've been itching to try out, it's quite whimsical and will bring smiles to anyone who sees it. Besides the paper piecing thing, I've got a couple of (or 5) projects that are in the "planning" stage. I'm also doing an internet search for two particular fabric lines that I feel are super inspiring (well, they are to me). One is by Moda and the other is by Northcott and they are simply yummy! I'm not going to say what they are until I get them bought- the last time I mentioned something on the internet, well others went and bought everything up and I wasn't able to find what I wanted. So for now, my lips are sealed as to what fabric lines I'm looking for.

My daughter Hannah wants to make some sock critters and she's had her eyes on my sock drawer ever since we got home from Boston this past Monday. Okay, I know that I have a lot of socks but that doesn't mean that I'm willing to sacrifice any of them so she can have at them with a pair of scissors. I'll be a good mom and "look" if there are any stray socks in the sock basket that look like they would be a good prospect for a sock critter. Other than that, maybe a trip to Gordmans is in order...I've got that $10 gift card that I need to use from Christmas. Now to keep my eyes open for socks that are on clearance, do socks go on clearance?

It's time for a cuppa and scones sure do sound good right now and more reading.

Quote of the Day

I see America, not in the setting sun of a black night of despair ahead of us, I see America in the crimson light of a rising sun fresh from the burning, creative hand of God. I see great days ahead, great days possible to men and women of will and vision.
Carl Sandburg (1878 - 1967)

The things we do...

I've always been a "hands on" kind of person. If there's something I wanted to learn about- I took courses on the subject and would do my best to master what ever it was. here's a story for you to make you have a little smirk on your face...

Anyone who has read my blog on a regular or semi regular basis knows that I'm the current president for our Home Owners Association. So as it is, it's dues collecting time. I have neighbors dropping checks off here and there. One of the neighbors ( a dear sweet older lady) came over yesterday afternoon and dropped off her check. My husband and I invited her inside and gave her a tour of the house (since it's up for sale et all) and she loved it! She was quite impressed with my Scrapbook Nook, and she immediately took notice on how I had everything extremely organized. She asked me "how do you do it?" How do I do what? I said...How do you do so many different things? My reply what do you mean? She went on to say how she found it hard for herself to be able to do one kind of craft but that I seem to have mastered many different things and how I was able to keep them all organized so well. I couldn't think of anything to say at the moment other than...Well I don't knit and I smiled and gave a slight chuckle. She continued on this topic (which made me feel a little uncomfortable) and said that she really wanted to know...how are you able to do all of these different things and do them all so well? So feeling cornered and put on the spot for an answer, I told her that I have an active mind, love to use my hands and that I dream in color. I also went on to say that I can't stand being idle, that I HAVE to be doing something with my hands. But other than that...I don't knit. I laughed a little and gave her a big smile. Well what would you say if you were me when asked something like that???

Quote of the Day

I've always had this unresolved desire to prove that I could get a Ph.D., or contribute something else to the world.
~Diane Lane

this quote is so me

My oh my, how time flies...

Today is my husbands 42nd birthday- Happy Birthday Lucien! I laugh when I think about how long we've been together- 20 years now. It doesn't seem like 20 years have gone by, not at all. We'll celebrate 19 years of wedded bliss later on this year- WOW! We'll be in England celebrating our anniversary, how cool is that? I hope that we will be able to celebrate our 20th anniversary in Italy touring the wine country.

I was looking at some pictures of our children that my husband had put up on facebook- oh my gosh our babies have grown so much over the past couple of years. I look at our children and am amazed at how much they look like us (we jokingly refer to them as our clones) and how they are no longer children but are now young adults. I wasn't the kind of mom that cried when her babies went off to start their first days of kindergarten- heck I was thrilled! I was planning luncheon dates with friends and was generally doing the happy dance when they caught the school bus in the morning. But now as I look at our son, knowing that he has only 1 more year at home with us until he leaves for college...it makes me feel a little sad. Even more so since we will be living in England and he will be (most likely) back here in the states. I want to make Andrews' year in England a memorable one, one filled with many fantastic trips and loads of adventures! So when he goes off to college, he can say that he did enjoy his year in England.

Quote of the Day

LIVE A GOOD LIFE. And in the end it's not the years in life, it's the life in the years.
~Abraham Lincoln

I have this very quote hanging on the wall in my kitchen.

I've started another organizing project

I don't think that I'm truly happy unless I'm reorganizing something...today it's the very top and the very bottom shelves in the armoire that my husband custom built just for me to house my crafting supplies, it's where I store my quilting goodies. The top shelf has been this depository of all of my leftover quilt batting scraps, thread and whatnot's and the bottom shelf - well it needs to be gone through and I want to see what's going on in those containers.

After I pick out fabric for my various quilting projects, I like to keep them organized by keeping the fabric, pattern and threads together in those nifty zippered containers that sheets, pillow cases and such come in. It's a great way to keep everything together not to mention dust and pet hair free. Using those zippered containers is part of my reduce/reuse/recycle program. I'm using something that a product came in instead of tossing it the trash.

It's snowing outside (again) it's 19º F and with the windchill it's a whopping 5ºF -brrr! I'm more than happy to be staying indoors today, organizing fabrics, patterns and sewing notions. I'm cutting fabric scraps into 3-4-5 and 6 inch squares and 2½ inch wide x length of fabric strips for my own "jelly rolls" and 1½ inch wide strips x length of fabric for my own "sweet rolls". I'm using my P-touch label maker and am in the process of labeling the containers as to what I have stored in them (this will make it easier to locate items now and after our big move to England). I'll have to get the camera out and take some pictures of what I have going on and add them in later.

Quote of the Day

They say it is better to be poor and happy than rich and miserable, but how about a compromise like moderately rich and just moody?
~Princess Diana

Our Trip to Boston

Our family trip to Boston for the 4 day weekend was anything but dull. We filled out time visiting family and friends and took some time to tour the USS Constitution. My husband received his Air Force commission aboard the USS Constitution and we wanted to take the kids there (again) now that they are older and can fully understand it's historical significance. I managed to take some pictures while aboard the ship. We visited the ships museum and I managed to buy a small counted cross kit- it's kind of rustic looking (just my thing) to work on and put into my husbands home office.

I got to visit a quilt shop in Concord MA called "Quilters Way"- talk about wonderful! It's located in a lovely RED building (you can't miss it). The ladies who work there are charming, the merchandise is to die for and the customer service is top notch! I found fabric there that I've not seen here in South Dakota. Over all it's a wonderful place, one well worth taking a small a detour in your plans while in New England.

Visiting family and friends gets a bit tricky when everyone has children...and those children are involved in sports and other activites. But the guys (my husband and his childhood friends) were able to get together later on in the evening on Sunday. My niece and nephew have grown and are a crack up to be around. But I think that the Grisé side of the family got the bigger surprise when they saw how much our chidlren have grown in the last year. Our children are no longer "little" but are now adult sized. My mother-in-law was even more shocked to see how much our Hannah has grown since she saw her last May. Hannah is now about 1 or 2 inches shorter than I am, we wear the same size shoes (which Hannah she sees as an addition to HER wardrobe). Andrew is taller than his Dad AND his Grandfather- that was really something to laugh at!

While at the Airport in Boston Hannah decides to try my Mocha...and the rest is history! Look at the pictures- the top is on at first next thing I know... she's drank half of my venti mocha!

Here's my Hannah... Did I drink all that? Then she just starts laughing!

Quote of the Day

Mid pleasures and palaces though we may roam,
Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home.
~John Howard Payne (1791 - 1852)

I'm home!

be it ever so humble...there's no place like HOME!!! Oh to sleep in my own bed again!

The trip was anything but dull, but I'll write about it tomorrow. For now it's time to unpack, get some laundry started, play with my darling kitty whom I've not seen in days and just hang out in my house.

I'm home

Boston Bound

Off I go again...using/racking up those frequent flier miles. The weather should be mild-it supposed to be about 38ºF during the day and I have no desire nor plans on being out and about at night so those temperatures do not matter to me. We want to do something touristy on Saturday. My first stop is a quilt shop that's in Concord MA in a town near to where we are staying. I get e-mails from that quilt shop and want to check them out in person:-)

I'm not sure if we're bringing the laptop this time. We are after all, going to computer geek central. Someone certainly would let us have access to a terminal in their home. I would dearly love to bring my quilting project with me to finish up, but alas it is rather large to work on in an airplane, so I'll probably just bring a book to read instead. Maybe I'll look into bringing a counted cross stitching project with me...I better do that soon since we leave in a few hours. There's nothing quite like waiting until the last minute to pack for a trip.

Keep me in your thoughts and prayers as I pay a visit to my in-laws and the multitudes of family that are going to be there to say farewell to us before our move to England. I have a feeling that we will be seeing them a lot more while we live in England than we ever did while we lived in South Dakota.

Quote of the Day

The saying "Getting there is half the fun" became obsolete with the advent of commercial airlines.
~Henry J. Tillman

What does "home" mean to you?

I've been asked a lot of questions pertaining to our move to England. The most frequently asked question being "will I miss "home" while I'm in another country"?. For me, "home" has always been about being with the ones you love, it's not a place on a map, it's about the the people you love. A friend asked me if I miss living in California- honestly, I don't. Alas, my only true ties to the place are my elderly parents. Home will be where ever the Air Force sends us, and I'm okay with that.

I'm preparing for a quick trip to Boston to visit my husbands family. So I may or may not get to blog for a few days- depends upon Internet connection availability and having any (and I use this sparingly) "free time" I may have. It is going to be a rather quick in and out kind of visit.

Now I'm off to see what's going on in rest the world....

Quote of the Day

My home is not a place, it is people.
Lois McMaster Bujold, "Barrayar", 1991

Be Happy

"Be happy with yourself", how many times have you heard that saying? It's one I say quite often...to my children,to my friends and to military spouses. I may change the words around a bit, add some here and there and say "you have to first be happy with yourself before you can be happy with anyone else". It's true you really do need to be happy and content with who you are- you can not expect others to make you happy (it just doesn't work that way).

Happiness is a journey, NOT a destination!

Quote of the Day

“Be like a duck. Calm on the surface, but always paddling like the dickens underneath.”
~ Michael Caine

bad weather day

Our weather was total crap yesterday. The sky was very dark and dreary looking, it started raining first and of course with that came the South Dakota winds and then the rain turned to snow, and then came very high winds (the 50 mph kind). In the afternoon the snow turned to rain- but the torrential down our kind that we had last year. But all in all I'd much rather have rain then snow. For starters, you don't have to shovel rain and you don't get stuck in the rain because the roads weren't plowed.

There we are, the 5 of us at the Box Elder Senior Center doing paper crafts. Peggy brought some marvelous things for us to make...and having that salebration going on is just another incentive to start stocking up on some of the consumable items that I use frequently. Peggy used that really cute heart stamp set again- I love that stamp set! I told myself before that I didn't need it, but once Peggy started showing us how versatile it is, well I just may end up buying it after all, LOL! We were all so quite throughout our time crafting- then after we went to lunch we became more chatty. We spent over 2 hours in the restaurant gabbing about everything! We laughed quite a bit. We could see how bad the weather was getting outside- the snow fall was getting heavier and it was blowing sideways-ugh! Sideways snow means snow drifts- that's not good.

I might have had wind strewn hair when I got home, but I also had a huge smile on my face for having been in the company of good friends. I'll post later pictures from our gathering...have to find where the camera went off to.

I wonder what today brings with it...I think I'll sew something today!

Quote of the Day

There isn't much better in this life than finding a way to spend a few hours in conversation with people you respect and love. You have to carve this time out of your life because you aren't really living without it.
Real Live Preacher, August 27, 2003

Will you be mine?

As we're in church our Priest ends his homily with a surprise...he has all of the married couples stand up and then he talks about Valentines Day coming up on Saturday, the that's when he announced that he's going to preform a ceremony- a renewal of our marriage vows. I thought that this was going to be a special mass on Saturday and I was suddenly bummed that we wouldn't be able to make it because we would be in MA. But wait, he's doing it right there and now! This was so fantastic! It was something to behold, to be able to around at all of the other couples in the church, all holding hands looking at one another. The room was silent with exception of the Priest reciting what we are to say and then us saying it quietly to our partners. Looking into my husbands eyes while he's saying the marriage vows to me, I could see that same look in his eyes when said those same words to me 18½ years ago. It was a great way to end a Mass!

Quote of the Day

Before I met my husband, I'd never fallen in love. I'd stepped in it a few times.
~Rita Rudner

a day in the life...

...Of a paper crafter. I don't think that I'm in my element unless I have at least 3 different or more projects going on. Currently I'm working on a chipboard tissue box, sketches for some layouts AND am finishing up going through and sorting embellishments to keep and give away.

The first thing I started working on...I have had this stack of 30 plus layouts that needed to be put into their respective albums- for MONTHS. I finally got myself motivated to put them away and well, that took me a lot longer than I had expected.

Notes to myself...Before I know it, moving time will be here. I want to have everything ready for packing. That means putting ALL of my scrapbooking things in their proper places and keeping them there. From brads & eyelets and other kinds of embellishments to cardstock and patterned paper, to ink pads and stamps.

You see, I have this bad little habit of not always immediately putting things back in their proper places. I have a basket that stamps, ink pads and embellishments go into and then I wait until it's full then I start to put them away. Right now I have a basket full of stamps and crafting tools to go through, sort and put into their proper places. I try my hardest to keep the entire house ready for showing at a moments notice, but I also feel that this is making me a bit neurotic.

Quote of the Day

Be the change you wish to see in the world.
~Gandhi

random thoughts...

It's a sleepy Saturday morning and the children are still tucked snugly into their beds dreaming away. The cat on the other hand is pinging off the walls like she's drank 3 pots of coffee. My charming husband is at the breakfast table reading the newspaper, meanwhile here I am typing away.

My beloved kid mobile aka the Prairie Schooner has only another week here with me then it's going off on a long trip. Where is my automobile going off to? It's going to start the 1st part of it's journey to England. I won't see my kid mobile again for another 4½ months. I'm going to miss it terribly! from my heated seats and heated mirrors to my XM radio and especially my Parrot (that's my hands free cell phone device). I have to clear all of my belongings out of it this week and get it ready for transport- I feel as if I'm saying goodbye to my best friend (again). I'm going to get my car washed and take pictures of it today and make a layout about it.

Quote of the Day

All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.
~Walt Disney

just another busy day in the neighborhood

I bet you all are wondering where I've been all day...what I've been up to. Well, being the busy on the go kind of gal that I am... I talked to my friend in England at 3:30 am (keep in mind that it's 7 hours later there), started another paper crafts project at 6 am, by 9:30 am I had billed 60 neighbors for HOA Dues and got the billing in the mail. I had already e-mailed them all and now they get a hard copy bill. Did I mention that the enveloped were hand addressed? UGH! Plus making 3 beds, spot cleaned 3 bathrooms and I took a child to school. My day starts with large doses of caffeine!

Now It's time to kick off the high heels and relax with a cuppa! I wish that I had a tin of those yummy shortbread cookies...but alas my daughter found them the other day and nibbled them all up!

I'll post pictures of my latest paper crafting project that will go in my daughters bedroom. I have to take a trip into town tomorrow and pick up some modge podge to finish up the project, plus go to a quilters event at one of the local quilt shops. Oh yeah I'm always on the go!

Quote of the Day

You can't help getting older, but you don't have to get old.
~George Burns

Friendship

I had a good friend e-mail me yesterday that she needed some help...scrapbooking help that is :-) She and her husband just PCS'd (that's moved) from here - Ellsworth AFB, SD down south to Dyess AFB, TX. My friend and her husband recently bought their first home and my friend was in the process of getting her home office/scrapbook room set up. As it was, my friend decided to use 2 strong accent colors for the scrapbooking area and was wanting to get some scrapbooking papers in those 2 colors. She wanted to know which paper companies to check out. I decided to do her one better...I made a "care package" and I'm sending her papers in those colors! Being able to help my friend in this small matter makes me feel good inside. She was always supportive in my causes -she attended my Scrap for the Cause benefit too!

My thought for the day...sow seeds of kindness where ever you may roam.

Quote of the Day

A tree is known by its fruit; a man by his deeds. A good deed is never lost; he who sows courtesy reaps friendship, and he who plants kindness gathers love.
~Saint Basil

My Scrapbook Nook before pictures

When I get in one of my "moods" I pull it all out and go for broke until I have it all arranged just the way I want it. I made a huge mess and got it back together again...only took 1½ days.

My Scrapbook Nook After Pictures

Here are my "after" pictures- did you notice that I had rearranged a few things, hung up some pictures on the walls (I've been meaning to do that for a while now). And now you get to see what I have inside of the cabinets/cupboards.

Before and After pictures of My Scrapbook Nook

stay tuned for pictures!

I've come up for some air, okay so it's more like a Special K bar and a glass of milk. I was able to get a lot of work done while talking on the phone to my mom...I love that speaker phone option- hands free all the way baby! As my Mom says to me (with her German accent) "Sandie didn't you just reorganize your scrap room a week or two ago?" This time around there's no donate pile it's lots of little items that needed to be taken out of their packaging and placed into space saving containers, magazines that I just tossed into the recycling bin and paper scraps that weren't worth saving or the gas to drive them anywhere. All I can say is that I think that I'm happy with the room with how it looks now.I'll be back to post some pictures in a bit but I have to run out to the post office and send off a couple of items. I'll be back in 30 minutes or less (I sound like a pizza delivery commercial).

Quote of the day

I like not only to be loved, but to be told I am loved.
~George Eliot

what a mess!

I did it to myself again...pulled out everything from a cabinet and am in the process of putting things into 3 piles- Toss- Keep- Sell/Donate. I'm taking pictures of the mess that I've created...and will take pictures of it when it's all cleaned up and re-organized.

The lower cabinet on the right hand side of my work area has turned into a "shove it in and close the door kind of area thanks to my kids. I strive to be organized but lately I've been driving myself nuts with having to tuck stuff away when someone comes to look at the house.

The constant perfectionist in me is always looking for a better way of doing something, to be more efficient in my manner of arranging items, of how I place items in storage, etc. I am my mother's worst nightmare come to life...a professional organizer, LOL! You see, my Mom is queen of clutter. Her house is not messy, it's just that all of her crafting items needs to be contained and organized. :-)

Alright I've had my snack and quick of drink of water time to get back to work!

another grand opening

Michael's Arts and Crafts is now opened for business. I plan on going in and using that 50% off coupon that I got in the mail, but only if I find a must have item. I refuse to buy something there for the sale of buying something. I have plenty of scrapbooking supplies and tools...but would be willing to part with a few $$ if I found a cricut cartridge at a good price.

I'm in the midst of cleaning up the mess I made in my scrapbook nook yesterday. I need to sweep and mop and put papers, tools and embellishments back in their proper places. Off I got to finish what I started...call out a search party if you don't hear from me in a couple of hours.

Quote of the Day

Real joy comes not from ease or riches or from the praise of men, but from doing something worthwhile.
~Sir Wilfred Grenfell

Cards cards cards and more cards!

I've always loved sending out Valentines Day cards to my family and friends. This year is no exception. I've made a special card one adapted from the card I made at paper crafting group with my friend Peggy. As much as I loved the stamps we worked with that day, I could not see myself investing in yet another set of valentine/heart stamps (not that it wasn't cute, it's that I don't need any more). As it stands now, I have a shoebox FULL of heart shaped and valentine themed stamps- buying any more would just be a waste of monies better spent on something else such as consumable supplies like 8½x11 cardstock.

So here I am working off of the Valentine's Day card (see above card) that we did and I'm making other cards...birthday, thinking of you and of course thank you cards. I need to stock up on what I call the "essentials of greeting cards" and well when I've got a good design down pat- I roll with it! Some of you might look at all of the cards and say WOW that's a lot of cards- but trust me I'll run out of them before the end of the year.

made 5 of these at the card making marathon at Peggy's house the other day-what a great way to use up the frames you've had hanging around for ages!

Also made 5 of these bumble bee cards, I love the simplicity of this design.

made only 1 of these- it was very time consuming, this is the kind of card you make for someone who won't be tossing it in the trash the next day.

My 2009 Valentines Day Card- made with Stampin Up stamps, punches and my Cricut (I used the heart from George).

Again with the Stampin Up stamps and my Cricut Doodle Charms for the flower.

here are more cards that I made at Pegs- in all, we made 20 birthday cards!

Now after I got home I got busy making even more cards...I made (are you ready)...
50 more Birthday cards after I got home
25 Thinking of You cards
24 Thank You cards
25 Valentine's Day cards

Thats a grand total of...144 cards!
For a grand total of 108 cards- woohoo!

Quote of the day

A strong positive mental attitude will create more miracles than any wonder drug.
~Patricia Neal

My One Word

Ever since my friend Gina announced her One Word for 2009, it's got me thinking about my One Word. The one word is supposed to best describe what you desire in your life for 2009- and it's only taken me a month to figure this out for myself, My one word is "Balance".

feeding my addictions...

I bet that my topic title will get a lot of Google hits today, LOL! As many of you already know or are beginning to realize, I'm seriously addicted to crafting! Not a day goes by when I'm not making something.

Well one of the charming ladies over at UK Scrappers made a post about my tote bags and well I'm going to get them out and finish them all up. I've got at least a dozen of them (in different fabrics) cut and ready to sew up. Once they are done I'll be listing them for sale on my Etsy site. I've gotten a little side tracked with all of my other crafting interests and well I've been meaning to get this done for quite a while. So once they are done I'll post pictures here and let everyone know that they are also available at my etsy site.

I'm also going to be taking some more pictures of some other crafty items and posting them for sale as well (I've been meaning to do this for a while as well).

Selling my handmade items also helps to feed my crafting additions...scrapbooking, card making, quilting, sewing, counted cross stitching, and embroidery. Now I don't do knitting or crocheting- I don't think that I have any room to spare for a collection of yarn, LOL!

Quote of the Day

Don't marry the person you think you can live with; marry only the individual you think you can't live without.
~James C. Dobson