Made it to the laundromat

I managed to get to the laundromat yesterday and get the bedspread and the above coasters washed and dried. I went ahead and posted them for sale on Etsy, but I am not sure I will continue with that. It only costs .20 per item to list with them and they take 3.5% of the sale. So it was not a big investment to give it a try and I can always use them for the holidays myself!

We finished painting the kitchen today - so the kitchen project is basically complete. There is some touching up that has to be done on the black wood for the pots and pans rack, but it really looks good and I am very happy with it.

Later . . .

Finished Halloween Bags

So that is accomplished! I think the bags are really cute and I hope the kids will like them. Above in red for Deanna and below in pink for Desirae - same material for both the girls. I think I still like Devin's the best.
Now it is back to quilt making. I am headed off to do some errands and the laundromat.

Later . . .

More Embroidery

I have been working on Halloween bags for the grand kids and the above are the finished embroidery patterns. They were long and tedious designs, but I think they turned out really cute. I have finished Devin's bag and I really like it. Devin's bag has different material than the girls and I really like the way it blends. His lettering is green, which also goes really well with the material. I think I might have bought the wrong "pet mesh" because I am having a really terrible time with it unraveling. The stuff I used before was what my sister, Joy, gave me and it did not unravel like this stuff is doing. It makes it hard to work with because the more you more it around (and there is a lot of that) the more it unravels and the more I have to keep trimming off. Maybe there are different brands or I just happened to purchase one that was not coated well.

Once I get the bags completed, I will finish Chloe's dog quilt. Considering I want the kids to have the bags for Halloween and we are planning a visit the first part of October, getting the bags completed was kind of time sensitive. I still need to make a trip to the laundromat to deal with the coasters I made - simply too many projects and not enough time.

Later . . .

Keeping Busy

I certainly have been keeping busy doing embroidery. Above are the latest sets of four coasters that I have done. I have them all sewn together and just need to make a trip to the laundromat to get they frayed. I have done some in my own washing machine and it is just such a hassle to clean up the mess. I need to wash my frayed bedspread and I will just do them all at once. I cannot even get the bedspread in my washing machine. I did list the other patriotic red white and blue coaster on Etsy. I now have a "shop" so check it out. I plan to put some more coasters up for sale. I will probably put up some of the left over scarves that I did last year. I really don't like the idea of doing stuff for sale because it then adds the pressure factor and I really like doing things for pleasure. I like to do them for myself and friends and family. So the whole selling thing will probably be very short lived. It would be nice to get a little money to replace materials, but I actually have plenty of material to last for a long while (the thread does go quickly when doing a lot of embroidery).

Max and Kathy went up to her mom's for a couple days of doing chores. Max is doing some plumbing work and Kathy is assisting. I decided to stay at home cause I was not feeling all that well. I worked in my sewing room a bit and just kind of relaxed.

Later . . .

Productive Day

We had a productive day today - in the kitchen and in my sewing room. Max made herself a little plastic bubble and sanded, primed, textured, primed and painted the kitchen ceiling while I squared Chole's quilt and added the border and got the binding ready. We made a Lowes run for the moulding (which will be put up on Monday with the help of Kathy).

Max hung the ceiling fan and it actually looks really nice - cute little thing. Must say Max is an expert ceiling fan hanger! It is black and chrome which matches our appliances and cookware really well. It puts out more light than we expected it would, but we still will probably replace the bulbs with some floursecent ones to get a brighter white light.

Later . . .

That time of year again . . . Hatch Chilies

It is that time of year again for New Mexico's great Hatch Chilies. We ordered 50 pounds and Kathy and Paul ordered 25 pounds and we had a chili roast over at Debby's (she is not home but she is the only one with a Weber - the gas grills just take too long to get hot enough to do a good job). Of course I forgot my camera, hence the picture of the chilies bagged and in the freezer. We ordered from a different company this year and have not eaten any chilies yet, but they did come from the same place.

The plans for this weekend are to keep working on the kitchen and hopefully make some progress. It is coming along great and I think will look really nice when it is completed. We picked out a really cool ceiling fan, but have not picked out the molding yet.

I have been working on Holiday themed coasters on my embroidery machine. I just was a bit tired of quilting and wanted to do some embroidery. I have the top for Chloe's quilt done and I just have to square it and then cut the border and binding. I want to get it done so I can get it quilted and on her bed. The dogs are getting along really well and playing and keeping each other company. Darci finally has someone who will actually sleep nest to her and their bodies can actually touch (Kodi was NOT a snuggle guy except with me).

Later . . .

Celebrating 21 Years of Sobriety and Working on the Kitchen

First off it amazes me that I have gone 21 years without a drink and 19 years without a smoke. Life is good and it is a direct result of taking that first big step. Max bought me a Garmin Nuvi 770 (which I have been wanting for the longest time). It is totally cool and will come in handy for many things (especially finding my way home when the traffic comes to a stand still). It also gives you the freedom to explore without the fear of being hopelessly lost.

Our latest project is changing the lighting in the kitchen. We used to have the dropped ceiling with fluorescent lighting and we are opening up the space and putting in a ceiling fan. The kitchen is always really hot and opening up the ceiling will give the appearance of more space. Once the sheet rock is up, tapped, mudded, textured, painted and ceiling fan hung, we will then finish it off with molding around the bottom and top. I think it is going to look really nice and I know that it will help keep the kitchen cooler. The above picture is Kathy and Max patching the ceiling where Max had to extend the wiring to accommodate the new ceiling fan (Max did not hit Kathy with the hammer - she was just goofing around - per usual).

Nothing much new on our front - Hot/Hot/Hot weather.

Later . . .

Finally!

Now this is what I call VACATIONING! The weather was beautiful - not too hot and not too cold. Floating around on a pristine lake up in the mountains where you can smell the pine trees and feel the cool breeze. Even if I did not catch any fish (which I did) it is a great way to relax.

I cannot believe how unbelievably busy I was before we left for vacation and seems like I have been pretty much the same since we got back. Part of the business has been spending time with Debby before she left for Iraq. She has actually been deployed, but will be in Washington preparing for a while.

We had a really GREAT time in Arnold at the Mountain Retreat. We had great chats, great food, great fishing, some special occasions and an all around very relaxing time. I was able to get the bindings sewn on both the dogs quilts for Wanda and also my "Wild Woman" quilt. We also had a good game of poker and a night out at the local Pub for Debby's birthday. I also almost completed the binding for a table topper that Joy gave me. One of the highlights of the trip was getting to be close to a 400 pound Mama brown bear and her two cubs. Thankfully we did not have an encounter with 800 pound Daddy. We had the opportunity watching the Mom and her cubs having dinner in the trash bins at the complex. That is Debby's Toyota that you can see in the right corner of this shot. I was really amazed that Mom would get so close to humans with her cubs, but let me tell you she keep a good watch. Every time someone moved she truly shot them the evil eye until they stood still! There were some beautiful lakes in the area and we had a great time using our float tubes. Max and Paul did some fly fishing in the river and they both managed to hook some up. We were not that successful fishing the lakes, but we did manage to hook up some beautiful trout, but we did not keep any.

The following is a shot of Utica Lake, which was one of the most peaceful, serene and awesomely beautiful places I have ever seen and one we will always hold near and dear to our hearts! This vacation will be one we will remember for a lifetime! I will try to get more of the photos posted on Shutterfly - it is just so hard to add photos to really let people see where we were and what we were doing.Later . . .

Ready for Vacation

Well the dog quilts are ready to make the trip!  I finally got the binding on and the labels made.  I am hoping to be able to do the hand stitching of the binding during down time relaxing at the condo.  We have had a busy week since the kids went home.  Our gardener just stopped showing up so I am doing the yards now.  Got the yards done, pool drained and the slip and slide deflated and put away.  I then tackled the quilts to have them ready to take with me.  Michael had his 25th BD party last night - everyone went to a Karaoke Bar.  Max and I left before the "real" singing got started (she had to work today).  We are very much looking forward to doing some fishing and spending some time with Debby before she leaves for Iraq.  I am not taking a computer with me, but I will have my cell phone (providing we get service up there in the mountains).

Later . . .

Quiet House

We took the kids home Saturday and came back Sunday. Unfortunately we forgot the "warning" Denise gave us about not letting Deanna drink any milk 1 - 1 1/2 hours before putting her in the car. She had milk with lunch and fell asleep immediately when we started driving. The mistake we made was stopping at McDonalds in Bakersfield for dinner and she had milk with her Happy Meal. Shortly before we were about to make the turn off for Cal City, she got sick. Hard to believe someone so little could puke that much. OMG it was everywhere and there was no place to pull off the road for a couple of miles. We thought for sure the other kids were going to get sick just for being next to Deanna in the car. Poor Desirae ended up with it on her and she was trying her hardest not to puke herself. So when we finally pulled over we took the car seat out of the car and got Deanna changed and then proceeded to try to figure out how to take the cover off the seat because there was NO WAY we were going to be able to clean it there. Mission accomplished and we were back on the road and you would never know that Deanna had been sick - kids are amazing!

We will enjoy the peace and quiet for a few days and then start terribly missing them. Once again I will mention that it is really sad that they live so far away, but at least they are close enough to make the drive in one day.

Now we start preparing for our fishing trip with Max's family. Debby will be leaving for Iraq the end of the month so it will be a good time to have everyone together for the week.

Later . . .

Added Note . . .

I forgot to mention Thursday night at dinner all the kids were droppey eyed and yawning and Desirae looked at me and said, "Nana, what are you doing to us"? It was very cute and I had to explain that they were outside in the sun and fresh air and expending a LOT of energy playing in the pool and it was natural that they were all tired. It was funny cause you would think I was working them to death or something. She had such a serious look on her face. At least we will be sending them home with nice color. While packing up their stuff and getting ready to take them home, Max and I are both already sad to see them go and will miss them a lot. If we did not have plans it would be nice to keep them longer. They are all very precious children (spoken like a true Nana)!

Later . . .

Last Day

I cannot believe that the week has gone by so quickly. We went to the movie this afternoon (WALLE) and Max and the kids are now making ice cream cone cup cakes (which are yummy). The movie was not what I expected, but the kids seem to like it and that is what counts. We have not been to a movie since they were here the last time and it is hard to believe that for a matinee it costs $6.50 per person. Popcorn, candy and drinks is something I don't even want to discuss! Now I know why we stay home and watch DVD's.

I will say I accomplished a BUNCH of yard work that I have been wanting to do. Deanna is the greatest little helper and I do mean that she helps. The kids have been in the pool everyday and that has given me the opportunity to work in the yard. We have had some great weather - around 80 - 85. Hot enough to be outside and in the pool, but not so hot I don't want to be doing yard work. The one thing I did not get done was mowing the lawns (I guess our gardener quit as he just stopped showing up).

It will be silent and a bit sad around the house next week, but at least I should be able to get my dog quilts done and be able to take them with me on our trip to Arnold. I should have them completed except for the hand sewing of the binding. I am looking forward to the trip and Max is dying to go fishing. We have not been fishing at all this year. She might be able to do some stream fly fishing with Paul and we are taking our float tubes for the lakes.

Later . . .

I guess I am staying BUSY!

I can't believe it has been weeks since I posted. No need to ask me what I have been doing cause I really have no idea why I have not been on my computer. I did manage to embroider a shirt for Denise that she has been wanting (spinning wheel on the back and knitting basket over the pocket on the front). I am slowly trying to get the dog quilts done, but I have been having issues. One would think that all Pfaff machines would load the bobbin the same way and insert the needles the same. IF that were the case I might not have had such a hassle with thread breakage - check the manual, Donna! Max and I did the Reno trip for a few days and had a really good time. We gambled most of the time and I actually came back with more money than I started with (not much, but that is so cool in my book). Max had a great birthday and we hit some really good cards and had a really nice birthday dinner (the buffets are amazing). We came home to greet Denise and the kids. She brought them down for their week stay and was here when we got home. Having three kids in the house is definitely not something I am used to. I can't believe these little people eat breakfast, lunch and dinner - not to mention snacks and dessert! We are having a good time spending most of the time in the back yard in the blow up pool we have for them. We also bought a slip and slide, but it requires more energy than I can muster to help Devin be able to use it. We played on it for an hour or so and have not set it back up since (believe me it is hell getting old and having arthritis). Having them around is a real treat. We miss not seeing them often. I have taken some pictures, but not as many as I would like and Max has not gotten her camera out. With Max working all day we both seem to be ready for bed when the kids are. We will be taking them home this weekend. Kathy, Paul, Michael and Debby are coming over for dinner tomorrow night.

Later . . .

Keeping Busy

Loading my quilt frame is not an easy task and putting two different quilts on at the same time was a challenge.  I think it will work out well and in the long run save me some time and effort.  Once the quilts were ready to go I then wound 27 bobbins (that was the number I had with no thread on them).  It takes around 15 bobbins for each quilt - give or take.  I like to get bobbins wound before I start quilting so I don't have to do it in the middle of quilting.  Changing bobbins is a pain and at least I have them ready.  One would think someone would come up with a large capacity bobbin for quilting machines!

Later . . .

Embroidery

So this is what had me distracted. I wanted to see what the flowers would look like and the Lady is a new design I got. It was in black and I decided to see what it would look like in red. I actually think it would look good in any solid color. I had a chambray shirt laying around and thus the distraction. I ramble about from craft to craft. I suppose that is the curse of having so many crafts and projects to choose from and work on. Added to the distraction I started reading a Dean Koontz book; which I just finished. I love to read, but when I am reading the book seems to just call to me. I try to get my reading done before I fall asleep, but sometimes I just have to read during the day.

Ahhhhhh well such is my life.

Oh BTW we have borrowed Debby's dog Chloe to see how she and Darci will interact while Debby is in Iraq. They seem to be getting along pretty well - Chloe is adjusting to the new environment and we are hoping that Debby will just let us keep her; considering Debby will be leaving the end of August anyway. Last night they did the bed switch - so I think they are getting comfortable with each other. Max gave them both a bath (shower) today and they are shiny, sweet smelling girls.

Later . . .

Catching up . . .

I finally finished the borders for the dog quilts. I have the batting and backing cut out and ready to load everything on my quilt frame, but I somehow keep getting side tracked. I guess it will get done when it gets done.

Later . . .

Birthday presents for Max

Max made out her wish list for her birthday and I went ahead and ordered the stuff from B&H. She got that mondo macro lens and we were looking at Paul's eyelashes through it - what a trip. OMG it gets close up. Then she also got the extender for her other lens and we were reading the print on a piece of paper attached to one of the trellises in the backyard. She also got a set of glass lens filters. Needless to say she was and is a happy camper. I am also taking her to Reno for her birthday. We are running up there for a couple of days before we get the grandkids for a week.

Later . . .

Making Progress

I finished the other dog quilt top and have the borders and binding cut out and ready to sew together. I am hoping to get both the quilts on my frame next week. It has been so darn hot around here working in the garage during the day is not an option. Early morning hours is not so bad, but a couple of days it did not even cool down at night. I am getting out of bed a bit earlier these days so I think it will be workable. I did not take any pictures, but will post when the borders are on and perhaps when I get them both on the frame (I am hoping that is a doable thing).

We are off to Max's mom's today to do some chores (fixing and painting her bathroom) and will be back Saturday afternoon/evening. Darci has been having a bit of a bad week (missing her brother I am guessing) and I hate to leave her home alone, but she needs to get used to it. I had to do a bunch of running around the other day and I think that is what kicked off her loneliness. Kathy and Debby will probably visit, but essentially we will only be gone overnight (which we have done many times in the past, but she always had Kodi for company).

Later . . .

Finished Bags

Joy is a much faster sewer than I am (that would be because she has made MANY of the bags that she was teaching me how to make) so she finished both bags when she got home and emailed me the following pictures. She wanted to have the bags done to take to her sewing group on Thursday. I knew the they would both turn out great and they certainly did.I have not done any more sewing on the dog quilts, but I did try to make the labels and ended up with a design that just did not work. I hate that when it happens, but I usually do not want to do an entire design just to check to see if it will work. If I was putting something on an expensive article of clothing or something like that I would do a test, but when I am working on material I don't see the point. So I guess I did a test design that sucked and I am back to the drawing board. I have all the squares sewn together in rows and just need to attach them. I hope to get the borders and binding cut out tomorrow and hopefully by next week I can have them on the quilting frame.

It is HOT HOT HOT here and is going to be hotter tomorrow. Good day to stay in the house in my sewing room and work on quilts or embroidery.

Later . . .

Catching up . . .

First piece of good news - Darci did not dig in the yard while she was left home alone. I think maybe she has grown up and does not have all that excess energy that she used to have. She has taken to going around the house and sleeping in the spot that Kodi used to sleep in all the time. I guess she is trying to take over for him - she is still a bit on the skiddish side, but is improving.

Joy did come back with me and she was teaching me how to make tote bags. When we were at the sewing machine shop we saw embroidery on pet mesh and decided we needed to give that a try. We started one at her house and brought it with us, but she did not cut enough material so she had to take it back with her to finish. It was on the black pet mesh and the embroidery was white dragon flies - it was really pretty, but I forgot to take a picture of it. I made the above bag (with her direction) and it turned out really pretty. I wrote down the instructions as I went and then made another bag "all by myself". The below bag is made with material instead of the pet mesh. I like the pet mesh, but I am not sure I want to buy the mesh - it only comes it rolls and I don't know that I would use it all - unless I try to sell some, but there is a lot of time that goes into doing the embroidery and sewing the bag. I really love the one below (pretty girlie bag).

Then we were cruising through some of my designs and she found a design that she wanted on a bag for herself. We prepared the material and I did the embroidery, but there was just not enough time to complete the bag. She had to take it home and will finish it there. Both the above bags have the same design on both sides, but the one I did for Joy (below) will only be on one side cause I just did not have the time to get it on both sides before she had to leave. She went home on Amtrak Friday morning.

We had a good time sewing, but the trip to her house was short and her stay here was kind of short.

Max and I went to Debby's for an early afternoon 4th celebration , but were home early and just hung out around the house. I managed to get some little chores accomplished and we "heard" the fireworks, but we did not see anything.

We are off to Stockton to a birthday party for Jesse's son this afternoon and hopefully we will spend a relaxed quiet day around the house tomorrow. Seems like we have been really busy and pressed for time the last couple of weeks.

Later . . .