Crafty Turtle

New Year New Beginnings

2012-01-16T14:04:00.007-06:00

It's been a while, but it's time for a new beginning. I've done a few things already this year that I hadn't done for a while or had never done and I hope to continue doing.

First, I sewed a few articles of clothing. I had tried this a few times in the past with mixed results. I kept seeing things in stores that I thought (hearing my mom's voice in my head) "I could make that myself!" So I picked out a few easy patterns and got some inexpensive fabric at Joann's to try it out.

I ended up making a blouse and a sundress. The blouse turned out well although next time I would make some slight alterations like using a lighter weight fabric and making the back ties longer. The sundress turned out really well, but looks a bit like a muu muu. I couldn't resist the pattern since it has pockets - I can't resist a dress with pockets! I'll probably wear it lots during the summer - AT HOME!

The second thing I hadn't done in a while was start an exercise regiment! I joined a "biggest loser"-type contest at work and I've had to get down to business in the last week or so. I've been doing alright so far, but boy is it hard to get into a new routine when your routine for a LONG time has been eating whatever you want and doing a lot of sitting around.

The third thing is going snowshoeing! I've never done that before and this weekend dh and I decided to try something new. We had about 6 inches or so of snow this past week and the temperatures were above freezing this weekend, so it was perfect weather for it. We got some snow shoes and took them out for a spin near the Skokie Lagoons. We had fun and got a great workout.

I'm looking forward to a great year full of more new and exciting things!

Snow Day Sewing

2011-02-12T20:19:00.006-06:00

We had a rare snow day (two, in fact!) a few weeks ago. I spent the mornings shoveling a LOT of snow and the afternoons sewing a scrappy log cabin quilt for a charity event. I'll let the pictures do all the talking here..

Disorganization and Mondo Birds

2011-01-26T22:09:00.007-06:00

Had to rearrange the sewing/crafting area. Again. It seems it never can settle and stay one configuration for long before something happens and it has to move again.

This time it was the arrival of some new bedroom furniture. Don't get me wrong, I love the new furniture, but having my crafty space cramped and unusable once again is frustrating. And so I'm sneaking off to sew amid the messiness of the room I am supposed to be putting back together!

I'm working on the free pieced study group blocks. My partner and I settled on aqua, red, and white as our color scheme. I've already had trouble sticking to just those colors since I typically use lots of colors together. And this is not a combo I frequently use, so I'm having some difficulties seeing what really works well and what really constitues the color "aqua".

For the month of January, we have two blocks to make - a "Mondo bird" and a log cabin house. Here are my versions of the "Mondo bird". Sarah named them that after the Project Runway designer since she always gives her birds fun black and white patterned legs. (If you watched last season of PR, you'll get it!) I gave my birds orange stockings.

Next will be wonky log cabin houses! Yippee!

New Year, New Projects

2011-01-09T15:23:00.004-06:00

I've agreed to join an online free-piecing tutorial groups sponsored in part by my friend, krommama (Sarah). She and her friend Molly will be posting a tutorial once a month for a different free pieced block for us to make (bird, girl, gnome, house, star, etc...).
I've partnered with a gal in Australia and we will be swapping every few months or so, so keep your eyes peeled for some wonky sewing! Here's some examples of previous free-piecing I have done...

Once again.. it's been way too long!

2010-12-08T22:14:00.005-06:00

I've done lots this year and taken lots of pictures, but never seem to have the time or energy left to download all these pictures and upload them here! I just downloaded over 700 pictures I had taken since August of this year. What a pain. I must remember to download more often so it's not so painful!

Here are some pictures from our Wisconsin trip this year. We stayed on Plum Lake again, one of our favorite lakes in the area. It was a nice place despite the bed falling apart in the middle of the night. I was able to lug my sewing supplies up and set up shop on the kitchen table for the week. I got a lot done on a baby quilt for my new friend Max.

We went boating, ate out at some of our favorite resturants, visited a beautiful waterfall in the U.P. (I need to figure out the name of that one - it was amazing!), and of course did a lot of relaxing. As much as I claim to be a southern gal at heart, I really do love spending time in the northwoods. Maybe it's just that I get to spend some quality time with nature. I don't get enough of that living in the city.

Shamrock Shuffle 2010

2010-03-27T19:27:00.005-05:00

I did it!
I ran in the Shamrock Shuffle this year. I'd always thought about doing it, but was never really into running. At least on purpose. But this was the year! I trained with my friend Molly from work. She'd never really run a race either, so we were both huffing and puffing at first.

She's a real task-master, though, so she was good at pushing me along. Even during the race - "Come on! You can do it!"
I had some supporters root me on - my friend Jessica came down to cheer at mile marker 1. Hubby was there around mile 3 and again at 3.5ish to holler for "Team Dangerfield!" And Molly's husband was there at the last mile.

We had a great time despite the cold weather, but at least it wasn't snowing! My time was one hour, 2 minutes, and 48 seconds. The time to beat for next year!

DQS8

2010-03-21T19:37:00.005-05:00

Wow! It's been way longer than I thought since I last blogged! Lots has happened, but I mostly wanted to show pictures of my amazing new quilt from Mama Urchin. She had me as her swapee during our latest round of the doll quilt swap - DQS8.She made an amazing scrappy log cabin with some beautiful fabrics.

She also sent me a fabulous stack of charm squares with some really great fabrics in there!

Here is another close up. I am in love with this doll quilt! She did such an amazing job!

Fine Art of Fiber Show at the Chicago Botanic Gardens

2009-11-08T21:10:00.007-06:00

Got to see some amazing fabric work this weekend at the Chicago Botanic Gardens Fine Art of Fiber show. It didn't hurt that it was a gorgeous weekend here, so hanging out at the gardens was nice. So nice in fact, that we went Saturday for the show and then went back again on Sunday just to enjoy the weather! Here's some pictures...

Mochi Studios is having a Giveaway!

2009-09-30T21:05:00.003-05:00

My flickr friend, RitaPizza, just opened up her new website: Mochi Studios! She's having a grand opening giveaway that you can't miss! She makes the cutest little plushies like mushrooms and ninja beans, but the giveaway is for a plush peapod: two cute peas in a pod! You have to see it so go visit her site!
http://www.mochistudios.com/!/giveaway/pea-pod-giveaway/

p.s. she's the crafty gal who made me my crocheted Pikmin that I love so much!

Moving to the Dungeon

2009-09-20T00:43:00.003-05:00

I'm relinquishing my multiple crafting spaces around the house in order to have one consolidated space to do all my crafting. However, this space is down in the basement. Yuck. It will take me a bit to get the space workable and to my liking..
Pictures when it's done!

Summer Vacay 2009

2009-09-20T00:19:00.003-05:00

Hubby and I went on a vacation in late August. It was our "last hurrah" before I headed back to school. We went up to Northern Wisconsin to our "usual hangout" near St. Germain, Sayner, and Eagle River. We had a fabulous relaxing week doing whatever we wanted. Mostly that meant we toodled around on the boat, slept in every morning, watched some movies, did some shopping, and ate out a lot. Woohoo!
One day we drove up into the UP of Michigan to see Bond Falls. It was really pretty and had some good hiking trails.
We toodled around in the boats a lot for the first few days. Our friends Bill & Scott were with us for the first half of the week and the weather was great. The water is always a bit too cold for me to go swimming, though.
And I made another feline friend while out shopping on Thursday. I always seem to find a surrogate kitty to spend some time with while away from Stinky. By Thursday, the weather had turned cold and drizzly, so no more boating for us. It wasn't too hard to convince hubby to go see the sights and visit some stores.

And of course, we had to stop by my favorite breakfast place, the cook shanty. I really just like the homemade doughnuts they make fresh every morning. Next time, I think I'll just run in for some doughnuts and skip the family style breakfast. All in all.. great trip!

Maiden Voyage

2009-07-28T18:49:00.002-05:00

Hubby and I splurged and bought a canoe this year. It was something we had been researching for a while, but just hadn't pulled the trigger yet.

We finally did and took it out on it's maiden voyage a few weeks ago. We went up to Lake Delavan in Wisconsin to the lake house of a friend of the family.

Lake Delavan isn't the most pristine, gorgeous lake, but it was fun to practice paddling away in.

We saw lots of critters - turtles, birds, big fish, and even a deer.

Hopefully more outdoor adventures to come!

Fourth of July

2009-07-26T18:37:00.006-05:00

We drove up to Door County, Wisconsin for the 4th of July weekend. We had great weather, fun bike rides (that almost killed me!), artsy shops, pebbly beaches, light houses, goats on a roof, and of course, lots of cherries! Yum!

Visit to Florida

2009-06-22T22:37:00.008-05:00

Hubby & I went to Florida for a short week last week. He had a conference in Orlando and I got to spend some time with my family.

It was gosh-durn-it hot with temps in the high 90's and a heat index above 100.

I visited with my friend Valarie - we hadn't seen each other in ages!

I saw lots of birds on my walks around Lake Hollingsworth with both my cousins and then again with my mom.

I got to visit my dad's apiary and saw some bees.

We then spent some quiet time at our hotel in Orlando playing in the pool (and with the giant slugs!).

Fun times all around!

Because They Wanted It

2009-06-14T12:55:00.009-05:00

So some of my students have discovered my blog. I'm ok with that, really. I post only occasionally and it's mostly about sewing and boring-to-a-teenager stuff. But they were wanting to know when I was going to post about THEM.

They originally found my blog by googling the words "peach Nehi." I had written an ode and included a picture of myself with a bottle of peach Nehi that I had found while on vacation in Kentucky. Well, apparently now, when you google the words "peach Nehi," my picture comes up with a link to my blog. (Word to those of you fellow bloggers - if you don't want to be found, be careful what you post!)

So here's my "Ode to my Middle School Students":

It was real.
It was fun.
But was it really fun?
Yes! Of course it was!
It was middle school!
And you know the most fun part?
It's OVER!
You've graduated.
moved on.
physically, anyway.
Oh, you know you'll be back to visit.
Especially that first year of High School...
When you're the "low man on the totem pole"
the "small fish in the pond."
Just to get a taste of what it was like to be the big fish.
And we'll be glad to see you.

Working on Green Bed Quilt

2009-04-05T09:31:00.003-05:00

Here's some photos of a green quilt in progress right now. It's partially laid out on the floor of the spare bedroom and partially on the sewing table downstairs.

The floor of the bedroom is the only place I have large enough to see all the blocks laid out, so I have to carefully transport them downstairs so they can be sewn correctly. I've developed a number pinning system that seems to be working so far.

My only problem has been that even after lots of calculating, the top is turning out to be wider than the backing. I'm not sure exactly what went wrong, but this means I'm either going to have to shorten the width of the top or add some border panels to the backing. Which is the lesser of two evils? Probably narrowing the top. I think I've used up all the green backing fabric that I had and I have no idea where I got that shade of green. oh well.

Little Stitches

2009-03-13T19:21:00.004-05:00

I got this new Amy Butler book a few weeks ago and have yet to make anything from it. I love all the ideas, but haven't tackled any of the projects because most of them look a bit complex to me. Or perhaps I'm hesitant to make "baby" stuff.

Babies scare me. They are small and fragile and so far they have always belonged to someone else. (thank goodness!)

What I really want to do is make an adult version of those kimono-style pj's on the front cover for myself. so cute! I think the thing I'll make first, though, are the fabric building blocks. Those look super fun and it would be easy to include a free-pieced letter on them, too.

Collaborative Quilting

2009-02-03T22:41:00.006-06:00

So I volunteered my sewing services to my school for a charity auction and then realized I had so many other projects going on that I would never get anything done. So what is my solution? Recruit unsuspecting victims to help me out!

Mwahh haa haa haa! (evil laugh)

So I convince my work friends Kristie and Lynn (both fairly new to sewing) that we should start a "Stitch-n-Bitch" sewing club and have some fun crafty time together outside of work. They agree, but of course... little do they know what they have just agreed to!

I wrangle them over to my place and pitch them the idea. That together we create a wall hanging quilt to donate to the school's charity auction the next month. It was to benefit our school library which will be undergoing a very large overhaul this coming summer.

To my surprise, they agree. So I decide rather than tempt fate by bossing them around even more, I let them pick a pattern, a theme and some fabrics. They chose to create a "calendar quilt" since that meant that we would only have to make 12 blocks. We each picked a month or two to start on and dove right in.

Bless her little heart, Lynn, we found out, had never sewn a thing before this. Kristie had only started sewing last summer and claimed to be deathly afraid of quilting, but she is a whiz with figuring out patterns and the mechanics of most sewing machines. We started slowly, but as they got the hang of it, we quickly created a fabulous quilt.

I was really happy - as were they - with the final product. We each made some of the blocks and then I quilted and bound it. In the auction it sold for 175 dollars! Wowwza!

Next month, a full bedroom set! (just kidding)

Unknown Doo-Dad

2009-01-10T14:34:00.004-06:00

My grandmother Kelley was a collector. Depression glass, yarn, costume jewelry, you-name-it. She had closets and rooms full of stuff that she probably hadn't seen in years. When she passed away, my folks inherited a large wooden cabinet full of tiny drawers. Most of the drawers were filled with either buttons or spools of thread (all sorted by colors).

While home for the holidays this year, I raided the cabinet looking for some treasures to use in my sewing adventures. I came across these costume jewelry-looking things. I wasn't sure what they might have been used for, but I thought I might find a new purpose for them.

They have a retractable/extendable little rod on the back. It pushes out longer and then retracts back to it's original length. Do you know what this could be? I'd love to hear if you do!

Thanks!

Homage to Heke

2009-01-06T21:00:00.004-06:00

I love my thithter, I really do. We don't always say it or show it - not nearly as much as we should. We live very far apart most of the time and have for a very long time now. But I always enjoy seeing her.

This year we were both able to be at home with the folks for Christmas. It was a short but fun visit. I hear all about her younger men (hee!) and I pretend I'M the older sister when I tell her about my life being married and settled (neither of which she is right now...).

She is a super cool, vivacious, silly, intelligent woman. I like to joke that we are ying & yang. I teach children and try to nurture and foster a love for knowledge (that's middle school teaching glorified). She helps to design video games to rot their minds. Well, not really right now. She's moved on to more socially responsible gaming projects, but I like to joke about it just the same.

Every time we see each other there's always the first big hug, the sneak "booby attacks" (don't ask), and of course, when we part there's the obligatory airport self portrait.

I wanted to write all this down just because I don't say it out loud enough. I love you Heather! You're the betht thithter ever!

The quilt that I'd forgotten!

2009-01-03T17:12:00.004-06:00

While in Florida, I visited with my friend Sarah, whom I've known for over 20 years now. She had a throw quilt on her couch that I had made for her daughter, Marguerite, when she was born. Marguerite is about 7 now (maybe 8? I'm so bad with ages!).

I had completely forgotten that I had made this for her! It was one of my first "full" quilts and I had lots of help from my mom, especially in the quilting and binding of it. It has been well-loved at the Grainger household, even by their dog, Gonzo, who likes to chew holes in things. Sarah has had to repair several "Gonzo holes" in this quilt.

It still looks great, though, and I was admiring my super-wonky piecing. It was definitely a LIBERATED quilt. It was nice to see something I had made be used and loved by others. Yay!

Christmas in Florida

2009-01-02T23:02:00.005-06:00

I love going home for christmas... but for the past few years, we haven't been able to get down to see my family. So this year, we decided it would be worth the trip and we flew down to Florida for the holiday.

It was so nice leaving the sub-zero temperatures of Illinois to spend some time in tropical Florida weather. The temperatures never dropped below 70 or so during the day and we had lots of sunshine.

We visited Epcot over in Disney on our first day there. Not my favorite Disney park, but fun with the family. We then spent some quality time with the family and had some time for shopping the after christmas sales with my cousin, Neva.

Hubby and I got to go to the beach twice - once we drove to my old beach hang-out, Manatee County beach on Anna Maria Island. Then two days later, we drove over to St. Pete Beach and hung out in the historic Pass-a-Grille Beach area, had lunch, and soaked up the sun.

We did lots of outdoors stuff, too, like driving to see my friend, Sarah, up in Gainesville and visiting the Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings historic house near there. We also did some hiking with my folks at a new nature center in Lakeland. Saw lots of gators there!

All in all, it was a great trip. We were very sad to have to return home to the frigid temperatures, but Stinky was happy to see us!

I've been away for so long....

2008-11-20T19:35:00.003-06:00

It's been a busy time lately!

This always happens around this time of the year. It's close to the holidays, the first trimester is coming to an end so there's lots of grading and paperwork to be done at school. And yet I find myself coming home and attempting to do something creative.

Like this

and this

or this!

A Cool Fabric Giveaway! Yippee!

2008-11-04T21:56:00.000-06:00

Katie, from See Katie Sew, is celebrating her two year blogoversary with a fabric giveaway! And not just any fabric, but some of her favorite prints from people like Amy Butler, Sandi Henderson, and Erin McMorris. She's filling a flat rate box with as much fabric will fit! Wohoo!

There might even be some vintage fabric in there too. - Gasp!

These are just a few samplings of what is already making it into the box.

So how do you win? Well first by leaving a comment mentioning a new blog that you think she might like. If you'd like to "earn" more entries into the contest, post about this giveaway on your blog with a link back to it in your comment, and you'll receive 5 extra entries. Plus, you'll receive an extra entry for every person that you refer that mentions that they came here through your blog.

She'll pick a winner on Wed Nov 5.

Good luck and be sure to mention that you heard about this giveaway from Shannon at Crafty Turtle!

Stinky's on a diet

2008-10-26T22:54:00.003-05:00

She may not like it, but as you can see here.. she's gettin' pretty big. And I can't brush it off as "she's just big boned" anymore!

We've cut her down to one feeding a day instead of two, so she's been sortof whiny at night, but she seems to be taking it much better than we thought she would.

Here she is by the nasturtiums out back... isn't she just the cutest?! (even though she's bigger than that blue flower pot!)

My new favorite flower

2008-10-24T22:25:00.006-05:00

I have fallen in love again...

with water lilies. They are just so georgeous!

When my mom was up visiting, we visited the Chicago Botanic Gardens. I always forget until I see them, that I love these flowers so much! And I was surprised to see them still blooming in October.

These pictures were taken in the late afternoon, but I think it makes them more vivid with all the colors and shadows.

Just thought I'd share!

A Visit to the Farmers Market

2008-10-14T18:19:00.004-05:00

My mom & her friend Judy drove up to Chicago this past weekend to pay a visit. One of the fun things we did was to visit the Evanston Farmer's Market. I love farmer's markets! Just seeing all the pretty seasonal yummies was great. So many colors and shapes.

We ended up getting some delicious raspberries and a few types of apples. My mom likes Cortland and hubby & I got some Mutsu? which were like the green ones in the red basket in the forefront of the picture here.

Some Time to Sew

2008-10-13T12:42:00.004-05:00

I've been busy with life and haven't had much time to sew lately. So today being the Columbus Day holiday from school, I have some time to sit down and sew - hooray!

The projects have been piling up... I finished and sent out my Sept. mini quilt last week (late!) to Upstatelisa (here's the super-cute owl quilt and mushroom pouch she sent me), I'm now planning and working on my October mini quilt for Calamity Kim, I'm also working on a lap quilt for the Bend the Rules Sewing Swap as well as DollQuilt Swap 5. I had also started sewing a birthday gift for my sister... AND if that weren't enough, I'm so ADD I had to throw in a holiday-themed quilt that was a challenge for the Collaborative Quilting group from Krom mama. Whew! So what have I done today?

Yep. Sat on the couch with the cat and watched all my Tivo'ed shows.

So now it's time to get down to business.

playing with blog layout

2008-09-28T18:17:00.001-05:00

oops.

I'm trying to play with my blog layout and managed to somehow revert back to my old template from when I first started a blog.

Please pardon my dust.... it's a work in progress

Getting more organized

2008-09-28T16:39:00.002-05:00

I'm a closet organizer

No, I don't organize closets for a living. What I mean is, I secretly love to organize things. But don't tell my husband.

I worked on getting my sewing space more organized last weekend, and one of the things I'm most excited about is this thread organizer. I had my thread in about three different places, so getting it all together is a great feeling. I can actually see what colors I have now! And it's so colorful, that when I sit down at my sewing table, It makes me happy to look at it!

I also straightened up my closet storage space. There used to be a huge pile of fabric waiting to be ironed on the floor in front of the closet, so that I could neither close the door nor reach anything in the closet!

And here's something that I've been working on recently. The September miniquilt swap. The theme was mushrooms and/or owls. My swap partner, Upstatelisa, hasn't yet received this mini quilt, so I can only show some sneaky peaks. More later when she actually receives it! I only have the binding to finish and then will mail it off to her.

(oh, and I went to the gym this morning!)

Fit Friday

2008-09-26T19:41:00.004-05:00

So I saw another blogger who's in the crafty & fit group create a "Fit Friday" post to keep herself motivated and to keep track of how much she's been walking. I thought, "what a great idea!" If only I had something "fit" to blog about!

I did go to the gym once this week. In fact, I was so focused on rushing to the gym after work that I completely forgot that I had made an eye doctor appt. for that afternoon and of course, missed the doctor's appointment.

Luckily, it was just a yearly exam and I can still see. for the time being. And at least I got in an hour at the gym. I've been getting into a rut when I go to the gym, though. I jump on the first empty elliptical machine and pedal for about 30 - 40 minutes. Then I'm so jello-legged that I can barely walk to the mat area to stretch. I do feel that it's a great workout and I sweat a lot. But I need to start incorporating other activities besides just cardio.

I had my hubby show me some arm machines and I did those last time, too. I just feel torn sometimes between wanting someone to show me what to do, and being so fiercely independent that I get mad if someone tries to give me directions. I must be bipolar.

Anyway, the goal is to go again on Sunday and maybe fit in a workout video as well sometime during the week. I think I'll keep doing (as best I can) the "Fit Friday" posts to keep myself in line. We'll see if I can keep it up!

My New Classroom

2008-09-21T19:01:00.006-05:00

I have a new classroom this year, which is good for me, since I have so much stuff! I'm also teaching two grade levels of science this year, so I need two whole different curriculum's worth of stuff as well.

I have several "mascots" around my room. Here is the Beaker my mom sent me. He sits on my book display case.

We also got new fancy lab tables this year. Our old tables were at least 30 yrs old and had many wads of gum, carvings, and stains as well as holes in them.

Here are some views of my room from the front and from the back.

I'm feeling like I'm finally getting back into the swing of things in the classroom. It's always such a hard transition for me from summer to school time. And I'm always frightened of change and I had several this year - new room, new curriculum, new team, new students. All is going well, though.

And my other mascot is Mr. Bufo, the toad. He sits on the lab table by my desk at the front of the classroom. He's wonderfully squishy and the kids love him.

Liberated Monkey in the Middle

2008-09-14T23:17:00.004-05:00

I've recently read the book: Collaborative Quilting by Gwen Marston & Freddy Moran

I like the liberated methods they use in their quilts, so I decided to play around with those ideas some. I typically do liberated quilting, only because I'm lazy, but in this case, I was actually attempting to achieve an end result. The liberated log cabin.

I had some thin strips of monkey fabric left over from Toni's baby bag, so I used that for my middle squares. I then used only small bits of fabric from my scrap bin to add to the sides. I was quite happy with the results, but I then ran out of large enough monkey scraps and couldn't make any more. I may bite the bullet and use the larger piece of monkey fabric I have left to get some more middle pieces. I was trying to only use scraps, however. I liked the idea of using up all those bits that I keep meaning to use, but just haven't yet. My scrap bin was overflowing!

Rain rain, go away?

2008-09-05T23:24:00.003-05:00

So of course, right after I make that pledge to walk to school, we get the remnants of Hurricane Gustav and it rains for two - three days straight. Is this me making more excuses? Maybe, but I didn't want to walk to school in the rain, especially when yesterday was picture day!

There's always next week....

Gettin' fit! Maybe...?

2008-09-03T22:33:00.004-05:00

So I've made a commitment to get fit. I found this great online group of people who are crafters who are also dedicated to staying fit. Look at that cute little icon in my sidebar! Now every time I come to my blog, I will be reminded of what I signed up for!

Generally, crafting & fitness are two things that don't go hand-in-hand. Especially since most crafts like sewing & quilting are very sedentary hobbies.

But getting fit is something I've been thinking about working on for a while now. I've made very halfassed attempts in the past to improve my fitness level and get healthy. And for many reasons. First and foremost, of course, is for a better body image and to feel better about myself. Secondly, I have a family history of heart attacks, stroke, & LOTS of diabetes. I do NOT want to develop diabetes like my grandmothers, one grandfather, an aunt, and a cousin have. And my dad was borderline diabetic until his doctor put him on a strict(er) diet.

Now that I'm back in school, I usually find it easier to stick to a more structured schedule. That will now hopefully include some sort of exercise each day. I actually live close enough that I could walk to work. It would only be about a 20 or 25 minute walk. That's a good amount of walking if done two times a day. Of course that depends on how much stuff I have to carry to and from school. There I go... trying to make excuses again....

Ok.. here it is. I commit to walking to school or at least exercising at least 3 times a week. That will be a good starting goal. I may whine loudly about it, but bear with me please! It's for my own good!

Back to School

2008-09-02T06:57:00.002-05:00

My last few moments are quickly dwindling... my time has come to head back to school. No more carefree days of summer... no more sleeping in. No more lounging on the couch watching whatever cheezy movie I wanted to that day. No more spending weekday hours in the garden with Stinky, my cat. No more "sure, honey. Let's go to that late night movie and get to bed at 1am." No more wearing my pj's all day long.

But it's really not that bad, right? Why did I pick a profession that has such traumatic transitions??? I need to switch to a year-round school.

:(

Wahhh...

Visiting North Georgia (part 2)

2008-08-31T18:00:00.007-05:00

We did so much, I had to break it up into several blog entries....

Mom & I went down to Dahlonega and visited Consolidated Mines which is the site of one of the largest gold deposits in the US. Dahlonega was the first gold rush town in the US as well.

We panned for gold and then took a tour of the mine. There's mom with her hard hat on!

We also took a day trip to Vogel State Park and hiked to a waterfall. There's lots of iron in the water and it leaves this reddish smelly deposit where the water flows down.

Mom & I also took a day trip to Amicalola falls. It's a great place to hike - there are 604 steps up to the top of the falls. And I walked them all! Mom drove it up to meet me.

Here's my self portrait in front of part of the falls. You can't tell, but I'm pretty hot & sweaty by this point. It was a fun day trip, though.

On a side note, when we were kids, my sister and a friend made up a song to the tune of Copacabana by Barry Manilow about Amicalola falls. I wish I remembered all the words so I could sing it to you now... Maybe my sis can remember them for me...

Georgia Critters II

2008-08-31T00:45:00.004-05:00

More critters I saw on my vacation down south...

A cool Red Velvet Ant (actually, they're a type of flightless wasp!)

Another Georgia Mountain Kitty

Moo cows on the Rankin's farm. They loved watching dad work with the bees.

A tiger swallowtail butterfly.
We saw lots of these.

And a female ruby-throated hummingbird.
Look to the left of the feeder. They
fought with the wasps & hornets for
the feeder openings.

Georgia Critters I

2008-08-29T23:38:00.003-05:00

So it seems, looking at all my photos from my Georgia vacation,
that I like to take pictures of critters. And lots of them.

So here are some pictures from my Georgia trip...

A fruit stand kitty

A skink on a rock.

A teensy garter snake

A crawdad/crayfish in the stream

a butterfly

Eating our Way Across Georgia

2008-08-28T23:01:00.003-05:00

It always seems that when I head back down south for a vacation, I seek out my favorite southern foods. And since there are a LOT of favorite southern foods for me, I tend to eat eat eat all vacation long. And this one was no different....

Mom & I had some fabulous smoked pork sandwiches in Hiawassee at a place called Smoke Rings.

I also found my mostest favoritest drink of all time..... the elusive PEACH NEHI! Hooray! I got some extra to bring back home with me but realized that since they were glass bottles, they wouldn't fly well.

So mom agreed to bring them up to me in October when she'll be driving up.

We also cooked quite a bit.. There's dad eating freshly picked sweet corn.

And on the last night I was there, we had a weenie roast around the fire
with marshmellows, of course.

Who doesn't like a good roasted marshmellow??

And not pictured, but definitely enjoyed, was some good fried catfish, homemade peach preserves and some fresh cut peaches, and mom's "ozark pudding" with local tart apples. So good!

Visiting North Georgia (part 1)

2008-08-27T22:40:00.004-05:00

Just got back from a vacation to the North Georgia Mountains to visit with my folks. We stayed up near Ellijay at the cabin of a family friend. It's a georgous location on several acres of land right near where a stream meets a river.

During the time I was there, I spent a lot of quality time outside communing with nature, I guess. It's just so peaceful there & it's so good to get away from the "big city".

I also got to spend some quality time with my parents. Dad was working on various projects - but never the ones he planned to work on.

I dragged my mom to several quilt shops in the area. Some I had found online, and others we found by mistake. Either way, I found some fabulous fabrics. I also became a fan of the super inexpensive fabric section of the many local Walmart stores we visited. We don't really have Walmarts in my area and I have mixed feelings about that chain of stores, but down in Georgia, that was frequently the only option. And when you have to drive 30 minutes for the only shopping option, you take what you can get.

I took lots of pictures and have lots to share, but not all at once, so expect more from me about my trip! I've been distracted lately 'cause I'm getting geared up to get back into the classroom again. I've been putting my classroom back in order and tomorrow have to attend the beginning of the schoolyear "pep rally" for the school district. Not really looking forward to all that just because it seems like the official END to my summer.

Oh well. It had to end sometime, right?

Sarah Made me a Quilt!

2008-08-25T23:36:00.003-05:00

I got a fun package from my friend Sarah (via my mom) and in it was the Doll Quilt she had made me. I was her partner for the latest Doll Quilt Swap.

She made a beautiful liberated churn dash in bright oranges and green. She also sent me a copy of the book "Collaborative Quilting" by Gwen Marston & Freddy Moran. They use this "liberated" style of quilting in all their designs. It just means they take a regular ole' pattern and make it a bit wonky. Look how Sarah made the corners of the orange bits all different sizes and angles? Isn't it great??! She's so talented!

She also sent me some goodies - some rubber stamping supplies, a vintage poppy postcard, and of course, some tissue and ribbon in orange and green. The tissue and ribbon were just the wrapping supplies, but as Sarah knows, I'll keep that and reuse it later - probably for her! Hee! Thanks for a great little quilty Sarah!

Gettin' back into the swing of things...

2008-08-24T21:58:00.003-05:00

I've been away!

And now I'm back. So I can get back to all those projects I left unfinished. Hooray!

I was in N. Georgia visiting with my folks and also got to spend some time with my college roomie and her family, too. I dragged my mom to lots of quilt/fabric shops down there. I found lots of good stuff, too! I'll be downloading pics and posting stuff all this week, so come back by! I have so much to share!

DQS4 is DONE!

2008-08-15T00:59:00.003-05:00

I finally finished my Doll Quilt!

I had lots of trouble with my machine and this quilt. I've realized that I can't lower the feed dogs on my sewing machine, which in laymans terms means the machine will only allow the fabric to move in one direction. So doing fun twisty sewing patterns is VERY difficult. I had to stop and turn the fabric every few stitches. Grrrr.....

But it is done and sent off to another country... I'm not allowed to tell where it's going or to whom until it arrives, but lets just say it's heading towards where my sister lives.... hint hint!

More projects that were on the back burners are now getting worked on... we'll see what I can finish before school starts back up next month!

Chester

2008-08-04T08:49:00.005-05:00

Chester the Kelley Family Cat has passed away

My mom called me yesterday to tell me that Chester, our family cat, had passed away. He was getting up there in age and I believe that it was just his time.

He had a full and adventurous life with our family. It all started on the roof of the art building at my old high school. I was there taking a night class, and during a break, we heard noises coming from the roof. Someone had obviously thrown a kitten up there. It was raining and cold, so we climbed up to get him and I ended up taking him home.

At first he didn't get along with our other two cats, but he scratched and bit his way into the family and finally they accepted him. And he scratched and bit often. That was one thing about him that everyone knew - you can only pet him for about a minute before he will turn and bite the crap out of your hand.

He was even wanted by the police once! My mom answered the door to a police officer looking for a black and white cat that had attacked a woman on the next block. Chester had been all nicey-nicey to this 80 year old woman in her garden and then clawed her hand open! Mom had to prove that he had all his shots so he wouldn't have to be taken in and quarantined!

What a rebel!

Most of the time he was very independent and stand-offish, but in his last few weeks with my folks, he had become a secret lap kitty. My mom would go up to bed before my dad who stayed up to watch TV. Chester would wait until mom was gone and then jump up onto my dad's lap to snooze. How sneaky.

He was getting older and more frail, though. He had trouble getting up the steps and was very lethargic. It was his time. I know my folks are very sad, but there are many good memories of him, and he is in a better place.

2008-07-31T00:44:00.003-05:00

I've been exploring lots of fun crafting blogs out there and have come across some really great ones. I recently found a cool giveaway ('cause the coolest blogs have great giveaways!) that you can sign up for - here it is:

http://lilatuellerdesigns.blogspot.com/2008/07/woodland-bloom-giveaway-contest.html

She's giving away a fabulous purse and some fabric as well, so go check it out!

Doll Quilt Swap 4 Progress

2008-07-28T16:00:00.003-05:00

I haven't yet posted on the progress of my DQS4 quilt, so here it is. It's been an experiment. I haven't had much experience with appliqué, so I tried it out on this mini quilt. I also have had trouble in the past with binding a quilt, so as you can see, I have been avoiding that part.

I did the detail quilting so far on my machine, which was a painful learning curve. Some of the flower stitching is all wonky. I was also using some shiny embroidery-type thread that didn't always like to work in my machine.

I felt that this whole process was a good thing, however, 'cause it has given me more experience and confidence in both a) making an arty quilt, and b) finishing a quilt!

New Things Bloomin' in the Garden

2008-07-28T13:43:00.002-05:00

Lots of new things are blooming. We have lots of daylillies that are finally making an appearance and I'm happy to report that they are a lovely shade of ORANGE! Hooray!

We also had a mystery weedy thing growing that I thought could be a purposefully planted flower. Turns out it's a pretty pink phlox.

Lots of my zinnias are now blooming, too. I have a mixed color pot, white, and green "envy" zinnias. So pretty! I love spending time in the garden nowadays looking at all the flowers and seeing the insects buzzing around.

Hooray for Summer!

SUMMER SWAPS

2008-07-14T23:56:00.006-05:00

I've been too busy lately to give some shout outs to my recent swap partners, Shari & Muriel, so here's the praise they deserve!

Shari in Michigan sent me the most fabulous apron I've ever seen as part of the Sassy Apron Swap. She must have seen that I love the color orange and I spend a lot of time in the garden because she included elements of both in the apron. It's a halter-style with a flirty ruffly bottom edge. The material is thicker than a typical quilting cotton, which she said was perfect for grilling out (which I will be using it for!). She also made and sent along a matching towel that has an attachment ring so I can link it onto just about anything!

The swap included a non-alcoholic drink recipe and she sent her childhood recipe for a yummy coke float. I have to say here, that I love the fact that it was specifically a COKE float as opposed to a soda float or one of those other subpar carbonated beverages. I'm from the south and spent a good deal of time in Georgia, so everything is a coke and only Cocacola will do! (yes, I'm a Coke snob).

The next swap in which I participated was from the Bend The Rules Sewing group and we selected placemats and napkins to swap. My partner, Muriel, sent me the cutest set of placemats with a garden-y theme to them. The napkins even had a hot pepper stenciled on them to match some of the fabric she used in the place mats. She lives in the Netherlands, so they traveled a long way to get to me. She also sent a recipe for chicken salad with melon. Sounds yummy!

I've had fun with these summer swaps. They allow me to see how other folks get creative with fabric which is inspiring to me. I've also been able to reconnect with an old friend that I've known since high school - Hi, Sarah! I have more swaps in progress now, so I'll post on those more later.

Yay, swapping! I love it!

2008-07-14T10:39:00.004-05:00

I Love the Quilt Cottage!

While up north last week, I found a great little quilt shop called the Quilt Cottage. We were driving up Rt 51 towards Sayner, WI and we passed this shop. As we drove by with my face pressed to the glass of the window, my hubby actually suggested we go back the next day to visit. YAY, hubby!

The building itself is charming - a real log cabin-style. The first floor is crammed with fabrics and they had an extensive "civil war" area with repro vintage fabrics of all colors and patterns. I stayed in that area for a while! There was also a large wool section, a batik section, and a quilting cotton section.

Downstairs is the "bargain basement" with all the sale fabrics plus some cool antique furniture and quilts for sale.

The best part was the upstairs, though. There were three bedrooms, bathroom, kitchen, and large work space with irons and tables. They have classes in the workspace, but the store also rents out the space for quilting retreats. It was so nice! I could imagine myself there with other quilty ladies working on some fun projects and having a great "girls weekend". Anyone wanna go? :)

Of course I bought some great fabrics. I also got a few quilt project patterns on sale and they even gave me a cool reusable canvas tote bag to carry it all. So next time you're in Hazelhurst, Wisconsin....

Back from Vacation!

2008-07-10T21:55:00.004-05:00

Busy, Busy, Busy! Hubby & I just got back from the "Nortwoods" (yes, pronounced without the H!) of Wisconson. We stayed at a couple places up near Sayner & Boulder Junction, Wisconsin over the 4th holiday. We went with two of his friends, Scott & Bill, so it was just me and the guys! Here's the place near Boulder Jct. It was a nice 2 bedroom cottage on Trout Lake.
Hubby did lots of fishing while we were there. Doesn't he look like a pro? We did lots of cooking on the small portable gas grill. That little thing has come in quite handy this summer!
We did lots of fun stuff - hiking, shopping, eating, boating, and lots and lots of relaxing. I brought several books and finished three during the week. I also found a cute little quilt shop I'll have to blog about later. Now it's back to the usual routine back home. Ho Hum.

Messy Me...

2008-06-26T12:23:00.007-05:00

I've been busy attempting to clean up our guest bedroom (aka my sewing room) in anticipation of a few guests that will be staying here over the course of the summer. This room is so embarrassingly messy and piled high with washed, but not ironed, folded or put away fabric that I can't even bear to show you a picture. I'll just wait until it's all neat and tidy to show you what it looks like. Hopefully that will be soon! .... In the meantime, here's some lovely pictures of flowers in our garden that are bloomin' right now. Enjoy!

Hissy Kitty

2008-06-25T15:42:00.004-05:00

One of Stinky's favorite things to do nowadays is explore the back porch. This morning Stinky & I went out only to discover that a mystery critter had been rolling around in and mashing down Stinky's catnip. There were mysterious muddy critter prints leading up to the green pot in which it was growing and a large muddy dent in the catnip itself.

Needless to say, Stinky was a bit pissed. She must have smelled it for about 30 min or so, turning to me every so often to give me a loud and long hiss of disapproval.

She's very protective of her catnip.

Out in the Garden

2008-06-16T08:00:00.005-05:00

I've been going garden crazy!

The backyard & porch gardens have been mesmerizing me lately. I find myself wandering outside just to see what's going on. Are there new buds? What's on it's way out? How are the veggies doing?

Here's a few pics of some discoveries I made this weekend.

I captured (on film) our first butterfly visitor (a painted lady on our coreopsis).

Our Earthbox with tomatoes is growing out of control and we have two tomatoes starting to get bigger every day.

And this weekend I found our very first eensy-weensy bean starting.

It's all very exciting!

SKOOL is winding down...

2008-06-03T19:56:00.006-05:00

It's almost the end of the school year and it's been super-crazy as usual. Kristie & I finished the Avon walk last weekend and I'm trying to get all my last minute grading done for final report cards. I also found out that I'll be (once again) moving grade levels to be a split teacher - 7th AND 8th grade science. So that means I may have the same students THREE years in a row! Yikes!

I'm also moving classrooms, so I'm having to pack up all my things - and if you know me well, you know I'm a classic "packrat" teacher with LOTS of stuff to move (you never know when you may need all those plastic bags and popsicle sticks!).

Oh, and I'm trying to find time to do fixer-upper projects at the house and work in the constantly growing garden as well as work on sewing projects I've signed up for.... Too much on my plate all at once right now! Grrr!

And since my good friend in Gainesville says it's just not a blog without a picture:
It's the backyard last fall and Kristie with Mr. Toad!

Gettin' Ready for the AVON WALK

2008-05-30T06:13:00.002-05:00

Kristie and I have been getting ready for the AVON WALK this weekend!
We've been training our butts off each weekend and hopefully we'll make it without killing ourselves or getting lots of blisters. (the trick is wearing the right socks!)

We have both reached our fundraising goals and gone beyond them, so thank you to all who donated to our Teachers for Ta Tas cause! We start our walk tomorrow. Wish us luck on our journey!

Giving of the Bubba Bag

2008-05-19T23:22:00.004-05:00

I handed over the finished product yesterday and it seemed to go over well! I was a bit disappointed that the A was cut off a little bit by my poor planning, but oh well. It was a valid first attempt at free-form letters! And I have another project in the works... More letters to come!

Sneaky Peek at Bubba Bag

2008-05-14T17:49:00.004-05:00

Here's a sneaky peeky at a new thing I'm trying to make. I was asked by my hubby to make a bag for my mother-in-law for mother's day. At the same time, I was thinking about starting a project in which i could try free-pieced letters. I had been looking at all sorts of beautiful quilts & things made with this technique and I found the tutorial for the letters on Tonya's blog - Lazy Gal Quilting (check it out!).

So this was the perfect opportunity. I chose her beloved parakeet, Bubba, as the subject matter and dove into the project never having tried this before and only having done VERY minimal applique as well.

I'm almost finished. Mother's day with us was postponed due to a severe cold my hubby has this week. We'll see her next weekend and I'll pass on the bag then. I'll take some pics when I'm completely done. It really wasn't as hard as I thought it would be! Hooray!

Skirt-making 101

2008-05-12T23:08:00.004-05:00

Kristie & I are taking a sewing class. We got to pick out a skirt pattern to make. See mine below! I've included some photos from one of our classes including the layout of my material and one of just how much Kristie enjoys skirt-making! hee hee! She feels much better about it now.

Mike at the Bake Sale

2008-05-09T18:41:00.004-05:00

I forgot to include my pictures of Mike the Monkey helping out at the bake sale!

Here he is with his jaunty pink awareness sash helping us out at the school bake sale to benefit the Avon Walk. He helped us sell lots of brownies, cookies, rice crispy treats and cupcakes.

LKK came and helped out, too. He's a great sales-person. Plus he liked the bonus of free baked goods as a reward.

Kristie and I are almost to our fundraising goals now. Just a few hundred more each to go. I think the money we made at the two bake sales we've had so far will almost get us there. We are having one more bake sale next week here at school during a band concert. Hopefully we'll be done then! Hooray!

Sassy Apron Swap

2008-05-09T16:43:00.004-05:00

I've signed up for the Sassy Apron Swap!

I'm still in the planning stages, but I'm excited about it! I wanted to do a fun sewing project and was watching some of my online friends participate in some fun-looking swaps. I found the apron swap and thought that might be a good starting project to swap. Who knew there were so many apron fashionistas out there! I've done lots of research and found some really great apron making out there. Lots of inspiration!

Our theme is SUMMER and we have to include a tea towel and a non-alcoholic drink recipe. I'm having a hard time deciding on a pattern and fabric. I think because I have so many from which to choose. Something will come to me!

I'm also taking a sewing class and attempting to make a skirt. We'll see how that turns out! I'll keep you posted!

OMG. It's Snowing.

2008-04-28T16:33:00.003-05:00

That's really all I have to say. OMG. It's really snowing here in Chicago. It's practically May and it's snowing. Grrrrrr!

Ode to Peach Nehi

2008-04-27T14:08:00.003-05:00

Peach Nehi.
How I love thee.
Let me count the ways.
How you smell like a fresh fake peach. I could smell you for hours.
How you tickle my nose with your carbonation bubbles.
How you remind me of summer camp back in Florida rocking in the rocking chairs with Sarah and SarahBeth sweating like a pig.
How I could drink you all without stopping for a breath.
How you make me burp so loudly but the burp still smells good... peachy, like you.
How I found you in a gas station drink cooler somewhere in bfe Kentucky, possibly Indiana and bought all of you the store had.
How you made me ignore the fact that our truck broke down with an overheated radiator in the middle of the night in the middle of nowhere for several hours and Dani had to talk with the Uhaul folks and the repair guy because I was sleeping in the cab of the truck cuddled up with the cooler inside which you were quietly chilling on ice.
Peach Nehi.
I love you.

Andy's Cats

2008-04-22T21:44:00.003-05:00

Andy Warhol was apparently fond of cats.

While in Pittsburgh, mom & I visited the Warhol museum. I, being told I couldn't, decided I could, and took many pictures of Warhol's artwork.

I was excited to see all the artwork of animals, especially cats. He even had a taxidermied (is that a word?) cat he used as a subject for photography and printmaking (see orange cat on green background above). And another print of a crazy cat in a medical collar.

My favorites, however, were all the ink & watercolor sketches of cats. All in bright pinks, yellows, and blues. And most of these were of a cat named Sam.

It's nice to know an artist appreciated kitties as much as I do.... even stuffed dead ones.

Pittsburgh Visit

2008-04-18T17:05:00.003-05:00

Heke and I suprised mom with a visit in Pittsburgh. Mom was going to visit w/ Heke, but didn't know I was coming, so it was a fun suprise. We had a good week. We went to the Phipps Conservatory to see plants, we ate lots of cupcakes (see previous post!), we went to the science museum and the Andy Warhol museum, and rode up the inclines to Mt. Washington.

More photos later!

Recent Sewing Project for Monkey Boy...

2008-04-14T16:08:00.006-05:00

So my friend Toni just had her cutie-patootie baby, Robert, and was doing a monkey-themed nursery. So I started sewing her a diaper bag using some super-cute monkey material I had found. (see above).

And then, since there was the whole monkey theme goin' on , I decided that Robert needed a Monkey to go with his Monkey bag, so Mike the Monkey was created. (see left at bottom).

I had tried to publish a post a while ago of Mike the Monkey because he was just so durn cute, but for some reason, it wasn't appearing all the time. So here is another pic of Mike the Monkey. I actually grew a bit attached to him before I gave him to Robert (seen here - so cute!). He was my sewing mascot for a while and even came to help Kristie and I during an Avon walk bake sale at school. So I was just a bit sad as I passed him on to his rightful owner.
The bag turned out great. A bit bigger than I had imagined, but really good, nonetheless. I will definitely use that same pattern again if I ever need to do a big baby bag.

CUPCAKES!

2008-04-11T17:12:00.004-05:00

I flew out to Pittsburgh to visit with my sis and my mom last week. One of the highlights of the trip (besides seeing my family!) was the CUPCAKES!

We found this cute little storefront called Dozen that sells only cupcakes. And they were DEE-LICIOUS!

www.dozencupcakes.com

They have the most amazing flavors: Cosmo, Pecan Pie, Vanilla Vanilla, Jack and Coke, Thai Iced tea, Vegan Chai, Chocolate Peanut Butter, and of course, "the Elvis" which is banana cake with nutella inside and PB icing on top. Yum!

So if you're ever in Pittsburgh....

Monster Berry

2008-04-09T17:05:00.005-05:00

I found a ginormous strawberry in my container the other day. It was so humongous I just had to record it with a photo. The strawberry to the left is a "normal" sized fruit. This elephantine strawberry was at least as big as my fist. I was amazed.

Just had to share.

p.s. it was delicious

Amazing Kids Book!

2008-04-07T16:32:00.005-05:00

I just finished reading this great book, Life As We Knew It, by Susan Beth Pfeffer. I had seen one of my students reading it and she gave me a summary. It sounded good, so I borrowed it from her a few weeks ago.

This was the most moving/disturbing kids book I've read in a long time. During the time I was reading it and even now afterwards, I can't seem to get it out of my head.

The story is about a typical high school girl in Pennsylvania who lives with her divorced mom and two brothers. An asteroid heads towards Earth and hits the moon, knocking it out of its usual orbit and closer to the Earth. This causes world-wide catastrophic events like the eruption of volcanoes, tsunamis, and massive flooding of the coastal areas.

The book then deals with how she and her family deal with the consequences of this event. Food becomes scarce and eventually so does the power supply and then water. The seasons are messed up, too, so winter comes early and it begins to snow in August. This book stuck with me because in a way, the events in the book reminded me of certain things that are currently happening in the world. Gas prices continue to rise. Fuel sources are becoming scarce. Global climate change is occurring.

I recommend this book to everyone. I looked on Amazon at some of the reviews and the book was getting bashed for sending the wrong message to kids. In the story, the mother makes the kids grab any and all food at the grocery store so they will have enough to last for a while. She then rations it out and discourages the kids from sharing so that they will have enough food to survive. Some reviewers were saying this sends a selfish message to readers when in reality people would band together and share their resources. Let's get real! The book depicts what I imagine would/could really happen. As much as we don't want to admit it, this is not always a warm and fuzzy world we live in. In survival situations, people have to fend for themselves. The mother only wanted to ensure the survival of her children.

I dunno. You can see how much I've been thinking about this book. Way too much! At any rate, I hope you get a chance to read this book. I think there's even a sequel coming out in June. Should be good!

My Poor Nose

2008-04-01T09:21:00.004-05:00

So I've been working down in the basement for the past two days - unpacking boxes and organizing and throwing stuff out. Unfortunately, I have had something fall off a shelf TWICE now and bash me in the nose! Eye-watering, snot-flowing nose bashing!

One object was a metal baking pan, and the other was a jadeite green glass dish. I was more worried about saving the jadeite dish than I was worried about my nose! I love Jadeite! It's an antique! I was actually worried my nose may be broken, but I've come to the conclusion, since I can touch it and there was not a copious flow of blood at the time, that it is merely bruised, not broken.

I guess I need to be more careful when taking things down from high shelves....

ouch

SPRING BREAK! FINALLY!

2008-03-27T20:24:00.003-05:00

So I finally finished my last Parent-Teacher conference at 8:15 tonight. Whew! I'm glad that's all over. I'm tired of talking and smiling. Most of the parents I see are the parents of the students who are A+ students. "Your child is great. Your child is perfect. Your child is amazing." It gets old. But they need to hear it, I guess.

Now on to my spring break. Not much planned, and I like it that way. Hubby and I would have liked to go somewhere tropical again this year, and since, as I look out the window right now, it's SNOWING AGAIN, it would have been nice to go somewhere warm. Oh well. New house needs our love and attention and money. I'll be spending some quality time with Stinky.

Meow.

Remembering Last Year's Avon Walk

2008-03-25T00:01:00.009-05:00

Here's the Teachers For Ta Tas Avon Walk team from last year. We looked so happy and cheerful here - I think that's because we hadn't actually started walking yet!

That was (from left to right) Tamara, Molly, Elizabeth, Zella, Amy, Megan, and Shannon. What a bunch of cute gals in pink.

I just wanted to post this pic here to remind myself of what a good time we had and how much
good we were doing by participating in the walk.

Here are some other good pics from last year...

Avon Walk Time!

2008-03-14T16:20:00.004-05:00

Well, it's that time of year again. When I start hitting everyone up for money. Beware: The begging for money emails will start soon!

I am a bit perturbed, however. I went to register on the Avon site and discovered that my team name for two years running, "Teachers for Ta Tas" was STOLEN! There's another team that has been started for the Chicago Avon Walk with the name "Teachers for Ta-Tas". The only difference is the hyphen. What the HECK! How is that ethical?

I have a mind to email a piece of my mind to that team! But then I have to take a deep breath and remember that it's all for a good cause and I shouldn't get worked up about it. (but it's still irritating!)

We'll be kicking off our fundraising efforts for the team with a bake sale at our school tonight. The students are putting on a performance tonight and tomorrow night and I thought it would be the perfect time to start collecting money. So last night I baked 5 boxes of brownies and made two dozen cupcakes. Kristie will be helping as well as LKK.

LKK is a student of mine who seems to never go home at a decent hour. So the nickname LKK came out of calling him my "Latch-Key Kid". He would stay in my classroom until 7pm if I let him (and he has on more than one occasion). He always gets schoolwork done while he's there, so I can't complain. Some of the work wouldn't get done otherwise. Last year he did his entire science fair project in two days staying in my room until I left for dinner and kicked him out.

Makes me wonder what's at home for him - or perhaps it's what's NOT at home - that makes him want to stay so long after school. I dunno.

I've got to go set up for the bake sale now. Mike the Monkey is going to be our mascot tonight, so hopefully he won't scare anyone away!

I love my sewing machine!

2008-03-11T16:19:00.006-05:00

I'm so SO happy to have my sewing machine! I had been whining and complaining about not having one for so long. When I lived alone, I always seemed to have a roommate with one, so I always borrowed theirs. I even said, that when hubby & I moved into the new house, the first thing I would purchase was a sewing machine.

Luckily, I have a fabulous friend named Marta who donated her old machine to me for free! Hooray! I guess she was tired of hearing me whine? She's so nice! Thanks, Marta!

I got started right away trying to make stuff on it. The first real project I attempted (out of necessity) was a homemade pin cushion.

I found a fun tutorial online and tried it out. It's rather big for a pin cushion, but it works great. It inspired me to go for bigger and better things... like a set of coasters for the coffee table!

My work-friend Kristie and I are going to start a beginning sewing class in a few weeks, so I can learn the ins and outs of a sewing machine and putting something together using a pattern.

Mom would be proud of me - since the last time I think she saw me sew something for real was in Jr. high or high school when I tried to make a pair of shorts and sewed the pockets in backwards and promptly gave up sewing for a while. I think we have to learn to make a skirt in this class. My most recent attempts at sewing have been all pattern-free, which is liberating in a way, but I feel that I really need to learn the basics. Wish me luck!

I am a Horrible Mother

2008-03-07T17:39:00.004-06:00

So I was giving Stinky a trim - she tends to get dreadlocks in her fur since she doesn't groom herself regularly. I was working on some of the dingleberries around her butt area and accidentally snipped off a piece of her butt skin! OUCH! I was stupidly using my super-sharp Gingher sewing scissors and didn't realize I had cut her until she yelped and ran for the door.

I feel SO TERRIBLE! She actually seems no worse for the wear. I put some antibacterial ointment on it and she has seemed fine ever since, but boy, do I feel bad. How could I do that to my little kitty baby!!! :(

Here's a recent photo of her exploring in the snow outside our house. We've been getting lots of it lately and she's been dying to go out and sniff around.

You can tell she's a true Yankee Kitty - she seems to LOVE the snow! It doesn't phase her one bit. Good thing she's got extra fuzzy fur growing between her toes!

Cat Person at Dog Show

2008-03-05T18:21:00.006-06:00

Yes folks, I - a self-proclaimed cat person - went to the AKC Dog show down at McCormick Place last weekend. The entire building smelled of wet dog and poo, but there were some really cute dogs there and it was fun to see the pure breeds as they should look.

The highlight of my day was meeting the NUMBER ONE PUG in the country! He was super cute and friendly, although I can't say that about his handler.

I asked if I could hold him for a picture and was scoffed at by the handler. Little did I know that he was worth thousands of dollars... how much did that poo he just made cost?

I also saw some of those funny dreadlock-y dogs and the ones with fur all in their eyes.

Here's some of my favorites. I hope you can see the photos this time!

I love Mr. Pulaski!

2008-02-29T16:55:00.003-06:00

Why do I love Kasimir Pulaski? Let me count the ways...

1. I get a day off of school because of his heroic actions. According to Wikipedia,

He was a Polish soldier and military commander who fought in the American Revolution under the command of George Washington. Pulaski was a noted cavalryman and played a large role in training Revolutionary troops. He took part in the sieges of Charleston and of Savannah. From 1777 until his death, Pułaski fought in the American Revolutionary War for the independence of the United States. He was a noted cavalryman and, as the "Father of the American Cavalry," created Pulaski's Legion, one of the few cavalry regiments in the American Continental Army. He took part in the Battle of Brandywine, the Siege of Charleston (South Carolina), and the Battle of Savannah (Georgia).

On October 9, 1779, Pułaski — during a cavalry charge, while probing for a weak point in the British lines at the Battle of Savannah — was wounded in the groin by grapeshot. He was carried from the field by several comrades, including Colonel John C. Cooper, and taken aboard the privateer merchant brigantine Wasp. Two days later, without having regained consciousness, he died of his wounds.

2. Ok.. so there's really not a number 2. I'm just happy to get Monday off. Thank goodness I teach in the Chicagoland area.

Sideways house

2008-02-29T16:41:00.004-06:00

Here's the house, only sideways. So if you haven't yet seen my new pad, then just touch your left ear to your left shoulder to see it!

Please forgive me, but I've looked and looked for a logical way to rotate my photos to make them upright, but it appears that if they were taken vertically, then even if they were rotated and saved before uploading, they revert back to their original sideways format when they are uploaded here to blogger.com. There have been a few posts about this problem, so I know it's not just me!

Oh, and please let me know if you want to be taken off my "new blog" email list. I'm just so excited about blogging now, that I'm sending them out pretty frequently. Oh, and sorry if some of you can't see my lovely photos. It seems some of you can, and some can't. So once again, not my problem. ;)

Oops, no pictures!

2008-02-28T17:29:00.006-06:00

Somehow, the picture of my crafting space didn't get in there, so I'm trying again. It looks quite messy in this photo, but hey, that's me. Since I now have a bigger nicer table, I'm trying to keep it cleaner and more tidy than this smaller version.

The reason I had to switch was because when I was using the sewing machine on the table in the picture, it was so unstable that it would jiggle so much it felt like an earthquake was rumbling through the area. So I had to get another one.

I found the new one at C&B - a returned item for a good price. I was a little devious in getting it, too. I didn't tell hubby that I was going to get it. And I decided I wanted a new table NOW! So I was a naughty wife and went behind his back. I had a friend's husband help me transport it from the store to home and carry it upstairs. I assembled and arranged all while hubby was out of town. Of course, he noticed right away. Can't put anything past that one! Oh well. It's all covered with my cutting board and fabric now any way, so that sortof hides the fact that it doesn't match. And I'm much happier with it... and that's really all that matters, right?

hee hee!

I'm also including a picture of Mike the Monkey who I made a few weeks ago for my friend who just had the baby. I think he's super cute, but hubby says he's freaky. Therefore, I propped Mike on the couch to stare at hubby while he was watching TV. I had fun making Mike. I can see myself making more animals in the future.

Too bad he's sideways. Couldn't figure out how to rotate the picture..

That's all for tonight!

My First Blog!

2008-02-26T16:28:00.002-06:00

Ok, so this is my very first blog ever and I'm super excited! I've wanted to start a blog for a while now, but haven't gotten around to it. Been too busy with life and all. You know how it is.

But now I'm here and committed to post on a regular basis.

So what's up with me now? I'm just getting ready to start planning for the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer again this year. It will be my third on the Teachers for Ta Ta's team. I wasn't sure if I really wanted to do it again this year, but I was convinced by several people that it was important that I do it. And I finally agreed. I'll hopefully start training soon. I've been pretty much a slug all winter. I've become addicted to the heating pad and as soon as I sit down on the couch, the cat jumps on me and it's an instant "kitty sedative" for me. I zonk out.

I've also been able to finally put together a crafting area for myself in the spare bedroom. This is now to be called the sewing room or crafting room. Hubby wanted it to be a neat and tidy third bedroom, but that just wasn't gonna happen. I couldn't work on crafts down in the freezing cold basement. My fingers were going numb. So here's my new crafting corner. I actually just got a new table which is bigger and more sturdy, so it looks a bit different now. It's great. It's amazing how much an organized space can inspire you to create.

I've just been working on a baby bag for a friend who just had a baby boy. I altered a pattern to make it more baby-bag-like with lots of pockets. I hope it works well for its purpose!

That's about all for now.