Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Saturday, December 27, 2008

January 20, 2008

It's 23 days until Mr. Barack Obama is inaugurated the 44th President of the United States. My birthday is the 21st. So, I'm thinking it's an early bd gift. LOL

My brother drove my Dad down from north Georgia last weekend, so he could spend Christmas with my sister and me. It had been over a year since I had seen him. He's looking well. Although he is a little unsteady on his feet at times. When he is at home he uses a rolling walker, but he only brought a cane with him. I am so thankful that I was able to spend Christmas with him.

I hope eveyone had a beautiful holiday.




Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Christmas Wish list

Every year my ex and I post a list on the fridge door of things we would like Santa to bring us for Christmas. Sometimes I put really expensive things on the list such as the BMW Z4 Roadster and sometimes things so cheap as a bottle of alcohol ink.
Here is my Christmas wish list this year:
1. CED Colin
2. Tripod
3. Perfect Pushup
4. Tilli Tomas Soie de la Mer yarn in Parchment
5. Alcohol inks
6. Bow and arrows
7. Stretching machine
8. Ashford Rigid Heddle Weaving Loom

I also have a list of books and Santa usually chooses three or four of them.
Knits for Girls and Dolls by Charlene Schurch
Quilt Your Favorite Photos by Betty Alofs
Madeleine Vionet by Betty Kirke
American Doll Quilts: 16 Little Projects That Honor a Tradition by Kathleen Tracy
I Can Make You Thin by Paul McKenna
What Every Body is Saying by Joe Navarro
The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch

What's on YOUR Christmas Wish List?





Monday, December 15, 2008

Nicki Lee is having a Give-a-way!

Nicki Lee is having a give-a-way! Check it out on her blog. All you have to do is guess the time of her son's birth. The winner will be announced on Christmas Eve and the person who comes the closest, will be the winner of the goodie bag. She has some gorgeous crazy quilted items and I love her hand dyed laces!





Tuesday, December 09, 2008

Pongo


Pongo, my sweet 12 year old Dalmation was having a difficult time walking and fell a couple of times last night. Walt took him to the vet's today. She couldn't find anything wrong just "eyeballing" him. She poked and prodded a bit and said he has some neurological damage to his hind legs and he probably has arthritis. She gave him some glucosamine and something for pain. This evening he is walking a lot better and doesn't seem to be having any discomfort. It's hard to believe it's been over 11 years since Walt found him while delivering mail. He was tied to a shed behind his owner's house. He finally saw someone giving him some water and the lady told him the owner's were getting divorced and couldn't take him to either of their new homes. Walt brought him home that day (after getting the okay from the man that owned him then). He was just a little "poopy dog" and I fell in love with him at first sight!




Monday, December 01, 2008

Sadly,

the nursing facility I work at is closing. It's eerie walking down the empty halls that once held young and old residents alike. It's sad to see them cry and ask if they really have to go. They are scared. The employees are scared too. It's the holidays, time for gaiety and lightheartedness. Not the time to worry about which sister facility we will be placed at, or if we will be placed. (I have already been told I will have a position with the company, but not which facility. And for that, I'm thankful.) We smile at the residents and tell them they will be well taken care of at their new home and how much we will miss them. The residents thank us and tell us how much they are going to miss us and when we re-open they want to come home. For some, we are their only family, their only friends, the only people who care about them. We smile until they are out of sight and then we cry. We seek out co-workers we are closest to, looking for support and strength to make it through another day. And we do make it another day, putting one foot in front of the other, life goes on. There will be other residents we will care about and care for, but we will never forget these residents.

I wasn't sure if I should blog about this. I decided to go ahead and do it. I love the facility I work at. It has been very stressful at times. I've done my share of complaining about things. I was disappointed when I had to go back there after taking the paralegal course and then wasn't able to find a job. As odd as it sounds, a lot of paralegal jobs were being outsourced at the time. Now, I am just as disappointed that I will no longer be working there. It's like a divorce and a family member dieing all rolled into one. I am just numb. The next few weeks are going to be difficult. I'm glad I don't have young children nearby. It would be hard to explain why Mommy or Gramma is so sad.






Saturday, November 29, 2008

Shoes!


Don't you just LOVE getting a new pair of shoes? Even if you have to wait a few months to wear them. Such as these gorgeous turquoise espadrilles. I just missed the auction by a few seconds on eBay, when I had a difficult time logging on. But then, found them at half price a couple of weeks later. They perfectly match fabric I have to make a casual top.







Thursday, November 27, 2008

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Babies

Isn't this the most adorable creature you've ever seen?

Sunday, November 09, 2008

Finally, I sewed something!

I finally sewed something! I made matching outfits for a friend's daughter and her My Twinn Doll.
My friend picked out the patterns and the fabric. The top was made from Butterick 4970 in a soft
and cuddley pink rayon lycra jersey. The capris were made from McCall's 5312, in a cotton khaki twill.





















Thursday, November 06, 2008

President Obama

Initially, I was all for Hillary. But, then, as I listened and watched, I knew I was watching and listening to the next President of the United States of America.
There was never a doubt in my mind on whether or not Barack Obama would win. I had faith in my fellow Americans that they would make the right choice.
They did.
What an exciting time. Watching history in the making.
President Obama
Has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?
I went to my voting place at ten after seven. After I turned the first corner and could get a better view, I was able to count 150 people in front of me. I wasn't able to count some people that were standing in groups or the voters that had already entered the building. It took me one and a half hours to cast my vote.
I just could not keep my eyes open Tuesday night and fell asleep about 10:30ish. At 11:51, I heard the words, "Barack Obama is the 44th President of the United States of America."
I knew at that second that everything was going to be okay.





It's been a while

since I've last posted. I'll be making up for lost time over the next couple of weeks. LOL

While I was away I went from this


to this












I had a hard time deciding on the style and where I would get it cut, but I finally decided on Janet Mittendorf's. Walt also decided to get his hair cut while we were there, but I don't have pics of him. He only had two or three inches cut, while I had about twelve inches. And, I like the fact that the red color shows up even more now that it's shorter!

I'll be blogging about the projects I've completed and the ones I'm working on over the next week or so.




Sunday, July 06, 2008

101 Things to Do in 1001 Days

I'm still slowly working on my 101 things. I've decided that there will be no traveling until all the dogs have gone to the Rainbow Bridge. The last time they had to be kenneled it was very traumatic for them. Pongo had chewed on his legs and Buddy and Bear didn't tolerate it very well either. Bear is 13-ish. She is having a difficult time getting up and walking. Sometimes she just stands facing a corner and can't figure out how to get out of it.

As far as the 101 Things...The nightwear sew-a-long will take care of item number 101...Make 4 pairs of pj's.

Number 64... Make a cigar box purse....I know what I want to decorate it with. A picture of the notorious Bettie Page or Frank Sinatra.

A lot of things are still in progress, although progress is really slow! LOL





Saturday, July 05, 2008

The weekend

I spent some time today sewing. Well, not really sewing. I spent some time today cutting out the Amy Butler Kimberly bag pattern. I'm using the lime fabric shown. I'm not happy with the fusible woven interfacing I have. It's off to Joann's Fabrics tomorrow to see if they have something I like better. If I can't find anything there, I'll go to Jay's Fabric Center next week.

I was going to cut out the Emmeline apron pattern (by Montessori by Hand)but my back started hurting. I'll try to get it cut out tomorrow. I stole was inspired by the colors on this site. I'm using red, chocolate brown, and turquoise. My red fabric has tiny white dots though. I would have liked them bigger. I would also like to make an apron using chocolate brown and pink. Not sure I will use the Emmeline pattern though.

I'm wondering if this is a faux pas. It it OK to blatently copy someone else's color scheme? It's not likely that we would run into each other on the streets of St. Pete. And this person wouldn't know, except for me blogging about it and eventually posting a picture . It was because of this person, that I was drawn to and chose to make the apron. I keep "saying this person" because I haven't seen her name anywhere. However, I have seen at least 2 aprons with this color scheme. So, whoever you are, whatever your name is.....I think you have great taste and thanks for the inspiration!

There is a night wear sew-a-long happening over at Stitcher's Guild. I need a few new sleep pants and tops so I'm thinking I will unofficially participate in the sew-a-long.

I'm off to listen to some TV and knit. I'm working through the list of stitch finders, which I refer to as swatches, on Lion Brand website. I'm going to sew them together and make an afghan.




Friday, July 04, 2008

July 4, 2008


Happy Fourth!!

Thursday, July 03, 2008

More Challenges

I have been participating off and on in a number of challenges. My goal for July is to get everything caught up and add a couple more to the list.

The first challenge is the 1% Well Read Challenge. The goal of this challenge is to read 10 books in 10 months from the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die list. For you non-math people, 10 out of 1001 is approximately 1%, hence the title. The challenge will run from May 1, 2008 through February 28, 2009.Here is my list of books:
Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte
The Book of Illusions by Paul Auster (I’ve already started reading)
Beloved by Toni Morrison
Cocaine Nights by JG Ballard
I know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
I, Robot by Isaac Asimov
Cakes and Ale by W. Somerset Maugham
Orlando by Virginia Woolf
Sons and Lovers by D.H. Lawrence

The next challenge is the Self Portrait Challenge. Each month a theme is introduced and you take a self portrait using the current month's theme. This month the theme is skill. I just found out they blogged about this over on whip up.

Before I blog any further I must show a pic of my new "baby".
Yup. I did it. I switched to an Apple. Family and friends are amazed. They all know me as a Window's nerd girl. Bill Gates is my hero. I thought getting an iMac would be a pleasant change. I have mixed feelings about it. Some aspects are nice. I love the monitor and the sleekness of having everything compacted. On the other hand, it's hard getting use to the "windows" I have open deciding to switch places again, again, and again until they give me motion sickness! LOL I'm still getting used to the keyboard shortcuts.








Monday, June 09, 2008

Another Meme

I found this on The Fiberfairy's Haven.






1. austin Cemetery Angel, 2. french fries, 3. Mirror, 4. Purple Euphoria, 5. The Man, 6. Pepsi One, 7. Last day in Paris, 8. coffee and chocolate mousse cake, 9. US Supreme Court, 10. The Old Library, 11. UP, 12. my bohemian gala




a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
b. Using only the first page, pick an image.
c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into fd’s mosaic maker.

The Questions:

1. What is your first name? not really my first name, but the one I go by
2. What is your favorite food? potatoes!!
3. What high school did you go to? Valley Point High School
4. What is your favorite color? purple
5. Who is your celebrity crush? Dennis Haysbert
6. Favorite drink? Pepsi One
7. Dream vacation? Paris, France
8. Favorite dessert? coffee and chocolat mousse cake
9. What you want to be when you grow up? legal nurse consultant.
10. What do you love most in life? reading/books are among the top ten
11. One word to describe you. UP!
12. Your flickr name. gypsie121- I found nothing using gypsie-so I used gypsy.


I got my notary public certificate in the mail today. One more thing I can cross off my to do list! LOL







Saturday, May 31, 2008

May passed by so quickly

It seems like just yesterday it was January first. These past couple of weeks were difficult. We had state surveyors in the nursing home doing our annual survey. This survey was the best one the facility has had in eight years. There was a new supervisor running every department and of course a new administrator. We only had nine minor deficiencies. That is extremely good for a facility of this size.

I didn't even post on May's Take It Forward for last month. I haven't had a chance to even read about the challenge or see the color scheme for June yet. I hope I can get to that this weekend.

I've posted my new Summer Reading List here. I've already finished two of the books. I start my classes to get my RN degee next week, so I wanted to get started. I still need to finish the old list too.

It seems as though I can never get anything accomplished, no matter how much I try. At least I'm not working 11-12 hours a day now.






Tuesday, May 20, 2008

My New Toy

Last Friday I got off work at 4pm and went to A & A Crossroads Sewing Center. I was reading the sign that said the store was open from 9am until 4pm, when Walt pointed toward the neon "open" sign. It was still on. I tried the door and, sure enough, it was open! The lady said a customer had called earlier and asked if she could stay open later this afternoon, so she could bring her machine in for repairs. I ordered my machine and Walt picked it up today, so it was waiting for me when I got home this afternoon. I played with it for a few minutes. Threading it and testing it on a small piece of knit fabric that was tucked under the presser foot. I can hardly wait for the weekend so I can really play!!















Sunday, May 11, 2008

Sunday, May 04, 2008

Another weekend

has come and almost gone. I didn't get much accomplished.

I finally got an IV pole to hang the water bottle on for my new iron. I used it to iron the strips for the quilt block for the Take it Forward Challenge for March. I still have to do the memorial heart for April, and the colors and concept have been given for May. I'm so far behind!

I just can't seem to get focused and get anything done. After work and on the weekends I just hang out and do a little reading and checking email and check a few of my favorite blogs. There is quite a bit of stress from work lately. I believe that has a lot to do with getting focused.

As per my usual, I have some things planned. My problem is, I just can't seem to get past the planning stage. On the ever growing, never ending list.....

I got the Emmeline apron, by Meg McElwee at Montessori By Hand. Fabric for an Amy Butler Kimberly bag. I'm going to make it in the same lime green fabric as shown on her website. Not very creative of me, I know. But....the lovely colors were what drew me to the bag! I'm just waiting for the pattern.

I've checked out the new patterns. meh....nothing calls out to me. I'll wait and see what the fashionistas make and see if I change my mind.




Sunday, April 06, 2008

What's Been Happening?

I finally finished reading The DiVinci Code by Dan Brown. It was an interesting book, and I enjoyed it very much. I still have five books from my summer of '06 reading list to read. It became my '07 reading list and will become my '08 reading list if I don't get them read in time. I've read numerous books, just not the ones on this particular list. Most of them have been legal studies books, and soon will be nursing books.

I still need to become a notary public and now I want to get MDS (Minimum Data Set--a form reguired by the government on every nursing home resident.) certified. Neither of these will take very long. I just need to have time to take care of it.


Here are the colors for April from the Take It Forward Challenge, and the challenge topic this month is how do you see change? Even though they are pretty, they aren't "my" colors,. They are my Mom's colors. She loved greens, oranges, browns, yellows, the warmer colors. I'm going to use these colors and use silk ribbon embroidery and make a crazy quilt stitched heart as a tiny memorial to her.

Last month I got the fat quarters to make a quilt block (which will be part of a wall hanging). Got the pattern, called Celtic Sunrise. It even has some of March's colors in it! I traced the pattern, cut the strips and went to press the strips....my iron died. It was just a cheapie from Wal-Mart, but I expected it to last for more than a couple of months.

I was going to get a nice new iron last year, but due to not working, and budgeting, it wasn't a high priority. Hence....the cheapie from Wal-Mart. Last week I ordered this baby and this ironing "board".
The iron came on Wednesday and the "board" on Friday, except my ex was sleeping and didn't hear the UPS guy, so I have to wait until tomorrow to get it, and next weekend to set it up, due to working long hours this week. GRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!

I also ordered, and received (yesterday) Collage Unleashed by Traci Bautista. I haven't had a chance to look through it yet. Maybe I will find time this afternoon. I still have a lot to do this weekend.