Missing Daddy today

It's Father's Day today and I am missing my dad.  It's been nearly 4 years since cancer took him from us and yet it still feels unreal.  I keep expecting him to answer the phone one of these days when I call my mom.  He is forever in my heart and I will forever miss him.  Happy Father's Day daddy, I love you.

Lazy Sunday

Not to be forgotten, I am still "hooked" on making cloths!! I so love the colors on this little beauty.

A perfect day to be creating!! Even though it's warm out, going up to 87 today, total cloud cover and kinda dreary looking. I picked up this little kit from Fabric & Friends, LLC in Camdenton, MO while at the lake house (Lake of the Ozarks). It's billed as a Ten Minute Table Runner. Took me a bit longer since I am still getting my sewing feet wet and just plain like to take my time. Love the way it turned out and it gave me an opportunity to play with some stitch functions on my machine. I love how the flowers from our yard look so pretty sitting on the breakfast table with such a pretty runner underneath. If you ever get by Lake of the Ozarks, stop by and visit this shop www.fabricsandfriends.com , very friendly and helpful. Since I have the directions I see a few more of these in my future!

I have fallen in love with this shop:  Fat Quarter Shop
If you haven't had a chance to visit this site please go:
http://www.fatquartershop.com/


This kit produced this little pillowcase which my 2 1/2 year old grandson absolutely loves:

I have gotten really hooked on quilting again.  It is so relaxing and the finished products are sooo cool.

Made this for Keely's doll

Bought myself a "serger" which I can't wait to get home and use.  A little nervous about it because I have read so much about how terrified people are with trying them out.  But the excitement overweighs the terror!!  I am firmly convinced that I shall rock at the use of the all-terrifying serger....

Have been practicing my machine quilting, just in time for a class that I signed up for next week at the local Bernina store (where I purchased my machine many years ago).  I am excited about it.  Little does my family know that blankets galore are in their future.  They will be confused because normally I am sharing the knitting or crochet items I make with them. 

Along with the newly rediscovered quilting I have found myself obsessed with reading quilting blogs.  I am in awe with the talent that can be found out in cyberspace.  I should have known since the same is true for my favorite knit/crochet bloggers.  It's amazing how generous people are when it comes to sharing their knowledge or expertise. 

Until next time..............

I have rediscovered quilting and am having an absolute blast!!  I have a great sewing machine that has been sitting neglected for at least 10+ years and had forgotten what it was capable of.  I think I originally bought it with quilting in mind so it is exactly what I need right now.  My first attempt for was my newest grand-baby Isaac who was born on leap day.  When all was said and done, it was an average attempt.  I was remembering things as I went along and unfortunately it turned out to not be my best effort.  I decided that since he was only 2.5 months old he probably wouldn't care much.  Krissy knows she can throw it on the ground and abuse the heck out of it, most likely I will be making him another in the not to distant future.




Next up was a lap quilt for my middle grand-daughter Keely.  Her favorite color is pink and mine is purple so I showed her the two fabrics I was thinking about using and she loved them (lucky me).  Keely is 6 years old and definitely has a mind of her own.  I have custody of her right now so I have a little one around 24/7 to love, spoil, and make things for.  She loves everything I have ever done for her, my best audience!  She has put in a request for a quilt for her dolls that will be perfect for using up some scraps.

Keely graduated from kindergarten this week and this was what we gifted her wonderful teacher with.  She loved the "mug rugs" (from a kit, now I know how to do them), and inside the crochet bag I created we put a gift card from Target (one of her fav stores).  Its so nice when people enjoy crafted items as gifts and I so love to make and give things away. 

Julianna is my youngest grand-daughter, she will be 5 going on 25 in July!  She is pretty girly but her mom, my daughter still rebels against that and pleaded with me not to make her lap quilt over the top girly.  I know I will have many opportunities in the future to feed my inner "girl" so came up with these fabrics that I knew would please her as well as her mom.  This has been my best effort yet and has gotten me so excited for my next effort. 

It's still pretty hectic at our house these days.  We are enjoying being full time parents again, but it can be tiring at times.  At the same time our home of 19 years is for sale and that brings alot of stress and sadness along with it.  When we first decided to put the house on the market we had planned on moving back to Denver once it sold.  Life has a funny way of changing your plans.  We now are not able to leave the state until the situation with Keely is resolved and that doesn't look like it will be happening for at least 6 months to a year.  We don't know if we will have Keely permanently or if her mother (our oldest daughter) will be able to get her act together.  So if the house does sell it will be rental time for us.  The thought of having to downsize from our current 7500 square feet to about half that almost paralyzes me. 

It's crazy to think about all that is happening right now.  Smile and keep putting one foot in front of the other!!  Perhaps I should start journaling??

Musings

This is one of my very favority pictures to remind me of good friends and good times. We were quite the "adult" hunter group back in the day at White Fox. Kate, Gail, Jennifer, and I spent many a day sitting on our horses awaiting our turn in the show ring. The fun times we had will always bring a smile to my face. I do miss those days.

It's been a crazy last 4 months for me, so much has happened that has been life-changing for us. How to come to terms with those changes is challenging, yet rewarding. We are full-time parents again with gaining custody of our 6 year old grand-daughter. It's energizing to be around all of that energy! I find myself back to driving to school, taking kids to gymnastics or dance, play-dates, etc. She is doing wonderfully and is happy and well-adjusted. We are blessed.

  Related to above paragraph, my gaming on the computer has been considerable reduced so I guess it's good timing for my laptop to have to go in to the shop!! I have, however, been knitting and crocheting like crazy. Along with numerous washcloths, I completed my first pair of socks!! Have made many hats and scarfs, some wrist warmers, a couple baby blankets, among other fun things.

This shows what happens when you are left-handed and you knit a pattern as it's written!!  Looks awesome through the mirror, lol.  One of those fun lessons learned.  I have gotten used to reading patterns backwards, albiet it is a bit of a nuisance.  Finally I absolutely love this saying:

Welcome holiday season!!!

How appropriate the above is on some days!!! I love knitting and crocheting, it keeps me grounded and brings much needed peace in what has been a tumultuous (not sure I spelled that right) year. Who know that at 57 I would be a full-time mother to a 5 year old!!! A month ago custody of my middle grand-daughter became a reality for me. She has spent most of her life living with us and with her mother's issues she is now legally with us. What joy a child brings into a home. Balancing being a "nana" with being a mother is an ongoing learning experience, but I am relishing challenges that it brings.

Lately

It's been quite a ride since I was last here. Family problems still wildly insane, I wonder most days how I will survive this! It's a real challenge to not let the problems overwhelm daily life. I credit the calmness knitting and crochet bring each day, along with losing myself in the mmorpg's that I so enjoy. All that being said, I am lucky and grateful to have family that does care, friends, health, a home, food on the table, cars to drive, and always the belief in the light ahead in this turbulent time.