a little red

This little blog of mine...

2007-09-18T18:35:00.003-05:00

Has moved.

If you'd like to know where, email me!

Check it out!

2007-07-28T22:49:00.001-05:00

Go Anglicans.

In other news,

I've moved my blogging elsewhere... I don't know if I'm staying or not - but I'm there right now.

If you want to know where, simply shoot me an email or leave a comment here (I'll keep checking) and I'll fill you in.

Return To Sender, Address Unknown...

2007-07-24T21:43:00.000-05:00

This morning we were awoken by Federal Postal Investigation agents.

Yeah.

At 7:30 they had 2 SUV's parked on my front lawn and wanted to take me somewhere to investigate something. The asked if they could come in and ask a couple of questions before they took me to wherever it was they wanted to question me. (Please note, I did not plan to GO anywhere to be questioned without a lawyer - I'm not that stupid.)

They came into the livingroom and sat down with me still in my PJ's.

I was a good bit confused as to what I possible could have done.

See, I've been to the post office before... just a week or two ago I went for the first time in months and mailed a couple of packages. I brought my kids and wondered... "oh geezzzzz... what did they touch while I wasn't looking???"

I then went back last week to mail another to England. So my next thought was "uh-oh... did I mess up the customs form? No... that wouldn't bring on an actual visit... would it??"

If case you are wondering, the answer is no.

Apparently they were looking for a gal with the same name as me who worked as a CNA in Cleveland, TN... I've never been a CNA - I nearly took the test in college, but decided not to. I got to see her file - well, the outside of it. It was pretty large. One of those expanding accordion files jammed full.

I told them that I'd never held a job in the state of Tennessee. I told them my birthday (not the same as hers). I told them that 'Watts' is not my maiden name, and that I've never had any of her other names.

They seemed to believe me and decided that... of all things... the United Postal Service had... wait for it... can you guess????

The Wrong Address!

So, I have now been interrogated by Federal agents. I do have to say that I think they did a really shoddy job of it. See... I could have (not that I was, mind you) been lying in all my answers because they never once asked to see any identification to verify that I was indeed who I was making myself out to be.

How was your morning?

Geek Party

2007-07-23T12:01:00.001-05:00

Since I've been reading rather then getting pictures off the camera and into the computer this is a little late...

Friday night we - in true geek fashion - went to the release party for the final Harry Potter book... Costuming was, of course, an essential for this family. I was a rather under-dressed Mrs. Weasley.

Rory was charming and spacy as Luna Lovegood...

Kater was Hermione (disguised in Slytherin green)

Em (leaping) was a rather too cute Delores Umbridge

It was a long night of revelry and resting on benches

Jme wore his Gryffandor t-shirt
and Charley was Harry (though he forgot his glasses at home)

I got the chance to snap a picture of something that makes for...

Happy Geeks!

I've finished the book just this morning. I'm quite satisfied. I won't post any more about it until Jme has been able to finish... suffice to say I cried.

The Man Stole My Book...

2007-07-22T14:19:00.000-05:00

So I'm online trying not to turn around and snatch it from his hands while he reads happily on the sofa behind me.

Now that's an idea: post all the good things you see in your blog. That way you don't have to have lists and bookmarks.

Tell me, why is it that there are people who are blogging about all the 'cool' things they make and selling them for big bucks - things I've been doing for years! Why am I so totally unable to market myself? I mean... I have things all over my house that I have made that people buy from "indi-crafters" yet I can never manage to break into the club. Whine, whine, whine.

Train Up Your Children - Take 2...

2007-07-21T17:08:00.001-05:00

So, I went to the curriculum fair.

It was lackluster.

I bought a lovely secondhand Tomie DePaola book of Bible stories that had pretty pictures.

I found the math curriculum that I want, but didn't have enough money to buy it... gonna try off eBay I guess.

And I spent nearly 3 hours there yesterday and just wanted to throw things the entire time.

Bravo to Gateway for not having the 'training' book out on their table, though they did have Ted Tripp, who's not much better. I hid it behind some other books.

*snicker*

But maybe it's cause those darned No Greater Joy people had their own frickin' table - cleverly disguised under another name, but selling nothing but their crap.

It took everything in me not to yell at them and throw things at their heads.

I come from very conservative roots. I have a pretty solid conservative education. I even impressed a lil' ol' independent baptist preacher in the bookstore the other day by finding him a good bible commentary that would explain some things in line w/ his world-view.

I'm not so much a conservative baptist anymore, but they don't really get to me as much as bad theology disguised as being 'real' Christianity (if you don't follow, go check out pelagianism and then take a really good look at NGJ's theology - it's NOT what they are selling it to be!).

Tell me what you believe up front. I may not agree, but we can still be friends.

Lie to me and you'll never get me to hear anything else from you - even if it may have a tiny spark of good in it.

There were crappy parenting books all over the place. I did see a measly two copies of good ones - but it just makes me SO upset to see the others everywhere. There are so many people who buy into that 'training' crap as a part of being a 'good Christian homeschooling family' - they take it part and parcel and don't even give a second thought to what they really should be doing for/with their kids. They just buy the party line and don't think for themselves as they create another generation of little robot-homeschool kids who will raise their kids the exact same way and wonder what is missing from their relationships.

Herein lies my most recent dilemma.

I am finding that I want to do things that would identify me with people I don't in any way want to be identified with.

I'm too conservative for the liberals. I'm too liberal for the conservatives. And it's becoming a pain the the butt...

Oh well. What does it really mater. I have the last Harry Potter (we went to the release party last night - fun!) and I'm almost halfway done...

I should have known...

2007-07-18T21:02:00.001-05:00

The Home-Schooling conference is this weekend and I was actually pretty excited to go.

I was even thinking about stopping in for a couple of the seminars they were offering. But I'm an informed shopper, and I always check people out before I waste my time listening to them try to brainwash me. And boy am I glad I checked out some of these folks.

See... I was kind of intrigued by this parenting seminar that was supposed to be all about getting to the heart of your child rather then focusing on their actions. Rather sounds like my kind of thought process for parenting...

Never mind though, 'cause the folks who are doing it are all in favor of spankings and deem them biblically mandated - yeah, not just an option, but a requirement.

Now, most of my friends know I'm an avid non-spanker. Period. I'm all about Gentle, Grace Based, Discipline. Its my job to teach my children to make good choices and guide them as they grow up. But I won't do it by instilling fear of beatings into them.

I know people who spank and we're still friends. I don't agree that they are doing the best thing for their kids, but there's nothing I can do about it - other then refusing to allow my bathroom to be used for beatings.

And the one thing I refuse to stomach is organizations who use their power to tell parents that GOD wants them to spank their naughty little children - and they are sinning if they don't.

So there go my top choices for the seminars at the CSTHEA Curriculum Fair.

Oh, I'm still going to the fair. I'll have fun looking at books with my little girls and being a freak.

Maybe I'll make a burka and see what all the denim-jumper mom's think? *giggle*

Or maybe I'll just make a few little hand outs to sneak into the books by those evil Pearls that I just know will be on Gateway's table like always. Maybe this year I'll be brave enough to pick a little fight about it...

Thank you Ginger!

2007-07-14T15:57:00.000-05:00

We got spoiled last night... with the highlight being Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Very good. Very close to my head's idea of what things should look like. Fantastic costuming - the main reason I go to movies in the first place. Now I can waste time sourcing out the fabrics and dreaming about making reproductions. Mrs. Weasley had some fabulous prints on her clothing...

2007-07-10T10:21:00.001-05:00

The dreads are going. It makes me sad, but I can't keep them.

See, the beads were giving me headaches... so I took them out. And within a day 1/2 the dreads were loose and falling apart. The other half were turning into a huge knotty mess that I could not get to dread - just to bunch and loop and knot - and not in a good dreaddy way, but rather in a bad rats nest of mashed hair.

So out they are coming. I'm not even having to fight them too much. There are a few in the front that are really tight... the back is totally dread free right now, but there are maybe 6 or 8 left up front.

I had thought that dreads would be a perfect addition to my simplification plan - but it turned out that they were more then just a little absent minded rubbing of the head while watching TV - it was hours and hours of it, with a ton of beads, and worry about keeping them clean and...

Anyhoo.

Last night I found quite the find. I was at a mega-store killing time whilst jme was haveing a planing meeting over coffee w/ some friends. I found myself, somehow, in the fabric department and all willpower left me when I saw gorgeous robins egg blue wool suiting for

can you guess???

$1.00 per yard!!!

Yeah. Pretty darn amazing if you ask me. I also got some lovely brown acrylic knit, a soft shades of gray and blue and brown and pink and lavender stripe (very faint and misty) and a pink knit. And wouldn't you know they all look lovely together. They will become the most fantastic little girls' fall wardrobe.

2007-06-22T12:06:00.000-05:00

It's far too quiet around here.

Bet you never thought I'd say that!

I guess this is what a house is like with no kids... Kater and Em have been at day camp all week, and they are leaving tonight for Florida with their dad and his family. Charley and Rory will be home for the weekend later today, but most of the time they are at their moms.

So, I must be getting all kinds of things done with them out from underfoot... right?

Nope.

I'm lucky if I get anything done this past week!

Well... I do have a lot of time to read, and I've nearly finished re-writing the Nursery guidebook for VCF. My floors are pretty darn clean with nobody walking all over 'em in dirty shoes. The only thing in the sink is coffee cups. The cats are incredibly well fed. I check the fish tanks like 4 times a day. I obsess about little things. I watch re-runs of Big Love and thank my lucky stars that we don't 'share' - though I've got to tell you, a sister wife to deal with the housework and only the housework would rock.

Last night I had what I think was a migraine. I've never had one before that I can recall... but it felt like my head was in a vice, the lights were all way to bright, the cats were too loud, and I felt nauseous. I finally fell asleep and it was gone this morning.

Today has been better. I decided to sew. I don’t know why I take breaks from it... seriously, it’s like a mood-stabilizing drug for me. I get all out of whack and can’t figure out why... then I sew and everything is better. I think its the drone of the machine and the focused concentration. I pray a lot when I sew. It’s so meditative.

After seeing Stacy’s cool button-up-shirt-apron, I decided I had to have one.

Since Jme was not home to beg for a shirt, I found one of mine from the ‘give-away’ pile... a fantastic black linen thing that I bought at the thrift store and wore once before the sleeve fabric gave out. It is perfect. My camera is being fuzzy... but you get the idea.

I love the way the hem comes to curvey points... and the front waist is made with the collar folded and pressed down nice and neat.

It has a black elastic waistband, with a big chunky black button that slides into a loop...

I used a floral stitch to decorate it... though it doesn't show well in the photos, it's really pretty.

2007-06-11T12:32:00.001-05:00

It's been a busy busy busy couple of weeks... We've switched to summer schedule with the kids, and been working on the house. I've been sewing a ton - working on a box for a friend's store at the beach in NJ, scrub hats, baby slings, apron's for Jme's class at school and more.

We've also raised Painted Lady Butterflies...

Mini Me

2007-05-16T08:09:00.000-05:00

Emily has been sewing a lot recently. She started with little projects in an embroidery hoop - note the bead patterns.

Last week, she and Kater decided that they wanted to design an outfit for Rory... needless to say, Rory will not be wearing it out of the house! But I've got to hand it to them - they did it all on their own and Rory thought it was fantastic! Kater has decided she's more into the design of items, rather then the actual construction...

I decided they were ready for a sewing machine - so we set up my cheap-o Singer from Wally-World and the fabric has been flying ever since! I was a little worried about tiny fingers getting sewn, but they are being amazingly careful and are taking it slow...

Emily gets this look on intense satisfaction when she's sewing. She looks how I feel when I sew...

Jme says that she sits like I do... perched on the edge of her chair, slightly to the side, leaning in towards the machine - it's like she was born to sew... she just knows how to do it! And she's so proud of her work!!

been a while...

2007-05-14T08:05:00.000-05:00

The school year is nearly over... 1/2 the children have gone to mom's for the summer, and the others will go to dad in 2 weeks... we're all trying to adjust to change and new schedules.

There has been lots of sewing, and pictures will come later today (hopefully) when the batteries for the camera are charged and I can get them into the computer. Ahhhh, technology.

And in fantastic news - I will not have plaid sofas that need to be in a lodge much longer! I found a lovely vintage sofa on freecycle and it will be coming home tomorrow!! It needs to be covered (one of the cushons has a rip) but it has beautiful lines that match my beloved brown chair, and it's even being shampooed!

For the birds

2007-04-23T19:40:00.000-05:00

The babies flew the nest today. I didn't think they were ready. If I'd been mama C I'd have made them stick around for another day or two. But I guess the birds know what they need... I'm just glad we managed to snap a couple more pictures before then left.

Mama and Papa looked on as they took off. We checked... no one is left floundering under the nest. They really must have been ready. Now we'll just have to keep a look out for the little guys in the trees.

Saturday

2007-04-21T22:34:00.000-05:00

We went out and about today...

Several lovely hours were spent at the 4 Bridges Art Fest, where I saw some things that I wanted for my walls, but could make for far less then being charged. Seriously, it's a sad thing when I can put in a zipper better then somebody charging $15 for a little makeup bag! Guess I should do something about that.

We followed this up with a trip to the salvage store where we looked at old house parts. Very cool indeed.

I actually remembered the camera, and here are the things I found caught my eye..

And a little green 'cause it's been such a beautiful day...

I got about 20 minutes worth of a sofa nap, then met my friend Robin for a movie and coffee, since the guys had invaded the house for "men's poker night" - some are still here as I cloister myself in my room and blog...

I have a lot to say, but I have decided to take a vow of silence. Not a litteral one, but more in theory. So often I find myself wishing to make some sarcastic comment, wanting to let loose my tongue, wanting to say what doesn't need to be said, to use this little space as a place to let it all hang out there - simply for the sake of someone saying it. I'm not going to. I have decided that silence often speeks so much louder then anything I could say. Suffice to say that I am happy. Very happy. And I wish that everyone I knew was.

May you all find peace tonight...

And now, for something completely different.

2007-04-14T18:27:00.000-05:00

I have dreadlocks.

Thats all.

Thanks for reading.

2007-04-07T18:59:00.000-05:00

I came.

I saw.

I tilled.

:-)

Emily can now have her pumpkin patch... and watermelons... and all the other garden-ish things her little farming heart desires.

It's been a busy couple of days here.

We've re-organized and re-arranged the house. The kids are about to have an entire wall of their ‘study’ to contain their art supplies. No more having to beg mummy to go find the pipe cleaners and construction paper – they will be most happy and free to create to their hearts’ content!

In doing this re-organizing, we’ve freed up a beautiful old dresser to be used for the girls clothing... everything they owned used to be stored in a blanket chest or the closet, so this is a great thing.

Jme came home the other day to find me in the kitchen, sewing at the table with a pile of fabric surrounding me... his comment was “Now that’s better... you look happy now!” and decided that my lack of sewing space was a real problem. So I’ve been giving a permanent home for my sewing machines under the windows in the kitchen. The machines and I are both very happy with this arrangement.

I found this fabric...

2007-04-03T11:22:00.000-05:00

Wait. I say that a lot!
(It's the addiction talking)

But really- it's a great brown. Sturdy, with a tiny bit of stretch to it. And it's only $2 a yard! I got enough to recover the brown velvet chair 'cause the cats have eaten the arms. I want to convince my darling hubby that I must have the money that should be spent elsewhere to buy enough to cover the sofas.

You see, I'd love to get rid of the plaid sofa & love-couch (as the kids call it).
I hate them. I know that’s a strong word, but I mean it! I'm thankful we have somewhere to sit... but I hate the plaid. It looks like we need a moose head hanging over the fireplace - and that's a decorating theme I just can't get into. Since buying a new sofa set is totally out of the question... and no one seems to be knocking down my door to give me one (even an old one that was not PLAID would do...) I guess I'll have to find a way to make do. I would even trade the one's I've got if you like the rustic cabin theme... they are Lane and in good shape. lol

This afternoon we are headed out to find a clothesline. The last attempt at this produced one that was about ten feet two short to string between any trees we've got. Talk about an exercise in frustration... you should have seen me running all over the yard with the damn thing, trying it between every tree I could find!

The weather has me feeling guilty every time I run the dryer, not to mention how hot the kitchen gets when I've got it going. Great in the winter... no so great now that the weather is so warm. Add to that I don’t even want to think what the electric bill will be once I give in to the south and turn on the air conditioner. *gasp*

Speaking of the south, I can’t forget to go pick Ken up from the airport tonight. The jerk got to spend the past week in Maine. Lucky dog.

*** edited to add ***

I am now the proud owner of nearly 20 yards of yummy brown fabric... and I'm currently working on covering the chair. It's almost done.

I did not, however, get the clothesline... some little girl was not working very quickly on her math and held up the errands. Oh well. There is always tomorrow...

Show me the money!

2007-03-27T15:10:00.000-05:00

Seems somewhere along the line Em has missed the whole 100 pennies = 4 quarters = 1 doller...

We had a near meltdown this afternoon in the thrift store 'cause she was SURE she'd gotten the wrong change back - because she'd had tons of change and now only 2 dollers. We are now counting out 100 pennies on the red table in an effort to make this a little more clear.

*sigh*

Speaking of thrift stores... I just got a brand new pair of fantastic red sun glasses (that have not been mauled by children) for next to nothing! Whoo-Hooo!

not much to say...

2007-03-09T17:21:00.000-05:00

But it's been too many days without blogging.

It's been over a week since I handed over Melrose... and it still feels good. It's like a weight lifted and I'm excited to yard sale in a couple of weeks and get rid of even more stuff. I've become burdended with it of late, and I'm ready to clear out!

I've been busy sewing... you can see on the gallary page some past and present projects. This week however, has been skirts for me. I have all these yards of fabric purchased with the express purpose of becoming a skirt, that have been sitting in the closet while I complain that I have nothing to wear. Pictures will follow.

This morning I sewed random mother of pearl buttons from my button jar onto my favorite white linnen shirt. It's original buttons kept falling off, and it just needed a little character.

Finally... I need work. Seriously. We are coming up several dollars short every month in the budget. Several sets of several dollars in fact.

Anyone want to buy a red truck?

*sigh*

Let's Get Lactivist!

2007-02-23T16:13:00.000-05:00

The web-community MySpace has started taking down pictures of mothers nursing their children. It seems that they are citing their policy of no nudity or sexually explicit photos.

Um... anyone been on MySpace recently? It seems they have no problem with porn-starts posting pics with nothing but some stars over their "bits." There is no shortage of teen girls taking underwear shots in the bathroom mirror. I've reported dozens of images and never, ever, had one of them removed.

Yet a mother nursing her child is deemed offensive and pictures are being removed left and right.

A number of us feel that this is not acceptable.

Though I no longer have a child who nurses, I am a proud member of the militant breastfeeding cult. Join me in this virtual 'nurse-in.' If you have a MySpace account, post a picture (of yourself, or one of the many beautiful nursing icons created over they years) in your profile and
please pass this on and spread the word!

Back up and running...

2007-02-20T10:11:00.000-05:00

The camera, that is. The charger is working just fine after a little cleaning.

I'm still sniffy and sickly - but hopefully on the mend.

Much craftyness here... pictures later...

:-)

woe is me

2007-02-05T19:56:00.000-05:00

The camera is out of commission again... and this makes me exceedingly sad, especially for the little meep who loves to use it.

Em thought she was helping and put a good 'ol duracel into the charger. Good times... good times. The charger, and the batteries that were in it have gone down the river. Until I can find the $$ for a new charger there will be no pictures.

Sadness abounds.

Especially since we have been working up a storm around here...

Last week there was a mongolian horse farmer's costume and an Zhou dynasty chinese woman's costume made. There was a tiny confucian temple crafted from a rice-milk box. There was a yurt made from a margarine tub. There was a georgious purse made from vintage fabric, as well as several little zippered comsmetic bags.

Today we cleaned. Two houses. Things are coming along faster then I'd immagined.

I've also been washing bedding... we now have some amazingly sweet little quilts that were oh-so-not-clean-and-slightly-moldy... but I got out the bleach (that usually sits unused, for cases such as these) and now the quilts are oh-so-lovely and faided and sweet.

I'm tired. We have a boy home suspended for 3 days and he (read as both of us) has been cleaning his little heart out. The story is he used 'the big one' in school... not so OK as far as the rules go. *sigh* He swears (oops... maybe that should be 'promises') that he's never getting suspended again after all the work today!

Jme is playing poker tonight. It's weird. He goes and does manly things every once and a while with Ken and it's... nice? I'm about to put the children to bed and... who knows... something calm and quiet for sure!

I don't usually play along...

2007-01-26T16:41:00.000-05:00

But I'm feeling playful this week.

I have apparently been 'Tagged' by Sonia.

The rules are as follows:
Each person who gets tagged needs to write a blog post telling 6 weird things about themself... as well as clearly state the rules.

After you state your 6 weird things, you need to choose 6 people to be tagged and list their names.

Don't forget to leave a comment that says "you're tagged" in their comments and tell them to read your blog for information as to what it means.

*****************

So here goes -

1.) I hate answering the phone or making calls. Once I'm ON the phone, I have no problem talking - but I hate the inital act of picking up the telephone.

2.) I'm in the process of becoming a member of a third order franciscan order. Seriously.

3.) I NEED to sew. It makes me sane. If I go more then a day or two without the whirrrr of the machine something starts going wacky in my head.

4.) I want to live simultaniously in the inner-city and in the woods. Haven't figured out how to work this one out yet...

5.) I hate shoes, but have tons of 'em.

6.) I love HUGE dogs, but fell in love with my neighbors purse rat when it was lost and lived here for a month until they realized we had him.

There you have it. Weird stuff about me. Now...

Stacy

Melody

Micki

one who may not be named

Lauren

Marcella

simplify

2007-01-16T14:35:00.000-05:00

We're trying to get things together over here... trying to organize our world.

I've been packing up our totes full of Christmas decorations today. Taking things off the tree that's brittle, though not dropping needles as much as you'd think... filing away the cards, finding all the little nick-knacks that have been scattered about the house. Cleaning and dusting and generally getting the house ready to get back into the swing of real life.

The girls are busy little bees with their homework. They listen to classical music as they work and call me in to listen to songs they thing sound sad.

We have so much stuff - and it's about 1/2 what we had before we moved and cleared out. We're trying to pare it down again... I've found that stuff really gets in the way of life.

We are learning to live on less - Jme's new job (assistant Kindergarten teacher at The Montessori School)kind of forces it. We're living on about 1/3 the money we had this time last year and it's working somehow. And just when I start freaking about our cash flow, I am reminded...

Rob Bell - Rich (a video)

Pass it on.

be jealous...

2007-01-10T11:39:00.000-05:00

The cupbords did in fact get organized - it took me all of the day, but I got it done. I even have pictures to prove it! These are on either side of the sink...

Now I just need this cabinet - I fell in love with it at IKEA when I went with Holly a couple weekends ago... if only we'd taken the van - oh, and I'd had money! I would have, since it was on sale, but we had to spend most of the Birthday/Christmas money on bills because of a pay-scheduling mishap. *sigh*

It has already been an exhausting week. I'm so glad today is quiet and peaceful. The girls are in happy moods, have been splashing in the tub and doing their school-work happilly... and I'm here, with a cozy mug of - would you believe it - herbal tea. I need to start decafinating myself a little... and I'll drink tea without sugar, so maybe we can knock off a few pounds by cutting down on the coffee sugar and creamer.

In other news, my friend Stacy came over yesterday and brought me a box of vintage fabric!!! I have plans already. Be looking on Etsy too... but I'm sure just how much I'm gonna be willing to part with. Oh, the woes of being a fabric addict...

Another Year

2007-01-04T10:33:00.000-05:00

Today I'm cleaning. The kitchen cupboards are ridiculous. I mean... seriously, I don't know where anything is and nothing makes sense. So the project for today is to clean them out and organize things in some sane way.

I'm also going to paint a book, but there will be pictures of that when it's done.

Did I mention that today I'm 30?

I had the realization (at 7:30 this morning) that I was not exactly where I wanted to be when I considered 30 at 25... but I'm closer then I really thought I would be.

I survived divorce, being a single mom, the wilds of dating, and managed to keep all of my friends and stay relatively sane in the process. I am happily married to a great guy who actually wants to be married to me because - amazingly, he likes ME and I rather like him too. I didn't have another baby, but still have managed to add 2 more kids to the mix who make life an adventure. I live in a pretty little house that has character... and pets.

I still stay up too late. I still forget anything not written down. I still wear my sunglasses on my head rain or shine. I still sew things rather then take meds to make me happy. I still write songs that I like. I still read 3 books at the same time. I still want to be six.

Really, there are only two things I've not managed to accomplish... those last 15 pounds have multiplied. And I'm not a rock star. I guess I'll survive... I mean, I could get those taken care of by 40!

By the way. It's my mom's birthday too. She's older then me by 22 years.

2006-12-29T11:08:00.000-05:00

As I've mentioned before, we were busy with crafting before Christmas arrived... Here is a small wall quilt that was given to our friend-pastor-monk Dale.

Kater & Em have a friend named AJ who lives across the street from their dad's house. They felt it important that he have superhero capes as a gift - so they designed and helped to sew these. They picked the fabric and told me just what I needed to do to make them perfect...

Please note the little pocket on the one Em designed - even superheros need someplace to keep things...

On the Saturday before Christmas we were informed that we'd neglected to go see Santa at the mall. Nevermind that the jolly old fellow walks past our house every day (our neighbor is a deadringer!)... so off to the mall we went! I broke the rules and took my own photos - no way was I paying $20 for a 4x6"

Our friend Jason took a family picture of us one night...
Rory is being Rory, and I love it!

And one of just the kids.

Christmas Eve we went to church for a special service. It was a beautiful way to usher in the Christ-Child... as the clock turned to midnight we were lighting candles and singing Silent Night. The children had napped so the could make it late into the night, and they wore their jammies to church...

We went home, where the magna carta to Santa was written and cookies and milk were left on the mantle above the stockings. It didn't talk long for everyone to fall asleep...

The next morning Em woke us at 4 with "SANTA came and there are thousands of dolls in the livingroom!" (Santa had brought American Girl dolls for our girls, as well as bringing my old AG dolls from Omah's house!) We told her to let us sleep just a little more, and she woke everyone else. They all bedded down on the sofas and let us sleep 'till 8! The livingroom was a wonderland. Santa had trimmed the tree with silver tinsle and candy canes, and the stockings were bulging. There were gifts from family and friends, and the j0lly old elf himself...

We spent the day lounging in the livingroom, eating Christmas sweets and cheeseball & crakers and Jme made his famous sausage balls & butter-me-not biscuts. There were oranges and cookies too, of course. Uncle Ken came over in the late morning, followed by the Melrose cousins and their mum & dad. Then Jason in the late afternoon. The children left for their 'alternates' at 2, and we lounged some more. In the evening we went to play pool and met Hollie to eat chinese food...

This week has been quiet. The kids are still gone and we have been bubbing 'round the house. We cleaned out our pit of a closet, and started on our bedroom - the only 'messy' room of the house. I have actually watched TV - we actually watched ALL of 'Rome' yesterday... talk about a TV marathon. But Jme was sick and I didn't feel like doing a thing so it worked.

I hope you and yours have had a joyous holiday season... may you be blessed in the comming new year!

Dedication...

2006-12-22T20:17:00.000-05:00

The day started early. Jme went to mass with some friends of ours. His first time. He liked it. Go figure. They went to the land of pig grease (otherwise known as Cracker Barrel) and drank coffee and talked about saints and theology.

I stayed home with the little monsters, who haven't been very monsterly recently - though they are LOUD! I drank cherry-chocolate coffee. The kids played on the front porch while rain poured down around them. It was a nice way to start the day.

Because I can, I'm gonna backtrack for a minute to blog something I didn't get to earlier this week...

On Monday night we went for a drive. We were looking for some pretty lights and boy did we get a surprise. Just a few blocks away we found a neighborhood we didn't even know was there. And the amazing thing is that for block after block there were luminaries - just little white paper bags with candles inside them, but they lined the streets in front of every house. I'm talking maybe 3 miles of luminaries! It was so beautiful. Many of the houses were decorated as well, but every single one had the little lights along the front yard.

Here is a close up of the tree we finally got decorated. The kids hung old ornaments - some that were my great-great grandmothers, some that were mine. They also hung new ones that they made this week. We glittered pine cones (and the livingroom) and made some cute new cardstock ornaments thanks to a pattern I found on Kiddly.

And here they are (blurry) by the candles. Happy 8th night of Hanukkah everyone!

It is the end of a busy day. The kids made a HUGE paper chain to drape along the front windows. We baked cookies. Piles and piles of cookies. I finished some last minute sewing projects. I watched a little season one of Six Feet Under (my not-so-secret TV love). We watched the rain and the fog. Jme has been reading early church history and helping me clean the house... not to mention fixing the dishwasher. How happy am I! Just in time for all the cookie-baking aftermath! Don't they look... yummy?

So much for the daily blog...

2006-12-20T22:22:00.000-05:00

I was sick for a week and a half. I'm still a little sniffly, but I'm better. Then the weekend hit, like it always does, and we were busybusybusy. Then the kids came home. Whoo-hooooo!

Yesterday I did all our shopping. Yes, I said all. We didn't have any money for the holidays, and finally found a little and got some gift $$ too. So off I went into the wilds of last minute Christmas shopping.

NEVER AGAIN I say, never again.

It was aweful. I just had a little list. Omah didn't want to ship stuff, so I was getting her gifts for the kids... prearranged of course, and I couldn't find 'em! I shluped from store to store, watching crazed shoppers filling carts to the brim with crap. I wandered through a couple of stores enjoying the shopping, but then I hit a wall. The neon lights, the noise, the parents yelling at their kids who were just being kids - you know, in a toystore but not allowed to get a thing. I was glad that I was able to leave the kids home with jme rather then drag them around - not to mention that it made it easier to keep things a secret.

Tonight I finished sewing some of the kids gifts, and we finally finished decorating the tree. We put it up right before I got sick, and just left it there with the lights on. It's really pretty now... the kids made ornaments to add to our little stash of old ones.

Now, if it would just snow.

(thanks to http://www.kerismith.com)

Pictures will come soon... but for now, I'm off to sleep...

snif

2006-12-07T16:36:00.000-05:00

So much for sewing last night - it totally didn't happen.

I am sick. I have a scratchy, raspy voice. My head hurts. I have a feaver last night, but it went away. I feel like someone poured hot wax into my sinus'. All I want in the whole wide world is to curl up in bed with a good book, a ton of medication that will knock me out, and hot tea. But there are little people about who needed lessons. And a moderator for their fights. And food.

So here is Tuesday's craftyness; a little tooth-fairy meep made for a little friend who has her first loose tooth! She's made from hand dyed flannel, with white on white (now blue) cotton wings. She's about 4" tall. And she sparkles - 'cause a tooth-fairy should sparkle! These will be showing up in the Etsy shop for sure!

I have seen a total of 3 snowflakes today, and I'm getting rather crankey about the weather. It is cold enough for snow. If I were in New England there would be snow and I would be happy. SNOW - that's really all I want for Christmas. Speeking of Christmas... Santa sent ahead a huge box of girly wonderment that's now taking up the floorspace in my closet. I opened it of course, giddy like a 6 year old.

No, I won't say what's in it. You'll just have to wait for Christmas!

But you can see what I did today while the girls were working... I finally got my prints from the bruderhoff framed and hung on the study wall above the girls' homework shelves.

Jolly Old Saint Nick...

2006-12-06T16:24:00.000-05:00

Happy St. Nicholas' Day!

Little people here found wonderous little goodies in their shoes this morning...

Christmas is coming fast and I'm not nearly done with things. I need to stay up later with my secret sewing, but I'm so tired. Maybe I can catch up tonight while the girls are at their dads for dinner and sleepover?

I'm melencholy this week. Being tired tends to send me in that direction... Not to mention holiday madness, death, lack of funds, the need for wool felt, and a general sense that there needs to be at least another 4 hours in each day!

Maybe creative pictures will follow later tonight...

bored

2006-11-30T19:21:00.000-05:00

Today has been a day. Good thing there is Super Grover to cheer me up.

A year ago today was very bad, and today could have been. It was not. It was just a day. One of those oddly quiet, slightly grey, rather snuggly sort of days. I've wanted to go back to bed since I got up. I did not. There has been much coffee. But not enough.

We did lessons. We argued over the needfulness of actually writing what the lesson plan said to write. We wrote what we were supposed to write. We read. We played dress up. I sewed. I painted faces on meeps. I swept the kitchen 3 times. It doesn't look like it.

I have more sewing to finish, but that will have to wait for the weekend - when the kids are not here and I don't have to worry about being discovered.

Weekends

2006-11-27T20:04:00.000-05:00

They are glorious busy things here.

We all go to first service @ The Vineyard, then the kids go to Sunday School- where jme and I "work the door" and make sure all kids are properly accounted for and don't go home with the wrong people. Then we hustle home to make lunch for our smallgroup, which lasts late into the afternoon. We head back to the church in the evening to help with Celebrate Recovery - and starting the week after next we'll be leading a Vespers Service on Sunday nights too...

I also got myself some dedicated sewing space.

Well... sort of.

jme has graciously given over the kitchen table to my machines. We never use it anyway. So now it is happily covered in half finished Christmas gifts and projects I'm really truly gonna finish this year! It is lovely to not have to haul out my machines every time I get a few minutes to spare for sewing. Anyhoo, it makes me exceedingly happy to be able to work and create and not feel bad. It's good to be 'given' freedom to create in my home...

In other news, Emily is now has her own blog. It was time. She has beautiful work that needs to be seen by the world! She is taking dozens of pictures every day and they are getting better and better. Check 'em out... she rocks.

2006-11-25T13:54:00.000-05:00

There are remnants of the feasting still visable. Pies are being picked at, and we're starting to dig through the mess that gatherings produce. I don't know about your house, but ours seems to get trashed every time we have company. Not to mention that the dishwasher decided to stop draining right after dinner on Thursday and we'd created an enourmous pile of dishes. Jamie took it apart and we think it's fixed.

Last night we went downtown and passed out free hot cocoa in the park. "God loves you. Drink up!" It was a beautiful night. The sky was clear, and it was chilly but not downright cold. The kids got to see the boat parade on the river and run with their friends. We came home and curled up with leftovers, a warm fire and good books.

Right now, the boys have gone on a trash run in the red truck. The girls are playing with lincoln logs in the living room, while Rory-belly sleeps off sickness on the love-couch. It's quiet, and there is a pile of half-sewn Christmas presents mocking me from the end of the hallway.

Time to put on another pot of coffee and get to work...

Misfit Thanksgiving

2006-11-24T16:42:00.000-05:00

The feasting was good.
We have Em's documentation to prove it.
Apparently I cook a fantastic dead bird
(with a little help from Martha Stewart).

One fat and happy cat who got his fill of bird.

Jason spinning for us...

DANCE!

We had a wonderful time together.
It's good to have friends who are family!

being thankful

2006-11-22T23:52:00.000-05:00

I have wonderful kids. They are creative and wildly imaginative and full of life. Today Em announced that she is a photographer. I think she's right.

In honor of Thanksgiving, we have some of her best (in mommy's opinion) shots of the day...

It was an amazingly warm and beautiful November day,
hence we have pink flip-flop shots.

Sill life on the front porch.

This is a pilgrim's house - note the lovely blueberry bushes.

Dancing turkey feet on the TV. Please don't ask.
I was desperate to get the pies baked
and it worked to calm the savage beasts.

Pie. And pie filling on the counter. It was everywhere.
I wanted to let the girls help me but they were fighting.
It must have been in the air today 'cause mid-pie-baking
I got a phone call from another mummy
who was being glared at by small children.
Ahhh, the joys of the holidays!

I took this one...
it seems there was harmony
if one was willing to sprawl on the kitchen floor
(clearly underfoot) in a warm shaft of light.

There was crafting today but I'll post pictures next time.
I'm off to sleep
so I can get up and cook a bird for people who like to eat them.
Poor birdy.
But there will be yummy roasted portabellas for us girls...

2006-11-17T17:49:00.000-05:00

The things one finds on the camera...

Em is the photographer for most of these. She has taken to snatching the camera at every chance. She is inspired.

meep

2006-11-15T12:47:00.000-05:00

I've been cleaning out my box of 'nearly finished goods' and found some things to offer up...

Do you have a bear-meep? You should! They are Rory's favorite.
(They still need their faces painted on...)

These are the fabrics I've got pocket-meeps made up in right now...

Check out the amazing fabric my friend Marie chose for her new sling? I have to say that it's one the nicest I've ever made!

These dolls are great for babies to gum on...

offerings

2006-11-09T09:19:00.000-05:00

It's a perfect kind of day for crafting... foggy and cool, with noisy kids confined to the wonderland that is the bathtub!

I've been busy... so has my mom, who's work I'm selling.

Take a look-see. The following are pieced paper - talk about patience... contact me if you want one!

Greeting Cards in sets of six...

The camera cord has been found...

2006-11-04T09:30:00.000-05:00

Now we can have pictures! And Halloween costumes!!

As you can see, Rory was a black cat. Our black cat Gink to be exact.

Kater was a witch - she couldn't decide if she was Dorrie or Hermine...

Em was a belly-dancer. Notice the jinglies - she sounded so pretty!

Charley decided just a couple days before Halloween that he wanted to be Harry Potter instead of Tony Hawk. Yay for last minute cheapo fabric from the $1 table!

The pictures aren't so great - no one wanted to stand still for pictures when there was a party and candy to get to!!

Today I'm home totally alone. Jamie has gone off to Atlanta for a conference and the kids are all with their alternates. I've been up since 4:30am. I've drank 6 cups of coffee. I don't know what I'll do with the rest of my day...

Green hands

2006-09-28T19:43:00.000-05:00

Indeed. Yesterday I dyed Kater's baptism dress and a blouse green. She loves them, and amazingly the dress is so HER. The little white flowers printed on the cotton took just a hint of the dye, so they really pop on the deep green background.

Gotta get that camera working...

one has to have a start

2006-09-23T11:18:00.000-05:00

And one really should have a place to keep track of things.

Here it is.

Today has been all about bubbing. For those who don't know, that means simply hanging about. I've been finishing up the stray projects of the past few weeks. 3 wall-quilts... little skirts with puckered pockets... the first in a series of paint and embroiedery pieces. Pictures of all to come as soon as we find the cord to the digital camera. *sigh*