Nanny's Place

Week One Challenge is Complete!!

2012-02-01T21:47:00.003-05:00

Last night I sat in my messy nest finishing up files for 2011 and setting up files for 2012
Our desk is now clean and ready to take on whatever I throw in the cubbies

Old files are in the attic and the new ones are ready for the new year

Tidy little drawer

And office supplies are in place

That's it for our bedroom!!! I even washed the durn windows, what the heck it was 73 degrees here today, felt like spring to me!!! After the bedroom I moved on to finish up in the master bath, will post photo's tomorrow, blogger only lets me do 5 per post. Then it was on to the scrap/sewing room for more work. It is going to take MUCH more than a week to work that room over so I am trying to sneak in and extra hour here and there.

After a few hours in my room of sin I had a bug up my rump to do a little sewing so while hubby was working the tax deal this evening I worked on a baby quilt top for a friends new grand baby due to arrive the end of March. It is oh so girly and super cute!! Of course I have lots of fabric leftover so LATER I will work up and additional quilt or two. I used a charm pack along with some yardage so the job went lickety split fast. I didn't realize the charm pack also had some great blues in it. Bonus time, I have most of what I need for a baby boy quilt in the future.

Taxes are done!! We are getting a nice refund from the Federal return, Michigan, and Virginia but have to pay North Carolina :( We will still come out ahead so I can't complain. Now where oh where to stash that cash, gonna sleep on it tonight and come up with a plan.

Hey it was a NO Spend day!! Pretty easy to do when your too tired to leave the house after a day of decluttering!!

NO NEW CLOTHES!!!!

2012-01-31T16:39:00.003-05:00

I removed EVERY thing from my closet then threw it all on the bed. Unless I got it cleaned up there would be no sleeping tonight.
After sorting through the piles I put my "little bit better" than Nanny wear on one side of the tiny walk in closet

The other side has my Nanny wear, I only hung on to the nicer tee's but still have plenty. Dress up clothes were moved to a spare bedroom closet, it's not like they get used very much so no need to clutter up my working closet. Two large bags will be headed to Goodwill next time I am over that way, they are already loaded in the car ready to fnd a new home.

I moved our every day bulk storage under my tee's so I could get to it much easier. Before I had to go in the closet, shut he door, drag out the 50 pound buckets then drag it all back again. I replace the lids with Gamma Lids for our bulk items. Much better for getting in and out plus they keep a nice seal. I don't have room in the kitchen or any of the other pantries for these large buckets.

I didn't turn my machine on for a single minute today :( but I did get a few more bits and pieces sorted. I am hoping this system will work better than the piles of scraps I had hanging aound. The larger containers hold leftovers from seasons or categories. No need to have Christmas and such just taking up space and looking all messy.

Needed to post early today since I know hubby will want to get on the PC tonight to start our tax filing. I have a little nest for myself to work on files in the den for this afternoon and evening. I need to do a quick dig to find everything hubby will need then it's on to doing the yearly clean out and setting up for 2012. I sooo should have done this earlier but now is better than never! Our desk is housed in our bedroom so this is still part of the decluttering for the master bedroom. I am oh so close to being done in there.

After hours in our room I needed a change of scenery so I moved over to the scrap/sewing room for some time. The only way to get some sibilance of order was to find storage containers for all my leftovers. Wally world here I come, put down $31.74 for crappy plastic boxes, printer paper (we were out), file boxes. and Cheetos (lunch). This won't be much of a low spend week, I will need gas and a few other things before the week is out.

I so hate ugly clear plastic boxes, getting cute colors makes me feel a little better but I need to see what is in the boxes quick and easy so clear it is. I have collected so many good scraps over the last year that I didn't want to do away with much. After putting together 3 quilt tops with the fabric I had bought for just one quilt I realized two things. I buy more fabric than I need to for a quilt and coordinating scraps look pretty darn good together for additional quilts. I used the large containers for seasons, baby, Americana, holidays and such. The small containers are random scraps sorted by color. I hate to cut into a full piece of fabric for just a small bit.

I'm off to start on our filing, shredding and moving the old stuff out. With any luck I can head to bed before hubby gets to far into the tax deal, it ain't always pretty!!

Decluttering is Underway

2012-01-30T22:02:00.002-05:00

My end table has been unloaded of book, books, and more books. All that's left is "Steve Jobs" that I am reading now. The chair is from my Great Great Grandfather and was recained by my Grandmother, love having a bit of our past close by.

My dresser is cleaned inside and out.

My bathroom drawer is now decluttered from all the junk that seems to find its way in there

What the heck, OK so stand on your head so you can see the receiving blanket I finished today. Used more scraps to match one of the scrap bibs for a shower gift later this month. I used minky fabric I had in my stash for the backing, now hubby wants one in a man size!! I had a time working with the minky, need to check with my fabric store to find the trick for working with it.

Last but not least I pined one of the Birthday quilts for DD#2, now on to the quilting, yuk!

I had a really nice start for a Monday and the beginning of the declutter/Low spend challenge. I was able to get my side of our room and bathroom cleaned out along with some work on a few sewing projects. One bag was loaded in the trash, nothing to donate as I don't think anyone would want my threadbare PJ's, undies and pantyhose. Who the heck wears pantyhose any more and why did I still have some? Along with that another fight with our insurance and drug store over the price of Hubby's prescription drugs, GRRRRR.

Hubby felt so sorry for me after the hissy fit I once again had over drug cost that he invited me to lunch on him. It was the prefect distraction from the craziness, and no cost!! Today was a no spend day!! I spent the evening pining one of the quilts for DD#2 while hubby watched "How it's Made", well really he was snoring within 1o minutes but I now know more than I ever wanted about building hydro dams.

Tomorrows agenda will be to clean out our desk which is housed in our bedroom along with my closet. My man has late meeting tomorrow so no supper will be needed, I can always find a little something for me. I would love to get an additional item made for the baby shower gift but I am afraid my closet will be a bugger to get done.

Off to bed with the "Steve Jobs" book, sure glad I didn't have him as a boss!!!!!!

On to the next challenge!!

2012-01-29T21:42:00.003-05:00

My first attempt at a baby bib
Then a few more

I played around with a pattern over the weekend for a baby bib I want to include in a gift I am making for an upcoming baby shower. They turned out very girlie, just what I had in mind and all from leftover projects, love this whole making do and using up scraps!! I started cutting out another project for the baby gift today but ran into a problem working with minky fabric, that crap stretches all over the place. Maybe tomorrow I can start fresh and have better luck.

I am calling an end to our January challenge. I like to work from Sunday to Sunday on our weekly spending plan and to do list, starting in the morning I am on to Carla's Low Spend/Declutter challenge
So here is the total spent for the week $149.49, my worst week of all for January. I transferred over $50.00 tonight to our Christmas/Vacation fund. The grand total that I was able to put into our Christmas/Vacation account from my weekly spending plan this month was $423.00, not to shabby!! We were still able to fund our long term savings as well as our EF from payroll deductions but after we get through February's challenge we will be backing off on some of the payroll deductions. I have sooo over estimated our payroll deductions!!
For February my goal is to continue to add what I can at the end of each week to our Christmas/Vacation account. I have no set amount in mind, just have as many No spend days as possible and keep my rump at home staying busy.

I will start the decluttering challenge tomorrow in our bedroom, master bath and closets. With any luck I can start working on some area's in the scrap/sewing room as well. I don't think our personal space should take up the entire week, but it will take more than a week to get the sewing mess under control, I need a head start in there!!

Thanks to all of you ladies who followed along this month and kept me motivated to do a little better each day. You guys have all done an incredible job stashing a little cash!

Make Do Day 27

2012-01-27T19:49:00.003-05:00

I think quilts look so much better hanging on the clothes line.
Love the soft flannel backing

Embroidery thread is all inventoried and neatly organized in their containers, wish I could say the same for the rest of the room!

After Kara left today I hit the big box store for the embroidery thread sale. I saved $69.52 but spent $42.33. I am cutting it very close this week to stay on budget. I may not have much leftover to send to our Christmas/Vacation account but the thread purchase today will help cover the cost of one of the Christmas items I will be making this year so it was worth the risk. I picked up 2 custom orders for children chairs this week, as soon as I find out what the Mommies want for the applique and embroidery work I can knock them out pretty quick. I am thinking for now I will set the $$ aside for some storage containers I would like to have in the sewing area of my room.

I am set for the first week of the decluttering challenge over at Carla's this month. I like the idea of starting with our own space. When I do a big clean out I always wait on our room until the end, by then I have run out of steam!

So here are my goals for week 1 on the decluttering side

Clean out our room, master bath and our closets. Along with that I will have to do some work in the scrap/sewing room. I have lots of gifts I need to complete before the end of the month, the sewing side of my little room of sin is a total mess. Along with the No/Low spend challenge I have also been participating in the "Sew Scraps Along" The two challenges worked beautifully together but my room didn't fair to well in the process!
Hope everyone has a great weekend of No/Low spending!!

Can't Remember What Day it is!

2012-01-26T23:09:00.003-05:00

For some reason Kara thought she should wear a sweater in the house today, what the heck it's a chilly 69 degrees!!
Finished up the "Quilt of Valor" tonight, hope I can get a photo hanging on the clothes line, inside after dark photo's stink

It has a nice plaid flannel backing in red, white and blue.

I am to lazy to get up and see what the date is, I do know it's Thursday night and I didn't spend a dime today!! I finished up the quilt tonight after Kara left while I tuned into the republican debate. My quilting and playing around is over for a few days, hubby has started home and should arrive tomorrow sometime. Our weekend will be filled with Papaw time with the grands and lots of catching up, as it should be. I still need to inventory my embroidery thread while its 50% off until Sunday. I can also get an additional 20% off with a coupon I got in the mail today so I really can't put off more spending this week, 70% off sales are few and far between!!

I was able to crunch a few numbers this week to get ready for Carla's Low spend challenge for February. When I set up our spending plan for 2012 I forgot to figure in a few BIG expenditures, as in 401K, Social Security, and the regular savings we have directed before the check hits our account add to that the $6,200.00 that we are putting in the new Health Saving Plan.... folks it ain't pretty!! When it looks bad on paper you know your in trouble!!! I have excused my blunder on the budget since we had just had our 4th grand who was acting up after he was born, a week of jury duty and Christmas all in one month. The good thing about the mistake is we can make the adjustments needed with a click of the mouse. So thankful it wasn't a financial disaster on a CC or some other consumer debt!!! Hubby and I have agreed to let it ride for now knowing full well it is not sustainable in the long term. Come March I will cut back on a little of the regular savings to free up the cash flow or maybe some from the 401K (I think we might be putting in to much). So February's challenge will be a challenge for sure!! I will save what I can when I can from our weekly spending of $200.00 but there will be some spending going on. here is what I know we will need to do with the $200.00 each week

Groceries - I can keep that really low

Gas - May need more than I used in January, staying home helps!!

Entertainment - We have some friends from High School/College coming in for the super bowl. Meals will be eaten at home, I have plenty of beef to keep the men happy and I know my way around the kitchen. I think the adult beverages for the guys are well stocked and I am as always the DD so they will come and go as I please, Ha just kidding!!

Gifts - DD#2 Birthday, Baby Shower, Birthday for a friend, Valentines Day, Gift for Senior Pal, Holy Hannah I am going to have to be VERY creative and dig around in my little room of sin big time.

With all of that on my plate I will feel really good if I can put back $100.00 in our Christmas/Vacation fund from my weekly spending $$. We are putting way more than we can in our regular savings for January and February so if I can pull this off one more month I will be pumped!!

Make Do Day 25 & 26

2012-01-26T12:55:00.002-05:00

Check out one of my projects from this morning. Back off ladies I know you are all in envy that hubby has a collection of the best of the best 8 track cassettes. Yep we have the classics, Donny Osmond's 1st tape, James Taylor, 3 Dog Night, Led Zeppelin, Cheek and Chung, you name it we got it.

Why would I even bother with hanging on to this useless crap? When I was cleaning out the attic a few years back I checked with hubby before I sent the box of 8 tracks on their way. He just about had a stroke that I would consider HIS music crap. We no longer have a tape deck (I think that's what they were called) so we can't play the silly things but I am afraid if I bring up that subject again I will find a UPS box on the front steps where hubby has found and purchased a tape deck. I consolidated his tapes along with one of his many train sets (bought before DD#1 was born, she is 34) into one nice plastic container to be shoved back in the attic. Figure it will never see the light of day until our kids get to clean it out when we are long gone so I have a little note on top explaining that their Dad wanted to keep it all. Let them deal with the guilt of throwing it out!! Ha

Yesterday was a spending day. Our temperature was 67 degrees with lots of sunshine and I had cabin fever along with a slight injury to my shoulder from my morning work out (blow drying my hair, I am not kidding) I had heard we had a new quilting store in the area I thought I would check out for some nice ON SALE backing for all the quilts I have lined up and I knew there was another quilt shop out in the country I have been wanting to visit. I didn't want to head from home on the little gas I had left in the tank so I put $20.00 in, not much for my car but enough to make me feel better. I couldn't find the local store but I did visit the store in the country and found what I hope is enough backing for 3 quilts all on clearance at only $5.00 a yard, $47.26 total, I took the $$ from this weeks spend money so I won't have as much as I had hoped to put back at the end of the week. I think I will consider this pace spending. I really want to get as many quilts completed as I can before I start keeping Mr. Mason full time, maybe if I buy a little backing here and there on sale I can pace myself and our budget to cover it all.

Today will be a NO spend day as I am quilting and doing a little organizing while on breaks from the machine, I have Kara for the afternoon so that will be my rest time for the day.

Have you fallen off wagon on the No/Low spending this month? This week it turning out to be my downfall, maybe a month is just to long for this slacker to do.

Make Do Day 24

2012-01-24T23:41:00.002-05:00

Finished quilt top for an additional "Quilt of Valor"

I spent most of the day working on quilts (whats new!) With hubby gone until Friday I have very few days where I can just walk away from the mess I make and not worry about whats for dinner and where the heck are we going to eat it amongst all the fabric. I am 1/2 finished with the quilting on the other quilt, THANK goodness! Tomorrow I should be able to finish that up then get on with the binding. Quilting has been a big part of staying on track with the No/Low spending challenge this month. Today was a no spend day.

I also want to work on a plan for the February challenges. I think my biggest obstacle is cleaning out the clutter and tackling some organization issues and still stick with the No/Low spending challenge. I am a sucker for organizing tools, containers and such, they of course cost $$.

I want to share a site a young Mommy sent to me today. She wanted to share it with me along with her feelings on how thankful she was to have a Mother who chose to stay home. Thank you so much Katie!! I had thought that maybe just maybe the old stereotype that stay at home Mom's were to dumb or lazy to work outside their homes was over, looks like I was wrong. Why is it woman are so cruel to each other? My DD that have children both work outside the home, so PLEASE don't think I am judging anyone who chooses to work outside the home. One thing our girls and the entire family agree on is that as a family we want the children to be in a loving home environment so together we are making that happen. It's not always easy to be a hands on Nanny, there are lots of things I could do with my time other than helping with the grands but I feel that God wants me home to continue to be a Wife, Mom and Nanny. My prayer tonight is that people who don't want children don't have them and that woman STOP being mean to each other. Check out this site, so sad that woman would go on national tv and act this way!

http://www.holyspiritledhomeschooling.net/2012/01/the-value-of-a-stay-at-home-mom/

Rare Mid Day Post

2012-01-24T14:22:00.002-05:00

I am working on one of the "Quilt of Valor" today. Quilting the top is a love/hate deal for me. I love that it means the quilt is so very close to being completed, but I hate the process. Its hard on the shoulders, all the layers of fabric makes me hot (menopause you know) and if you run out of bobbin thread after thinking you have completed and entire roll it makes bad words fly from my lips. Notice how the end of the quilt is draped over the back of the chair. That is where I normally sit, when i work the fabric is folded on my chest. Confession time I am a tata quilter, quilting is a whole body experience.

The reason for a rare day mid post is three fold. I have a couple of posts from other bloggers I want to share and I ran out of bobbin thread unbeknownest to me during the quilting process. AJ the beagle seemed a bit threatened by my reaction, it is time to take a break.

First off here is a post from Gill over at That British Woman blog http://thatbritishwoman.blogspot.com/2012/01/for-british-folk-and-all-of-us-who-are.html. Super funny but so on the mark for those of us that take our financial responsibilities serious. Thanks Gill for making my day!!!

Second Carla over at 1/2 Dozen Daily is having a great February challenge http://halfdozendaily.blog.com/ Check it out and sign up with her if you want to get in. If nothing else follow along next month, the group of ladies from January No/Low spend challenge ROCK!! I would think next month will be just as great.

Back to the sewing machine my body has finally cooled off and AJ the beagle seems to have forgiven me once again.

Make Do Day 23

2012-01-23T23:05:00.003-05:00

I broke the first and biggest rule in the book at the grocery store today...I went in hungry. After having the little ones most of the day I was in a hurry to get to the big box store to pick up thread then run by the grocery to ONLY get a dozen eggs before rush hour traffic. That dozen eggs cost me $40.00!! I am not a junk food junky but if you were in line behind me you would have never known it. It started with pretzel rods that were on sale bogo deal, which lead to Ettamans donuts, a little jar of ranch dressing wouldn't hurt, however pretzel rods and ranch dressing don't go together, better pick up a bag of chips. The only thing in my cart of any food value was the stupid eggs. I came so close to ripping the box of donuts open in the parking lot it wasn't even funny. I did hold off until I got home then devoured two donuts along with a large glass of whole milk (the grands can't have 2% so we buy whole milk now) I can't remember the last time I bought nothing but crap at the store, I now have a junk food hangover.
The rest of what little was left in the day I spent in the scrapbook/sewing room working on some organizing. I am FAR from finished but I did make a little headway. One of my accomplishments last year was picking up some great deals on fabric...enough said!!
Anyone up for a junk food coma and fabric sorting??

Make Do Day's 21 & 22

2012-01-22T22:15:00.002-05:00

Teen quilt top is finished using all scraps
I cut out and began piecing another "Quilt of Valor"

Today I didn't get dressed, didn't even take a shower (will be showering before bed!) It was a lazy day of PJ's, sewing, and lots of napping. Since I had been with the grands every day last week except Wednesday I decided to blow off Sunday dinner for catching up on some rest. It's early to bed for me tonight as I have Karsyn and Mason bright and early in the morning.

I did really well this past week in my No/Low spending.

$28.00 - grocery store

$10.00 - breakfast with a friend

total spent $38.00, I moved $160.00 over to our Christmas/Vacation fund tonight!!

I am still getting by with the gas from 3 weeks ago but by the end of the week I am thinking I will have to do a fill up and I am running very low on white thread. I have a 40% off coupon I will be using after the little ones leave tomorrow to pick up thread then on Thursday the big box store is running a 50% off special on embroidery thread. I need to check on my embroidery thread stash and see what I can stock up on during the sale. I really don't want to hold off on buying thread when the sale is so good, challenge or no challenge a deal is a deal, need to save when I can!
We are so close to the end of this challenge I hope everyone can stick with it to reach the goals you have set for your families!!! Off to bed with the Jacqueline Kennedy interview transcripts, DD#1 brought over a pile of new reading for me last week a snow day would be a good thing!! Ha

Make Do Day 20

2012-01-20T22:30:00.003-05:00

I have spent the evening crawling around on the floor sandwiching and pining a "Quilt Of Valor"

My knees and back are done for the night, who am I kidding they are done for many more days!!

Today was another No Spend day!

I had Kara all day today so not much got done around the house that I had hoped to do. Kara has never been much for naps, she sometimes accidentally will fall asleep!! She is never fussy without naps but it makes for a long day for me. After she left I worked on getting the "Quilt Of Valor" ready to quilt over the weekend. It will be a slow process since this is such a large quilt and I have Kara for an additional day tomorrow. When our girls were young I would chase them around all day then stay up late into the night getting things done. The key word is when our girls were YOUNG, I was too!!

Today was our second pay day of the new year. This weekend I will have to set down and work on some numbers. I think I might have been a bit aggressive in what I am trying to save with payroll deductions and auto transfers. Unless I want to continue the No/Low spend challenge for an entire year somethings gotta give. Of course we will continue to be very cautious with our spending for the year but the spending will have to happen at some point!!

Have a great weekend and keep the savings up, we are almost at the end!! GO US!!!

Make Do Day 19

2012-01-19T22:28:00.002-05:00

Another Scrappy quilt in the making, this time I had a pattern to use and will make very few changes. Just enlarged it enough to make a quilt that will cover shoulders, knee's and toes.

NO SPENDING continued again today. I even meet DD#1 at a super cute store that rents out booths to small business for house decor, window treatments, cute little nick knacks and such. I spent not one single dime!! DD#1 is on the look out for window treatments for her dinning room (I so don't want to make them) a few shops had drapes on 1/2 price sale, however the prices started at $699.00 for one window, that ain't happening!!

One interesting little shop had hand made quilts for sale. They weren't full size quilts just small wall hangings and table toppers. The work was really good, the seamstress (artist?) had made reproductions of vintage quilts. After looking at the price I held one up for DD to guess the price, she was WAY off. They had them priced at $125.00-$200.00 each, holy cow!!! It would be

interesting to know if they ever really sold anything with that price tag. Knowing the area we live in she is more than likely making a killing!!

I am still trying to use up scraps that coordinate with the quilt and purse I made recently. I don't think I will ever use it all up :( The pattern I picked to use today was originally for DD#2's quilt but the more I would look it over the less I liked it. Now that I have started piecing it I am glad I made the change, I still don't like this quilt. I think the black strip is what is turning me off, not really sure what my aversion to the quilt is but I am sure a teen with the "Linus Quilt" project will enjoy it.

Thanks for the comments on the recent posts. Until I can respond in the comments I will try and answer questions or comments on the blog. One thing that seems to come up often is how I can put quilts together so fast. Heck that's an easy one. Hubby is up north this week so my household duties are...well none really. I do however still clean house, but it's a heck of a lot faster with just AJ the beagle to pick up after. I normally only have the grands on Thursday and Friday so most of my week is pretty free to play at the machine. I also wake before the sun comes up, so before many are even out of bed I am ready to roll. The quilts I have been making are also VERY basic, nothing fancy going on. I would like to try and do a few more challenging quilts later on but for now I want to get ahead of the game on the "Linus Quilts" before I start keeping Mason full time in March.

Speaking of keeping the grands. I had a lady e-mail me not long ago with information on taxes, Social Security and whatever it is they call the other stuff that is withheld on pay checks. She wanted me to be aware that keeping the grands and getting paid under the table was illegal. LET ME BE CLEAR, I have never been paid in anything other than hugs and kisses for watching our grands. As a matter of fact I go in the hole quite a bit between gas picking up and delivering the little ones, diapers, food, formula, wipes, extra clothing for our house, baby equipment for 3 little ones and of course toys. If I have ever given the impression I was being paid to watch our grands I apologize. I do it because for me its the right thing to do. I wish more families would work together to do the best for each person within the family. It's not all about me, its all about us.

Good luck with your No/Low spend challenge. I am following everyone who is signed up over at 1/2 Dozen Daily but I am having the same problem with some of those comment sections as I have with my own. All I get is a blank white screen. I wonder if it is a problem with the blog server we are using.

Make Do Day 18

2012-01-18T20:55:00.003-05:00

Today was clean up the scrap/sewing room, however.....
Just as I was walking in the room to get started I spotted leftover fabric from a Christmas gift I made that coordinated perfectly with the scraps from yesterday's quilt for DD #2.
How silly to find more room for yet another pile of scraps, why not figure out a quilt to use it all up.

And so I did. Humm, this photo makes it look out of proportion but it's really not that bad. Turned out to be a 48x70, maybe it could use an additional border down the sides, I will think about that tomorrow Scarlett.

Next month I will start looking for some backing to finish this one off. For me a lap quilt needs to cover from shoulders to toes

Even with everything I used up today I still have a pretty good pile of leftovers. I am going to do a bit of thinking tonight to see what I can come up with. I so want to use this all up. I might be able to pull of an additional teen girl quilt for the Linus project.

So much for working on my to do list today, although...... technically I did work on the sewing problem in the craft room. I used up a good size pile of scraps so I didn't shove more in the overflowing room. I might or might not get back in the room tomorrow. If I can come up with and idea for the remaining pile of scraps I will work them up instead. While sewing and making up what to do along the way I did at least get the laundry done, tonight I shoveled lots of thread and scraps in the trash and even mopped the floor.

I did do some spending today. Made a run to the grocery this morning to pick up dog food (AJ the beagle likes the good stuff) and milk. As luck would have it they had a buggy full of coconut on clearance for $.80@ package, savings of almost a dollar each. I went with 8 bags. I was low on coconut after the holiday's, feels good to have some put back in the freezer now. Total spent $26.38, not to bad since it is already Wednesday and I have just a tad less than a 1/2 tank of gas. Hope to stash a little more cash in the Christmas/Vacation account by Monday!!

Thanks for all the comments on yesterdays blog, my blog seems to have a mind of it's own. Some days I can respond to comments other days, no beans. It's good to know I am not the only one in the world who thinks hanging on to what you have for a rainy day or government melt down is a good idea. Save on ladies!!!

Make Do Day 17

2012-01-17T20:04:00.002-05:00

Daughter # 2's quilt top is finished. By adding some borders I was able to enlarge it to 56x72.

Another NO Spend day is in the books!! We are running low on dog food so I will have to run to the grocery store in a day or two. AJ the beagle would love to help in the make do month by eatting leftovers but she is begining to have an expanding waistline so low cal dog food continues to be her diet.

While surfing around on other blogs over the weekend I ran into an AARP retirment calculator someone had posted, for the life of me I can't figure out what blog it was on. :( If any of you might know please leave a comment so I can give the lady credit!! AARP calculater at end of this post. I can't respond to comments again but I do read them all!!!

For many of you retirment is a long way off but with any luck we are only a short 10 years from having a second cup of coffee in the mornings together. We have contributed to our 401K all along but once our girls were all finished in college and their educations PAID in full (I wonder if they really know how bad student loans would have been) We began maxing out our 401K and adding the additional catch up deal they have for our age bracket. Acourding to the calculater we should be able to retire at the same income we have now until age 92, before having to cut back. That little bit of info was really good news. Here is the big if to me in that calculation. Social Security is figured in, at the rate our goverment is going who knows if that will still be around 10 years from now. The other if is that hubby is lucky enough to continue to be employed at his same salary, right now that is a pretty big IF. Once again until this economy turns around and some major changes are made in our debit ridden, can't stop spending goverment anything could happen.

We have many friends and aquantinaces that tell me all of the time, hubby makes pleanty of $$ why do you think you need to save so much, why are you cliping coupons and only buying on sale, you guys should enjoy yourselfs. As hard as I try I can't seem to explain that stuff is not what makes us happy, a bigger house will not do the trick, a new car, not for me, world travel is just not our thing (hubby dosen't fly) Do you find at times you are the only one around you that thinks having $$ put back and living a modest lifestyle is so wrong? I would have thought after the past few years of watching hard working families that have lost everything do to job loss would wake a few folks up. I seems sorta sad to me. Call me crazy all you want, for me and mine we will do what we can to stay off the goverment hand outs, they come with to high a price!!

http://www.aarp.org/work/retirement-planning/retirement_calculator/

Make Do Day 16 & 17

2012-01-17T09:24:00.003-05:00

I cut out 2 quilts yesterday while Kara was napping
Then stayed up way past my bedtime starting the piecing of one.

By the time Kara left yesterday and I had some leftover potato soup then a little rest I was energized to start piecing one of the quilts I cut out during nap time. The OCD kicked in, I ended up going to bed at 1:00 AM, I am not a late night lady!! What the heck I will just sleep in a bit in the morning...NOT. I forgot in my excitement of starting a new quilt that I had Daughter #1 babies this morning. So far Mason has spit up twice, Karsyn has thrown every food I have offered at me and figured out how the water/ice cube maker on the refrigerator works, tackled AJ the little beagle and turned the playroom upside down. Both babies are now down for what I hope will be a nice morning nap, wheeeee.

Yesterday was a NO SPEND day! Lovin the no spend days, they seem to be coming around more often now. I am thinking today might just be another no spend.

I will have the little ones until early afternoon then I would like to work on the new quilt top a bit more. I am using a pattern I found on line for FREE. The only problem I have with it is the size 48x55. I like a quilt that will cover from shoulders to toes so I am going to figure out how to enlarge it with a few borders (if the fabric will hold out). The quilting will have to wait on this one until next month when I can purchase fabric for the backing. This will be for Daughter #2's Birthday coming up next month, I want to find a nice flannel that will blend with the front.

BTW, thanks for the idea's on a teen boy quilt, I think I will go with solids in some man colors.

Wishing everyone a happy No/Low spend day!!

2012-01-15T19:18:00.002-05:00

"Linus Quilt" for a bigger boy with AJ the Beagle looking on
I am thinking a toddler to maybe an 8 year old boy would like this quilt, I did straight line stitching on the main body with some curvy stitching on the border.

I didn't have enough of the Giraffe print to do the back so I pieced some leftover jungle greenery print to Make Do.

For some reason I seem to be stuck on little boy quilts, have another one I am putting binding on tonight that is once again a boy quilt, wonder what that is all about. Speaking of boys, I need some of you ladies to let me know what sort of fabric will work for a pre teen/teen boy. I am doing 2 quilts each (boy/girl) in 3 different age groups. Baby/toddler, young school age, and pre-teen/teen. I have what will work for all of them except a teen boy, I was thinking sports themed but maybe that is still to kidish, then I was contemplating fishing/hunting but maybe not. Lastly how would no theme and just do more manly looking browns, tans, grey, that sort of thing in maybe flannels, any help would be greatly appreciated!!

I can't make comments again on my blog :( but I do read them all, thanks so much to each and every one of you!! If you don't know a lot about football you may have never heard of Tebow. He played for the University of Florida until he graduated last year and went on to the Denver Broncos. Since our team ALABAMA is in the same conference as Florida we have had the pleasure (and losses) to get to know this young man. He is remarkable, do a google search and check around on the wonderful things he has accomplished in his young life all in the name of Christ. We are not talking football, it's more of the missionary work, mentoring and sharing his faith with others that makes this kid a WOW!!

Alrighty then, lets move on to the No/Low spend challenge, here is our spending for the week

4 No Spend days!!

$8.79 - Thread and fabric all on sale

$43.00 - Post Office and outing with grands

$28.20 - Post Office and supper out

Grand total out going $79.99 that means I will be transferring $120.00 to our Christmas/Vacation fund tonight!!!!
Whats working?

Staying home has saved 1/2 of a tank of gas, I won't need to fill up until next week. That's a savings of around $80.00 for a tank of gas in my car.

Making Do while I work on quilts is really helping. I don't normally buy the backing when I pick up fabric for a new quilt, I never know how big I might make it. Making Do is forcing me to use up what I have on hand. Lord knows my stash could use some cleaning out!!

Cooking at home is of course a huge money saver, having a full deep pantry has been key to very little spending at the grocery store.

What have we gone without? Nothing!!! I did pass on the quilting class I wanted to take. I had the $$ put back for class $150.00 for a 6 week (once a week) class, but I would have needed to purchase fabric. The way I figured from looking at the photo of the quilt we would be working on the fabric would have run an easy $150.00-$225.00. That is not a good way to start the year off, I am sure I will find a class a bit more affordable in the near future.

On to the eats for the week.

We had Vegetable beef soup and Potato soup for Sunday dinner followed up by some Banana pudding (bananas needed to be used up)

For the week since I am on my own (can you see the smile on my face) I will be using up leftovers from today. By the end of the week I will be doing the "Hunt and Pick" deal. You know where you hunt around in the fridge, pantry and freezer, whatever strikes your fancy is what you pick to eat.

I am off to transfer my savings for the week into our new account, finish up the quilt I am working on then headed over to all the No/Low spend blogs to see how everyone is doing. These ladies are so keeping me on my toes, they are doing some remarkable things with their cash, check them out!!http://halfdozendaily.blog.com/no-spend-2012/ scroll down on the post to see everyone who is participating.

Make Do Day 14

2012-01-14T19:13:00.003-05:00

Big Sister Ella Grace quilt arrived yesterday.
And here is Baby Sister Aubrey Ann's quilt

I forgot to date the tags when I made them but at least the girls will know who's quilt is who's

I was so nervous when I put the little girls quilts in the mail this week. I packed them up in a garbage bag (clean one) just in case the box got wet and sprung for extra insurance in case they were lost and I had to remake them. Thankfully they arrived safe and sound!!

Today was a NO SPEND day. I am making due with leftover spaghetti and french bread for supper. I also finished another "Linus Quilt" using what I had on hand, can't wait to share that tomorrow as the sun is down for the day.

Spending the night with the Denver Bronco's football, who am I kidding, really spending the evening watching TEBOW!!!! Now that he has turned pro and no longer a threat to Bama's record we can fully appreciate what an incredible young man he is.

Make Do Day 13

2012-01-13T20:10:00.003-05:00

Here is all that is left from my make do today with quilting
I took all the scraps from the blocks and sashing to make a scrappy binding for the quilt

One "Linus Quilt" down 11 more to go!!

I didn't have enough backing for the quilt so I pieced together some of the fabric leftover from the main blocks, much more interesting than a plain old backing

Here is an up close of the backing fabric along with the scrappy binding, lots of work but ZERO cost!!

I am so happy with my first "Linus Quilt" I stuck with cross hatch quilting to save my sore arms and time, this is so much easier than free motion quilting. I have an additional quilt just like this ready to go other than the binding (not sure what to do about that yet) that is sandwiched, pined and ready for some quilting tomorrow. In addition to that I pulled together a few other odds and ends to piece a jungle quilt top, gonna have to do a little digging to come up with backing for that quilt but I have in my mind what might work, just need to do a little math before I pull out the rotary cutter. Hubby is headed north in the morning so it's PJ's, quilting and leftovers for me all day Saturday!!

Today's spending was a little out of line, hubby wanted to hang out with Ty for the evening before he has to head to the project so we joined Daughter #1 and her family for Ty's favorite BBQ joint. $23.00 was down the toilet as far as I am concerned (and I do mean literally, if it's not to gross to think about) I mailed out the mug rugs to the blog candy winners this morning, only set me back $5.20, Little Lamb who knows when you will see yours, Canadian mail is the slowest I have ever seen! So $28.20 was the total spent for the day. If I can hold out for 2 more days I should be able to send a little more cash to the Christmas/Vacation account. I didn't really have a goal in mind for how much we could save this month in the No/Low spend challenge but whatever we could squeeze out I knew would head to the Christmas/Vacation fund. I already have direct deposit set up for our regular savings each pay period so whatever we do this month will be bonus $$. Hubby and I each have a (Boy for him Girl for me) vacation coming up in March, I would love to have it fully funded this month!!

How are you doing in your No/Low spending for January? Once you get into making savings a game it really is amazing what you can pull off, good luck to all of you!!!!

Make Do Day 12

2012-01-12T19:07:00.002-05:00

Granola with chocolate chips

I kept some in chunks for snacking the lose granola we will use in yogurt, oatmeal or whatever.

A little more quilting today, maybe I can finish tomorrow.

Another NO SPEND day!!

First off, thanks for all the comments, for some crazy reason I can't get into my own blog to respond to comments. I have no idea whats up with that, maybe it will fix itself soon, if not I will be doing some baking to sweeten up our geek friend to give it a look.

My make do last night and today was snacks for hubby, I am NOT going to the grocery store for stupid snacks. You would think at his age he could hold off on his feedings but he is stuck with a 3 hour feeding schedule each day. I don't keep a lot of junk food around, chips and such when we are having sandwiches or whatever. He needed something to crunch on and a little something sweet for after dinner. I make up some granola last night that turned out really good, my make do on the granola was adding chocolate chips since we didn't have any wheat germ in the house, I think it was a very clever and tasty substitute! (recipe at end of post) The other make do was blueberry muffins, while he would have rather had M&M cookies I didn't have the time today to make cookies so he will have to make do with muffins.
I am off to bed with a new book I started this AM recommended by Kathy over at
http://justincasebook.wordpress.com/. I had a hard time keeping my hands off the book all day, Kara and hubby were here so I had no time to set for even 5 minutes. Funny how things work out, I was exposed to the flu yesterday and what do you think this book is based on?

A flu pandemic, it really is a great read by Carla Buckley "The Things That Keep Us Here"
Granola:

6 cups oats

2 cups chopped pecans (I think you could use whatever nuts you have on hand)
1 cups chopped walnuts

1/2 cup wheat germ (I would use chocolate chips instead, maybe even bump it up to 2 cups, I'm just saying...)
2/3 Cups maple syrup (I have the store bought stuff so I used 1/3 cup honey & 1/3 cup crap syrup)

1 1/2 cups coconut

2/3 cups light brown sugar

1/2 cup melted butter

1 1/2 Tsp kosher salt

Preheat over to 250 degrees

mix everything up them spread on a jelly roll pan or 2 cookie sheets

Bake for 1 1/2 hours, then check to see if it is golden brown, I turned off the oven and let it set an additional 30 minutes in the oven

Once it is cool you can break it apart and put in sealed container, I left some of ours in chunks to snack on the rest we will use as toppings for whatever.

Make Do Day 11

2012-01-11T19:44:00.003-05:00

Our little girls at the water table
Of course they had to drive the NASCAR

Karsyn practicing her grocery shopping skills

We had a much bigger spending day than I had planned today but less than what we might have spent. Hubby and I meet our Daughters and the little girls at "Discovery Place for Kids" this morning for a little outing. The little ones had a blast playing, dancing and running around, this is such a great hands on place for kids and the cost is not to bad, $7.00@. I was going to get both families a season pass for Christmas this year but we were too close to going over budget. I made a deal with them today, I would go in 1/2 for the pass. Teachers can get a family pass for $75.00, they will definitely get their moneys worth out of a season pass!! If we were not in the No/Low spend challenge I know we would have treated the whole gang to lunch (hubby is not to happy with me), the little ones don't really eat restaurant food, it was nap time (they had hit the brick wall already) and Nanny needed to finish errands leftover from yesterday. So home we headed to eat out of our own refrigerator.
I finally got to the post office to mail off the little girl quilts. Shipping along with insurance ran $18.00. I was afraid not to insure them, it ran up the cost but if I were to have bought them they would have been in the $250.00-$300.00 price range.

The grocery store run was not bad, milk, eggs, banana's and a case of water that was on sale. $11.00. Total spent today was $43.00, I need to keep my tail home the rest of the week!

Update on my prescription drugs. I sat at the pharmacy over an hour bright and early today while the pharmacist disagreed with me on changing my meds to generic. Hey buddy I agree with you but we have grown accustom to having a roof over our heads, heat and food!! He went as far as to call my Dr back to discuss the change that he didn't agree with, grrrrrr. While I was waiting no less than 4 people came in who also had price hikes, 2 of which walked out to check with their insurance company, 2 others paid with a frown.

While waiting around for the pharmacist who was doing all he could to separate me from my $$, I ran into a friend who looked as though she had been crying, red puffy eyes a bit blood shot and glassy. She lost her son a year ago at Christmas then had to have emergency open heart surgery less than 2 weeks later. I didn't just give her a hug it was a prolonged embraced with lots of pats on the back. We spoke for a bit and I told her to call if there was anything I could do, she just didn't look good. She then informs me she had just come from her Dr. where she was diagnosed with the FLU, that's why she was looking so terribly bad!!!!! The thoughts that were going threw my head can not be put to print. Why would anyone who knew they had the flu let another person near them? What the h.... was she doing out in public, she had just stopped in to use her coupons for the week. I ran back home and washed as best I could them began taking Zicam while praying an extra prayer that the Lord would keep me from catching the flu. Sometimes people are just turds!

ALMOST forgot the blog candy winners are...

Katie B and Little Lamb, E-mail me your address so I can get your mug rug in the mail!!!

amber25@roadrunner.com

Make Do Day 10

2012-01-10T18:20:00.003-05:00

My No/Low spend day started out great. I was able to use 40% coupons to pick up two spools of thread, saved $4.80. At the checkout counter I found this fabric marked down to $2.99 for 2 yards, saved $14.99!!! This will be perfect fabric to use on some project "Linus" Quilts

Then you know what hit the fan :(

After the great run at the fabric store I was off to the drug store to pick up 2 of my prescription drugs. No big deal, it doesn't count towards my No/Low spend challenge. As the clerk checked me out he ask if I was aware of how expensive the first drug was, yep it is crazy but gotta have it, he rings up the second drug and states the same thing....hum only one of the drugs is really expensive so I pull out my reading glasses to check it out. Thanks for letting me know there is obviously a problem, may I speak to someone about the cost, this is clearly incorrect. No problem the pharmacist comes over to check it out, sorry but the price is correct NO WAY NO HOW can this be right. One drug that costs $171.00 a month was now $678.00, the other that has been running $51.00 was up to $155.26. I still had an additional drug to fill next week, hubby has 2 that will need to be filled. Our monthly budget has our prescription drug cost figured in, I know to set back around $300.00 a month to cover all of our meds.

You may want to check out at this point...

We signed up for a Health Savings Plan for 2012. The premiums are a really great price but the deductible jumped to $4,000.00 @. We decided to fully fund the account, I'm thinking its around $6,400.00 for our age bracket, hubby's company threw in $1,000.00 for the first year, I knew we would be getting hit for a $550.00 deduction each month from our pay but we can carry over whatever is left year after year. I was thinking long term here, if we can continue to bank the $$ tax free by retirement age we will have a nice little nest egg to tap from, if hubby gets out of work we could use the funds to pay for a policy and maybe keep our heads above water till he could find employment. Holy Hannah what have I done!!!! I studied and played the number game for almost 2 weeks before jumping in on the plan.

Turns out the plan was not the problem, the drug company's had gone up that much in the price in 2012. After a LONG call to our insurance provider they let me know that with the new health care changes generic drugs are now the preferred drug, in turn companies had raised the prices on the name brands to get as many $$ as they could as fast as they could!!! One of my meds has NO generic drug, to bad so sad you have to pay the new price of $155.26. I have tried the generic of the other drug with BAD results so the Dr. requires I use the name brand, again to bad so sad, that will now run us $678.00. Her suggestion was to get with our Dr and find some sort of alternative drug. It is possible our Dr. has come up with a solution, they have prescribed a different drug for the one that is only available by the name brand (not sure of the cost yet) I will be switching back to the generic drug that didn't work so well in the past, we will be watching it closely to try and head off any ill effects. The $678.00 drug will now cost.....are you setting down? $8.17.

This is the biggest pile of you know what I have EVER heard of, anything the government gets involved in you can bet things will be CRAZY!!!!! What the heck are some people going to do???? As it is I will have to be monitored regularly to see if the new meds will work out, lots of Dr. appoints will be in my future. We will have to bring back in the Neurologist (GRR, I just graduated 2 years ago from them) Want to guess what a MRI runs, how about a MRA, and they don't give out coupons for a few EEG's. Not to worry our health care plan will cover all of those costs but the preventive drugs is a no deal.

So sorry for the rant tonight but stuff like this blows my mind

Today I spent $8.79

Over the next year our insurance company will be paying out thousands in additional lab work, tests and specialists all because of greedy drug companies and dear old Obama care.

Make Do Day 9

2012-01-09T19:28:00.002-05:00

One of two "Linus" quilts pieces today
3 meals of ham vacumed sealed for To Go meals along with the ham bone if it ever gets cold enough for soup.

And last but not least some Blog candy!!!

Can you believe we are a week and 2 days into the No/Low spend challenge for January! So far we have been making do and thankfully not doing without around our house. In keeping with the spirit of making do I thought a little blog candy was in order. I have 2 mug rugs made entirely from scraps to keep up the Make Do theme of the month. Make sure and leave a comment before Wednesday Jan 11th to get in on the drawing. I will throw everyone who has made a comment since January 1 into the hat as well.

Today's spending was ZERO!! I had planed on going to the grocery store and post office today but we woke up to a cloudy, wet, cool day, perfect for staying home. I started the morning with a clean out of the refrigerator then on to piecing 2 "Linus" quilts. I will be Making Do for the quilt backings. I am stepping way out of my box for the backings, I'm thinking they look sorta cute, maybe even cleaver, hope like heck they don't turn out crappy!! One might be ready to post tomorrow, if the day doesn't get away from me.

I did a little creating from the leftovers in the refrigerator this AM.

Leftover roasted chicken turned into chicken salad for hubby's lunch.

Leftover boiled eggs are now egg salad for my lunch.

Leftover Ham from Sunday dinner is now 3 packages of To Go meals vacume packed in the freezer, the ham bone was also vacume packed, I kept out enough for our supper tomorrow night.

Leftover taco meat along with leftover lettuce was supper tonight.

Leftover bread from this week is in the freezer to use in dressing/stuffing
Tomorrow is errand day, I need to hit the post office, grocery store, chain fabric store, and drug store. I hope by combining all the errands I can save a little on gas and be done with the running around for the week. I have my coupons, savings cards, and sale flyer's ready to go, here is hoping it will be a small spending day!!

Good luck to all of you participating in the No/Low challenge, hope to check in on all the other blogs while enjoying the game tonight. ROLL TIDE!!!!

Make Do Days 7 & 8

2012-01-08T19:13:00.003-05:00

How is this for the finish of a long day. Chocolate cake, homemade ice cream, with hot fudge. Nobody on the typical New Years diet around our place.
Finished Tyler's chair today

Along with an additional grand chair to keep at our home, all ready for the big game tomorrow night.

One chair won't do at our house so we made one more so the little girls won't fight!

First for the spending challenge, I do believe I hit it out of the park this week, only one little tiny slip up that I have no regrets for!

$3.00 - eggs

$8.00 - post office to mail Senior Angel gift

$20.00 - Lunch with a friend, worth EVERY dime

$73.00 - Gas for my car, should last maybe 2 weeks, fingers crossed for that

Total spent $107.00

I am working with $200.00 a week for groceries, gas, and whatever else comes up. Tonight I transferred $93.00 over to our Christmas/Vacation savings account. HOT DOG!!

Not a bad start for the first week of our No/Low spend challenge, I think I will be able to do even better next week. My car is full, I started out with less than 1/2 tank last week, I am thinking I might be able to make this tank last for close to 2 weeks. We will need milk later in the week and I have some coupons I need to use for the grocery store sales to start getting our soup kitchen charity box filled up for the end of the month, other than that I think we are setting pretty.

I had to make do to finish up the chairs for Tyler and the football chair for our house. I can't believe I don't have any light brown fabric in the stacks and blots I have in my stash. Everything brown I had on hand was over the top girlie looking. I finally settled on the least girlie looking print I could find. I did do a quick search of hubby's closet to see if I could find anything for the cause but no luck. The one item I had my eye on was a tan Carhart jacket of his that is really worn looking, however I know he considers it "broke in" so I quickly put it back. I haven't missed being out and about at all, staying home is a pleasure to me!!

The other BIG project for the weekend was to finish up the second quilt for some little girls on my gift list, FINALLY it is finished, tomorrow they will be headed to the post office. I will share the photo's later in the week when I know they have arrived. I also finished up 2 mug rugs for some blog candy, will post them tomorrow.

So here is our list of eats for the week, eating at home is a great way to keep the spending down

Tonight - Ham, blue cheese/raspberry vinaigrette wedge salad, Lima beans, scallop potatoes, roasted pineapple, homemade bread, and the yummy desert pictured above.

Monday - Taco Salads (leftovers)

Tuesday - Ham dinner (leftovers)

Wednesday - Salisbury steak and potatoes with veggies

Thursday - Baked pork chops and veggies

Friday - Spaghetti and meatballs

I do need to get a few batches of noodles made this week for if and when it ever turns cold here, also need to vacuum seal some of the leftover ham from tonight to use for a To Go meal or two in the freezer.

This weeks biggie project is make a path in the sewing/scraproom, what a mess. I also need to sandwich and pin the "Quilt of Valor" top that's been done for longer than I can remember so I can get to the quilting (ugh). Maybe cut out and piece 2 "Linus Quilts" to get busy on. We have lots of leftovers this week to work with that will free up some time for sewing.

I am headed to bed to reread Mary Hunts new book "7 Money Rules for Life", yep it is that good!! Thanks for the tip Carla, love it.

Make sure and check out the other blogger's who are in the No/Low spending challenge, they will keep you inspired to get on the savings band wagon!!http://halfdozendaily.blog.com/no-spend-2012/

Day 6 Make Do

2012-01-06T20:32:00.004-05:00

Here is one of the many books I am trying to find the time to read.

Here is a bit of my take on the book above, I haven't had a lot of time to devote to reading in the past few weeks, so this is a very small review! The book is certainly a cook book but not what most of us are use to, with each group of recipes there is a pretty detail explanation of the test's done to come up with something that will freeze well and still have the right taste and texture for the recipe. Now I find the whole process interesting, all the testing and explanations on why this or that won't work, others may find it trifling. I haven't tried any of the recipes yet due to lack of time and in some cases it's not anything we would eat but in time I know I will get some really good use of the book. Since I have been freezing to go meals for such a long time I sorta know what will work and what won't, now I am finding out the why of it all from the little I have been reading. This book along with a few others are on my winter reading list, just need a good snow storm to keep us locked up in the house for a week or longer!!

Day 6 of our No/Low spend has gone pretty well. Hubby hit Lowe's home improvement tonight to pick up supplies for a few more children chairs, total cost $16.00, he was able to get 3 chairs completed with enough leftovers for most things needed for the 4th chair. Now it's my turn to finish them up with sewing, applique and embroidery, they are second in line after I finish the quilting on the quilt that seems to never get done! So far we have spent $42.00 in 6 days, not to bad but I had hoped we could do better. I am attempting to work with a $200.00 a week budget, not sure that is going to be enough to cover gas, food and all but if we can continue to keep spending down I should be able to squirrel a little extra away this month along with our regular savings. Good luck to all of you who are in Carla's challenge for January, I plan on checking out all of the blogs tonight linked up to see how everyone is doing (if I can stay awake that long)

Day 5 Make Do

2012-01-05T19:37:00.003-05:00

A little free motion quilting this morning before I headed out..

Today I did do a bit of spending but it was so worth it to have lunch with a dear old friend who moved to Charleston 11 years ago. Thanks for making my week Val, I miss you guys so much!!We had a nice long lunch then a visit in the parking lot before she had to pick up her hubby from a meeting and I had to head to Daughter #1 to watch the little ones while she took Tyler for his 5 year check up. I arrived home to find Daughter #3 and sweet Kara waiting. They have been in Fl for a week visiting SIL parents, boy have we missed our little girl.

I left home at 11:00 AM today, arrived home a 6:00 PM, thank goodness for fast food. Now let me remind you our fast food doesn't come from a drive up window. When we have leftovers that freeze well I put them up for when a night like tonight comes along. Cooking is out of the question I am dog tired. The menu tonight was bean soup with yeast rolls, followed by cupcakes that I only had to throw some frosting on. I'm figuring I saved us $20.00-$25.00 had we gone out for the same meal, as an added bonus we didn't have to deal with parents who won't make their children behave in a restaurant or folks who think it's good table manners to talk on a cell phone loud enough for all to hear!

How are you doing on your No/Low spend month? Good luck to everyone who is trying to stash away a little extra for a rainy day.

Make Do Day 4

2012-01-04T21:19:00.002-05:00

See this cabinet loaded down in holiday table ware
It sets on one wall of our former dinning room that has be converted into the grands room. I had to put one of the portable cribs in front of it when they were not sleeping to keep busy hands off Nanny's stuff.

That worked for awhile but the girls have figured out my sneaky ways. I caught them before Christmas wedged between the bed and the cabinet pushing with all their collective might to get in the china cabinet. We have put off moving the cabinet into the kitchen for month's on end until today. But first the toy bookcase in the kitchen had to be relocated.

I took Carla's challenge today to do something on your to do list that you have been putting off way too long. Check out her post http://halfdozendaily.blog.com/2012/01/04/day-4-no-low-spend-challenge-a-challengesmall-giveaway/She is having a drawing for little blog candy for
anyone who knocks something off the dread to do. The china cabinet is now in a safe place, the toy bookcase has been relocated to the grands room where it should have been a long time ago.

These two little doll babies are worth all the work!! Thanks Carla for getting me on the right track.

I wasn't sure I could pull off Carla's challenge today since I couldn't move all the furniture by myself, hubby was gonna need to pitch in. He is the best guy in the world bar non but moving furniture is one of the things he really hates to do!! I put the quilt I am free motion quilting aside for the afternoon and got busy unloading everything from the cabinets, threw a chicken in the pot for chicken and dumplings, got busy making a loaf of bread along with some yeast rolls, pulled a can of SC peaches from the canning shelves and awaited his arrival home. I know the way to my mans heart!

He was more than happy to pitch in before dinner (the grands have his heart as well) Washing all the glassware by hand and drying everything was no picnic, having the china cabinet in the kitchen is going to be one more thing to keep clean (I have a working kitchen not a show place) But having a safe room for the little ones to play in was so worth all the trouble!!

If you have something you have been putting off for far too long check out Carla's post and get your name in the hat for one of her hand made items (this girl has some talent!)
Today was another $0 spend day at our house! It's hard to spend money when you are up to your elbows in dish water.

Make Do Day 3

2012-01-03T19:11:00.003-05:00

Queen of Everything mug and hot cocoa along with a mug rug, cozy socks, and a tin of cookies for my Senior Pal
Made a batch of English muffins today for a quick to go breakfast for hubby and I

The muffins are now sliced, bagged and in the freezer, these should last a week or two.

Day 3 of the No/Low spend day was pretty good. I did have to get my Senior pal gift in the mail that set me back $8.62, that was all the spending that was done, yepee.

I meet Daughter #1 at the fabric store this afternoon so she could pick out fabric for Dinning room window treatments, I spent 0000000, nothing, nada, I wasn't even tempted to spend! Go Me

I figured the cost for my Senior Pal gift was around $4.00, I picked up everything at the after Christmas sales here and there, the mug rug was made from scraps I had on hand. You might remember the fabric from the PJ set I made for a buddy back in October. I still have yards of it to make our big girls PJ's with, I'm thinking over the winter I can get them finished then stash them away for next Christmas. While I was playing around with the scraps I started a few more mug rugs, some blog candy might be in order next Monday to celebrate our first week of making do.

If you are into quilting check out "Sew Scraps Along" on the right upper corner of my blog. She has a super cute scrappy quilt featured today. I have added it to my wish list to do at some point. I love the idea of pulling out all my scraps and whipping one up but I know I could never pull it off, I have too much OCD in me, everything needs to be matchy matchy. I do have a dream quilt I am sketching out that I found in the Pottery Barn for kids catalog, I think I am close to the dimensions I want and have what I think are enough fabrics to pull it off but first I really must finish some of what I have started! Tomorrow if the stars line up just right I think I will have the afternoon to work on the last of the little girl quilts I need to finish up. I can't wait to get them in the mail !!

So how are you doing in your No/Low spend month? There are a lot of us cheering you on so get with it, misery loves company you know!

Day 2 Make Do

2012-01-02T19:30:00.004-05:00

Organized and cleaned up in the large freezer today. Our beef order will be ready in February, we have plenty of beef until them. The only thing we are getting low on is chicken but until I can find something local or the grocery store comes off the price we will work with what we have,

more than enough fruits and veggies to make it until next spring.
Here is what is left from the summer of canning

The kitchen pantry is back to working order.

Today was a FULL day in the freezers, kitchen pantry, back pantry and restocking the pantry containers from bulk storage. I am totally whipped, who would have thought cleaning the pantry's and such would be so much work. I spent lots of time checking expiration dates and ensuring my food rotation plan is working correctly. So far so good, I have pulled a few things out that we need to use up in the next few months. I'm not much for eating anything after the suggested expiration date. I didn't take photo's of our bulk storage so trust me on this one. We have around 60 pounds of white flour on hand however I use more wheat berries than white flour. I like soft white wheat, it is the closest I have found to the flour we all know and love but a hec of a lot better for you. When we buy wheat I order 300 pounds, sounds like a lot but we use around 5 pounds per week. It is also a lot cheaper to order in larger quantities. Sugar and other basic pantry supplies are about the same, I buy in bulk then just shop from our bulk storage when I need something. I know our way of doing things is off the hook for some of you but it works for our family. Having a large deep pantry enables me to shop only on sale along with coupons to get the biggest bang for our buck. For the month of January other than milk and eggs we should be in really good shape.

For those of you who are into the extreme couponing you might be interested in the following sites. These ladies are super hip, and know their stuff when it comes to food storage. If you are stockpiling using coupons you are doing food storage no matter what you call it. Make sure you understand the correct way to store food you pick up for free, no need to poison your family trying to save a buck!!!

http://foodstoragemadeeasy.net/

This is Crystal's site, she does amazing things with her food storage

http://everydayfoodstorage.net/

Using the food on hand this month will be key for us in the No/Low spending challenge. We did have some spending today. I needed to pick up eggs (under$3.00) and hubby needed to get the heck out of my hair!! I sent him on a play date with some of his buddies to take in a movie (matinee price) I'm sure there was a jumbo popcorn and biggie drink involved but it was worth whatever he spent to have the uninterrupted time to get my rump in gear. The alternative would have been to knock him out with my fabulous line of cast iron skillets, pots and pans. A trip to the ER after the assault would have cost a pretty penny (our deductible is $4,000.00@ this year) Not sure what the attorney fees might have been. I feel sure I would have had the charges dropped if a female judge were to hear the case but it just wasn't work the risk.

We also hit Barnes and Noble tonight to pick up a book suggested by Carla at 1/2 dozen daily, I used a gift card from Christmas to buy the book, even shared with hubby so he could get a new magazine all for free!! Love gift cards. How are you doing with your no/low spend January, every little bit helps.

Make Do or Do Without Day 1

2012-01-01T18:48:00.003-05:00

As soon as Mason is old enough to sit up he will have his very own chair
The little girls chairs are blinged out with a few rhinestones buttons

Vanilla cake pops with sprinkles were desert for dinner tonight.

How cute are the chairs hubby and I made over the weekend for the grands, love them. Tyler's is still in the building stage, we had to enlarge the pattern for our super tall 5 year old and I needed to check with him to see what design he wanted. Of course he picked an elephant..not sure how I am gonna pull that off! If your interested in making one they are really easy to make and the cost is next to nothing, maybe $8.00 in PVC piping and only a yard of fabric (moved out a little more of my stash) I purchased the pattern from here https://www.youcanmakethis.com/index.htm lots of cute patterns on this site.

I decided to try out the cake pop machine hubby bought me for Christmas to make desert for tonight. Fast and easy the decorating however was a pain in the .....Not sure how much I will be using the machine but my girls will wear it out, they were planning what all they could make with it over dinner tonight.

Are you ready to kick up your savings? It's January 1st you know, time for a little use it up or do without. My BIG kitchen, pantry, refrigerator, freezer clean out is tomorrow, the place is a total mess. I do however have a pretty good idea of what we have on hand so I put together our meal plan for the week. Now that hubby is home a real meal is a necessity, when I am on my own I can get by with cooking once or twice a week then eating on it the rest of the time, with him around that WON'T work! Day one for us was NO SPENDING!! Yepeee so here is the menu this week

Sunday-Italian beef, cheese potato casserole, mac salad, black eye peas, rolls, chips and desert

Monday-Chili and corn muffins

Tuesday-Fried chicken, potato's, gravy and veggies

Wednesday-Pork roast, rice gravy and veggies

Thursday-BBQ pork sandwiches and whatever

Friday-Chicken and dumplins

Saturday-Taco's, beans and rice

I need to get bread made for the week and do a batch of English muffins for hubby to take on the road for work in the AM's (let it be soon) Check out Carla's post (on my side bar) today for her inventory of whats on hand as far as the food department goes. I am thinking I will stick to a photo of the freezer and pantries for my food inventory, believe me I couldn't list it all!!

January Challenge

2011-12-30T18:24:00.002-05:00

The stockings were hung at the chimney with care, in hopes that nobody got close enough to stare
Masons stocking belonged to our first dog Buster Brown, I embroidered Masons name on a piece of flannel then basted it over Busters name. By next year Mason will have his very own stocking (I think)

Kara and Karsyn's stockings are finished except for the sequins work, just no time to finish before Christmas, they are now setting in my hand work basket to finish over the winter.

Scored big at the grocery store and CVS on a ton of hot chocolate mix,
candy, and a tin of cookies. Hot chocolate was marked down to $.25 @, saved $.75 on each one, everything else was 75% off.

I ran out this AM to pick up quilt batting that was on sale 50% off, I now have enough for 3 "Quilt of Valor" quilts and 6 "Linus Project" quilts. The sale runs until Sunday so I am contemplating picking up 3 more full size for "Quilt of Valor" quilts, that would get me through 6 months of charity quilting. Need to take a peek in the checking account to help make the decision! While I was out and about I ran by CVS looking for a few little things that might be on clearance for my Senior Pal. The tin of cookies along with a box of Werthers caramel and chocolate will work great, also picked up a pair of snuggly socks with the little rubber grips on the bottom. I was on the lookout for some instant hot chocolate mix but they were sold out so on to the grocery store. I hit the Mother lobe at the grocery on Hot cocoa mix, regular price $.97, sale price $.25. I have enough to make up lots of cute little feel better gifts for the winter and next Christmas as well (no expiration date!) Of course I couldn't pass up the M&M's that were 50% off, hubby and Tyler's favorite cookie is M&M's, they could care less what color the candy is.

We finished getting all the Christmas decorations down and packed away for next year, even got 3 rooms cleaned from top to bottom, our house looks so bare :(. Hope to knock out a few more rooms tomorrow then the big clean out of the kitchen, pantry and freezers next week when hubby goes back to work (please don't let me kill him before then) As much as I wanted to get busy on the last quilt I need to get in the mail having the house back in order took priority for today. Now on to next months challenge.

I have joined in with Clara and a large group of other bloggers for a No Spend in January challenge, check it out here
http://halfdozendaily.blog.com/2011/12/28/anyone-else-care-to-join-my-no-low-spend-challenge/. Many of us are making our own rules for the challenge, it should be fun to join in or follow along. Here is what I have come up with for our goals

No spending for anything not necessary;

Gas, groceries and prescription meds are excluded however...

Gas - I don't have Daughter #1 children until March 1st when she returns to work, I should be able to save on gas for my car this month since I won't be picking up and dropping off her little ones. I am going to do my best to stay the heck off the roads to save even more gas $$, I have plenty to do at home, no need to do much running around. Hubby has a crazy commute into the city each day, his gas $$ won't be changing
Groceries - Until I get the kitchen, pantry, refrigerator and freezers back in order I'm not sure where we stand on food other than I know we have enough to last us a good long time. I am thinking our grocery bill will be super low.

Prescription Meds - We can't do without!!

We have no Birthday's in January, the only gift giving we will be doing are the quilts I need to mail for some sweet little girls. I also have what I need to send my Senior buddy her January gift other than postage, need to get that gift prepared!!

I have the $$ put back to take a quilting class 2 times a month for 3 month's that I am thinking of taking, need to sleep on it for an additional night. I always pick up so many tricks and tips in class that I hate not joining in on this one, however it would require I buy fabric for the class in January :(

We will stay entertained in the evenings with the volumes of DVD's that haven't been opened hubby has received for the past year (maybe longer) I never have a problem entertaining myself, cooking, sewing, scrapbooking and working on taxes will keep me busier than I want to be!
We have never been into New Years resulutions but having goals for 2012 is a diffrent story, I am hoping that starting the year with a no/low spend month will kick the New Year off with a bang to our savings account!!

Christmas/Gift Giving account is ready

2011-12-29T06:48:00.002-05:00

Here is the front of the first quilt I finished last night
And the back, done in a soft cuddly flannel

It's a good thing we are not wealthy people or I would have run out yesterday and thrown down $25,000.00 for a long arm quilting machine. Free motion quilting is HARD work, my arms and shoulders are killing me after 11 1/2 hours of quilting, but it's DONE!! I have to run out this AM to pick up a little more fabric to piece the backing on the second quilt (why do my quilts always grow?) then it's back to the workout again. On breaks from the sewing machine I have started taking down Christmas decorations, I want everything cleared out before New Years day so we can start the New Year with a sorta clean house!

We opened our Christmas/gift giving account yesterday with a refund I received from returning a Christmas gift Hubby bought me, we also had a check from DD#1 reimbursing us for gifts hubby picked up for her at Christmas so she didn't have to get out with the little ones. Our account now has $777.00 to start the year off with, we will also throw vacation $$ into this account. My hope is by having a separate accounts this year for gifts and vacations things won't be so confusing. Until hubby receives his first pay in 2012 I have no idea how much I will regularly put in the account, for now it will just be found money!

Another area that will need to be funded is our charity goals. I received my senior name yesterday for the Senior Angel Project, thankfully it's a lady!! I find shopping for men very hard, many things that are on her profile she enjoys as small gifts are on clearance right now, gonna keep my eye out for some little prizes to send during the year. The organization requests you send a card or letter at least once a week and a small gift once a month, maybe a little something extra for Birthday's.

I am also challenging myself to one "Quilt of Valor" each month. Quilts are NOT cheap endeavors!!! Our big box fabric store is running a 50% off sale Friday/Saturday on batting and thread, you can bet I will be in line for that deal. Quilt fabric must come from a quilt shop, the big box stores fabric doesn't hold up to the wear and tear a quilt gets. My quilt store gives me 25% off fabric for "Quilts of Valor" which will help but I check out the clearance fabric first to get the best deal I can on quality yardage. I also have set a goal of 12 "Linus Project" quilts, I have lots of fabric I picked up last year on clearance that should give me a good start, I will have to watch the sales for some flannel backing.

"For everyone to whom much is given, of him shall much be required." -- Luke 12:48
We believe strongly in this passage but along with that we try to be good stewards of what we have been blessed with, sales, clearance, coupons and rewards points help us find the balance with savings and giving.

Have you started your goals for 2012 yet? What the heck have another cookie or piece of fudge and shoot for the moon, with a little bit of planning you can do most anything!!!

Another Piggy Back

2011-12-28T07:50:00.003-05:00

Here is a little jewel I picked up yesterday at the after Christmas sales, Its about the size of a lunch box.
Inside it holds a loaf pan, how cute will this be to sew up for next Christmas?

I'm gonna send you over to Carla at http://halfdozendaily.blog.com/ today to check out her "Ti's The Season" post from December 26th, this is a GREAT post to help you get on track for Christmas 2012. After 8 hours of free motion quilting yesterday afternoon I sat down and did some planning of our own for next Christmas. Here is what I came up with

We went over budget this year but manly due to some large charitable donations, we were pretty much on track for gift giving (other than hubby who never stays on budget) Here are a few of the keys for us staying on track.

I shopped sales during the year for practical useful things for our big kids, even found a few fun things along the way. I made all of our gifts for friends as well as a few for our own family that were all a hit. We shopped early then stayed out of the stores, good thing since Masons arrival and jury duty came into play!! I squirreled away $$ during the year to have cash available at Christmas time. On to what we will be changing.

We are headed to the bank this AM to open an additional checking account that will be devoted to Christmas, gift giving and vacations. I am driving myself crazy playing with numbers for various things we save for during the year, we can have up to 5 free accounts at our bank so there will be no cost involved. At some point I will figure out how much we need to add to the account each pay period so we are set for Christmas and the trips we have planed, all in good time! We or our girls always need some last minute inexpensive gifts during the holidays, the bag pictured above might just be the thing for next year. I wish I was a better photo taker, the picture doesn't do the bag justice, sewn up in some bright cute fabric it could be a super cute Birthday gift or pick me up gift for a friend in need. At Christmas a nice loaf of bread or bag of cookies would be simple, affordable, yet appreciated by anyone. Cost of the bag, $3.00!! I can't buy a pattern for that price, I have a few GC from Christmas that I can use to hit the after Christmas fabric sales, gonna hold off and hit the sewing center after New Years to see if I can get an even better deal. I also picked up a few other clearance things yesterday as I was returning a gift from hubby (what was he thinking) that will be Christmas gifts for 2012 once I work them over a bit.

Off to shower, breakfast with some buddies, the bank then home for lots more free motion quilting, I have 2 gifts that need to get in the mail ASAP!!

Twelve in 2012

2011-12-27T08:14:00.002-05:00

I am piggy backing on a post of Sharon's over at http://midlifemommusings.blogspot.com/ Check it out she is sure to become one of your favorite blogs!

1.) Have pop corn ceiling removed from Kitchen and entrance hall.

2.) Donate 12 "Quilts of Valor"

3.) Enlarge our garden with an additional traditional bed

4.) Donate goodie box each month to the local soup kitchen

5.) Paint walls inside of house

6.) Donate 12 quilts to the "Linus Project"

7.) Sell money pit setting in the water (Boat)

8.) Get busy on scrapbooks for the grands

9.) Learn computer program for the embroidery machine

10.) Organize photo's on PC

11.) Clean out shed

12.) Save $15,000.00 in emergency fund. GULP!!

Now it's time to print this list and hang it on the refrigerator so I can keep it close at hand for motivation!!! Can you come up with 12 goals for 2012? Give it a try, I find I do much better in everything I want to accomplish if I have a clear road map in place. Thanks Sharon for getting me off the couch with a plate full of cookies and motivated to get my rump in gear!!

Great Gift from Hubby

2011-12-26T10:10:00.003-05:00

One of my gifts from Hubby is a 5 day 4 night stay in this cabin for a sewing/crafting retreat.

We can take a break and relax in this great room.

Clear off this table along with a few portable tables I will bring along for plenty of space to set up sewing/scrapbook machines, and all our supplies.

Then head to bed after a long day of fun, what the heck we can even take a nap if needed!!

A cup of hot tea or coffee on the deck with this great view. I ask you how great will this trip be!!!

I am so excited to be going on a girls weekend of crafting fun this March with some of my girl friends!! Hubby hit the nail on the head with this gift. I have sent out the announcement to the ladies I think will want to join in, it is always hard to get a time when is best for everyone but they have plenty of time to plan ahead.

He picked a cabin that was affordable (1/2 price sale!) in case I will be going by myself (not likely) I know my lady friends are uncomfortable with a freebee like this so I figured the cost per room so we can all chip in, some will double bunk to save even more $$, some will be like me and want a room to themselves. I went to bed last night thinking of what project or two I want to work on (maybe 10 or 15 in all honesty!) I have lots of time to narrow the list down.

To stay with our frugal living commitment we will each take a turn at a simple meal to cook and share. Maybe even do little secret buddy gifts to have a little added fun.

My house is a mess after 24 hours with all the kids and grands under one roof, eating, unwrapping gifts and merry making. I honesty don't give a hoot, all in good time it will be back to normal, for today hubby and I are enjoying a little quite time.

Hope everyone had a great holiday with family and friends, leave a comment of what your favorite gift, special story or whatever made your Christmas special. I might just have to do a little blog candy later in the week.

Oh Holy Night

2011-12-23T18:40:00.002-05:00

It's hard to see from this photo, our Nativity has 20 individual hand made pieces, and sits on hubby's Mothers dinning room tablecloth.
Each one hand painted with beautiful details

I'm of bloggy land for a few days to relax and enjoy this Holy season with our family. We are no different than most typical American families with the ripping, running, shopping, over eating, plates full of sweet treats passed down from generations past, Santa's, and a jolly Ho Ho Ho. But along the way we try very hard to remember the real reason for this season.

Jesus Christ our savior was born.

Our family has been blessed beyond anything we ever imagined it would be, happy healthy children who have gone on to build families of their own that they share nicely with Nanny and Papaw. A home to live in, food to eat, and a little money put back for the rainy days that always come. We have lost many precious family members along the way at such young an age, we have been dirt A.. poor, and at wits end not knowing if we had this parenting thing going right. One thing that has never been in question and has help us through many a hard times is the knowledge that God gave us all his son, Jesus Christ.

The photo's above are of a gift hubby's Mom gave to us in 1979. Ma had terminal cancer and knew she wouldn't be around to much longer, she wanted us to have her Nativity so we could share it with generations to come while she was still with us. She passed away in March of 1982.

She received the Nativity from a neighbor who made one piece each year for each neighbor at Christmas. Christmas 1970 hubby's father was at the end of his fight with terminal cancer. Mrs Denmark wanted to make sure he had the entire set of the Nativity before he passed so she spent endless hours finishing this set. Hubby will never forget her act of kindness to his family at such a hard time, his Father was over the moon to have the whole shebang that Christmas. He passed in March 1971.

I am not sharing this story to make anyone sad on this very special weekend, only to share with all of you small acts of kindness to others can impact future generations none of us will have the pleasure of knowing. Our children, grands, and all that come after we are long gone will know the story of our Nativity. We pray that God will continue to help us be better parents and grandparents so we can share his love and kindness for all eternity.

Merry Christmas to each and every one of you!!!!

Happy mail and lots of Cheer!

2011-12-22T21:58:00.002-05:00

No time to fancy up our Christmas Jars this year

Some of the goodies from My Secret Bloggy Santa

My secret Santa filled the box with little prizes

Handmade card from my overachieving buddy, Thanks Val!!!

And a blog award from Carla over at http://halfdozendaily.blog.com/

We have had such a fun filled day delivering little gifts, dropping off our Christmas Jars to the soup kitchen, a visit with Santa for Kara then home to find a mail box full of good cheer!
I'll start with the Christmas Jars, I usually blig them out with scrapbooking supplies but with all the time lost over the past 3 weeks I went with nothing more than a label. While I wish they were decorated in a festive way the important thing was to get them in the hands of 4 needy families in time to help out a little before Christmas. Each jar contains around $130.00-$150.00 in change, to some of us that might not seem like much but for a family who has nothing it will add a little more under the tree and something special to the dinner table.

We delivered bottles of wine along with wine glass charms to some friends who have lost Mothers, Fathers and in one case a Son over the past year. This Christmas will be difficult for all of them, we hope this little act of kindness will let them know we understand the sadness they are enduring and we have not forgotten them or their loved one.

Before Kara went down for her afternoon nap, Mommy and I ran out to meet Santa and have a photo taken. It was love at first sight, she never took her eye's off from him, we jumped around waving our arms trying to get her to look at us but nothing could distract her from melting Santa's heart with that sweet smile. Even Santa got a little teary eyed with her sweet ways.

Then came the mail!! My photo doesn't do the card my buddy Val made for Christmas this year justice, an unbelievable amount of inking, layering and details went into her card. I will treasure it Val, thanks so very much.

And I received a bag full of goodies from my secret bloggy Santa http://fromshoppingtosaving.blogspot.com/ , thank you so much Erika.

Last but not least Carla at http://halfdozendaily.blog.com/ awarded me a Liebster Blog award Liebster is a German word & translates to “good friend” in English, so its a pretty special award!

I need to pass the award on to 5 of my favorite blogs. First I need to check out a few to see if they have already received the award yet then I will do a post to share with everyone some of my favorites. What a happy happy day!!

Card shop is closed

2011-12-22T07:54:00.002-05:00

It's hard to see the stamping and glitter each card had from the photo, you will just have to trust me
Lots, and lots of cards

Each one with an Angel ornament for their tree

The last of the Christmas cards were sent out yesterday, if I need to send more they will be store bought! Making our own cards sounds like such a great idea around July, a few days before Christmas I begin questioning my sanity, why do I do some of what I do?

Hubby and I took a break yesterday at 4:00, we decided to sit for the rest of the day an evening and watch Christmas movies, it was the perfect way to spend the rest of a rainy day and night. We had a dinner of nothing but snacks; beef stick, cheese, dips, sauces and of course Christmas baked goodies set on a tray between our chairs so we didn't have to move for hours on end. I finished the handwork on Karsyns stocking for home and made a pretty good dent on Mason's while enjoying some old family favorite movies. Tyler is worried Santa won't bring his little sister and brother anything for Christmas unless Nanny finished the stockings, the heat is on to finish today. I think I can, I think I can....

Our wrapping is so close to being done, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, a very short grocery list is prepared for a quick stop later today and our Christmas Jars are ready to deliver to the soup kitchen today or tomorrow. It's time to set back and truly enjoy Christmas, later than I planned but considering the interruptions I am happy with the results.

As I figured the Drs have increased my meds this time around. I knew my seizure threshold had become very low, I refrained from having a hissy fit. It takes a few weeks to get up to the dose that will be required so that I am firing on all cylinders, until that time I will slow down a bit enjoy the season and be ready to rock and roll by the new year. I HATE taking meds, but am thankful that they are available and BLESSED that we have insurance so I can afford to take them!

Off to the shower to prepare for a day of fun with Hubby. We have some RAK planned along with a few visits to friends then time with Tyler to work on a gift for Mommy. Kara will arrive in the afternoon while her Mommy works. Hope every ones holiday plans are almost done so you too can sit back and enjoy this special time with family and friends

Tis the best time of the year

2011-12-20T21:18:00.003-05:00

A bottle of wine with 4 wine glass charms should be a nice little surprise for a few folks who could use a little pick me up this year
Close up of the charms made with the embroidery machine

Looks like I am some kind of drinker with all the bottles lined up ready for new homes

Then an evening of looking at Christmas lights, LOVE it!

What a wonderful productive but restful day, there really is no place like home. I think I would be a good candidate for someplace where you are snowed in for months at a time, never able to leave the house. I finished enough wine charms today for 5 gifts and a few extras I passed on to my sister for her own gift giving, total cost $2.19 for the wire hooks (they are really hoop earring bases for jewelery making) I received the program for free at one of the classes I attended this summer but haven't had the time to work anything up until yesterday. The wine came from a case hubby brought home from his many travels, he assured me it was a great deal. I'm not sure how great a deal a case of wine is for people who NEVER drink wine but they came in handy for gift giving.

We have had way to many friends lose loved ones this past year, we wanted to do a little something to let them know we are thinking of them on this first Christmas without their family member. It just so happens they are all wine drinkers! As much as I would love to make each and every one a warm cozy quilt, the reality is I hardly had time to get our grands quilts finished for Christmas. Hubby will have to be satisfied with his quilt minus the binding for now.

We finished up the evening meeting all the family at Daughter #1 home then tailgating to the speedway for the Christmas light show. Perfect weather, cool with light rain so it felt like Christmas. You get to ride on the track (Charlotte Motor Speedway) for part of the light show, I had no idea the bank on the track was that steep. We were only 1/2 way up and it felt like the car was going to roll over, of course the guys thought it was way cool, we girls, not so much.

Tomorrow is Dr appointments where I get to hear what an incredible example I am for others with my same condition but......I'm sure my levels are all out of whack so they will want to increase my meds :(. I am debating taking in a nice plate of chocolate covered peanuts and some angel sugar cookies to make nice with them.

A little something extra

2011-12-19T22:13:00.002-05:00

Here is a sneak peek and one of the extras I didn't think I would have time to get to this year!!

Bath towel and hand towels for Daughter #3 powder room

Remember this window treatment for Daughter #1 way back when?

She will now have towels to match come Christmas morning. The colors look way off in the photo's but it really is the same fabric, just different colored walls and lighting.

I am sooo excited I will be able to pull off a few extra goodies I had wanted to make but didn't think I would ever find the time. Before putting the embroidery machine away for the holiday I thought why not try the design I had in mind before I hauled everything to the sewing room. Wallah, super easy and pretty fast with no cost involved, just as I had envisioned!! I should finish up tomorrow then share with all of you.

I added name tags to both of the Grand boy's quilts today along with a few additional cards (will it never end?) Wrapped a few gifts before I realized my sweet hubby can take over the gift wrapping so I walked away leaving detailed instructions (please get the correct name on the gift) Returned 12 messages that have been on the answering machine for a week, grrr. Cleaned up a ton of e-mails and printed DD#3 Christmas cards for her. I know I got more accomplished than just this but for the life of me I can't remember what. That seems to be the pace around here for the past few days, run from one thing to another, then force myself to set after dinner and relax (work on stockings) The required nap only lasted 20 minutes this afternoon but something is better than nothing I am thinking. Are all of you scrambling around with last minute errands, shopping and finishing touches? I had thought I would be setting sipping tea this year but life seems to have a mind of it's own!

Big old to do list

2011-12-19T11:25:00.002-05:00

One of Kara's many faces! She is such a drama queen

My list is in much better shape after a weekend of doing along with making time for some resting, what a difference a few good nights sleep make. As crazy as it seems I will be working an afternoon nap in today, one of the keys for my health issues is enough rest and sleep, without them I can't function.
Here is the update

6 different Christmas cookies are hidden in the freezer

2 different candies are put back

3/4 of the Christmas gifts are wrapped

All of the trees are decorated

Last of the Christmas packages went in the mail this AM

Stockings are coming along at a good pace, some will be ready for Santa Christmas morning

2 trays of Christmas goodies have been delivered

Laundry is caught up

House is clean enough to suit me!

We can walk in the scrap/sewing room

Got in 1 of the 3 Dr appointments I missed from last week, looks like I will be able to catch up with Drs by the end of the week.

Off to cross a few more T's and dot more I's with Christmas music playing in the background.

Home Sweet Home!!!

2011-12-16T22:34:00.003-05:00

This is more than I ever dreamed would be under the tree!!!

Jury duty is finally over. I am back to the land where everyone is nice and no one is NAUGHTY!!!! I am still pretty shell shocked by the experience of the past week, as much as I believe in our criminal justice system in this country I don't think I will ever be participating again. I had thought about having my Dr. sign me out from serving but passed on the idea never realizing it could be as bad as it was, I won't be making that mistake again. ENOUGH said.

Lots of plans are off the to do list after missing 2 weeks with Masons arrival then followed by a week of jury trauma, sleepless nights, driving in the city and stress I wasn't expecting. It's baking, SLEEP, and relaxing from here on out. I will finish up the multitude of extras I wanted to do over the winter then be way ahead of the game for Christmas 2012.

I will be back to blogging next week when I get caught up on some sleep and my meds get back to their working levels, looking forward to some sweet smells from the kitchen!!!

Late nights

2011-12-14T22:44:00.002-05:00

Card for my Bloggy Secret Santa
Cute tape dispenser for her desk

Sassy apron to inspire her to eat at home

I received the sweetest thank you note from my Bloggy Secret Santa today that she had received my gift. Now I can share with all of you what I sent, this might be the only Christmas gift to be delivered on time this year due to this crazy Jury duty. Hubby will be hitting the post office tomorrow to mail the rest of the packages but they may not make it in time :(

I have resolved myself to the fact that things will be very different this Christmas. I have done all I can to pull it off and have the last 2 weeks to truly enjoy this special time of the year, looks like that ain't gonna happen now. I take whatever little project I can with me each day but its hard to do many things when all you have to work with is a needle and finger nail clippers!! Tomorrow I have my zip lock baggie of the last Christmas cards to finish up, Hubby will be getting the Christmas photo of our grands printed out then they are off to the post office. I have another zip lock baggie with Karsyns stocking for our house to work on, last but not least still an additional baggie with Masons stocking for his home. I think I have come up with a game plan to at least have some semblance of order in this crazy situation but I can tell you right now patience is NOT a virtue of mine!!!!! looks like lots of late nights for me until I finish up with my civic duty.

Planning ahead

2011-12-14T06:00:00.003-05:00

As luck would go I am on the jury...... needless to say this was not in my holiday plans :( By the time I arrived home the past two nights my tail has been dragging, it's eat, hit the couch then on to bed, why does just setting all day make me so tired? I hope that today will be a little better but I don't expect much. Hubby was taking off next week for the holiday, he will now be the lead Merry Maker around the place. All last minute shopping, grocery store, gift wrapping and such will be in his rookie hands. If I can find the energy I will finish up Christmas cards and package the gifts to mail tonight, hubby will have the pleasure of standing in line at the post office. Our Daughters are taking the Grands for their group and individual photo's today so I can include them in our cards, photo's with Santa will be when the Mom's get the nerve up to give it a go. I am thankful that we all planned ahead so much due to Mr Masons arrival otherwise we would be in a real mess.

If you are looking to start the New Year off right and like to plan ahead check out Carla's blog 1/2 dozen daily http://halfdozendaily.blog.com/. I did a no spend month last January with pretty good results, I am in for this year as well just don't have the time right now to figure our spending plan, all in good time. Now that the Federal government is paying me $20.00 @ day to set on my rump it could change the whole financial outlook of our life NOTTTTTT!!

Jury Pool

2011-12-13T05:50:00.003-05:00

Chocolate covered peanuts, yum
Made a set of Santa hat chair covers for one of DD#1 friends with leftover fabric

And a set of pillows for DD#1 front porch

Thankfully Saturday and Sunday I worked on Christmas the entire day, just when I think I might get back on top of things something always happens, grrrr I am one of the lucky 30 who are now in a jury pool for a federal case :( if picked it will run until Christmas DOUBLE :((((( both sides are throwing off jurors left and right, PLEASE don't call my name!!!!!

My sweet hubby was kind enough to take me to jury duty yesterday and is willing to drop me off again today, he may be worried about the car more than my sanity driving downtown, who cares it works for me. I was able to almost complete the needle work on one of DD#1 Christmas stockings while waiting around yesterday but now that I am in the pool we are not able to do anything but sit and wait. By the time we got home yesterday it was 7:00PM to tired to do anything other than hit the couch for a nap with the poor little beagle that had been left all day then off to bed. I would think they will be finished with the selection by today but in the meantime I will miss my appointment for blood work this AM and a ton of little to do's that were on yesterday and today's list. If picked for the jury I will be in a heck of a mess, who is gonna do all the baking and merry making around this place? Off to the shower and wiggle into uncomfortable dress clothes then off to sit on a wooden bench for the day, but since it's the second day we get a pay increase from $12.00 @ to $20.00 @, that will almost cover the price of gas and lunch :(

We love a parade!

2011-12-11T20:01:00.002-05:00

Lawn Mower Drill Team
One of their many formations

My sweet Hubby

Our holiday season has officially started, the lawn mower parade is a tradition started 20 years ago with a few of the fellas that may have had a bit to many adult beverages and came up with the idea. By the end of the day all of the homes in our neighborhood are decked out and ready to greet Christmas. I love our neighborhood, after the parade whoever wants to go has lunch at a local restaurant then on to our local farm to pick up their tree, in the evening a neighbor down the street treats everyone to a party with TONS of food where everyone donates a gift to a local charity. Whats not to love. We have skipped out on lunch and the evening festivities for a few years now, hubby is home so few days we like to spend what little time we do have together with the kids and our grands, everyone understands thankfully!

After being away from home for the most part helping DD#1 out while she recovers from Masons birth over the past 2 weeks, I was happy to have almost 2 full days at home getting caught up (if there is such a thing) Tyler came over today to help us pick out our live tree at the farm then back home to help Papaw with some guy stuff. I got my turn with him when it was time for some Christmas baking, of course we had to start with M&M cookies. It is so nice to see the first container of cookies in the freezer ready to whip out when needed. I also got the chocolate covered peanuts finished today along with a few small sewing projects.

Tonight is finishing the laundry, working on the last of the Christmas cards, (only 10 more to go) and figuring out why in the HECK I got picked for jury duty :(. We need to report at 8:00AM sharp in the morning, that means I will have to leave the house no later than 6:15AM to make it in time (yep the traffic is that bad) If we didn't have so much going on in the family right now I wouldn't mind doing my duty, but new Mommy is still in need of help until she can lift Karsyn and is able to drive, I have a mandatory Dr appt on Wednesday for more blood work, have both little girls on Thursday and Friday and.... I have cookies to bake people!!! Along with lots of other little to do's around the place. We do have a few friends that are local Asst. DA's, hopefully one of them will have the case and I will be excused lickity split, can't take the chance on a conflict of interest!

Busy Day

2011-12-08T21:06:00.002-05:00

Karsyn and I finished up her Christmas gift for Mommy this morning!! Shhh don't tell
Then we headed home for a little Christmas cheer and lunch

I finished up the night with adding a friends Mothers name to the back of this chair cover, realized my crappy iron left water spots, no big deal it will be dry by the AM

It has been a steady busy day with Karsyn today, that girl has some moves let me tell you!! We hit the pottery shop first thing after her AM nap to finish up her Birthday pasta dish for Mommy and Daddy, they are going to love it! Of course I had to have something as well to add to my set of grand serving pieces. During her afternoon nap I was able to finish piecing the 2 little girl quilts I have going, now on to the quilting (may have to wait until after Christmas), also set up a table in the family room to work on Christmas cards when I can find the time to set down for a few minutes, I have never been this late in getting my cards made :(

After dropping Karsyn off I got started on a little kindness for a buddy by embroidering the chair cover Santa hat for a friends Mom who is in a nursing home. The chair cover fits perfectly on her wheelchair. My buddy picked the cover up at a dollar store some time back, she was going to take it to the shop to have her Mom's name put on it, NO WAY, I would love to do it. After I finished up I made a pattern to make a few chair covers for Daughter #1 neighbors who helped us all out so much with Tyler while we were focusing on Mommy and new baby. I have lots of red upholstery fabric leftover from recovering a chair I can use, also a bit of white fluffy fleece I can use, just need a pompom and we are set. I am counting the chair covers as my RAK for today, it's all I have the time and energy for!!

Tomorrow is a full day with both girls, Tyler's Christmas program at Pre-school then back home to decorate hubby's lawn mower for the Christmas parade on Saturday morning. Hubby is on his way home but may not get in until late tomorrow night. The man makes me CRAZY, he refuses to fly when going to projects or anywhere else so spends 2 days to get home by driving. We hope he will be able to hang around until the first of the year this time but you never know with his work.

BRRRRRR

2011-12-07T23:14:00.002-05:00

How sweet is this little guy
We finished the upstairs railing
Added Christmas ornaments in 40 MPH winds an heavy rain
Here is what we have to look forward to in the morning, YUK

I think DD#1 is finally satisfied with with her Christmas decorations, we moved her Christmas village to a better spot, got the sideboard in the dinning room dressed up a bit, put up garland and a wreath on the upstairs banister and last but not least, hung Christmas balls on the front porch. When I picked Tyler up from pre school we grounded Mommy and Mason upstairs so we could surprise her with a little kitchen tree, Ty made a paper chain out of scrapbook paper to decorate the tree with and gave it the Angel from his little tree in his room. Mom was excited to have a tree they could look at!!

Not sure if I shared the story of their family tree this year, here goes. They had a grand time moving furniture around in the family room to put the tree up, when Karsyn went down for her nap Tyler, Mom and Dad decorated the family tree to perfection, it lasted less than a minute when Karsyn saw it. She was so excited she ran over and pulled the entire thing down on herself...Karsyn can take a linkin and keep on tickin. Dad got the tree back up only to have Karsyn tackle it again, down it can on top of her for the second time. Third time was a charm, they moved the tree to the living room that has no furniture in it as of now but it does have doors so Karsyn can't play lumberjack.They had no tree to sit and enjoy in the evening, I know Tyler and Mom really missed watching the tree, thus the little tree for the kitchen. I put it in a large rod iron planter that Karsyn can't pull over (we think) then wired the sucker in nice and tight. We stuck to only the paper chains as decorations so if the wild girl does pull it over there will be no glass flying everywhere. Karsyn is a mess!!!

For today's RAK (random act of kindness) we donated $$ to our local soup kitchen for holiday meals. Many of the chain restaurants in the area are giving the soup kitchen a break on the price of a full holiday pre-cooked meal so folks can enjoy Christmas dinner in their own homes and of course leftovers (the best part in my book) The soup kitchen needs $$ to purchase the Christmas dinner boxes, if I understand the pricing correctly we hooked up 2 families for all the fixins!! The second sorta RAK was to get my secret blogging Santa a gift in the mail, will post pics of her gift after I am sure she received it, our limit was $15.00 I think I can close to that price if you don't count my time in the price!! Ha Have you thought of a way to do a little something for somebody to put a smile on their face? Let me know!!!!! Please share with the rest of the readers. I have on average 90 hits a day on this blog so I know many of you are doing something special.

HGTV is killing me!!!

2011-12-06T22:11:00.002-05:00

It started with Daughter #1 wanting wreaths on her dinning room chairs
Then she saw on HGTV a wreath around the chandelier with ornaments hanging down, Mom could you please?

Oh, lets set the table pretty please

And so my days are now filled with Daughter #1 who is still recuperating from the C-section last week with nothing to do but watch HGTV all day. Now that the table is to her liking the buffet is not right....tomorrow will be coming up with idea's to fancy that up a bit, move her Christmas village to the family room, hang greenery from the upstairs banister and, rig up super big Christmas ornaments on her front porch. Now you must understand that all of our homes were decorated before Mr. Mason made his appearance last week, what she is coming up with now are new idea's she is picking up from that evil HGTV channel!!!! Maybe someday I will find the time to set down and enjoy some of the festive idea's they have going on, for now I am just her Mommy gopher.

I will not break the bank with her wants, needs and gotta haves. We pulled the dinning room off for just over $20.00, not to bad in my book The wreaths were $.59@ at Michales craft store, the greenery for the chandelier I cut from some we already had that was just hanging over the mantel anyway. The ornaments hanging from the chandelier were on sale at AC Moore for $.99@. The napkins were on sale for $1.99@ the ribbon I had in my room of sin, the plates are some of the filler Christmas dishes I have, the napkin rings are just more ribbon tied around. It turned out cute simple and just what she wanted. I however spent another day fighting traffic to make her HGTV dreams come true :( However it is worth it to have even more time helping out with Mason man!!

I treated myself to the breakfast special this AM before heading to new mommies home to help out. I decided to get my RAK knocked out first thing. There was an older gentleman having breakfast by himself wearing a WWII veteran hat, HA he was my target!! For only $5.45 I put a smile on a strangers face, so fun and he has no idea who gave him a little treat. This afternoon while I was home for a short bit, I signed up to be a Senior Angel here http://chemoangels.net/, I got the idea from http://www.thehappyhomeowner.net/ her blog is on my sidebar on the right, check it out and join in for a month of RAK!! I am super excited to be a Senior Angel, can't wait to find out who they hook me up with. This will be a weekly commitment once I get accepted (I hope they will take me) need to start stockpiling some handmade cards and a few store bought as well. Off to bed to read up on suggestions and idea's to treat my senior with!!

Traffic, GRRRR

2011-12-05T22:03:00.002-05:00

The day started with a quick trip to the fabric store to pick up a small bit of fabric for the border on 2 children's quilt tops.
I am ending the day with a cinnamon bun and cup of tea to calm my frazzled nerves

The good thing about living close to a big city is anything you could want is within driving distance, the bad thing is you do have to drive to get there!!!! It took an hour and a half to get to the fabric store. I hate getting on the interstate at 70 miles an hour and still feel like I am gonna get my rump run over for going to slow. Heading back home was no different except add a nice steady rain, grrr. To add insult to injury I realized when I got home I had lost my purse, Holy Hannah did I leave it on top of the car while putting the packages in?? Please let it be at the store!!! Sure enough I had left it on one of the chairs in the back when we were looking at one of my quilt tops, back in the car in the rain in even worse traffic, by now there were lots of fender benders due to the rain. I left the house this morning at 11:00 AM, returned home at 5:30PM for one lousy errand, to whipped to do anything but jump in some warm jammies, grab a cup of tea and relax with a cinnamon bun for supper.

However a few good things did happen so I am gonna focus my nighttime dreams on them!! Mason had a Dr appointment today and all is still well with him, THANK YOU GOD!

I got a call from an old friend I haven't heard from in almost 3 years, so sweet!!

And I finally had the time to focus on doing a random act of kindness (things have been a bit crazy with Masons arrival) I stopped in for a quick lunch at a local restaurant before going on my looooong journey, I noticed 2 police cars in the parking lot, humm wonder if I could somehow pick up their bill without them knowing it?? Nope, after 10:30 AM you order food at the counter, pay then they deliver the food to your table, durn. So I ask the waitress if they could take over a gift card to the officers without them knowing who it was from, yep, no problem. Yepee, I sent over a $10.00 gift card for each of them, it might not seem like a lot but you can get the breakfast special for $5.45 or lunch special for $5.99 so they will each get close to 2 free meals from a total stranger for no reason other than to make them feel good for the day.

Hoping tomorrow will be a day without traffic and the opportunity to do something nice for someone unexpected will jump in my lap!

Some hip stuff, I think?

2011-12-04T23:52:00.003-05:00

NOT MY PHOTO!! Necktie necklace, this is hip right?

This skirt matches DD#3 girlie tree perfectly

Lots of applique and cool corner's for the binding

I will be the first to admit I have no idea what is hip, so this tree skirt might not make the cut but DD#3 seemed to like it. I may or may not ever get a photo of the skirt around the tree, that is unless I am willing to go over to Daughter #3 apartment and take one myself. I don't make a habit of just dropping in on any of our girls. I tend to have a different idea of cleanliness than they sometimes do, (an understatement) I find myself scrubbing the kitchen and baths when they are not looking! I decided not to quilt the skirt due to lack of enough backing fabric to match the skirt and the fact that DD#3 doesn't give a hoot, why go to the expense and time.

I found the necktie necklace while surfing the net a few days ago, here is the site I found it at, she has some really cute stuff you might like http://alethaisraels.blogspot.com/2011/02/upcycled-tie-necklace-tutorial.html

With all the stories of neckties for Christmas that no man really wants I thought this would be a great way to help hubby do a little more cleaning out!! I'm thinking it will have to be an after Christmas project but should be easy and dirt cheap. Might be a great little gift for a girlfriend or two who is into jewelry as well.

I am off to bed with clean sheets and a blank note pad to start my to do list for the week. Hubby wants the grands stockings for our house first on the list. Daughter #1 wants stockings for Karsyn and Manson first on my list. I would like all 5 stockings off my durn list but I can't seem to make myself disciplined enough to just set and do handwork all day. I'm thinking its time to drag out the time out bear to get me on track!!

Mason is a BAD BOY!!!!

2011-12-04T13:49:00.003-05:00

Manson arrived home on Friday afternoon the perfect little boy, at 6:00AM Saturday morning he decided to stop breathing!!!! Mom and Dad both know CPR, got him going again and called 911, the stink pot pulled his stunt again on the ambulance ride to the hospital. After a battery of test and being hooked up to every monitor known to man for 24 hours the Dr's can find nothing wrong with him other than he might have just forgotten to breath or it could be acid reflux. He is now home where he had DARN well better be a good boy. The Dr suggested he be elevated at all times so the kids will pick up a wedge from Baby's R Us today. Karsyn had a sleep over with me last night so Mom and Dad could stay at the hospital with the baby, Tyler had a sleepover/playdate with some wonderful neighbors. I headed back home with a few loads of laundry to help them out, I will return at dinner time to feed the family (carryout) help with baths and the whole bedtime routine. That is after a nice long nap, old people should not be subjected to this much stress!!!! I told Mason a bit ago he is sooooo on my dodo list, he burped and smiled. THANK GOD for another miracle our little guy is going to be OK!!!!!!

Freebe for me!!

2011-12-02T20:45:00.003-05:00

I decided maybe working on a new quilt might lift my sad mood today, so I started making quilt blocks.
Then thought why not figure out how I wanted the quilt layed out, while Karsyn was napping.

The colors are off in this photo (it's after dark once again) the peachy looking color is really pink. How cute is this fabric, perfect for a toddler little girl.
(Cape Ann by Liesl Gibson for Oliver + S) Moda of course!!

I am using a pattern from this book, really cute stuff in here but I ran into a problem....

I got up in a bit of a funk this morning, so sad for our friends who lost the rock of their family :( I would like to make a few things that are not needed for Christmas gifts but would be nice to have finished before the holiday so I cut out a quilt for a toddler I have on my gift list, (I had a jelly roll that made the cutting out simple and quick). What the heck might as well work on some quilt blocks until Karsyn arrived, again simple and soothing. After some play time with our chunky monkey it was time for a nap and back at the quilt for me. When I got to the piecing part of the quilt top the pattern just would not come together, I re-read the instructions a million times, nope wouldn't work. Did I cut out the triangles wrong, nope just like the pattern said......

After moving and rearranging pieces over and over again I realized the pattern had a mistake in the cutting directions, CRUD!! I figured out how the triangles should have been cut, made the changes, cut more fabric, then began piecing (thank goodness for extra fabric) I decided to call the company to let them know that the pattern I was working with had a pretty big mistake. The lady in customer service thanked me and let me know they would look into the problem and call me back to help me get the piece work done. They did call back a few hours later and agreed the pattern had a super big mistake, they would put a revision on their website and alert the retail stores, the mistake would be corrected before the next round of printing. Here's the cool part. As a thank you for bringing the problem to their attention they offered me 2 free books of my choice from their website and will be sending me 2 free yards of fabric in whatever line I pick out!! YAAAAAWHOO! Now that is over the top customer service.

I have printed out the list of books I can pick from to study over tonight, the fabric is a no brainer, I already had my eye on a new line to purchase maybe in a month or two (I need to cut back on spending) I had Karsyn all day then took dinner over to DD #1 and her family (she came home from the hospital today), after dinner I helped get the kiddo's ready for bed and a little organizing to make the every 2 hour feedings go a bit smoother. My rump is dragging!!!

Here's my funny Tyler story for the day... he was bouncing off the walls from all the schedule changes, visitors and such over the last few days, I finally had to call him down (hate doing that) He headed into Mom and Dads room where he became very quite, we are all thinking the kid is fast asleep... nope he had Mom's breast pump on his belly button trying to make extra milk for the baby so Mommy wouldn't have to work so hard. It was hard not to laugh out loud, the sweet (making us all crazy) little boy was trying to do his part!!!!

Happy sad day

2011-12-01T19:45:00.002-05:00

The Harley quilt under construction
And it's done, this quilt is huge!!

Close up of the quilting

After some baby time at the hospital this morning I ran over to Deborah's studio to pick up the Harley quilt!! Hubby left this morning for a few days, I can now add the binding while he is away and hopefully have it wrapped an tucked away before he arrives back home. Little Mason continues to be a sweet cuddly little guy, he loves to be held and lifts his head looking for mommy when she talks, he is some kind of special!!

I took the evening off from the hospital tonight...we got word late this afternoon that a dear lady lost her battle with ovarian cancer. Kathy was an amazing woman who's love of life, her family and her grands is a legacy of what I pray I will be able to achieve in my own life. Some of you may remember her from the beach posts I left back in the summer. Our family has rented Kathy's family beach home for many years, our husbands have worked together for longer than I can remember, they are such a wonderful family to know. This past year Kathy gave our family an autographed copy of 2 books she had written, one of which she had just had published, she was so excited to share with our family what she had worked so hard to accomplish over the years of research for her latest book. Kathy passed away at home as she had requested surrounded by her family, tonight I am so sad that our special day yesterday was such a sad day for our friends.

Baby Bubba has a name!!

2011-11-30T23:07:00.002-05:00

Please welcome Mason Robert, the newest love of our life!!
8 pounds 10 ounces and 21 1/2 inches long

He is a handsome little guy don't you think? Mason has had a name for some time now but we wanted to keep it a secret from my Hubby. Mason's middle name is after his Papaw, such a sweet thing for the kids to do.

He has the cutiest little cowlick in front that is sure to steal the hearts from all the girls, I know he has stolen all of ours in no time flat! So far he seems to be a really good baby, no fussing, crying, or pacifier needed, he is just checking us all out and snuggling down with whoever has him at the time.

Mommy is doing wonderfully, she has had no pain meds since the C Section this AM. The night nurse was taken aback by that and insisted she have something ASAP or she could be in for a long hard night.
We are all overwhelmed that God has blessed us once again with a new life. How could anyone question that there is a God in heaven when they see this miracle?!!

This Boy

2011-11-29T21:24:00.003-05:00

Tyler 7 days old
Tyler and Papaw with the new train set Nanny had put back for this special night. It was to say the least a hit with both of my boys. Tyler is so sweet, I could hear him asking Papaw "How did Nanny know we wanted this special Christmas train?" Papaw replied "Little man, Nanny knows everything" I tell you my Hubby is brilliant!! HA

Where did the time go? Our little man is already 5 years old.

Tyler is having a sleep over with us tonight so Mommy and Daddy can get to the hospital bright and early, as soon as "Baby Bubba" arrives we will head to the hospital to finally get our turn with him in our arms!! It's hard to believe 5 years have past since Ty boy came into our lives, he changed our world, we will never be the same.

I can remember way back when ladies would go on and on about their grands, I would think wow they must have been crazy over the top when their own children were born if they are this into their grands. HAAAA, that was before God blessed us with our own Grands. Grands are nothing but PURE pleasure and love, no worries over how we will discipline them, educate, feed clothe, potty train, buy cars, pay for college, nada, nothing, no worries at all, just the joy of sharing their little lives. Tomorrow God willing we will have a new little boy to hug and kiss, all he will need from us is to love him with all our heart, we got that covered!!!!

2011-11-28T20:38:00.002-05:00

Living room tree, most of the tree skirts I use are really table clothes of our Grandmothers or Hubby's Mom, They are only used for Christmas.
Advent house and musical toys on the grands toy shelf. We picked up the advent house a few years back at Pottery Barn outlet for $20.00, I put one M&M in each door for Tyler, the little girls don't know what candy is!!

My splurge for Christmas this year, I have NO business buying any more decorations but he was to cute to pass up and on sale for $19.99

This is one of 2 fireplaces we have on the fire place mantel that Hubby bought for me a few years back. We had to pick up the second one for the grands ornaments "Baby Bubba's" is in the mail on its way, just in time for Christmas. Last year we bought each of our Daughters family's the fireplaces as well, unmarried Daughters is put back until she gets her tail down the isle!!

I somehow finished another Christmas project I wanted to make this year for Daughter #2, I had to change the plan 3 times before I finally gave up and went for easy, just get the durn thing done!!! It was making me CRAZY. Hubby called to invite me to lunch around 10:00, so sweet, I thanked him kindly but passed, I wanted to finish the project I was working on and start something new. After a little hesitation on his part (OH no I hurt his feelings) he spilled the beans, he needed me to bring his reading glasses and watch he forgot this AM. I did meet him for lunch and handed over the missing items, who the heck does his errands when he is on a project! Back to the never ending stocking project.

Holly Jolly

2011-11-27T16:28:00.002-05:00

Fancy Chubby Girls tree is just for fun, I have a few friends that exchange with each other when we can find the perfect chubby girl.

Grands Nativity tree and baby's first Christmas tree, we put each of the grands and big girls first ornaments on these trees

The Grands are welcome to play with the Nativity ornaments, but Nanny's Nativity is OFF LIMITS

8 Stockings are hung, 3 more are under construction, the baskets are full of Christmas toys for the Grands, they even have their own Nativity from Fisher Price.com A MUST for every family!!

My kitchen tree holds our collection of Hallmark house ornaments, we are on year 28. As much time as I spend in the kitchen I so need my own tree.

For the next week prepare yourself for Christmas decorations and pictures of "Baby Bubba" We are almost finished decorating, 2 more small trees to finish tonight and the live tree to put up in a couple of weeks. New wreathes are hung outside and hubby finished the few lights we put out and animals for the Grands. I am dog tired today, lots of moving out furniture and stuff to put up tree's then unpacking and decorating followed by vacuuming and more vacuuming, thank goodness for leftovers!! After the last trees are done tonight I will continue to work on the little girls stockings, will they ever be done???????

This turkey is ready

2011-11-25T23:01:00.002-05:00

I had to sneak a quick photo of Daughter#1's baby bump, she hates having her picture taken when she is prego. This little turkey is big enough to join the family Wednesday!!

Does this look like Christmas to you? Not so much, but it will be super cute when its done and ready to go under Daughter #2 tree.

Hubby ended up working a full day today so no Christmas decorating happened, instead I finished up the Thanksgiving feast clean up and packed up all the fall decorations. We will hit the floor in the AM bright and early to get with the decorating program before heading over to Daughter #1 to help them finish up "Baby Bubba's" nursery.

With the extra time on my hands today I cut up the bright pile of fabric above for a tree skirt for Daughter #2's funky girl tree. I will have to hit the shop for a bit more background fabric (ran short) other than that everything came from my stash. I will piece some leftover batting from other projects then dig around to find some backing. This should turn out to be a super frugal project that will be perfect to dress up her tree. Not to be left out Daughter #1 now wants wreathes to hang on her dinning room chairs and a little something for the front porch. Daughter #3 hasn't started her Christmas decorating, I'm sure she too will have a wish list of a few holiday extras. If we didn't have all girls I think I would have a lot more time on my hands to finish things I would like to do!! I shouldn't have to cook for at least 2 more days (LOVE LEFTOVERS) so that will free up a little more time to put the pedal to the metal on the sewing machine!!

Pre Thanksgiving Cooking

2011-11-23T23:52:00.002-05:00

Home made pie shells are over rated, mine never look nice
This one turned out a little nicer

Chocolate layer desert with dark chocolate leaves

Tyler's cupcakes

The tables are set, just need to move in more chairs

14 hours in the kitchen doing pre Thanksgiving day cooking seems a bit much to me. From the looks of these photo's all I did today was to make deserts. Not so!! Below is my list of accomplishments for the day, now it's off to bed. Gotta get the turkey in to roast early in the AM along with a ham that needs to bake, still have rolls and a few more sides to knock out before the crowd piles in.

Cornbread dressing - Finished

Bread/sausage dressing - Finished

Sweet Potato casserole - complete (taters from our garden)

6 pints of vanilla bean ice cream - in the freezer

3 pints mint chocolate chip ice cream - in the freezer (Tyler's favorite)
Chocolate pie - check

Pumpkin Pie - check

Chocolate layer desert - can't wait to dig in

Pumpkin cupcakes - finally done!

Turkey- soaking in homemade brine

Ham - ready to bake in the AM

Have a blessed Thanksgiving

The spending is over!!!

2011-11-22T22:52:00.002-05:00

Christmas table runner complete.

What a crappy photo, maybe if I have the time I will try to get a better picture tomorrow, it's hard to make out how cute this turned out since our table is black and it's 11:00PM! The free motion quilting took forever on this thing, black thread on black material is pretty hard to see, in addition for some dumb reason I did little bitty tiny swirl quilting. The quilting is the best I have ever done but a crazy amount of time went into it. In the next week or two it along with all the other handmade Christmas gifts will be headed to the post office!!! So thankful that I forced myself to work over the summer on Christmas gifts, I could never pull it all off if I would have waited until December this year.

I was able to finish ALL of the Christmas shopping today, even had time to return home organize the rest of the family sewing gifts to see what additional notions I will need and back out I went to pick everything up. I can now put my feet up and enjoy the Christmas season!!! We did come under budget but by the hair of our chinny chin chin. Shopping the sales during the year was key to keeping the cost down. I don't bother buying clothing for anyone, it's gift cards from shoe stores, fav department or clothing stores and a few to some discount stores. This gets me off the hook for disappointed big kids (wrong size, color, style) and they can purchase twice as much shopping the after Christmas or New Years sales.

When I returned home for the night I had a message from our bank to call ASAP due to a fraud alert on our account due to unusual activity. After speaking to the rep and assuring her we made all the purchases she ask if she could be adopted, HA, not likely sweetheart we have more than we can afford already. I rarely use a debit card, it's cash only around here, when the cash runs out it's time to head home. Christmas is the exception to that rule, I'm not comfortable carrying a lot of cash around so the debit card gets a good workout. I feel like a free woman now that the shopping is done, instead of laying out $$ the month of December we will be tucking some cash in the savings account.

Shopping Marathon

2011-11-21T23:15:00.002-05:00

I hit the stores at 10:15AM this morning, returned home at 5:30PM then back out until 9:00PM. I think we are very close to being finished with our Christmas shopping. I need to input it all in an excel sheet to see if there are any holes in the gift list. We will exchange names within the family on Thanksgiving day for all who will be in town for Christmas this year so we will need to pick up 2 more gifts after Thanksgiving but other than that I should only have to get it all wrapped. I haven't totaled everything up yet but I am thinking we are still under budget but not by much. If no monkey wrench's get thrown in tomorrow I will finish up and call it complete. WHEEEE, I could use a hot bath and a tall glass of water!!

I do have some sewing projects that I would like to complete for our big girls and a few baby gifts that would be nice to finish up before Christmas but I refuse to stress about any of that. Thanksgiving dinner is the next biggie on the list followed up by decorating the house and yard then we are home free. We are pumped to hold the newest addition so it's all hands on deck until next Wednesday when "baby bubba" joins us

Back to checking my list, everybody has been nice, no one has been naughty, it would be cheaper if we would have had a few stink pots on the list!!

Why is my list growing??? grrrr

2011-11-20T20:23:00.002-05:00

Hubby is once again rebuilding his helicopter, while I worked on some sewing projects. See how close we were working, we may survive re-entry after all!

Tyler is adamant we have no pie for Thanksgiving, he calls each day to check on Thanksgiving dinner progress, so funny

Tyler needed/wanted a new handsome shirt for Thanksgiving this year, we couldn't find a thing for little boys who are the size of a 9 year old, so Nanny worked this into the to do list today.

$5.00 Wally world shirt has been transformed into something appropriate for a 5 year old fella who loves holidays

No matter how hard I try I can't get to the end of my to do list. Every day (sometimes each hour) something new lands on the list. Lots of deep breaths and rearranging things to get it all in. As we sit watching Alton Browns Thanksgiving special tonight we are both wondering who will fall asleep first, I think he is sure to go first!

We worked in some Christmas shopping Saturday and Sunday. We have finished doing Daughter #1 shopping for her. She is so larger with "Baby Bubba" we want her to stay off her feet as much as possible, having a 5 year old and 1 year old to keep up with as well as a full time job it's not easy to work in any down time!! She will come over and spend some time doing her wrapping and her Christmas to do's will be done. The whole family will get together the Friday after Thanksgiving to help them get the house and yard decorated. "Baby Bubba" will arrived only 3 days later, we hope having everything done around their home will give them some down time to enjoy baby #3.

Hubby and I got a good dent made on our own shopping, I'm thinking an additional day should do it. SOOOO hope to have it all in the house before turkey day, then its on to the wrapping. I think we will stay under budget, however our budget is pretty large compared to what seems to be the norm of $500.00. If I left it up to hubby there would be no budget at all, he goes crazy at Christmas. So whats the budget you might ask....if we can keep it under $500.00 per adult child (son-in-laws included) I would be a happy camper, but it's a struggle to keep it that low. I know that might seem an extravagant amount to spend but compared to the past its much more frugal (blush) and its a cash only deal in our house so no pile of bills will hit the mail box in January. The grands receive one gift each from us and a Christmas ornament in their stockings at our home. Everything else is home made (lots more to do)

The other budget rump kicker for us is all son-in-laws Birthday's fall over the holiday's, Son-in-law #1 BD is December 23rd, Son-in-law #2 BD is November 23rd, special boy friend's BD is October 31st. Can our girls pickem or not!!

Off to bed to work up the new revised list for tomorrow, I'm gonna whip this deal no matter what

Bits and Pieces

2011-11-17T19:31:00.002-05:00

Table runner I wasn't able to post yesterday
Cut fabric for this little jewel out during nap time today

While the babies napped this morning I dug around in my room for fabric that would work on the Santa table runner pictured above and did a little cleaning up. Why don't I put things away as I go? I realized while cleaning up I have very little red fabric, hum... red is not my favorite color but it does come in handy now and then.

During their afternoon nap I got busy cutting up the fabric so I can start piecing it when I have a free moment here and there. Not sure how much free time I will be having until the first of next week. The evenings are still filled working on the little girls Christmas stockings, SO HOPE to finish up the piece and needle work by the weekend so I can begin the sequins and bead work, my least favorite part. sigh..

Hubby arrived home this afternoon with a pile of laundry and a hankering to head to the grocery store to by our turkey before they sell out. The laundry is underway, I talked him into waiting until tomorrow to do the grocery shopping. The man can not be trusted in a grocery store unsupervised.

Tyler also had Thanksgiving on his mind, he called after school today to check on the size of turkey we were having also suggested we needed ham, no potatoes, green beans or sweet potatoes with mini marshmallows, he wants mini marshmallows on the side. Also a big no! on pies, he wants super hero sugar cookies instead. He explained to me Thanksgiving was for praying and having a feast with all your favorite foods. "oh ya Nanny and don't forget Thanksgiving day sprinkles for our ice cream" Need to update my menu plan for the big day!! Gotta love what 5 year olds come out with. Hubby thinks Ty is right on with some of his suggestions.

Making Do

2011-11-16T23:20:00.003-05:00

The house was as clean as it needed to be today so I decided to start a Christmas table runner from a pattern I picked up last summer at one of the super sales, problem was I hadn't bought fabric to make the runner with. Time to dig into the stash and scraps to see if I could pull it off.

It took 92 (2 1/2 x 2 1/2) squares of green fabric pieced together to make the trees, the background white and tan fabric was leftover from something last Christmas, the red polka dot is something everyone should have on hand, can't go wrong with polka dots in any color.

I didn't have anything Christmasy (is that a word?) big enough to use for the backing so I pieced together 2 different fabrics then added 2 more trees to make it look a little less patched.

Did some free motion quilting, added some bling to brighten it up and bingo, its done. With ZERO cost, all from scraps.

I will have to post a photo of the entire runner on a later post, blogger won't let me post any more photo's on this post :( The runner turned out really cute and I got lots of exercise running up and down the stairs looking for fabric to use so it was a good day! I would like to say I used up a pile of fabric but in reality very little was needed, still have lots of piles that need to be cleared out. I have been spending WAY more than I should on fabric lately, of course the jumbo Harley quilt sucked the bucks right out of my pocket but I have begun stock piling fabric again. NO MORE!! I intend on using up what I have for a very long time. If I were to sew each and every day for a year I don't think I would run out. This bad habit is kicking my spending plans rump, it's so close to the end of the year if I don't get a handle on my evil ways we will never make our goal of saving 35% of our take home pay for 2011. There is still more Christmas gifts to buy, Baby Bubba to spoil, a new Mommy to pamper and very few paydays left in the year. Time to buckle down and be more thrifty. Today was a small step in that direction.

TA DAAAA

2011-11-15T22:52:00.003-05:00

Lots of sewing the rolls of quilt squares

Ironing the seams, each and every one, not my favorite thing to do.

But it was all worth it to finish this quilt for one of our many wounded hero's

It's done!!! I am so excited to hand this quilt over to the long arm quilter to do her thing, then it will return to me for the binding, hand stitching, and the label. I found the perfect fabric for the back today, a nice flannel red, white, and blue plaid, PERFECT!!!!

While at the quilt shop I picked up supplies for 2 more "Quilt of Valor" quilts, one of the many goals I have for 2012 is to donate one quilt each month to our wounded soldiers. Sure hope "Baby Bubba" turns out to be a good baby or I am gonna have a plate overflowing next year.

I will be tightening our spending plan up a bit after the holiday's to include the cost of making 12 quilts. This will not be an inexpensive endeavor, but I will not use cheap fabric for men and woman who fight for my freedom to live in this country. Now on to putting the journal/scrapbook together as well as the quilt case required when it's time to mail this labor of love off. So STINKIN EXCITED, can you tell?

This and That

2011-11-14T21:16:00.002-05:00

More quilt blocks finished

Some seam riping was going on

All the quilt blocks are ready to go!!

I snuck in a little quilting between loads of laundry, vacuming, mopping and general cleaning up. I do believe I will finish up the quilt top by the end of the week if things go as planned (doesn't happen often)

We pulled out what I thought was all the fall decorations this morning but now that I have broken into the tubs looks like I am missing a tub or two, durn. It's back to the attic in the morning so I can finish up decorating for Thanksgiving, then on to our meal plan. As usual hubby wants it all!! He is away from home so much eating restaurant food that it takes him a few weeks to get his fill of home cooking.

So far the only response I have had on Veterans Day blog candy is from Carla over at 1/2 dozen daily, Carla you get your pick of any of the three pieces posted, just let me know!!

Off to bed early again tonight, I can't seem to get my body on the new time, up at 5:30 then ready for bed by 9:00.

Weekend Wrap up

2011-11-13T17:04:00.003-05:00

Cupcakes at Daughter #1 baby brunch

One stocking pieced and needle work done, second stocking is on it's way

Quilt of Valor cut out and ready to go

Finished 3 sets of quilt blocks, only 3 more design sets to go

We have had a steady weekend of running around, spending time with the Grands and even worked in an afternoon nap today before we head out to eat with some friends tonight. Having hubby home has been a nice change of pace. He will be headed to Savannah, Ga for a week tomorrow then it looks like he will be working out of the local office for awhile!! It will be an adjustment for both of us to live together full time but we normally do pretty good other than the TV blaring 24-7 grrrrr.

I'm happy with the progress of the Quilt of Valor, slow and steady works for me. I do believe I might be able to have the quilt top done this week!! I have 3 more sets of quilt squares to do, I'm thinking maybe 10 of each then its putting them all together. This week is looking to be a slow week around the house so I will use the extra time for quilting this special labor of love.

We had Daughter #1's Baby Bubba Brunch this morning, nice and easy, early enough in the day to have some at home time to relax, love that! Baby bubba received WAY to many clothes, if Mom changes him 10 times a day he still won't be able to wear it all, his closet is already overflowing with "cool baby stuff" as Tyler would say. They have come up with a name for the baby but it's a bit of a secret, the big announcment will be November 30th when he joins the family.

Remember to leave a comment or send me an e mail on what you did for our troops on Veterans Day this year to have a chance at some blog candy.

Veterans Day Blog Candy

2011-11-11T14:51:00.002-05:00

How would you like a Linen Tea Towel
Maybe a Fall Apron

Close up of the apron

Or an assortment of sweater pumpkins, 1 large and 2 small

Get your name in the hat for any of the three prizes above as a thank you from me for making a donation of any sort or for any amount of $$ to our Veterans today. Leave a comment or send me an e-mail to share in what way you decided to honor our fighting men and women, no need to tell the amount you donated!! I will do the drawing on Monday of next week for the winners.

We are back from our family outing, everyone survived and best of all we are all still speaking to each other. I will share in another post of our adventure, today is for our troops!!

I am on my way to having the "Quilt of Valor" cut out and ready to piece, not sure how much piecing I will get done today after a late afternoon nap I will get back on it and work when I can over the weekend. I have never tried the pattern before so it might be a slow but steady pace, our local quilt store has offered to help me free of charge if I get stuck. Here is the really great part, Deborah Norris has donated her time and materials to do the free arm quilting!!!!!! Thank you so much Deborah for you help!!!! I may not get the quilt done until this winter but I will devote as much time as I can when I can to completing this labor of love.

The most intimidating part of the process for me is the journal that the organization requests you do while working on the quilt. They ask that the journaling be in your own hand writing and add photo's if you would like. Since my spelling is atrocious (when spell check is down you know I am speaking the truth) I want to keep my journaling short and sweet, as a scrap booker photo's are a must. I decided to use a 8x8 scrapbook as my journal, that way I can have my Daughters (who can all spell) proof read my journaling before I slide it into the book, the photo's and blinging out pages should be easy peasy. Check out some of the organizations listed below if you are unsure of what or where to make a donation.

GOD BLESS the USA and all who are willing to give up their life so the rest of us may live free.

http://www.qovf.org/

http://soldiersangels.org/index.php?page=scarves
http://www.operationwritehome.org/
http://www.operationshoebox.com/

http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/

http://www.aerhq.org/dnn563/

Nanny Time Day 5

2011-11-10T10:18:00.003-05:00

Assembly line of sweater pumpkins

Day 5 of my Nanny time was spent once again try to clean up and clean out in the AM before I allowed myself some playtime. All the freezers are cleaned out and organized, my list of items I need to start watching for coupons and sales is ready. The pantries are looking spiffy again, I need to make a run to the warehouse store soon for kidney beans and Lima's if the grocery doesn't run a sale soon. The computer amour got some badly needed TLC, yet another list that I need to pick up of desk supplies. I put all the different lists in my planner so they won't get lost in never land, hopefully that will make shopping trips and scanning sales ads a little bit faster.

Then it was play time, I finished up all the mending, organized my thoughts for a card workshop at the nursing home for Christmas and made a quick trip to goodwill for more sweaters. Daughter #1 put in a request for sweater throw pillows, they won't be happening for awhile but I needed an excuse to get out of the house and enjoy some time in the beautiful weather.

Today I hit the floor in high gear. Hubby will be arriving home a day earlier than expected. He wanted to get out of MI before the winter storm hit, southern boys don't do snow!! I have had to rearrange my plans to work around the new schedule. Once I finish up the pile of pumpkins on the counter I will get started on the "Quilt of Valor" I would love to have enough time left in the day to begin the piece work but just to get it cut out will be a big help.

Tomorrow is Veterans Day, I planned on working on the quilt the entire day but hubby has set up a family outing.... I have already forwarded him I want to be home soon after noon so I can spend the rest of the day working on the quilt. I so hope I don't have to give anyone the 'Mommy look" but I'm willing to do whatever it takes to have time to honor our fighting men and women. We did make a nice donation to the Soldiers Angels phone home organization http://soldiersangels.org/operation-phone-home.html but I have my heart set on doing more.

Don't forget blog candy for our soldiers is tomorrow Veterans Day, leave me a comment on what you have done to help our fighting men and women, I will post the goodies sometime tomorrow. I will wait until Monday to do the drawing, as always you are welcome to send me an e-mail instead if you don't want to leave a comment on the blog!!

Nanny Time Day 4

2011-11-09T07:49:00.003-05:00

Lucky find!! It is almost as big as the wood stove.

The view from my bathroom window this morning

Who posts views from their bathroom window? Well um...... me, for some reason the fall colors coming through the window made waking up a little sweeter, once the sun was up that is! I'm itching for a pot of something today to celebrate the end of my Nanny time and the beautiful colors of fall, chicken and dumplins might just do the trick. I need to get my rump in gear and make up noodles for the freezer so I can throw a pot of chicken noodle soup together in a pinch but the kitchen counters are still covered in various unfinished projects.

Yesterday was more running around (booooo) everything was on my do to list so at least I was able to mark lots of things off. One of my stops was to meet a friend to get her input on the sweater covered pumpkins, the stems were giving me fits, together we came up with the idea to cover some Styrofoam in brown moss and use a bit of beading wire for the vine swirly things along with a felt leaf or two they should be done, mark another thing off! The Harley quilt is now in the hands of the long arm quilter, can't wait to see what she comes up with for a design. I still have to pick up fabric for the binding to finish it up. I have been keeping up with receipts on the quilt so when the time comes our Harley buddies want me to make one for them I can give them the true price not figuring in any labor, I am sure they will be as shocked as I am over the price.

While I was out and about I ran into another Michael's in search of more pumpkins to cover, out of luck, everything fall or Halloween were marked down 80% so the pickins were might slim. Another thing I was on the lookout for was some sort of decoration for Daughter #1 front porch, at 80% off I figured I would put together a floral arrangement of some sort for her. A huge pre made arrangement caught my eye, but with a $150.00 price tag I was just scoping it out for ideas. The clerk that was working in the area told me they were also marked down 80% off, PAY DIRT the cost was $31.00, "I'll take 2 please" load um up!! My sister gave me a tip that Wally World had plastic jack a lanterns on clearance, since I was covering them in sweaters it didn't matter what they were decorated as, at $1.19 each I loaded the buggy.

Today I get to stay home!!!! I have a ton more things I want to knock out, while I won't get everything done I am feeling a little less stressed by the piles of unfinished projects and household chores I have been putting off. We are now on baby countdown so I have got to get ahead of the game, "Baby Bubba" will be joining the family November 30th!! The last ultrasound showed chubby cheeks, button nose and a bald head, can't wait to get this little guy in our arms.

I'm off to work on my list and get a chicken in the pot to stew.

Nany Time Day 3

2011-11-07T20:22:00.003-05:00

Sweater covered pumpkins, still need to add leaves
I took one of the flaps and buttons off the sweater to add to this pumpkin

Dug into the scrapbook stash for a couple of buttons

I used the bottom of the sweater turned upside down on this one for the cute pattern

This ugly thing is for a Harley friend for Christmas, he saw one at the Harley store last summer but wasn't willing to pay the price of $85.00. This thing must weight 15 pounds, the chains, nuts and bolts are from the hardware store, picked up the wreath and hit it with a little black spray paint, total cost under $6.00

Too much of day 3 of Nanny time was spent in the car stuck in traffic, grrr Everywhere I tried to go today was backed up with road construction or wrecks that had both interstates at a stand still. Today was the day I was going to turn in the Harley quilt to the long arm quilter, by the time I was finally able to head her way I heard on the radio there was another wreck on the interstate with back ups for 6 miles. I promptly turned my booty around and headed back home, maybe tomorrow I will have better luck!!

I spent the morning doing more cleaning up and clearing out, then off to do errands UGH. Once I gave up and headed home I got to work on the ugly Harley wreath. The friend who will be receiving this for Christmas is a single guy (bet you could have guessed that) never been married. His home decor is ALL guy! When we go over I feel like I should stand up to potty, he will be gaga over his Harley door wreath. I am gonna make him promise he won't tell anyone I made it!!!!

The other project on for today was to make sweater covered pumpkins, I still need to make up some leaves to add to them but even without the leaves I really like the way they turned out and the price, oh my!! I picked up the pumpkins at the 75% off sale at Michael's for $2.15, the sweaters came from goodwill, 3 for $6.00. I have enough leftover sweater material to make 2 or 3 more sets (Daughters of course now want them). Tonight it's back to the stocking assembly for the little girls and watching some trashy TV. While I have gotten a lot accomplished the past 3 days my list is still a mile long, I hope I can get the majority of things finished up in the last 2 days of me time

Day 2 of Nanny Time

2011-11-06T15:11:00.002-05:00

My messy nest
Back in working order

Christmas room after, everything is inventoried and stacked neatly in the corner. Not sure where I stored the photo's of the before shot but trust me it was a big old mess.

I'm on day 2 of my Nanny time off, little by little I am whittling down the list that takes a full sheet on a legal pad, stupid crazy list! Yesterday I tackled the scrap/sewing room along with lots of small been putting off projects. I did a quick check on quilt kits (I make up my own) I have a grand total of nine kits ready for some TLC. Also a pile of fabric that will eventually be "Project Linus" quilts over the winter The quilt kits are for next years Birthday gifts for our big girls, a couple of quilts for some friends and 2 that I hope will be ALL MINE!! I also checked my scrapbook stash and realized I need some supplies to make a gift as well as 2 custom orders. I gave up my CTMH business back in the summer so I ordered from a sister consultant, can't wait to get my hot little hands on the new stuff. I haven't bought any scrapbook supplies in so long I can't even remember, I'm thinking 8 months or longer. I have added Jennifer's blog to my blog list if any of you are interested in CTMH products. I know I still have some customers that like to place orders now and then. The rest of the day was spent working on Christmas stockings for the little girls while enjoying some college football. :( can't believe Bamma lost.

Today I finished up in the Christmas room, what a mess. Did inventory on what we have on hand and questioned my sweet husbands sanity, once I dug into the bags of Christmas gifts he brought home last trip. I did a little on line shopping this AM and made a list of what I know we need to purchase, still waiting on our big kids wish lists, they are on notice they better get one to me soon or they are SOL. Hubby will be in town next weekend I get him for most of the day Sunday so we can knock out a little Christmas shopping together. He can no longer Christmas shop without an escort!!!!

Sunday dinner tonight will be out to eat. Daughter #2 boy friends Birthday was Halloween, since he lives out of town we had to wait until this weekend to celebrate. I'm throwing the budget out the window and letting someone else do the work. Then it's back home to work on another pile or two of stuff before I hit the uncomfortable chair to work on Christmas stockings. I WILL finish the little girls stockings this year. I am gonna have to figure out some sort of prize for myself when it comes time to do the bead and sequin work, I so hate that part!!!! "Baby Bubba" may or may not get his stocking this year. I was smart and bought a pretty simple kit for his, after looking at it yesterday it seems familiar. I'm thinking it might be a repeat of one we have for one of the big boys, please don't let it be so Joe!!

Off to get dressed for dinner, my girls frown upon my Nanny wear, gotta take it up a notch so the babies have something nice to wipe there drool and runny noses on.

Nanny time

2011-11-05T09:39:00.003-04:00

I did it, I declared some me time! Son-In-Law #2 ended up not having to work today so I am on my own, instead of going out last night I decided to stay in and get caught up on some badly needed rest. Today I will be off to use up some of my rewards points, coupons and GC. If the deals are not to be had I won't be spending anything extra, I need to hold on to our cash for Christmas!

Before I venture out I WILL get the scrap/sewing room back in order, when I say it is a HOT MESS I mean it!!! Having the sewing machines downstairs is working out great as far as the creative deal goes but I end up throwing stuff in and pulling stuff out of my room but never going back to clean up. When I work out of my room I keep things neat and tidy, disorganization makes me nuts however I am more productive sewing in the kitchen. I have way too many unfinished projects setting around and a few things that I need to get started on soon, this few days OFF I hope to get back on top of the mess.

I am also itching to get my "Quilt of Valor" cut out so I can jump in on the piecing for Veterans Day next week. The Christmas room is once again in a mess after hubby unloaded his goodies in there, I need to do some rearranging and updating of our gift list. Last but not least the house could use a little TLC. I have been keeping the doors and windows open a lot on days its not to cold, thus the layer of dust is getting mighty thick. The little girls and AJ are hard on the floors, they are getting as sticky as the Waffle House, time to get the place cleaned up!!

My plan for Sunday is to set up a Christmas stocking area in the family room so I can spend the day relaxing while working on the little ones stockings. I'm wishing I would have held on to my old crappy chair, it was perfect for beading and needle work :( Do you ever have so many irons in the fire things seem become overwhelming? Ya I think we all do, for the next few days I hope to overcome that mistake!!

Check this out!

2011-11-04T18:07:00.002-04:00

Carla over at 1/2 dozen daily is hosting a benefit to buy a family the farm animals shown above. I made my donation this morning, want to do a good dead for the day to start your weekend off right? Check out her post, what the heck, maybe we can by more than one!!!! But I better be winning the oh so cute apron!!
http://halfdozendaily.blog.com/2011/11/04/help-me-buy-some-farm-animals-win-a-handmade-retro-apron/

2011-11-04T10:01:00.002-04:00

75% off deals!
Christmas cards in the making.

First off I apologize for all the misspelled words in yesterday's post. For some reason blogger didn't save the changes I had made :(

Before I finish packing up the very little decorations I had out for Halloween I wanted to share the deals I picked up at Williams Sanoma.

Set of 4 plates regular price $29.95 sale price $6.99

Pancake molds regular price $ 19.95 sale price $4.99

Spatulas regular price $12.99 sale price $2.99

I ended up buying 4 of each item to put back for gifts. Since we are not home on Halloween these days I like to leave a little gift for the boys next door ages 1 and 4, this year I made up a bag with the spatula's and pancake molds then left them on their front porch. Mom called back the next day to let me know they used the molds for dinner that night, the boys were very impressed with the fancy pancakes! I originally went to the store to pick up some super hero cookie cutters to use on Halloween night, my sister gave me a GC for my birthday that has been burning a whole in my pocket, walked out with 2 bags full on goodies and only forked over $12.88 after tax. I love GC and sweet deals!!!!

I started diligently working on components of our Christmas cards yesterday, 18 done, 20 more to go. The little girls are a bit wild today so I won't be getting anything accomplished until they head home this afternoon, then I will get back on task. I REALLY want my cards ready to go December 1st so all I have to do is add the family photo when "baby Bubba" arrives.

I also need to get my ducks in a roll at nap time today for a shopping marathon list. I have lots of coupons, customer rewards and such that need to be used before they expire, also have a nice stack of GC that I could use if need be, some are only good for this weekend. As much as I hate to shop or be out at night I figure tonight will be better than fighting the crowds tomorrow along with the fact I have Ms. Kara again tomorrow. I SO NEED to get back to a good working schedule I seem to be running here and there but so many 1/2 done things are starting to pile up again, grrr. Next week looks to be another crazy week with voting on Tuesday, teachers workday Thursday and Veterans Day Friday. I am considering declaring a Nanny holiday so I can get things back in order, as much as I adore our big kiddo's and grands I need some me time to get back on track.

Are you up for a challenge?

2011-11-03T08:48:00.003-04:00

My Vetrens Day project

Are you up for a challenge on Veterns Day this year Friday, November 11th?

Each year for the past 10 years or so (maybe longer) I have been spending Veterns Day making cards for our troops. Sometimes I can get freinds together for the day other times I have run a card class where 1/2 the cards made are donated to our troops or I might just be home alone making cards. This year in celebration of my new sewing machine I will be starting a "Quilt of Valor". I picked up the fabric back in the spring when one of our local stores was going out of buisness at 50% off with this project in mind, since that time the quilt keeps being moved to the back burner. NO MORE, THE TIME IS NOW!!

I picked out the pattern way back when, it states "easy", well see. I'ev been advised by the insturcters I have taken classes from that my quilting skills are way above beginner so I feel confadante I can pull off the quilt, the real intimidation is keeping a journal durring the process. I'm still looking around google to see what others have put in their journal, it seems trivial to me to write about the everyday happenings around the house when these men and woman are putting their lives on the line each day for all of us.

So here is my challenge to all of you. In some way be it large or small, please do something on Veterns day to support our troops. I know for many the kiddo's are out of school so taking the day off from our normal activities will be a real pain, others might want to get in on some of the Veterns Day sales but each and every one of you can do SOMETHING!! I have a list of charitable orginzations at the end of this post to get the wheels turning in your creative minds or maybe start budgeting to make a donation to one of the very worthy causes.

Leave a comment or send me an e-mail amber25@roadrunner.com of what you did on Veterns Day to help our troops. I will be giving away some blog candy the Monday after Verterns Day as a thank you for helping out. I'm not sure yet what the blog candy will be, I do have some things in mind but haven't landed on the projecit (it will be good, I promise) Time to get busy around here!

http://soldiersangels.org/scarves.html

https://support.woundedwarriorproject.org

http://www.uso.org/uso-operation-phone-home.aspx

http://www.operationwritehome.org/

http://www.qovf-um.org/

http://scrappingforsoldiers.com/

Exciting Day

2011-11-01T20:04:00.002-04:00

Hot rolls and cinnamon buns, hey their made with fresh milled wheat so they are sorta good for you right?

Halloween sugar cookies, used 1/2 white, 1/2 wheat flour

The sugar cookies went FAST

I'm so stinkin excited!! I took the Harley quilt to the free arm quilter today for a consultation (I think that's what its called) I was so nervous that she would reject the quilt since I am such a newbie to quilting.... heart racing, sweating bullets, face turning red. She LIKED it and complemented me on what a nice job I had done on the piecing. I am floating on cloud nine, she gave me the price for the batting and quilting, now I have to piece the backing then return next week to turn it all in so she can get started!! Ya me, the quilt will be ready for Christmas morning.

I received Deborah's buisness card from my favorite quilt shop "Sew Much Fun", they were very complimentary over her work as well as what a nice lady she was. Were they ever right, her work is amazing!! I didn't pick out a design for the quilting, I am leaving that up to her, she after all is the expert in the deal. Here is the link to Deborah's blog "deborahsquilting.blogspot.com", she is new to blogging but already has lots of super cute quilts posted. She also quilts for Amanda Murphys designs, check out her blog on my blog roll for some sewing inspiration.

AJ the beagle and I have our feet up, snuggled under our picnic quilt, I am working on my never ending to do list, AJ is snoring away. AHHH, quiet nights in the fall are such a blessing.

Cozy and Warm

2011-11-01T06:59:00.002-04:00

PJ set for a buddy of mine
How darn cute is this fabric, and it's flannel to boot, should be nice and warm this winter.

Why is it that men can sleep like logs? This whole menopause thing stinks, if I can get 5 hours sleep at one time I fell like a lucky girl, hubby however has no problem getting in 12 hours each night !

I had an e-mail requesting I post photo's of the gift I sent out to a friend last week, had to make sure she received it before I posted the photo's. Happy late Birthday once again Jackie! I was waiting until I took the PJ class to learn how to do french seams before I made these PJ's but since the class was a bust I had to go with regular seams. I did at least finish off the seams with a binding stitch but still... maybe someday I will take the time to watch a u tube video and figure french seams out. The pattern calls for an elastic waistband but I am a good enough friend to NOT ask my buddies what size their waist is so I went with a draw string instead, she can always add elastic if she wants. I picked the tee shirt up on sale at Kholes then added a few embroidered cocoa cups to match the PJ bottoms. It would cost 2 or 3 times as much to make a tee shirt at home!

Hubby is headed back north today but only for a short time!! He will get to come home in 2 weeks for some some meetings and maybe even be done with the project and get to have a normal life for a period of time. I'ts going to be odd (in a good way) to have someone else around the house when he returns. After a week or 2 we both adjust pretty well. I have a ton of to do's that I need to get back to this week. Hubby has been doing a bit of Christmas shopping while he has been away, the progress I have made in the Christmas room is no longer noticeable when he unloaded his bags. The scrap/sewing room is upside down (nothing new) and I am beginning to get low on a few things in the pantry, time to start collecting coupons again and stocking up.

For our family Halloween seems to be the kick off of the holiday season, from now until Christmas things will be non stop. In all the riping and running around we will also be meeting our newest member very soon, Daughter #1 sees the OB once a week now, we expect he will want "Baby Bubba" to arrive before the end of November. Time to put it in high gear!!!

Happy Halloween!!

2011-10-31T21:26:00.003-04:00

The little girls wouldn't stand still
Angry Bird and Iron Man

Angry Bird was the escort for the Princesses

We had a great night with all the kids and Grands, nothing like a neighborhood that is overflowing with little ones to trick or treat with!! My sweet hubby was a hit in his Angry Bird costume, it amazes me that all the little ones know the angry bird game, what's up with that?

My tail is dragging, lots of time in the kitchen today getting supper and snacks ready for the big night and a trip to town to pick up a small gift for the little boy's next door. I scored big at Williams Sanoma 75% off Halloween sale, more on that later, for now Nanny is ready for bed!!

Digging in the dirt with the boys

2011-10-30T21:07:00.002-04:00

Sweet Potatoes before

No tater can be left behind

carrots before

Carrots after

Hubby and Tyler helped me dig sweet potatoes and pull one of the beds of carrots Saturday before we get a hard freeze, nice to have some guy help around the place for a change!! The rest of the day was hanging around the house with our little man just having fun, we miss our time alone with Mr. Ty boy so when it works out we steal him for the day.

Sunday has been Kara day, lots of "Dickle Dickle" (tickle tickle) with Papaw then to mommies work to show off her Cinderella costume. The little girls are so funny dressed up in their costumes, they act like they really are little princesses. Hubby thankfully fits in his "Angry Bird" costume, no need for me to rip out seams and add a little or fabric.

Tomorrow will be filled with lots of cooking and baking getting ready for Halloween with the whole family. So looking forward to whipping up some goodies with my favorite bowl licker (is that a word?) hanging around the kitchen.

Surprise Extra Time

2011-10-28T09:48:00.002-04:00

Piecing Complete!!

I got 6 free unexpected hours yesterday afternoon!! Karsyn had her 1 year check up so she left at 1:00 leaving me a free afternoon. Instead of frittering away the time I decided to make a go at finishing the Harley quilt so it can head to the long arm quilter next week when Hubby heads back north. This quilt is a whopper measuring 90in X 126ins, Hubby should have plenty of room to cuddle up under this monster. I fear he will want to use it in our room as a bedspread, that ain't happening.

The girls are down for their AM nap, it's time for me to get busy mixing up cookie dough and putting together a pot of chili for carry out when the Daddy's pick up the little girls. The big girls love when they get off work and don't have to worry about whats for dinner and since I have no idea when my better half will roll in chili will be easy to warm up for a late night meal.

It's sure to be a weekend of all out running around and activities with all the kids and grands while Papaw is home and of course Monday night is Halloween (please let the "Angry Birds" costume fit) We always have a long list of to do's around here, hubby enjoys having time at home doing guy stuff, beats the heck out of setting alone in a hotel room each night. I could care less if we get a thing done, it will just be nice to have my best buddy home for a few days.

Special Treat

2011-10-26T22:34:00.003-04:00

AJ the beagle and I are in the bed early tonight after a dose of NyQuil with Billy Graham's newest book "Nearing Home". I hope the NyQuil will ease this cold a bit and I know Mr. Grahams book will sooth my soul. I wasn't much for Mr. Billy in his early years, he was a bit too fire and brimstone for my taste but over the last 20 or more years I can't help but snatch up anything he or his late wife writes. Their home is only a short 2 hour drive from our house, his boyhood home is of course just a few minutes away, he feels like an old neighbor!! I also picked up a cook book (big surprise!) but that one will have to wait for another day, tonight it's just me and Mr. Graham.

Today was use up some gift cards I have been hoarding from my Birthday. I hit the quilting store first to pick up stabilizer for the embroidery machine (Christmas cards should be super special this year) along with using my gift card, (thanks Val) I qualified for a free Christmas program $79.99 value, score one for the home team!! Then I was off to the book store to use an additional card. I have a good size pile of gift cards, customer rewards vouchers and freebie deals to use but until I can knock out this cold my energy level can't hold up to the rigours of shopping the deals. Both of the books I purchased today were 30% off with an additional 10% off from our family membership card so I still have a few bucks to use later on.

Tomorrow is my Karsyn day, I need to get her to the pottery shop to start her 1 year old serving dish, if I can find the energy to lug the little chunky monkey to the store we will give it a shot. Karsyn is wide open, this should be a real adventure!!!

Christmas PJ's

2011-10-25T23:26:00.003-04:00

Another project is in the books!! Ya Me

Our big girls Christmas PJ's bottoms are finished just waiting for me to figure out what tee shirts and maybe an embroidery design I want to put with them. I went with fabric that is not traditional Christmas so we can get a little more wear out of them than just during the holiday, I also used cotton fabric so we should be able to wear them in the spring, fall, and winter. The little girls will be in red PJ's the little boys will be in green, not sure about the big boys yet. I may just hit Old Navy or someplace and pick up something inexpensive for them, our big boys aren't much for the PJ fashions!! Once I figured out how to put the pockets in the seams they came together pretty fast but it took 11 yards total in fabric so this was NOT one of my more frugal endeavors!!!

I also finished up the scrapbook this afternoon and delivered it, wheeee it was nice to get two big projects off my plate, the kitchen looks like a tornado has been through but I will tackle that tomorrow!

The final thing on my gotta get done today list was to finish up a Birthday gift for a buddy. Jackie your very late gift is on the way, sorry time got away from me this year. I will post photo's in a few days, don't want to ruin the surprise.

Tomorrow I hope to cut up the rest of the Harley tee shirts and maybe even get some piecing done on the Harley quilt before Hubby heads home. My goal was to have it to the long arm quilter by tomorrow but that ain't gonna happen.

If your a scrapbooker or card maker head over to 1/2 dozen blog listed on the right side of this page and check out her cards that are PUBLISHED!! Congrats Carla!! She even made the centerfold! My Cricut is getting a little dusty setting in my "room of sin" Carla has inspired me to dust it off and do a little something if and when I ever get caught back up around here.

Knocking it out a little at a time

2011-10-25T07:19:00.002-04:00

Halloween decoration for Daughter #1, Its hard to make it out from this photo but it is a spider web with a spider hanging from it

Top of the spider web

A friend made the spider web above that I had to copy because it was so cute, easy and cheap, no matter what I tried I can't get a good photo of it :( Here is what it is, maybe you can visualize it. Take an umbrella that is already broken, you know where the material has separated from the frame, remove the rest of the fabric then spray paint the frame black. Cover the frame with some spider webbing and hang a spider from the bottom, I added a string of lights just for fun that were on sale for $.99 cents. Hang the whole thing from the handle upside down and you have a fun unique decoration that cost practically nothing. Our Daughter will be hanging this on her front porch, it will look much better than hanging from my ceiling fan!

I wish I could say I finished all my running around yesterday but this cold did me in, I will have to knock out a few more things today or tomorrow. This morning I HAVE to finish up the custom scrapbook. AJ the beagle and I are set up in the family room, maybe I can find something on TV to distract me and keep my rump in one place to complete this thing. I'm not crazy about making blank scrapbooks for others, I like to have the photo's so I can do some cropping, resizing and such to add interest to the album.

Our Christmas PJ's are completed! I had enough fabric to make myself a pair to match, now I need to clean out my PJ drawer and unload some of the crappy things I wear over and over again to make room for the cute ones. I didn't get to any stores to look for a tee to wear with them, that will have to happen on a day I don't feel so under the weather.

You might want to skip this part because I am gonna rant a bit. One of the things I do watch on TV is the news, but since last week when Libya's president (don't know how to spell his name) was killed I have had to turn the news off. I can't stand to see the mob that was beating and eventually executed him in vivid color. What sort of people do this kind of thing, next we get to see his beaten body laying in a refrigerator on display so people can walk by and take their picture with his corpse. I don't find this eyewitness coverage news, it is disgusting. We are asking the brave men and woman of our country to risk their lives for this sort of culture, I find it disgraceful. How can we ever win a war or help liberate a country who has moral code such as this. I am a firm believer in a strong military, our country should never be afraid to defend itself but to sacrifice our soldiers for the evil that is being displayed for all to see is too much. Even more disheartening is the commentators and news folks don't seem fazed by the graphic footage, some seem to even imply the Libyan people are justified in the manner he was killed and is now on display. We need to bring all of our people home and let the barbarians have at it.

Some Day's

2011-10-24T08:16:00.002-04:00

Tyler had more interest in the tractor than anything else, He is his Papaws boy!

Karsyn so wanted to get her hands on the baby goat, how darn cute are these little girls!

Ms. Karsyn

Saturday started off bright sunny and cold, perfect day to meet for a big breakfast then on to the pumpkin patch and hayride, until.......

Daughter #3 called to give me the Dr report on Kara. Kara began breaking out in a rash Friday afternoon on her trunk, she had been running a low grade fever for most of the week, by Saturday AM she was covered from head to toe. Diagnosis... measles from her booster shot the week before. Holy Hannah. It should all clear up in a few days and she will be fine but she needs to be watch closly NO PROBLEM!!

Next dilemma Daughter #1 is big time prego, measles and pregnancy don't mix so it was a call to the OB, since Daughter #1 is in her last trimester they said she would be fine, the other little ones are up to date on their shots so hopefully once Kara recovers we will be done. Poor little Kara.

I had a sewing class to make Christmas PJ's in the afternoon, was it 12:00 or 1:00? I don't have a fancy phone that I can look at the Internet so I called a friend who I knew would be close to her PC to check the time for me, it was listed as 10:00!!! What the hey, that can't be right, I paid for the class on Monday in the store, looked at the website on Wednesday to get the supply list that wasn't posted then called the store on Thursday to get the supply list, no one ever said the class time had been changed. So I called the store to see if maybe they had added the AM class and that the afternoon class was still a go. Nope due to the traffic problems we are having in the area and requests for an earlier time they changed the class, no phone call or e-mail to update the customers. She informed me they had the right to change or cancel classes as stated clearly on their website, I should have checked the website to see if there had been a change, no refunds for missing a class. Talk about customer service, these people take the cake, the ladies working in the shop are wonderful, the owners are terrible and have been since the store opened over the summer. I am to say the least done, I have a $20.00 coupon I will be using this morning, I hope to spend $19.99 and walk away never to return. I know how to make PJ's but have never done french seams, that was pretty much the only reason I was taking the class to begin with.

Before we hung up I informed the store owner that I might be out the $35.00 for the class but I saved myself 1/2 of a tank of gas and $100.00 I was sure to have spent after class when I would find something I couldn't live without, she could have cared less. Turd

I spent Saturday afternoon cutting and sewing in my own peaceful home with college football as my background noise ROLL TIDE. I have now completed, not 1, not 2, but 3 pairs of PJ's and the 4th pair is ready to whip up today after I spend that durn $20.00!!!

I am off for a day of errands, one of my least favorite things to do :( Hubby needs an additional prescription drug picked up and mailed to him, need to order the food for Daughter #1 baby brunch and check out the room we will be having it at to see what sort of decorating will need to be done, pick up a can of black spray paint for a Halloween craft, and look for a tee shirt of some sort for the big girls to wear with their Christmas PJ's, if time allows and I get feeling creative I might alter the tees in some way for the big girls.

Living well on the amount you make

2011-10-22T07:34:00.002-04:00

I am piggy backing on a post from Carla over at http://halfdozendaily.blog.com It got me thinking on this chill Saturday morning. Why not answer the questions yourself to see how you stack up, are you living the life you want or the life the world says you should be living?

Do you avoid a lot of the expenses that many of your peers spend money on, such as technology and meals out?

We are so not into all the latest gadgets that continue to come out, my cell phone is 7 years old I think I have the only flip phone left in the US. Hubby has a much more updated cell phone but only because his company requires and pays for it. We have 1 television in the house, that might be another oddity to others, 1 desktop PC also many years old and 2 laptops, the laptops were both priced under $300.00 obviously not the best on the market but they get the job done. I have medical issues with food additives so we don't eat out much, breakfast is the one meal we tend to eat out and I can enjoy it as most breakfast foods are cooked fresh its also one of the cheapest meals to eat out.

What’s your typical meal

Home cooking for sure. Most of our meals are old recipes we both grew up on nothing fancy.

We grow and preserve as much as we can, by fruits and veggies that we can't/don't grow from a local farm. The majority of our meat is also from local farms. I'm not much into the organic deal, too much of it comes from other countries that have no checks and balances, they also charge an arm and a leg for the stuff. I like to go with local farmers, most of them can't afford pesticides, hormones and whatever else are put in foods these days, I also don't worry about outbreaks of food contamination, we know where our food comes from.

What about clothes?

When I was working outside the home I had to have clothes, now that I am home full time I go for comfort over style. When I have the little girls its tee shirts all the way(they are messy little boggers) Lightweight sundresses in the summer with flip flops, jeans and tee shirts in the fall and winter. I still have enough clothes left from working a full time job to wear(I fit in) if I need to dress up. Hubby is on a construction sight most of the time so jeans and tee shirts are about it. I have a thing for "life is good" tees, Hubby collects Harley tees. I spend way more than I should on things for the Grands, and like to treat our Daughters to things they might not be able to afford.

What about going on dates?

Hubby works out of state so much that when he is home every day is a date day. Just watching TV together or mowing the lawn is a special treat for us. We don't go to the movies much because we wouldn't agree on what to see and I know we would fall asleep anyway. Eating a home cooked meal is a real treat for him since he has to eat out most of the time when on a project. We like to pack a lunch and take a ride on the Harley or go on little mini vacations with the bike. I do think it is VERY important for couples to have time for themselves away from the kiddo's. The marriage is the most important thing in a family, if the marriage fails the family fails so you need to do whatever it takes to stay connected and committed.

Do you indulge in any luxuries?

Yep, no question about it we do spend on big ticket items sometimes but always with cash!!! The boat is one example, but we don't use it enough to justify the upkeep so it will go on Craig's list as soon as hubby is around to unload it. My sewing machines are another, while they are not the top of the line they are from one of the top of the line companies around. The Harley was another big ticket item my hubby wanted once we had all our girls walk across the stage to receive their college diplomas, we didn't blink and eye when it came time to make the purchase. Other than that we don't go for fancy cars, trips, purses, shoes and such. We are really low key and enjoy the simple stuff.

Do you have health insurance?

YES!!! Thank goodness hubby receives insurance from his company, we pay extra for me to be on the policy. Don't get me started on Obama care!!!! What a crock of s......

Do you have any savings for emergencies?

Yes, without our emergency fund we would be forced at times to pull out a credit card. Our emergency fund is the difference in getting a good nights sleep and walking the floors with worry, everyone needs an emergency fund!!!!!

Do you anticipate or look forward to having a higher salary one day?

Na, hubby is about as far up the ladder in his profession as anyone can go. He makes a very good salary we just need to be better stewards of what we have.

What about retirement–do you plan on ever saving enough to retire?

That's a BIGGY at our house, we are at an age where retirement is hopefully only 10 years or so away. We save diligently towards retirement but with the economy in such a mess and not improving who know how much is enough? And will what we have saved for 37 years be gone tomorrow if the economy continues to spiral down. In the past when things were not so crazy with the economy we were on track to have a comfortable simple retirement. All we can do now is continue to save and VOTE!!!!

Fast Food

2011-10-21T04:18:00.002-04:00

Here is my fast food, black bean soup. Canned beans from the grocery store, garlic dehydrated, cilantro dehydrated, onions dehydrated, bacon from bulk order, chicken broth from freezer, canned tomatoes from the garden. Took maybe 5 minuets to put together!

Apple spice cake, store bought box

Bread from the freezer along with the bean soup to share with our Daughters and a friend still leaves me plenty of leftovers to eat on for a few days.

I should have believed in the weather forecaster yesterday that we had a cold front coming in!! How could it be 82 degrees one day then the next 51!!?? Yikes it really felt cold after the warm temperatures we have been having. I figured a pot of soup, some bread and a Carmel apple cake would hit the spot but with both babies around for the day it had to be super quick before one of them latched on my leg. Had I thought it was really possible that it could have turned so cold I would have put a pot of black beans on to soak the night before, instead I had to go with grocery store canned beans. I used a store bought box cake mix from the pantry and home made bread from the freezer, no time to grind wheat and make up bread when the little girls are on the run.

As much as I fuss over the long hot summer of canning dehydrating and freezing food days like yesterday are when all the work really pays off. I will still have to dehydrate more onions and garlic to make it over the winter as we didn't get nearly enough out of the garden this year. I added that to the list of things I need to pick up from the farmer pretty soon so I can get busy on that along with apples to work up into apple sauce and apple butter, not sure I will even mess with dehydrating apples this year, hubby is the only one who really enjoys apple chips and he is not around often enough to use them up.

I did very little work in the Christmas room yesterday, by the time I got my shower during nap time there was very little time to dig in too deep. I think I am an all or nothing sort of person. I want to get it all done at one time I have no patience to have something drag out for days. I have both girls today, Saturday is a bust with the pumpkin patch and a sewing class, looks like Sunday will be spent in the room trying to finish up what I started days ago. grrrrr

AJ the beagle and I hit the chair after supper last night to catch up on the news, next thing I remember was me pushing her to wake up and stop snoring (or maybe it was me snoring) anyway we were in bed by 8:00PM. At 4:00 AM we were both up wide awake ready to start the day, I am going to regret this early morning come about 3:00 today when the little ones are at their peak!!!

Not sure why you can't make comments on the blog right now, fro the life of me I can't figure it out. It could be that I have been using the laptop instead of the PC to blog on but that shouldn't make a difference I wouldn't think.

It's always something

2011-10-20T06:41:00.003-04:00

I took a few breaks yesterday to work in a set of coasters

My plan of spending the day in the spare room in PJ's all day didn't work out the way I planned but that's the way it goes some days. Hubby called to ask if I would pick up his prescription and get it in the mail. I could have waited until today and stuck with my original plan to dig into the mess in the spare bedroom but that would mean I would have to load up the little girls and drag them into the post office. Now the little girls are always up for an outing they love throwing things at each other in the car and a ride in the twin stroller attempting to grab everything within reach is a heck of a fun game but I'm not up to it!!

I did get a pretty good start in the room, with any luck I can dig in again this AM when the girls go down for a nap, maybe by tomorrow I will have things in order! While I was running up and down the stairs putting things in the right place from the spare room I decided to load the embroidery machine with some Halloween coasters, I know the machine well enough now that I don't have to watch it make every stitch and I got the fabric for Saturday's class washed, dried and ironed so the day wasn't a total loss but I do long for a day to just hang out at the house in my dirty tee shirt and a pair of sweat pants!

Hubby and Tyler now skype at night before Ty heads to bed, they decided last night that Papaw should be the "fat red bird" from the angry birds game Tyler likes to play. Daughter #1 told me Wally world has the costumes in adult sizes for a pretty good price, the problem is that my sweet hubby is a size 3XL. I have added a trip to Wally world to my ever growing lists of family requests, I'm thinking maybe I could buy 2 adult costumes then sew them together to get something Papaw would fit in. My family has no idea the cost of fabric, it really has gotten out of sight expensive if you don't get in on the sales. I wouldn't even venture to guess the price of making a costume from scratch for a angry chubby red bird in a 3XL

A day at home!

2011-10-19T07:44:00.002-04:00

Cheap trick for Daughter #1 porch, spray painted plastic pumpkins

Today's to do, organize Christmas gifts and make my list of what's still needed.

For the first time in a long time I can stay at home today!! No errands, running around with the little ones or plans outside the house. I'm thinking of spending the day in my PJ's while working on the spare room getting Christmas gifts organized. The mess on the bed is just the tip of the iceberg, the real problem is in the closet that will no longer close due to things spilling out. I have been dreading this job but today I am excited to get started. My hope is I have enough squirreled away that I won't have to do much more shopping. Hubby is headed home for Halloween, I have a day set aside while he is home to do what I hope will be the last of our Christmas shopping. Octobers budget is going to take a hit but I will be able to stay away from the stores and avoid some just to cute to pass up spending I seem to get sucked into once the real shopping season begins.

I went to the experts yesterday to get advice on balancing out the Harley tee shirt quilt, they agree I will need to add an additional column of tees then balance it out with a wider border on the sides than I will put on the top and bottom. The other suggestion was to do away with much of the bottom of the quilt which I'm not willing to do, I understand their point that it is so large he might not use it as planned but I want to keep all the shirts in the quilt. I picked out the backing while I was there but held off on purchasing it until I know for sure what the finished size will be. I know it will cost an arm and leg to get it quilted but we only give each other a few gifts so this will be his big gift, I now just need to order one more thing and he will be done. YAA

An additional reason for getting a jump on Christmas is "Baby Bubba" may arrive the Monday after Thanksgiving. Daughter #1 will need lots of extra help with her holiday decorating, shopping and cooking. Bubba is estimated to be another 10 pounder if he continues to grow at the same pace so he needs to come on into the world a little early. If my schedule will hold up as planned I can set back and work on Christmas stockings for the little ones while the world is swiping debit and credit cards the month of December.

Have you started your Christmas shopping yet? Will your family set a tighter budget for gift giving or exchange names for extended family for the first time?

Quilt in progress

2011-10-18T06:36:00.004-04:00

I added little details to some of the blocks, like the tag from the back of the shirts

Added a few pockets here and there

I got what I thought was all the piecing and sashing done yesterday, looks like I will have to add more :(

I put it in high gear yesterday and kicked some butt around here. The biggest to do was getting the quilt for hubby pieced so I wouldn't have to relocate each square into another room before the little girls arrive today. I'm humming along at a good pace, taking breaks throwout the day to get little odds and ends done around the house and to break up the time at the sewing machine so I wouldn't get bored, it worked out well until..... When I finished the last column of sashing and laid the durn thing out I realized I had a tower of quilt squares, not a quilt at all. Back to the drawing board to add at least one more column or maybe two of tee shirts to balance it out. So far I have 32 tee's in the quilt, if I figure right it will take 18 or 19 more tee shirts to get it in balance then on to adding a border. All of the extra work will have to happen at a later time, I need to get back on track around the house and yard, pay some bills, make a list of additional fabric I need for the quilt and get a little organizing done. At least the majority of the work is done on the quilt, after I get it balanced out I will be taking it to a long arm quilter, no way am I going to even attempt to free motion quilt something this big.

I am not even bothering with a to do list today, I figure I will start in one room and work from room to room until the little girls arrive in the afternoon then get back on it when they leave. I have been spending a little to much time at the sewing machines an not nearly enough time on domestic endeavors lately. I have a sewing class again on Saturday so that will have to quench my sewing thirst for the week. I also have to fit in a custom ordered scrapbook before the 28th that I haven't even begun to work on.

Daughter #1 will be having an ultra sound today to determine the size of "Baby Bubba" he is due to arrive December 8th but Mommy is getting VERY large, we figure the Dr will schedule her C section early this time since her babies are going to be so close together. The month of December is crazy every year, this year will be a real challenge with the new arrival and Moms recovery time. I hope to get my ducks in a roll by the end of the month around here and for Christmas so I will have the time and energy to celebrate our newest arrival!! Thankfully the fall weather keeps me pumped up and ready for whatever comes our way, I love fall!!!

It's a start

2011-10-17T07:45:00.002-04:00

Not much to show for 6 hours of class time!

The tee shirt quilt class was informative and well worth the $$ spent to learn the tricks of the trade however we never took our machines out of the cases :(. I felt so sorry for the instructor that no one was able to get a single thing pieced, the store takes great pride in their classes, rarely do you leave class with an unfinished project. The snag came in that we only had 3 irons and ironing boards for a class of 15. Each shirt had to have stabilizer ironed on once we did the first sloppy cut, lots of waiting around for a turn at the irons.

I was able to get a lot more done once I got home yesterday evening but I don't know how I will get around to piecing the quilt. I have the little girls for an extra day tomorrow so I will have to get the thing pieced or move and rearrange the squares into another room. Piecing a quilt was not on the 10 to do's list for today, time to drop back and punt I am thinking. I can only hope piecing the thing will go much more quickly than doing the cutting out!!!
The secret of the construction is using a mesh stabilizer in each quilt square, that is also the hidden cost that has put this quilt in the category of the most costly quilt to date. I've used $70.00 in stabilizer alone so far, grrr. If you were working with normal size shirts the cost would be cut in half I would think, however I am working with 2XL and 3XL shirts here folks so my quilt squares are 14 1/2 and 16 1/2 inches wide, the length varies in size according to the pattern on the shirts. To and a little interest I am cutting up a few shirt fronts with pockets and spent a crazy amount of time seam ripping some of the collars to use the Harley Davidson tag from the back. So far I unloaded around 30 tee shirts from hubby's closet to use, sad to say it didn't make much of a dent in his tee shirt stash but something is better than nothing right?

So here is my new plan of action for the day

1.) Give the house a lick and a promise

2.) Plant the garlic

3.) Finish painting the pumpkins for Daughter #1

4.) Throw something to eat in the crock pot

5.) Work my tail off on piecing the quilt so I don't have to start all over on the design

Action Packed Day

2011-10-16T07:55:00.002-04:00

Kara found the perfect pumpkin for herself.

The giant pumpkins were her favorite.

Our little girls at Karsyn's 1st Birthday party, they are such good little buddies

Karsyn's party outfit was super cute but she wouldn't stand still so I could get a good photo

Cake and ice cream were a big hit

I don't usually blog on a Sunday morning but I am doing anything I can to prolong a little more time in bed with a cup of tea! Yesterday started out bright and early with a trip to the pumpkin patch with my sister and Daughter#3 family after breakfast out. Kara is really low key, she likes to hang back and watch whats going on without going nuts and running around (my kinda gal) She enjoyed the huge pumpkins on display, hated the farm animals, hayride was so so, wondering around the pumpkin patch was a bit dirty for her taste. I take Daughter #1 and family next weekend, it will be interesting to see how Karsyn reacts to her first trip at the patch.

Back home for a bit of sewing and spray painting plastic pumpkins for Daughter #1 porch then off to Karsyn's first Birthday party. Unlike Kara who is very low key and laid back, Karsyn is WIDE open, the kid never stops. Daughter #1 had her party at a play center that was worth every dime of whatever she paid the folks, they did a wonderful job of playing games for all age groups, dancing and enjoying snacks along with cupcakes and ice cream. It is such fun to see the little girls interact with other children most of whom were older, when they would see each other they would start laughing and head off together for a little girl time then off they went again in different directions, soooo darn cute!!

I need to get off my rump and begin packing for an 8 hour (I won't be staying that long) tee shirt quilting class. I'm excited to see how you officially make a tee shirt quilt, I made several years ago but I was just winging it. The tee shirt quilt will be a Christmas gift for hubby and even more importantly it will help unload the ridicules array of Harley tee shirts he has jammed in his closet. If all goes as planned I will be home early enough to get garlic planted that arrived in the mail yesterday and enjoy a quite evening at home with AJ the beagle.

Have a great Sunday, put away the to do list and do something fun!!

Here There and Everywhere

2011-10-14T06:39:00.004-04:00

The photo's above are from Daughter #1 jewelery party last night, she has her house all decked out for Halloween, I don't. I am thinking I will pass on the Halloween decorating this year. I do have some really cute things I have collected or made over the years but the idea of dragging it all out of the attic just to pack it up again then pull down everything for Thanksgiving doesn't appeal to me. The little girls are to young to care, Tyler is so busy in his social life these days he isn't around much and I won't be home for the holiday as we spend it with our Daughters and the grands in their homes for Trick or Treating these days. I figure it is one less thing on my to do list. I might just pull down Thanksgiving/fall and leave it up longer. I'm getting slack.

I have had very little time at home this past week, other than Tuesday when the floor guys were here. I have had to be out and about since last Friday and I will be on the run until Monday of next week I think all the ripping and running around has stolen some of my mojoe, I am such a home body!!

Today is breakfast out with Daughter #3 then home with Kara for a few hours, off to gymboree to return Karsyn's Christmas PJ's (she needs a much larger size) then maybe a little spot cleaning around the house. Saturday is the pumpkin patch with Kara in the AM then Karsyn's 1st Birthday party in the afternoon in one of the worst days for traffic all year (NASCAR race, Renaissance festival, along with MAJOR road construction) Sunday is a 6 hour tee shirt quilting class that I am looking forward to but I so long to just be home and enjoy the fall weather!! Thankfully I have been turning down lots of engagements and get together's lately because the calender was getting mighty full, if I can hold on until Monday I will get back to my regularly scheduled life!!

Do you ever have times where you want to just be home, lock the doors, turn off the phone and just be? I need to do a better job of carving out time to be at home. This time of the year until Christmas can get overwhelming with all of the festivities I hate felling frazzeled. I have declared next Monday and Tuesday as at home, off the roads, enjoy some quite time, get in a little sewing and organizing around the house days. It's time to back out a bit and stop being a people pleaser!!