Bee in My Bonnet

Or more like a thorn in my side. I am obsessed with making an easy iPod cover. My previous 2 attempts (one & two) were just too much of a pain ... not to mention not too pretty. Kris had suggested to use a 'non-fraying' fabric. genius. Felt is my new best friend. I'm not ready to show the front ... still not too pretty.

Close but no cigar.

Maybe by my 100th post I'll have it figured out ... BTW - thanks for all the lovely comments on my mug, I just love it too!

Stay tuned for iPod cover version 4. Coming to a blog near you ...

Things That Make You Go Hmm...

The fabric for my Emmeline Apron (all Heather Bailey's Freshcut line).

Graphic Mums - Opal

Jellybean- Jade

Groovy Floral- Geranium

My finished mug that I made at ladies night. (Can you see a green theme going on here...)

Bananas for banana bread.

Spilled grits ... hmm was not exactly what I said ...

Trying to get a cute picture of the boys.

Hmm ...

Melts In Your Mouth

Not in your hands.

I doubt they'll last very long in either place to test that slogan ...

Pants on Fire

Yup. That's me. Liar liar, pants on fire. I bought more fabric. I know. I promised I wouldn't. I think I have issues. :0) I have a great order coming from Quilt Home.

Curtains for my sewing room / office. (I know, I have yet to make the ones for the playroom). Amy Butler/Belle/Green French Wallpaper

Another baby blanket. Joel Dewberry/Aviary/Rose/Rink

I already own this. The other side of the baby blanket. Joel Dewberry/Aviary/Sparrows Lt. Pink
A few fat quarters and fabric coming from Etsy.

From Mountain of the Dragon. Elephants and Trains fat quarters.

From Lucky Kaeru Fabric. Tiny robots on blue.

... and some adorable Alexander Henry and yellow polka dot fabric (not shown) from JoAnn's.

Truth be told (ya right - I know...can you trust me?), I actually have plans for almost all the fabric that was bought...

Cardboard Box Moment

I had one of those cardboard box moments this weekend. You know what I'm talking about - when you realize that your child is having more fun with the box that the expensive toy / appliance came in than the actual item received. John had an absolute ball carrying around his 1/2 monkey. It was quite delightful to watch. Despite the a-ha moment, I finished Big J (I got to name this one). Gill had asked where these monkey's came from - here's the tutorial I followed.

I also cranked out the two baby blankets for my friend who is having twins. I had had the football fabric for some time but was unsure what to do with it. The dad is an ACC football referee ... perfect. I knew I would put it to good use, someday!

And just for the record, I'm about 100 pages into Amazing Grace. Man oh man. It's good.

Monkey Business

Oh where, oh where has my brother gone?

Oh where, oh where can he be?

My makers attention span isn't too long,

And he's missing parts of his anatomy...

Meet one half of my (stuffed) monkeys. J. Crew Outlet Stay with me, I'm not talking shopping here. That is the name Henry gave his monkey. I have no idea where he got that name from. We don't even shop at J. Crew (I'm too cheap). If anything the monkey's name should have been Wal-Mart ... We still need a smile on JCO but Henry wanted him so the finishing touches will have to wait. John's monkey needs some limbs attached, plastic surgery, and lasik. I think I am going to do his eyes in felt ... the whole choking thing ... John was hysterical carrying JCO around and then his own limbless monkey. I've got to finish his - just needed a little ... monkey break.

Soup & Scones

Soup and scones...

Oh! if I had only known,

how easy these were

to simmer and bake.

A lot more of these

I will have to make!

The soup recipe is for my Sassy Apron Swap person and the scones were lunch yesterday. Enjoy!

Bean & Hominy Soup

3 (16 oz) cans Great Northern beans
1 (11oz) can whole-kernel yellow corn, drained
1 (16 oz) can hominy 2 cups water
1 (14 oz) can no-salt-added stewed tomatoes
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon dried cilantro
1 (10 oz) can diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 cup shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese
1 (11 oz) can bean with bacon soup

Combine the undrained bean, undrained hominy, stewed tomatoes and tomatoes with green chiles in a Dutch oven. Add the soup, corn and water mix well.

Stir in the bay leaves, cilantro, and cumin.

Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.

Remove and discard the bay leaves. Ladle the soup into warm soup bowls.

Sprinkle each serving with some of the cheddar cheese.

Serves 12 (also freezes and reheats nicely)

Rasin Bran Scones

1 cup flour
3 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup cold butter
1 1/2 cup raisin bran cereal
2 eggs, beaten


Mix together dry ingredients then cut in butter until evenly crumbly. Stir in cereal.

Beat then stir in eggs until moistend and dough forms a ball.

On a floured surface, flatten dough (keeping center slightly higher) into a circle.

Cut into 8-12 pie wedges depending on the size you like. Place wedges on greased or lined baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Stuffed

Something I'm monkeying around with. Terrible joke - I know. Stay tuned for part 2.

Here's something to tide you over.

Jingle Balls Jingle Balls

Jingle all the way
They're off to little boys
Who like to drool and play!

Just ignore the lint - in a rush to take the picture. Tutorial here.

PS - It's official, I LOVE my Seamstress Arpon.

Productivity

Well, in the sewing arena at least. I finished my arpon for the Sassy Apron Swap. I hope she likes it! Now I just need to get it in the mail with my favorite soup recipe...hmm...






I also finished my Seamstress Apron. I haven't even used it yet and I am already going to name this as one of my favorite-must-have-sewing-accessories. (The other is my chalk pencil). It was sooo easy to make. The only time consuming part is cutting out the fabric, interfacing and canvas...a lot. It went together very quickly after that. I am definitly going to add this to my list of gifts for those who like to sew. I'm pleased with how it turned out.







I'm slowly crossing things off my sewing list. I'm not sure if I'm going to make another baby blanket (I have 3 to make) or the Chelsea bag for my knitting {of which I have not touched in 2 weeks - that darn purl stitch - makin' me crazy}. I also need to make 2 more Bend the Rules turtles and I've added this to my list.


I'm in my obssesive must research and find an answer phase regarding my families 'wellness'. Henry had a 104.4 temp yesterday - DH said that he's never seen the waiting room so packed at the MD - 2 hour wait. Thankfully it is just a sinus infection. Juice Plus is the leading contender. Decisions, decisions.

57 Degrees

Can you believe it - we go from freezing rain on Wednesday to a balmy 57 degrees today. That's Virginia for ya. Mom is coming over this afternoon to watch Amazing Grace. I cannot wait. And, no, I didn't even touch the book, but I will! We are still sick. DH has been in bed since Wed. night with the flu. Does it ever end? I used to be such a healthy person - bring in two kiddos and WHAM! instant yucky nose, cough, etc. from fall to spring. I am seriously considering Juice Plus or Greens Plus. I'm trying to figure out which is the better fit for us. Anyone have an insight here?

Henry made 'food for the birds' last week in school. Because of the weather and our infirm state, the pine cone never made it out ... until today. Enjoy the pics - hope you have a great weekend!

...I'm back. You must watch it. Here's more about the song Amazing Grace. I'm at a loss for words...

Grandpa

This picture was taken in November of 2006 - John was one month old. My Grandpa made the trip (with my Grandma) despite his ailing health. They flew from New York to Georgia and then drove 2 hours from the airport to my dad's house. The next day my Grandpa had dialysis and then got in the car and traveled another 8 hours to Virginia. They stayed the next day but then had to leave early the following morning so Grandpa could get back to Georgia for a late afternoon dialysis appointment. All of this so he could see Henry and meet John, his 8th great-grandchild. I protested the visit due to his many falls and troubles with his dialysis (he was on dialysis for 4 years); I didn't want anything to happen to him. I thought it would be too hard on him. Grandpa said to me "Adrienne, If I don't keep living, then what do I have to live for."

One year ago today, Valentines Day 2007, Grandpa passed away. He missed the birth of his 9th great-grandchild by only 6 weeks. I think he met him on his way to Heaven.

I couldn't make it to his funeral - John had pneumonia at 3 months old with breathing treatments every 4 hours and Henry had bronchitis. This is what I sent to be read at the funeral.

Grandpa – As I sit here and write this, I am wishing I was there to hear all the wonderful things that everyone has to say. I know I would learn so much and be able to recount some great memories that we have shared. I also know you understand that I need to take care of my babies – just like you always took care of all of us.Right now I am looking at a picture from my wedding, in which you are wearing my garter on your head – I’m unsure if this was before you put it on Grandma’s leg or retrieved it for this Kodak moment…it makes me smile – laugh actually. That is just one of my many memories of you Grandpa – I remember belly flops in the pool, birthday parties in your backyard, Grandma telling you that you loved Daisy and Goldie more than her – we all know that wasn’t true – you loved Grandma just as much as you loved your dogs…I also remember your big bear hugs that had me gasping for air, your care packages through the years that were protected by enough peanuts and tape to take an engineer to extract whatever was inside. Not only did you take care of your family, but your neighbors, and friends – both human and feathered. We are all going to miss you Grandpa – there will be a void in our hearts until we see you again…in the meantime, I know there are some TV’s that need a few repairs to keep you busy. Your body began to fail you but your heart never did…as Henry now says, “GG is all better now”.



I wrote this today not to make anyone sad but to show a life well lived. To quote Grandpa again, "If I don't keep living, then what do I have to live for." Keep living and loving with all your heart. You won't be sorry.

Uh Oh The Power is Out

8:45 PM - we're on our way up to put Henry to bed. The lights go out. Then come on. Then go out. On again. Off. Great. What now. Mad scramble to get the flashlights. Henry is on the verge of freaking out. DH is trying to find the phone book to call the power company to find out if our power is coming back on tonight or not. It began to rain / ice yesterday evening so were weren't sure (still aren't) if that is what caused the outage. Of couse we could see that the neighborhoods next to us all had power. ugh. Here's DH's conversation with the power company:

DH - "Hi, just wanted to alert you to a power outage and see if you could give us an estimate of when it will be restored"
PC - " Hmm....let's see (click clack click clack - typing) pause (click clack). Looks like the estimate is for Feb. 14th at 8 PM.
DH - Silence
PC - Sir?
DH - Yes - ok - that's 48 hours from now.
PC - Yes sir.
DH - ok - I guess - thank you.

AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

We began the task of pulling out every blanket / down comforter we had in this house preparing for all of us to sleep in our bed. Thankfully, we waited to move John because the power came back on at 10:00 PM (Henry still wide awake in our bed). We were in too deep then - Henry crashed in our bed and poor DH was crammed to the edge. Henry kept working his way over to him despite relocating him to the middle. Strangely enough, that was the best night's sleep I've gotten since Thurs. I'm definitly feeling better.

Ice on a tree in our backyard.

This car isn't going anywhere today!

I Love

• When DH wears beau ties
• When Henry wants to wear his "tie-beau" just like daddy
• No matter where we are, when John hears music he dances
• The smell of the ocean
• When Henry comes into the room John rushes over to give him a hug and Henry hugs back
• Reading a good book
• Finishing...anything!
• Spring
• The smell of fall and the leaves turning
• Crawling into a freshly made bed
• Helping someone smile
• Keebler Fudge Sticks, Breyers Chocolate ice cream, and pizza
• Both my boys are cuddlers
• Poor fat cat Gallagher who has to get attention when it fits in or the boys are chasing him
• I've done many things that I've wanted to do but have a list that is achievable over time and something to look forward to
• To sew
• When DH calls on his way home from work to see if I need anything from the store
• Feeling well
• Electricity (we lost our power last night - we had company in bed - more about that later)
• Getting packages in the mail like these:

Ordered from Kris at Monkey Foot Designs

Ordered from Montessori by Hand

As my overly sentimental DH would say "Happy Hallmark Day" tomorrow.

The Light of Day

It's so funny when you are finally able to come up for air after being sick for what seemed like an eternity. I know - it was only for 4 days - but with little ones and DH down for the count as well ... it was ... an adventure to say the least. I am so glad to be on my way to full recovery. The laundry, dishes, and sewing (I had to throw that one in!) are waiting and need to be tended to. I'm still slow but feeling much better. I did somehow manage to finish reading a book. miracle. All the Finest Girls was a decent read. Easy, quick, and recommendable {is that a word?}. I wish the ending had a little bit more closure but who am I to complain...write my first New York Times best seller and then criticize right?! Ha! I am in panic mode now though. I want read Amazing Grace in a week. My mom checked out the movie from the library but I've got this thing about wanting to read books before I watch the movie. My friend saw the movie and was so moved that she wanted to know more about William Wilberforce and read his biography; said it was well worth the read. Aint. Gonna. Happen. I'll read it after the movie. Really, I will, I'm kinda obsessive about that type of stuff. Maybe because my mom is a librarian.

I just discovered this new product from Airborne. Henry LOVES it. He's had the cleanest hands for the past 2 days. Check it out.

I tried to work on the apron for the Sassy Apron Swap but just couldn't concentrate yesterday. Maybe today...in the meantime - sending you all well wishes your way.

Take(n) Out

We've been down and out since Thursday night. All of us. It's funny how if you're under the age of ... 30-something in our house a fever just doesn't seem to slow you down. DH and I took turns playing (changing out videos) with the kids while the other tried to nap. We were quite pitiful - still are actually. Here's to take out and delivery!

Friday's Pizza & Saturday's Chinese

Sunday's sustenance courtesy of the Col.

Sunday night was Chinese again. I am convinced that egg drop soup has medicinal qualities. We can always hope!

Things Just Aren't The Same

Since I began blogging (Dec. '07), I have started to look at everyday things, well, differently. It's quite lovely actually. I tend to notice more, slow down to take pictures (and 33 more to get the perfect shot), and sit down to think about my day (the good, the bad, and the ugly). Actually, it has helped me appreciate the good soooo much more. I am very happy to have become a part of a wonderful community of women who want to make the world a better place.

OK. So why the sappy opening...well, while visiting my usual list of 'blogs that make me happy' I discovered that I was passed two awards from Linaloo. She was kind enough to not only acknowledge me but two other new bloggers. (Natasha & Crystal). Very cool.

I'm going to pass on the award to The Stitching Surgeon who has had just done a wonderful craft room...ahem...studio makeover and to my friend (who I actually know in real life!) of The Cherub's Closet.

I figured I better get started on my apron for my swap partner since there is a deadline to mail it out. I cut that out and also the fabric for The Seamstress Apron along with a belt for Henry. Here's a pic so you don't think I'm full of hot air ;-)

Speaking of hot air - I know I said I was on a fabric freeze - but you may recall me mentioning my friend who is pregnant with twins. I found the fabric for baby girl! So now I'm really on the fabric freeze. really.

Once I had washed all the fabric for my many projects I began the task of ironing. I amused myself with the realization that the only time I use my iron is for sewing. I walk out of the house looking like who-woulda-thought. Back in the day my iron got a work out. Now it only sees the light of day during my sewing escapades....such is the life!

Wardrobe Malfunction

Not Justin or Janet, just John. Yesterday when we were watching the 'machines' John decided he needed to warm up. Note: it was at least 60 some degrees here.

Double vested and knit cap

Wardrobe change. Different hat - fleece this time - shed down to only one vest but threw in a pair of my gloves.


Just too darn cute to pass up. BTW, the helmet in the background...he wore that too. I just wasn't fast enough with the camera.

Since were are on the subject of wardrobes. I had one of those random oh my gosh moments the other night. I discovered that a friend of mind has the same love of fabric / sewing / etc. as me! So what does that have to do with wardobes you ask? Check out her great blog (that also links to her Etsy store) The Cherub's Closet. I only wish I had known she made such cute childrens clothes sooner! And not just for girls either! She can also do custom work AND she LIKES to work with knits - what a woman. Definitly not any wardrobe malfunctioning going on there...Unfortuately, I did not get to any sewing yesterday. I just nursed a sinus headache (thanks to the dramatic change in the weather) and then it progressed into a migrane. Too many Sudafed Sinus' later to count, I still have a bit of a headache. Hopefully it will pass soon. I've got a alot of sewing to do!

And the List Goes On...

As if I need more fabric and projects in the queue...look what came in the mail yesterday. Jessica from How about orange designed these for J. Caroline Creative. I love this fabric!

And yes, I do have plans for these beauties. I am going to make the gardening tote from Lotta's Simple Sewing book. In my free time of course - ha! When I showed DH my fabric he said "Yeah that's great....because we do so much gardening." Ahem...we have to start somewhere and why not look good while you are toting those tool-thingys around ;-)

I also ordered ribbon to make belts for Henry. I am going to experiment with the closure to make it easier for him to do on his own. I'll let you know how it turns out and if they are 3 1/2 year old friendly!

Who says boy's clothes can't be fun!

And continuing with our list of 'home improvement' ... we've had an exciting morning here - at least from Henry and John's perspective. What in the world could keep these two busy boys so captivated you ask?

(Disregard the utterly filthy pane of glass)

Heavy equipment my dears...heavy equipment...

That's our driveway. We are finally widening it. You should see the inside of my van - 3 words - Virginia. Red. Clay. For those of you not familiar with our lovely soil here - take a good look at the picture - it's orange and gets ground into everything....like the floor mats in my car. This should solve the tracking mud everywhere problem (wishful thinking).

I'd say I'm on a fabric shopping freeze and need to begin a washing, ironing, cutting, and sewing marathon. I'm starting with The Seamstress Apron - gotta get those scissors and that seam ripper within reach. Wish me luck - I don't have much endurance!