3/30/14 - Sunday

 

This is how yesterday ended.

 

 

And this is how today began. What a difference 12 hours can make. We are expecting 60 degrees on Monday :)

I've spent the majority of the last week concerned about my goal list for March. I made a rather ambitious list of things I wanted to get accomplished and now I'm worried that I won't make it.
I was recently reminded that not only is it important to make a list and get as much done as you possibly can, but you must also concern yourself with the quality of the work you produce. I can honestly say that I'm confident in my quality. I wouldn't hesitate to give any of my finishes as gifts and be very proud of them. I don't feel I have compromised in this area.

My Sunday began as it usually does, at church. I gave myself the added task of updating the class bulletin board. I still had Valentine's displayed. March is hard because we don't celebrate St. Patty's day at my church so I don't have much incentive to change it, unless Easter falls in March. Easter does fall in April this year, so we did Easter as our theme. One of the fourth graders who really enjoys helping me with any craft preparation was thrill to help me with the board.

It was her idea to leave the butterflies on the wires and have them come out and away from the board. I am very pleased with the end result.

A stop at the grocery for some staples, lunch and dishes when we got home. Once everything was cleaned up, Honey Do went to his shop to work on a 60-pen order for May. Newton went out to play in the remaining snow and I headed for my studio. The Christmas pjs for Newton are done. The fabric I chose is a flannel with wood grain print and tools. Very cute.

Once the pjs were done, I started working on my "winter" wall hanging. I know, it's spring, but I really wanted to just get it done and put away for next year. I didn't want to create yet another UFO. I might actually get this one done. All that remains is the binding.

BFF asked me this week about scheduling a couple days over summer to work on some Christmas projects:  tags and stockings. She suggested we take the next couple of months to gather our supplies. We'll do one project at her house and one at mine.

BFF has been rather impressed that I'm working on Christmas gifts (one per month). I have been encouraging her to do likewise. Both of us get caught at the last minute without gifts for the people we want to share them with. I am making a determined effort to get at least one done per month. So far so good. This weekend as I was searching through my stash for Newton's flannel, I came across several pieces too big to dispose of and too small for him. So I've started to label them for the great nephews and will start making pj pants for them as well. I'll just pick up coordinating t-shirts and socks to match to complete the outfit. Sometimes, I go as far as wrapping them when I finish each child's gift.

Can you see the sweet brown eyes watching me from the other side of the room? Yes, I wondered what she was up to also. She did pull out a couple of pieces of fabric stashed under the table. I put an end to that very quickly by getting her a couple of toys to play with. She did let me work for the most part. She's a sweet girl.

Thank you for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative day.

3/29/14 - Saturday

My day has been busy with laundry. Honey Do is taking Monday off work, so I want to make sure I don't have any chores waiting for me.  I've also watched the rain turn to snow. The forecast is for six inches this afternoon and another two over-night. It really is the winter that never wants to end.

Yesterday, Newton and I took a little time between appointments to work on the sorting, purging and organizing the attic. This is one of my least favorite projects and was supposed to be completed last summer. However, when my father-in-law said he wasn't coming for a visit I had the perfect excuse not to complete it. You see, the guest room is upstairs with the attic. And when we had the house insulated, everything had to come out of the attic and was housed in the guest room. I received a phone call from a worthwhile organization asking for donations of household goods and clothing. Another good excuse to get this job done. I've also been unable to decorate seasonally as I usually do. I've managed to dispose of some things, donate, put Christmas and winter decorations away and bring out spring and Easter.

The large bunny (behind the lamb) was a gift made for me several years ago by BFF. Isn't she beautiful?

The floral arrangement in the center is a project Sister and I worked on together.

It's a good thing to surround yourself with creative people :)

  

I found this little cutey the other day at my local craft store when I went to get a skein of floss. It has the poem attached to it. I just had to have it.

And these eggs are decopaged wood that my mother-in-law made. I'm so glad they were left for me. I just love them and wish I had more.

It may be snowing outside, but inside, I've moved on to the next season. I also discovered some crocuses getting ready to bloom. The gorgeous dark yellow buds were peaking through the snow and I noticed that the birds were extremely busy today. So regardless of what our weather is doing, spring keeps peeking through.

Thanks for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative day.

3/28/14 - Friday

Happy 86th Birthday, Dad.

We miss you and love you.

Friday night - weekend goal

I have had so many other things going on the last couple of days that I don't feel very productive. Newton and I went and checked out a new school and got him enrolled. He also had a doctor appointment today for a follow-up. This skinny minny needs to have his weight monitored because he's not heavy enough !! I should be so fortunate :) Happily, he is growing - now as tall as me - and gaining weight. So there are no major concerns and we can go back to seeing the doctor every six months.

My Friday night will be spent working on Bethlehem and laundry. It's on my goal list to get the fourth block done. My goal is to have the top of this quilt done before the end of the year. Have you thought about April's goals yet. Yes, they are in the back of my mind too. Some are even in writing, but I'll share those later when I make my final decisions.

Isn't he a fun conductor? This block has been very enjoyable to work on, especially since I made the decision not to follow the instructions and go off on my own.

Thanks for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative day.

Shared with permission from KerriAnn.

3/27/14 - Thursday

Two and a half hours . . . that's how long it took me to choose and order 100 pictures from Shutterfly. The cost:  postage and tax, the prints were FREE :) I received a promotional email from Coke Rewards. For five of my rewards points, I could purchase 100 prints. Happy girl . . . Happy girl . . . I have two new great nephews. I'm making photo/scrapbooks of their first year from the pictures I've been collecting. What a better way to get those gifts started than with free prints.

 

     Ryland - 2 months                    "Birth" day

 

    Ryker - 7 months old               "Birth" day

Both are the sweetest little boys I've been with for quite some time. So I'm happy and excited to make their books for them. Once the pictures arrived, which doesn't take very long, I can get started and the time frame gives me plenty of time to get them done. The first one isn't due until August and then next January. Don't you love when you can give yourself that much time for gift making?

On to the rest of my day. Not much else got accomplished today :(  I did however, make contact with a local quilt shop owner who offered to help me next time I needed something. Well, I found a group of fabrics that I really like and she's going to help me so I can purchase them. I want them for Bethlehem. Can't wait to show you.

And hopefully tomorrow I'll have more to share with you on Bethlehem.

Thanks for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative day.

3/26/14 - Wednesday

Are you a goal-oriented person? 

 I never thought I was but this month has proved differently. I was more motivated to make a list of craft goals that I wanted to accomplish this month. My inspiration came from here.

Sara gave me a reason to spend more time with my sewing machine. I spent more time than I usually do. My sewing machine and crafting supplies are in the basement of my home. It's dark, even though Honey Do put the requested work light over my sewing table, it's damp and cold. It's away from everyone in the house - which on some occasions is a really good thing.

Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond my control, I haven't been able to spend as much time as I would have liked. I even made a chart to track my time, but gave it up after week two because I wasn't able to actually sit at the machine.

I had 11 things on my March goal list. I've got a little more than half done. I knew it was an ambitious list, but I really REALLY wanted to get all these things done. I'm not disappointed in what I have accomplished and there are still a few days until the end of the month, so I'm not giving up yet.

I also had a very sweet reminder that it's not about quantity. It's about quality and if I'm not enjoying what I'm doing then why bother with a list. I can say that I do enjoy what I'm doing. I'm relishing in the accomplishments and the list has helped me stay focused. I've managed to stay on task for the most part. That doesn't usually happen. I get excited about the next new project and the current on is set aside in favor of  the new projects only to be added eventually to the UFO stack. That's growing on it's own as I discover "new" UFOs in my numerous boxes and bins. I'll get to those eventually. But that's another list . . . for another day.

I managed to spend a good portion of my day working on Bethlehem. Specifically, the trombone player. I finished the sax player yesterday.

All I have left on the trombone player is his wings.

Here's a close up of his hair. I'm so excited with this guy I could squeal. He just makes me happy.

Thanks for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative day.

3/25/14 - Tuesday

Today started good, ended rough. But we keep plugging along. Other than a quick breakfast with BFF there weren't many positive highlights to my day.  I spent part of the day getting a donation together, we made cookies and dinner, don't forget the laundry, some filing and making plans for a necessary change in my son's education.

Some small progress has been made on Bethlehem Block 4. 

When I met with BFF this morning, I was able to share my quilt top. I reported yesterday that I felt it belonged in the hall of shame because I felt I had made so many mistakes. 

Because she's such a good friend, and has a great eye for color and detail, she looked at it and told me I was nuts. She said there was nothing wrong with my work and liked what I had done. One of the many reasons we are such good friends. We can share constructive critism, encouragement, comfort and guidance. So maybe, just maybe, I was being too hard on myself. It wouldn't be the first time.

So as I struggle with my family issues and trying to get my March goals accomplished, I'm thinking about April goals - thinking about Easter/Spring projects. Gardening season is just around the corner. So much to do, so easily and quickly overwhelmed. I think I'll just go back to work on Bethlehem and leave all those thoughts for another day.

Thank you for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative day.

3/24/14 - Monday

Monthly wind-down:  review goals

It's hard to believe we are in the last week of March. How have you been doing on your sewing challenge? I haven't spent as much time sewing at the machine as I would have liked, but I've been able to get quite a bit done and I've spent more time at the machine than I usually do.

One of my goals for this month was getting these four winter themed stitcheries put together in a wall hanging. Unfortunately, this one is going in the hall of shame. There are so many mistakes and they started with how I trimmed down the stitcheries. I've spent so much time on it that I'm going to finish it and enjoy it for what it is. It has been quite the learning experience. I forget how impatient I am to get things done and the end result is all the mistakes I make. But as I said, I'll finish it and move on to the next one. They can't all be perfect, can they ? :(

On a more positive note :) 

Block 4, Bethlehem is coming along. This is the first of eight musicians. My goal is to finish stitching this one by the end of the week. I'm working on the third musician.

And the A.D.D. has kicked in again :) 

Another goal was a quilt from one of my Tilda books. I got side-tracked and drew off patterns for several projects in the book I want to work on for spring . . . yes, this spring :) 

And I wonder why the UFO pile keeps growing . . .

Thanks for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative day.

3/23/14 - Sunday

Inspiration . . .

where does it come from? I find mine in a variety of 

places. . . other bloggers, friends, magazines, books, Pinterest, etc.

This one comes from my BFF. I've been working really hard the last couple of days to get this finished.

 

    

I'm very happy with the extra time spent doing things like the turkey stitch, satin stitch and the addition of the beads on the snow flakes. Block 2 is drawn off, but I realized while I was working on this yesterday, that it's not on my list of goals for March. That  wouldn't be a problem, except the things I wanted to finish this month are in jeopardy of not getting done because I allowed myself to get side-tracked. 

So in an effort to get back on track . . . 

I started working on Bethlehem Block 4. This is a depiction of the Angel Choir. There are eight members on this block, so if I managed to get at least one and a half done per day, I'll be able to accomplish this goal.

I had a very ambitious list for March. I'm still plugging away in an effort to accomplish what I set out to do this month. I'm mentally getting my list for April together too. I don't think it will be quite as ambitious, but you never know. Warmer weather is quickly approaching and that means the addition of yard work. That means having to juggle more outdoor responsibilities to my indoor responsibilities and making time for a lot of things but prioritizing to make sure I don't get behind, but to also take care of my family and myself. It's amazing that we are already thinking April. Seems like it was just Christmas and all those snow days. And we even had one snow day this month for a total of nine or ten - none of which will have to be made up at the end of the year.

Hope you all had a productive, restful weekend.

Thank you for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative day.

3/22/14 - FNSI Recap

How was your Friday Night Sew-In? I didn't make a lot of progress on my project, however, what I did do I really like and it was very time consuming.

The turkey stitch and satin stitch take time if you want them to look good. 

I'm happy with my results.

Well, that's it for now. Off to finish this block.

Thanks for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative weekend.