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Sunday, November 4, 2018

Pick A Pumpkin Blog Hop!

 I decided to join in the Pick a Pumpkin Blog Hop sponsored by Carla from Creatin in the Sticks! She always has the neatest blog hops! 
This link will take you to all of the posts for the whole blog hop.
Creatin in the Sticks
 Back when I signed up, I knew there wouldn't be a problem having some pumpkins to share. I love fall, and I also love sewing for my great granddaughter, Ellie. I had forgotten about the blog hop when I was working on some of these so I was glad I already had some projects done!

 I made Ellie a purple outfit that would work for football, and for Thanksgiving. The gingham side has a tiger on it, and the purple side has the pumpkin. The pumpkin design is from Embroidery Boutique. Their designs always stitch great!



 Of course, I have to include a couple pics of her wearing it! 
I also did another pumpkin outfit for her to wear to daycare. I love the Garanimal sets from WM. They are perfect for little kids. This is another design from Embroidery Boutique, but I did the wording myself.




I did one more pumpkin shirt. The fabric matches some pants Ellie's mom bought, and a friend of mine gave me a piece of the same fabric to match. This design is from Applique Alley. She is such a little ham!


 Now for my table! I wanted to do something different this year. I found a tutorial on Pinterest for the fabric pumpkins. I decided to stack them together to save space. The plates came from Family Dollar, and they look like glass, but they're plastic. I had the other stuff already. So basically this is decorating on a budget! 

My husband loved it, but I will move it all for Thanksgiving dinner. It's just for me to enjoy! 

 Thanks for visiting my blog. I would love to have more followers. I love reading blogs, and I really love getting a comment on mine every now and then.
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Thursday, October 18, 2018

Teaching the Love of Sewing!

I don't know when I've been so happy as when my grandson's wife, Alyssa, asked me to teach her to sew! 
 I've been wanting to teach sewing for a while, but I've just never gotten organized to start. So I had to figure out where to start and what I needed to go over with her before she sewed anything. She already knew a little so that helped a lot. 

 I explained a few things about fabric, grain lines, selvedges, cutting options, and a little about patterns. To keep her interest, we cut out some little pj pants for her baby, our great-granddaughter. She practiced sewing some seams first, and she did great. 

 She didn't finish the first pair the first day, but she came back another day, and finished those plus made another pair. She was pretty proud! 
 Now she's still coming, and she's working on some knit pants with a ruffle. I love this girl, and she's wearing me out, but what a great feeling to know someone wants to learn to sew! 



One of the best things is that I still have plenty of fabric for her to use that was left from sewing for my granddaughter. The first time she buys fabric, I will go with her because that's a lesson within itself!
 
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Wednesday, August 29, 2018

Dresses for Honduras.

Some people from my area go on a mission trip to Honduras every January. My WMU mission group always likes to contribute in some way. 
 In the past we've collected flip-flops, sun glasses, glasses, jump ropes, little toys, band-aids, vitamins, and medicines just to name a few. 
 Last year the group had fewer people going so some of the stuff didn't get sent, but they've been taking it as they can. So this year our group is collecting baby and children's Tylenol.  Plus we will donate some money for other expenses. 
 I think we do really good considering our group isn't that large, and most are getting elderly. 

 One year I made 44 pair of shorts for boys. The past couple of years the group has taken up with some precious little girls - 4 little sisters whose mom left them. Their dad tries to take care of them, and he works so much of the time they are left alone. The group started taking up money to help support them throughout the year to be sure they were fed and kept cleaner. There is a local doctor there that helps to manage the funds.

 I decided to make each one of them a pillow case dress, and a little bag to store the dresses. I figured they could use the bags for storage since their little huts don't hold much stuff. I just loved that one of the ladies sent me the names so I could put them on their bags. 
 Please, if you read this, say a prayer for these sweet girls!




All of the fabrics for the dresses were given to me and leftover from other projects. I bought the fabric for the bags at a yard sale really cheap, and she gave me a whole bunch more. 

 Thanks for stopping by! Please come back again!
 
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Monday, July 30, 2018

Summer is Busy!

When I was teaching school, there was never enough days in the summer to do all I wanted to do. Now that I'm retired, somehow it's not any better!!
 You would think I'd be able to sew every day of the week if desired, but it seems so many thing come up! 
 There's always house cleaning - never ending! Yet I never see much improvement. 😁 
 I did finally get to sew a few things, but it's been sporadic. I made a bunch of the Pioneer Woman placemat bags I showed on my previous post. 
 I embroidered a couple of towels for two children that were baptized at church. These are donated by my husband and myself. 


Then I decided to make a little sunsuit for Ellie. The pattern is Little Lizard King Astoria, and it was pretty easy and very cute! I got a few pics of her wearing it. I just love it on her!





A friend of mine gave me a dress she'd started for her granddaughter about 10 years ago and never finished. I finished it, and made some bloomers to go with it. I had to cut the dress off into a top so Ellie wouldn't trip over it as she's walking now. It's really sweet fabric.
I've been working on this post for a few days. I had to redo some things in my sewing room - again! I'm really liking that I have a more open space to work. I bought an Arrow Gidget 1 sewing table, and I love it. Now I can have more machines out at once. I sold the hutch over one of my desks, and that gave me much more desk space. 
Before
After
Gidget 1
 Thanks for stopping by! I hope to post again soon!
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Tuesday, June 12, 2018

Where Flowers Bloom!




                                                      



Welcome! Today is my day to show off my project for the Creatin' In The Sticks blog hop "Where Flowers Bloom"! Many thanks to Carla for organizing all of the blog hops. I'm glad I was able to participate in this one. 

  Flowers certainly rank high on my list of favorite things! We have a pretty good variety of flowers that start appearing in spring starting with the azaleas, bridal wreath, and then the yellow day lilies. The day lilies are dwindling down. I sure love their bright yellow blooms. 
 We didn't get many potted plants done this spring due to a lot of reasons. My previous posts explain how hectic things have been for us, but it's getting better. 
 I debated on what to make, and I was about to cut out a pillow when I saw this blank flag sticking out of a shelf in my sewing room. Then my feeble brain remembered why I had bought it! So I went through my files looking for the perfect flowers to stitch on the flag. It's called Swirl Applique Flowers from Lynnie Pinnie Embroidery Designs! I love how it stitched - just perfect! 

 Instead of adding fabric to the center, I decided to glue on a cute button. The burlap flag was really cheap at the vinyl store - $5.00, and it has a backing that makes it sturdy. I've used these before, and they hold up pretty good outside. 
 The alphabet I used is called "Fallen" from Applique Corner. I was pleased as it also stitched so well on this flag. I will be using it for lots of stuff including burp cloths. I always use Heat n Bond Lite on the back of the fabric for appliques. It keeps them sturdy and unwrinkled.

 Now to share a few other things I've made with flowers in the past few weeks. 
 My daughter-in-law, Tonya, asked me to embroider a shirt for her with "Lolli" on it because that is what she wants her granddaughter, Ellie, to call her. (Ellie is our great-granddaughter that I sew for, and I have previously posted some of things I've done for her.)
 I love this whimsical fabric I had in my stash, and Tonya loved it too! 

 I've also gotten into making the zip bags using The Pioneer Woman placemats from Walmart. These can be so addicting, and they make such nice gifts. I made one for myself, and two for some good friends. I have more to make when things settle down.
The placemats have some pretty flowers on them, and there are videos of at least 3 different styles you can make. Just Google Pioneer Woman Placemats, and you will find them, or search on Pinterest. 
 This beach towel was for my granddaughter, Shelby. The alphabet is the Daisy Swirl alphabet from The Itch 2 Stitch. Shelby loved it, and I love the daisies! 
You can tell I love to sew, and I'd have a lot more to show if things had been a little calmer the last few weeks. 

 I hope you will visit the other blogs too!


 These are the other blogs participating in the blog hop! 









Have fun everyone!
















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Sunday, June 10, 2018

Creatin' In The Sticks Blog Hop


 

I'm participating in the Creatin' In The Sticks Blog Hop "Where Flowers Bloom"!
  This will be the schedule, and my post will be on June 13th. I hope everyone enjoys this. I enjoyed making my project, and I added a few I'd already completed.





Where Flowers Bloom Blog Hop Schedule






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Thursday, June 7, 2018

Life Happens!

 Both of our kids planned back to back vacations in Florida, and both invited us to come and stay with them. 
 Years ago, we would either pay for a condo or help pay for a condo, so this would be a nice treat for us. We always love watching the kids play in the water. 
 Due to work schedules, they couldn't plan for the same week. We went with our daughter and her kids on May 19th, and had planned to stay until the 26th when our son was going.

 Emily's husband had planned to fly down on Tuesday due to work and his dad being sick. Things took a drastic turn for the worst, and Troy never got to come. So Emily and the kids left out that Tuesday and came home. 
 It was so quiet without them, and we were so bored, we decided to come on home on Wednesday. Troy's dad, Jimmy, passed away Wednesday morning. We knew we'd made the right decision. Cayden and Shelby have never lost anyone close to them, and we wanted to be close for support. Plus we thought a lot of Jimmy, and had spent time celebrating birthdays with him and Shelby. Jimmy had also gone to the same rehab as my husband in the last couple of months so we saw him pretty often. He was such a fine example of a Christian man. He will be greatly missed!  His wife, Dorris is really having a hard time. They'd been married 56 years.
 Shelby is always taking pics on her iPod, and she took this one only a few weeks before they lost Jimmy. It is very treasured now! 

 When we got home on that Wednesday, we found another problem. My bathroom had flooded onto my bedroom carpet. It was only a few feet into the bedroom so we sopped and kept sopping towels to dry it out. Then I ran a fan on it for days. We just didn't have time to try and pull it up at that time. We are getting new floors in there, the 2nd bedroom, and the bathroom. That has kept us busy cleaning out and putting things out of the way. 
 My son and his family went to FL on the 26th knowing Alberto was approaching, but it ended up not being that bad. We would have probably gone back if we hadn't feared being in the bad weather. 

 On the way there, our grandson, Clayton, and his fiance', Emily, were involved in a major wreck on I-10 close to Pensacola. It's a miracle they weren't killed or injured badly. We're so thankful they were ok. A big truck jack-knifed, and hit them from the rear throwing them into the guard rail. Then another car hit them. I think there was a wreck up ahead, and the cars started slowing down. People drive way too fast on I-10. It's even hard to stop if you're not going over the speed limit.
 My son had to unload at the condo and then drive back an hour and a half to get Clayton and their stuff. What a day for them!
 So Clayton had to get a rental car as their car was totaled in the wreck. That unnerved me so badly I cried for days.  


 I know only a few will probably read all of this, but I wanted to keep this for a reminder of just how good God is! 
 I will be participating in the "Where Flowers Bloom" blog hop starting June 11th! I hope you come to visit!





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Monday, May 7, 2018

Ten Years Ago!

TEN years ago today was my 12 hr. surgery for tongue cancer - 12 days in the hospital including 6 days in ICU. I have come a long way. Praise God I'm here today to tell about it. No one knows how gut wrenching the words "you've got cancer" are unless you've been there! I have some friends fighting this disease right now, and some who lost their battle. It breaks my heart to see what they have to go through. I am so blessed - beyond words - but the thought never leaves my mind that it can return.
I spent Mother's Day in the hospital that year, and I don't remember much, but I do remember my kids tried to make it the best they could. 

I am so blessed to have had amazing doctors, and even more blessed to have amazing friends and family to support me. As I went back over the blog posts Emily posted to keep everyone informed, tears came to my eyes. It was all so overwhelming, and a lot of it I can't even begin to explain.
I am so thankful I am still here to enjoy my kids, grandkids, friends, and my sewing! It was a rough time for me and my family, but we all pulled together, and we survived! Praising God! 
 Enjoy life to the fullest while you can because you never know what tomorrow will bring. 
This pic was from my 2 year celebration. 
 This pic is the last time we all went to the beach in 2013. We're going again this year if all goes well. We just won't be able to get a full family picture. (Sorry this one is distorted due to the width.)

  Love to all!
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Friday, April 13, 2018

Trying for a New Normal!

 I really don't know what normal is anymore. My favorite normal is when I can stay home and sew or work on projects. Since the hubby started going to rehab 3 days a week in January, that occupied a lot of my time. He wasn't allowed to drive for a while, and then he got the clearance to drive, but I still went with him just for my peace of mind. He was having to wear that Zoll Life Vest, and sometimes it would go off for no apparent reason so I felt better being with him. Plus I did enjoy some of the classes and the cooking class.
 The doctor determined that his heart function on the bottom lobe was still only at 35% so he decided to go ahead with the internal defibrillator/pacemaker surgery.  He had that on April 2nd, and he did really good. He did get dehydrated since we had to wait 6 hours after we got there at noon before he was taken back. He'd not had anything to eat or drink since the night before except to take his meds.
 We came home the next day, and all of the driving and running errands was back on me. He's not supposed to raise his left arm for 4-6 weeks so the incision can heal around the heart. He also has to wear a support vest at night. It's getting better! 
 At least I've had some sewing room time since we couldn't go anywhere much except the doctor.
I've done a few things for our sweet great grand, Ellie. She will be one on the 18th, and our granddaughter, Shelby will be 11 the same day.
Since we give the older grands money, I did embroider Shelby a beach towel. They're going to the beach in a few weeks so I'll also do one for the boys before then.
I bought Ellie this adorable swimsuit so I got her a beach towel, and made a paci holder to match. I also ordered her a flamingo pool float that's on it way. 
The short sets came from ARB Blanks and Blanks Boutique. I love their shirts to embroider on, and these should last all summer. 
I don't put her name or monogram on everything as her mom wants to save things in case they have another girl, but sometimes a girl just has to have a monogram! 
If anyone stops to look, I do appreciate you coming by. I'm trying to be more consistent, but it's hard right now. 
 
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