be back soon...

I haven't been able to post lately because I just got back from a short, but much needed vacation! The first in over 7 years without our boys to be exact! I have been working extra before and after to catch up - so I'm hoping to be back at it next week....enjoy the pics!

sailing on the hobie - something we never have a chance to do without the kids - although it's fun with them too!

welcome aboard!!!

chillin on the island!

formal night! somehow i still fit in that 'perfect black dress' from college!

the cruise ship!

I took my machine in for annual service yesterday - hoping to have it back by tomorrow - I guess you get extra fast service in Florida before the 'birds' fly down! wowsers!

Welcome 2010

It seems like the last month has been a big frenzy sending us into the new year. We were so grateful to have family in town for 2 weeks after Christmas. We had so much fun even though the weather was exceptionally cold for southwest Florida. This week was our 2nd week back to school and of course the germs returned and our little guy is sick with virus and ear infection. He was so worn out yesterday he fell asleep on the bathroom floor waiting for me to get out of the shower and lay down with him!

My parents and grandparents drove down after Christmas and then my grandparents stayed an extra week afterwards. We did so many fun things....

Christmas pj's in person!

A little Rockband on Christmas Eve...


We spent a lot of time cruising around Coconut Point Mall...an outdoor mall less than a mile from our house with lots to do! Dad and the boys outside the Trek Bicycle Store...

The boys outside of Moe's - I'm so very lucky that they get along so well and love each other so much!

Dad taught Tyler how to hold up #2 for how old he is - try it - not an easy thing for chubby little fingers! More coordination involved than what we know!

Tyler and I at Lakes Park (the train park!)

I did get some sewing done over the Holidays, sadly I only had 1 WIP finish for the Joy in the New Year Challenge, but that is okay! My grandma brought her double wedding rings quilt that she had started hand-quilting about 15 years ago and hadn't done anything with for over 10 years. She had 8 blocks finished and we cut out the pieces for 4 more blocks and I machine pieced the little pieces for her. I was able to send her home with 4 more blocks to piece together - this definately brought Joy in the new year by starting an old project and adding another generation of sewing and handiwork to the project. When she originally starting cutting this quilt there were no rotary cutters. She was tracing the pieces by hand and cutting them out with quilting scissors. I introduced her to a mini-rotary cutter and mat and we cut the blocks in probably 1/4 of the time it would have taken years ago.

I also stumbled upon this challenge while at the bookstore browsing the magazine section...I've learned to use the memo function on my phone for things like this - I type in the title of a book, website, etc. when I find something interesting that I want to check out later, but not necessarily purchase the book or magazine. So, I came home and went on the All People Quilt 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge website and downloaded 4 FREE pillowcase tutorials. If you have a coordinating 1 1/4 yards of fabric you can donate to this wonderful cause and be part of the challenge. I tested out the basic pattern on a train fabric Tyler had picked out with Grandma over vacation. It is SO easy!!! Take the challenge today - I dare you!

I have also started another one of these pillows, because they are so easy and I love doing them - no measuring at all!! Other than that I managed to clean (literally wipe off) the top of my cutting / crafting table yesterday - which really means i sorted, put away, threw away all the contents crowding the top of it - this really needs to be done at least twice a year, right? I really wanted a fresh start to 2010~ and now feel like i have it. I have sorted my immediate sewing projects into 3 stacks for most current and hope to add to that often. I am starting a list on the left hand side of 2010 WIP's (works in progress) and hopefully they will filter into 2010 projects finished.

Last but not least I finished sewing these custom beauties yesterday for my friend / founder at OBB Diapers....aren't they amazing?

santa is so close...

At the beach Dec. 15th!

I Love the beach!!!!

It's hard to believe that Christmas is just 7 days away when you have 86 degree days at the beach : ) It's been quite the adjustment after living in the midwest with seasons for over 30 years! Your body really gets used to the season changes and my body is saying it's October! But, we love being at the beach in December and being active outside daily and this really is the best time of year here!

I have a lot of handmade xmas gifts 'in-process' including my 2nd annual making of the Christmas jammies for the boys - the pants are almost done and i found the shirts today - i should have a pic up by tomorrow - I think they are going to be awesome! A few other things are done - mum's the word - and the other's should be completed by the end of the weekend.

Next week the baking shall begin....cookies, cheese balls, meatballs, pies, and we got our ham for xmas day yesterday! I'm getting excited! Family rolls in on the 27th for a couple weeks and we can't wait!!!

Tyler's favorite 'surrogate' dog - they have really bonded!

what to eat??

halloween 2009

i think this is really fast for me to get halloween pics up! i don't have many good ones this year..tyler decided to totally not cooperate and up until we started walking down the street I didn't think he'd actually wear a costume. he was going to go as his poor little grouchy self! But, amazingly enough he put it on and away he went. Fleece costumes were not a good idea for the exceptionally warm weather we had here...high 80's for sure. Our therapist told us in her 14 years in Estero this was absolutely the hottest halloween ever.....why does that not surprise me? i think i've been hot since June 1st this year....can't wait for that next cold front here --- maybe december - should be in the 70's !!!

this is how i feel most days!

anyway we did capture a few good pics and i'll post those for all to see! lots of loot which always makes one happy mama!

some new creations....

Well, we finally got Austin settled in school....naps rescheduled earlier so we are awake and ready to go pick him up by 2:30 and earlier bedtimes for all. I still think it is hardest for me to wake up before everyone else in the morning, even though it is peaceful when we do. I still hate the chaos school brings of 'having' to get up and trying to get everyone ready and out the door. I just can't seem to adhere to structure...probably a major fault in a lot of eyes....can't say i'm a list-maker - more free-spirited - do as i please when i feel like it - that is what life's about, right?

With Austin going off to school we are trying to spend more time with Tyler to encourage his speech along - this is our day at the park.. he was cracking up at this!

on the other side of the teeter-totter!

me goofing around

so sweet, hmmm......mr. blue eyes

in the fort....could they be more different?

Labor Day visit with my parent's - we had so much fun!

Austin at his new desk at school - first day!

His new 'big' backpack - should last for a few years!

All ready for school - uniform and all - no worries on what to wear.

Now on to some craft things i've been doing. This is a sneak peek at the quilt i'm working on. I've wanted to do this for about 4 years now (ha) but plenty of things kept getting in my way. Now, I seem to have more time and finally got up the nerve to start it. I swear i've read the pattern about 100 times and it seemed rather confusing, but I decided to just jump in and figure it out. While, it is different, it has turned out to come together nicely. I did a few semi-complete blocks at first and now i'm chain piecing the parts together to be more efficient. The blocks will measure 12 x 12" when they are complete and I need 42" of them for a full-size quilt. Each block (like below) will be a different size depending on how it goes together so I'm going to add white around each boat until it reaches 12.5 x 12.5" (with seam allowance) and then create the rows. I ran out of sails and sky fabric yesterday and had to get some more - so i'm back at it today!

the block below is the very first one i did about 4 years ago - i realized now that i had several of the pieces going the wrong way...i was going to throw it out, but decided to add it in - i think it makes the boat look like it is in the high seas moving around. I also like to have one 'non-anticipated' mistake in every quilt - i don't think it has anything to do with being a perfectionist or not - the sewing is perfect - just the pattern is a bit off. It gives you something to find each time you use the quilt. I remember doing this as a little girl with my grandma - we would look at the quilts her mother made (my great-grandma) and find the mistakes - it was always so much fun for me and I'll remember it forever -something i'd like to pass along in my quilts!

A couple of the remaining cards I made that went into that last batch. Some of these stamps are new for the 2009-2010 Stampin Up! Catalog...I really like the robots - they make me smile!

I am getting in some supplies to start making Christmas cards tomorrow. I am hoping to put the quilting aside and do a few samples for my customers to pick from and have them up by tuesday or Wednesday! Have a great Sunday!

hot summer days...

summer feet - gotta love em'

i know many munchkins went back to school this past week...Austin starts a little later here - aug. 24th is his first day. so we have one more week of 'official' summer break. it's so hard to believe...kindergarten - full day, every day, whether you feel like it or not, scheduled breaks, homework, packed lunches...and oh yeah - uniforms. how does this happen...so fast? i know he is more than ready for this daily activity, entertainment, socializing and learning but it just feels like the beginning of the end...succumbing to school schedules, organized breaks, vacationing only when everyone else in the world is able to, the end of spontaneous mid-week trips and late nights....oh so hard....but a neccessary evil. he is ready - and somedays i'm more than ready!

we have been trying to soak up our last pool days but have had some rain the last couple days. we managed to hit the beach on thursday - one of doug's days off - an early morning ocean swim and then i did a hot 4-miler in the heat. i'm learning it takes about 2 days to recover from the hot runs. i'm going to have to start going by 7am or forget it - urgh...

hanging poolside......

i'm almost finished with my last run of cards...tomorrow i should have 2-3 more samples to upload and show you - then i'm shipping them off to their new homes. i have had a lot of fun making them and remembered what a nice quick project they each are - it is like getting quick satisfaction in just 20-30 minutes or less (or more)!

i was also able to finish some pajama pants for austin and another few alterations that were piling up. i'm still sketching the quilt for the boys and can't wait to dice into the rocketship fabric i have. i've been reading up alot about quilting and researching other modern quilters and their designs - i'm feeling very inspired and ready to get a quilt top or two started.

hot days in the water!

more project pics tomorrow!

Projects, projects

i have, for the first time, made a list (unfortunately it's only in my head!) I can never bring myself to write my lists on paper with the sole exception of the grocery store...then I *usually* have such an inept sense of detail that once i've actually written it out i remember it and don't refer to it once in the store....occassionally this system fails me. but, i had to come up with a mental list of project to-do's, yep had to prioritize them into importance or else i would have been doing the one's i fancied most first....so i thought this was a great way of tricking myself into get the 'must-do' stuff done first so that i could do the 'really-fun' stuff later - and in reality i enjoy it all!

this is probably one of my favorites ever, but it took a long time to cut all the pieces - there is a tutorial on the website above! this paper is retired SU! by the way!

I played around quite a bit with this one - it was fun and easy to make, so i switched up the designer (patterned) paper and ribbon a bit on each one. Also, a great way to get rid of some of the million flower embellishments i have hanging around!

I have been making a lot of cards lately for an order I recently got, here are some of the one's i've made...i'll be the first to admit the more difficult ones I snagged the ideas from here, a fabulous site for fresh ideas! Of course, they have my own style and spin put into them!

the inside pulls out for the sentiment and i thought it'd make a lovely bookmark as well!

I spend way too much time hand cutting each image and designing the card itself, but i can't resist the outcome - hopefully they each go to people that appreciate the hand-made card!!

here is a really bad picture *but i was in a hurry to do the post* of the re-usable quart size ziploc bag i designed. Hopefully you can see the very cool pirate print that i'm hoping makes it too cool for austin to resist taking in his lunch this year! It has a fold down flap with velcro securing it and a waterproof liner. This one is great for chips or larger snacks...i'm going to make a *sandwich* size for sandwiches and maybe a couple snack sizes for apples, grapes, etc. I figure that at $2.00 + / box of plastic sandwich bags I should be saving about $80 a year by using these : ) I finally talked doug into 'testing' it with his lunch yesterday....the chips were gone, and he *did* bring it back home to me, but i wonder if he ate lunch by himself in a dark closet so no-one could see what his nerdy wife sent his lunch in....hee hee! it's all part of saving the earth and recession-proofing our lives!

Last, but not least, are these precious babies....they are on the top of my priority list, although I enjoy sewing them as much as anything else. So, I had to get to a certain step in the diapers in order to work on other project. If you haven't checked them out yet, you must do so at OBB diapers - click on hyena cart to check the in-stock diapers, all hand-sewn by yours truly....

**Then of course lots of pool time in this really warm weather - today the pool water was 96-98 degrees - so warm! **

Tyler wearing the finished cloth diaper - i tried to get him to stand up but he wasn't cooperating! aren't they adorable?

Austin practicing moves on his new boogie board!

That is it for now...I'm excited to start on a new quilt design hopefully the end of this week or beginning of next...i'm feeling more motivated to quilt than i have for a long time - better soak it up!

Sara