Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Tye-Dyed shirt for Tracy

Hello Dear Friends,
     Time to work on another project??? Hummmmm? Well, my first daughter-in-law has been hinting . I made her a shirt out of this fabric last Christmas and put a little pink dragon on it . He was so cute and made you feel good just to see him. Soooo, twice she has hinted and asked IF I had any of the fabric left over????? LOL The only problem with her first shirt is now it is too small for her??? I have pondered it because it should not be??? I used the large size of tee shirt and it even fits me -so I have trouble believing that the size is the problem because I have always worn a larger size than she. ???Maybe the fabric shrank??? I always pre-wash the fabrics I use hoping to prevent that problem?? I really cannot figure out what went wrong? Sooo, I pulled the fabric out of my stash trashcan (LOL) and cut out a new size large. This time I  did add some to the waist area - hoping to overcome what-ever is wrong. Of course when I am working I have to be supervised: Miss Mocha is on duty today.

My little 3 pound bundle of joy keeps me on track and I appreciate all of her hard efforts. It is a dirty job, but someone has to do it! :) As I have mentioned before -picking out a design can really add up in time ! Especially since I have used most of my designs I have collected  up to this point. But , I did finally decide upon one for this project. No  wonder time seems to fly when you consider that you have to find the fabric (and in my case -be a penny - pincher) -then decide which pattern you want to make for which person??? Next find a design and hope your embroidery machine will "Play fair" with you as you strive to complete this project ! Time just flys by.

My dear Brother machine has decided to take pity on me and sew out the design without too much disagreement  and I am so grateful for that. I will have to call it quits for tonight because I need to go make DH's coffee and have it ready for him in the morning. We are going to West Va. to check on DH's sister that had that medical procedure yesterday. Also , her DH is just not up to par and it scares me because it was not too long past when he had open heart surgery and he worries that he is not back up with his energy. This stage of our lives seems so uncertain to me here lately?So, if I  happen to not be online tomorrow night - that trip will be the reason. I HATE long rides - I hope I can remember to take one of my trip pills because it is just a necessity to take this trip and see if we can be of any help to them both.  So, love to everyone and have a wonderful day - OR - night ! :)

Monday, June 28, 2010

Ashley's Love Shirt & the little bird who knocked

This is a picture of the little bird who knocked at our door a couple days ago. We caught it and put it in a little cage until the next morning so it could see to fly.It was such a thrill to be of assistance to one so small.

Another day that just flew by too fast but I was able to hop on another Christmas shirt for the granddaughter who just had the baby shower. Neckbands used to always give me a fit but this one is showing promise. I used to not do that top-stitching around the neck because I was always a "drunk-sewer", but now I kinda take it as a challenge and have a "top-secret" conversation with myself as I work my way around.

She wears a size small , but the picture makes it look larger than that?

This is a close up of the embroidery. I could not come up with something unique  for her because her life is changing so much. She went from a school girl - to a home-schooled girl (when she was assaulted by a boy the first week she was in school and when she tried to return back the second week the boy met her at the door and told her that she was in for it again) ?????? So, she called her parents to come get her and they decided to home school her. She was still recovering from the trama of seeing an old man shot to death in front of her while visiting her friend , by a policeman who thought the old man was attacking him. It was a terrible time. She did make it through a year of home schooling and then she got married and got pregnant in the last year. SO many changes that I just cannot get a handle on what is going on with her???

I have to get up early in the morning to do chores and eat and then we have to go to a hospital 45 miles away.DH 's sister is having some kind of procedure where they inject dye and follow its path through her heart. They said she has some kind of "shadow" across her heart and they intend to check it out. We have no idea how long it will take -and if she will have to stay or what. So, If I do not show up -that is where I got lost at! I hope all of you have a wonderful day !

Sunday, June 27, 2010

A new week starts with a baby shower

Today was a beautiful sunny day -some would even venture to call it hot-but not me. As much as I dislike Winter I am willing to go alone with anything else and not complain. There was a baby shower at my son and daughter-in-laws house for one of my granddaughter. It was really pretty because Tracy had decorated their carport with little blue things and food and drinks. The church loaned her the tables and chairs and they had two fans running. I got to meet the grooms family and they were all so sweet. They really brought wonderful gifts and I think she will be covered for quiet a while.I don't think anything got left out and she received 2 and 3 of some things and she told her Uncle that what ever she had copies of -she would give them to Meagan (my younger son's wife-due in Nov.) I think he appreciated that. He is the one who had the back surgery. He is kind of limping along taking baby steps and still  on his crutches. It still kills me to see him hurting.

 This looks funny because it is a picture of Ashley's belly and it was for a game where everybody got a piece of tape and you were suppose to cut it the length that it would take to go around her belly. LOL

This second picture is where they took the tape to Ashley's sister-in-law and she measured her belly because she said she remembered being that size 3 months past. But, it did not work for her -she guessed too big. I guessed to little , lol .

This is Ashley's sister and Aunt as they look on watching the process.  I think everybody had a great time and I believe that she has married into a very sweet family.

I hope all of you have had a very nice day . The temperature here today was 95 so it was nice with the breeze blowing. I had to think of my buddies who does not have warm temperatures today.:)

It seemed like she liked the things that I had made for her as she smiled when she opened them. They were the only handmade items that she received.I heard one lady say that handmade items were so special and that sometimes they turned into heirloom pieces. That was a really nice thought.I could have hugged her for that comment, but I was afraid I would scare her to death. :)

Saturday, June 26, 2010

Ashley's Baby Things

Tomorrow is a baby shower for one of the granddaughters. I found out yesterday that she loves anything Winnie the Pooh, so we went back to The School House Fabrics that I love so much. Yea - I forgot my camera AGAIN! But, this is what I came back home with.

Number 1 project is a smaller lap pad . I thought she could use it to lay him on to change diapers or use it as a cover this winter. Then the second project from that piece of fleece is:

A larger size blanket that I used the fleece for the front and a piece of flannel for the back. Everything nice and soft and with this size it can be used in a baby bed -if she wants to.

This is a 30 x 30 lightweight blanket with two different flannel panels - yea- that is Winnie the Pooh!
This was the scrap that was left over from the blanket , so I decided to use it as a burp cloth.

This is a second piece of flannel with Winnie and I am backing it with a solid green flannel.
AAAaHHh - what is it about the essence of  a new baby???? They are so sweet and sooooo much work. Now I know why they are gifts to the young ladies who have more strength and energy. When I had our first one - I thought I would DIE from lack of sleep. How in the world can something so little and defenseless have sooo much energy and never need sleep??????????????????

Next comes bibs. I am not happy with them for some reason. I used velcro to close them and I just did not trust it. I ironed it on like it said-but it seemed like a weak attachment so I came along and sewed the edges .

So, here is my collection so far. I am pooped! I still have some fabric left, but I think I will use it for my second daughter-in-law who is expecting in November. There is going to be So many babies running around that it is hard for me to believe.At least they will be able to find somebody else to play with and get into trouble with. LOL

Friday, June 25, 2010

Friday musings

Today was another beautiful day. It started early because DH had to take me to the hospital for bloodwork. I DO NOT like Needles ! But, I got REALLY lucky and the wonderful nurse that took my blood did it without even Hurting me! I could hardly tell she had did it- I think the bandage hurt more than the needle! Wow- that had to be a good sign. :) We made our way back home and DH took one of the grandsons with him fishing and I got to do some much needed cleaning. To the point that my back was killing me . I fixed me a cucumber and cream cheese sandwich and sat down to rest it.  Then I went back to work and finished up the cleaning so that let my mind rest so that I allowed myself to play.

I have another shirt in the works for another granddaughter for Christmas. This is the design I settled on and I am not one hundred percent happy with it, but you know how it is when you go feeling in the dark?????



Sometimes things just take life of their own.

So, I changed the colors some and maybe will use the pink thread to top-stitch the neck??? I was hoping to complete it but DH and grandson came home to clean their fish and this is what they caught.

Well, I better go clean up a fishy mess - happy stitches to one and all! :)

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Mad Cat shirt

What a beautiful day. I have just came back from my doctor for a 6 months check up on my fibromyalgia meds. I always turn into a "fraidy cat" anytime that you mention the word doctor. DH has gone fishing and my sewing room and I are "ONE"! LOL Time for some fun -and see IF I can do better today than yesterday.

I am starting with a tee shirt for one of my granddaughters . I start with sewing the shoulders together and it seems to be going right (YEA!)



This time I will try VERY hard to remember NOT TO sew the neck band on the neck the wrong way - so I will not have to spend time ripping it out this time. Our sky was so beautiful and blue , but now the skies are turning gray and my computer weather is flashing a warning. That's ok because my head is flashing a warning too! LOL



Really cool - I managed to put on the neckband and it is on the Correct side and no "ripping" for me! Yea!
So , now I go back and topstitch around the band where it is sewed to the neck and I actually concentrate enough that I do not make any mistakes-Boy! Luck must be on my side today. I guess I will add the sleeves now .



After the sleeves are added on I run the serger across the hem area of the sleeve to make it easier to sew and then run a seam down the side of the shirt and it is almost done! All I have to do now is put the hem in the sleeve and the bottom of the shirt! I LOVE it when my brain co-operates and "a plan comes together"!!!!


OK, let me pull up a close up of the design. I love the kitty but still have not come up with a nifty quote? Got any ideas?? I am thinking of doing me one . This one is a medium and it will be for one of my granddaughters for Christmas.

I have to go for bloodwork in the morning so I better get ready for bed. Good night to All! :)





Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Parrot -Do Your Own Thing

I had gone outdoors this morning to do all my chores and I was pulling grass for the guinea pigs when I heard a noise that sounded like a helicopter. I stopped and listened and it got quieter, so I went back to pulling grass from under an apple tree. I heard it again -3 times it did that and then it got quiet. I leaned down and pulled more grass and weeds and all of a sudden I heard A VERY LOUD noise - like a small bomb and then everything got deathly quiet. It scared me because I was afraid that it had crashed -what -ever It was????

But I was tired and took the grass to the piggies and not hearing anything I gave up on it. So, I still have NO idea what I was hearing. I came on in and took a bath and fixed my lunch and then Came in to sew. I had laid out a shirt front to embroider and picked out a design and I heard another noise so I went to the living room to peek out the door and this was what I saw:

Talk about timing being everything -I was lucky I had come on in because only 15 minutes ago -the sun was shining bright.!

So now I could sew in peace and not be disturbed for a while . The rain on the roof was a very soothing sound and I  pulled out a front shirt panel and went to embroidering a design on it that will be for my sister-in-law for Christmas. It is a sweet happy bird and it just makes you want to smile back it it.

After finishing the design I placed the front to the back panel -right sides together and sewed at the shoulders.

Next I moved on the the neck band. I folded it in half and sewed it together-then marked 4 even spaces on both the shirt neck and also on the band. Now it was time to line these marks all together .

Here is the band matched up to the body neck.This is where I zigzag the two pieces together before I serge them. If I do not do this the two parts of the band will slide on me and ruin it.

OF COURSE I had to mess up and sew the wrong sides of the pieces together - so it is Normal for me.:) I even pondered just sewing a top stitch to the white threads because I have been seeing clothes that are sewed inside out and it is the style??? But I changed my mind - it made me feel like I cheated because I knew I did not start out wanting it that way -although I do know that boo-boos have lead to new styles ??? :)
Next I serge around the hems in the bottom edge and the sleeves to make them appear cleaner and also to make it easier for me to sew by.

Success at last- I really do like this shirt -it is a 42-44 . Let me get a close-up on the design.

Now, isn't it just so sweet and makes you want to smile! I think the whole world needs more smiles.

You know there always has to be something quirky with me. I had finished the shirt and was downloading the pictures for my blog and my modem stopped working . It has  been doing that at least once a day here lately - so I went back into the kitchen to turn it off and turn it back on and was in the process of that when I heard another noise(what is it with me today -???)I turned around to look at the back door and it looked like a big moth hitting the glass door?? I looked closer and discovered it was a young bird and it was just banging its little body on the door and fall and back on the door and fall. It scared me to watch it fall because my kitty was somewhere and I did not want him to have bird for a snack in the dark . DH had screwed this door closed during the winter and I did not think I would be able to open it - but I got lucky he had taken the screws out.  I gave a big yank and the little bird fell back to earth and just as I reached for it - it took off one more time and came shooting in the house. I ran the cats into sewing room and grabbed a towel and went back to help DH as he was keeping an eye on the little fast flying jet with wings. We eventually headed it into a small room and with both of us corralling it finally DH managed to cover it with his towel. I took it and went back into the living room to take a look at our little visitor. It was so small and  brown with  a white band around its neck. That white was what made me think it was a moth at first. I looked the little one over good and it was not hurt , just scared. I sat and held it for a few minutes trying to figure out what to do with it??? Finally I decided to put it in a small birdcage  because it would be unable to fly in the dark . In the morning I plan to release it , if it is still ok. At least I will be able to sleep tonight and not worry about it. :)

See, I always have so many adventures? LOL
Good night to one and all!

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Tuesday has come and gone and we accomplished a lot.

Hello my little blog family!

I hope this finds you well and happy and enjoying our seasons!ESPECIALLY me enjoying our summer! Yea! I am pooped once again -because we worked till 12 o'clock tonight on the boat canopy! AND I am thrilled to say that we officially finished it! Whoopee! The man is waiting to receive it and I am dieing to know what he thinks of it. I told DH that was really Hard Work  working with something so big and all the pushing and pulling . Sometimes it took all four of us just to wrestle with it. SOO many zippers and they were 5 and 6 feet long.

My son and his wife really worked so hard to complete this job. I don't know how my son could stay up so late and still get up to put in a full day's work running machinery in this heat? He had some really great ideas and saved the day with his brain -since I overiously  don't have one anymore???

Tracy and I walked out to see her little garden and this year she has put a lot of hard work into it and it looks so pretty. She has many baby cucumbers . I told her that they would be really good on a cream cheese sandwich! Yum! Right now I have her hooked on cream cheese and green peppers for a sandwich.

Something is always going on at their house and with two of their kids now with a baby  in each family - a lot of babies and still one more to "hatch" in a couple of months . Then my younger son who had the back surgery is looking forward to their baby arriving in Nov.I have never seen so many babies arrive in one family at one time. There must have been something in their water??????????????????????????

We also made it to the mill to get feed for all of our critters and then came home and unloaded it  nice and early -before the major heat . DH's truck does not have air conditioning on it and when it gets over 80 degrees I get sick-so I was so grateful to get that job completed !

It is past my bedtime once again and DH is hoping to go fishing early in the morning and I hope to accomplish some of my dreams now! Yea!  I love you all - so take care and enjoy life.
Hugs!

Monday, June 21, 2010

Camo Ornament Monday

My day has flown off and left me . As usual I worked on my critters all morning and we had to make a quick trip to town. Then we made a run by my son and daughter-in-law's to see if we could help on the boat canopy. Tracy had put another zipper in today . She decided to take a break and have a cone of ice cream with DH , so I asked her what she would like me to do. She had two flaps that needed to be hemmed, so that put me on her commerical machine. This is only the second time I have touched it , but I have been paying attention as she has learned to use it. I took the serger to it so it would look more finished in my book. By the time I had done about half -my DS showed up , home from work. He looked so tired to me.

I did get the two flaps sewed and daughter-in-law came back and went back to work adding some binding while I ironed some more for her, as I like everything ironed because of the nice crisp edge it leaves.Cory figured out how everything should lay and she went to work on some more zippers. This thing has about 12 big zippers on it. Then she pulled one of MY great moves that I call Drunk Sewing and lost her nice straight edge and took a wobble and then a bobble. I held my breath because I knew there was going to be "trouble in the Amen corner".Cory told her that would not pass -that they had worked too hard and too long  to give their first customer a mess like that. I could feel the tension in the air and I told them that I thought we ought to take a break since it was almost midnight  and he had to still take a bath and get a little sleep for work tomorrow. I could not live on the small amount of sleep he deals with.

So I decided to come on home and do up some chores and I will have to get up early in the morning to go get feed . We need to take the truck to have room for the feed , so that means taking DH truck and it does not have air on it. They are calling for 94 degrees and that temperature makes me sick , so we hope to get the feed and get back home and unload it before the temperature gets too high. Or, at least that is the plan. Then we will head over to see if I can help Tracy any. She said that she talked to the man today and explained why the project is taking longer than she had originally told him and he was not upset .He said as long as he gets it by Friday it will be alright. He also told her that IF the canopy fits right and looks good that there are a LOT of people on the lake where his boat is that need this work done and there is nobody to do it out there. She was pondering about it. IF I could just poke my brain in the pencil sharpener where I could become "SHARP" again -I might be some good help??? O, well - I better drag off to bed as it is 2:30 in the morning .

This is the one project that I managed to pull off after I got home tonight. I thought my younger son might get a kick out of a Camo Ornament  because he has always loved the camo color and I wanted him to know it was just for him -this coming Christmas. ! ;)

I hope each of you have a wonderful new day!
love to all and many happy stitches to all

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Got Lost on a Boat Canopy

I am so sorry that I was gone. My son brought home to his house a project of making a canopy for a boat. He had done some research and found that there were not many people in our next of the woods that did that kind of work. I think there are two and they stay packed with business and usually stay about 3 months behind time.Of course I had never made a boat canopy and neither had his wife. He thought it would be so wonderful IF his wife and I could learn this skill.

It would be so wonderful IF I could -but with this fibromyalgia -when what they call a fibromyalgia  fog hits you - it is like losing yourself in a fog and no matter how hard you try - you just cannot pull up the information that you need. And of course this was one of those times for me. I would look at it and I just could not see his ideas. I knew they were great ideas - But - with this you can look at something all day long and not make heads of tales  out of most anything .You know that "deer in the headlights" feeling - that pretty well describes it and I certainly did not want to blow the project for him . I bluffed for a while -but finally Just had to tell him I could not understand and could not make any sense in my head. I know he had to be puzzled because I used to be full of ideas and I really did not want for him to see that side of me now. It was disappointing and we made SOOO many mistakes . We have worked hard of it for the last week and the last couple of nights -we have worked late into the night and I am SOOO tired. It breaks my heart to disappoint him . IF I had it in me I would be thrilled to just take it and make it and take the burden off of him.But, I don't have it in me . That fibromyalgia Is a big pain in the "rumpus"!It is the main reason that I have so much trouble sewing the pants and ripping them out and sewing them again and ripping them out again. It is a nightmare -but you just have to work with what you have got.I would never disappoint my sons -if I had my way.  I  know that he hopped that his wife and I would take off like rockets and be able to turn it into a business for both of us and I would have loved that too.It's like life took a left when I took a right and I got lost in the blur.

I also got to see our younger son who had back surgery about 3 weeks ago .He and his little pregnant wife came up to the older son's house for a small cook-out. HE is in SO much pain that it breaks my heart. He said his back has improved a little bit -but now the pain in all the joints in his leg Is driving him crazy,but the doctor said it takes time to heal. I could not help but notice how much weight he had lost. Just 9 weeks ago he was a happy -healthy average young man working hard on heavy machinery and looking forward to his first baby in Nov. Now he is a scared young man dealing with overload of pain and not knowing from one day to the next how he will deal with this mess of pain that he finds himself in . It is a horrible thing to see your children hurting and not be able to fix the boo-boo with a kiss like you could when they were small.

Plus, we now have a small pile of trees that have come down in our yard from all the wind and the rain we have had lately. I heard the trees snapping  a couple of nights ago, but I could not find them in the dark -so we waited until daylight and there they were. DH has asked the grandkids if they will help and they said yes.

I am sorry I have no pictures to share, but I would think it would not take long to do this boat project and then it would be Very Late when we got home and I can hardly keep my eyes open. Last night when we came home at 2AM and my eyes were burning and tearing up and I was rubbing them  like crazy. I told DH -do you know what my eyes are doing? He said no and I told him that my eyeballs were crying -but I was not and he laughed. Then I asked him - "DO your know what my eyeballs have said to me" and he said no, what? They told me that They were almost 60 years old and they were not being treated right!  LOL


I hope everyone is happy and healthy and the best wishes for all of you. :)

Friday, June 18, 2010

Sitting in a chair??????

I never knew that sitting in a chair for 5 hours could be SO painful! I had cut out a shirt and was searching for a "special " design  -one minute I just started and the next it was 5 hours later and my neck was KILLING me! To relieve the pain I intended to take a short walk and then I realized that my joints were all stiff and swollen and I needed one of those keys to wind me up to MOVE! :(

I decided I definitely needed that short walk to relieve the pain and make my joints realize I was still alive and they needed to "get with the program " and work. There is nothing like the beauty of Mother Nature to inspire me. I grabbed my camera and the first flower I met blooming was a new to me -daylilly that I had planted last year and I really love the color! Let's see what else I can find?

They call this a black hollyhock and this is the first time I have seen her bloom and show herself! I need to tie her up a little because the wind has been messing with her. That is the one problem with the tall and graceful flowers.

Awwwwwhhhh! Beautiful yellow rays of sunshine captured in a magnificent flower! It makes me feel better as I hobble around . I wish I could digitize designs. I don't know which would be my biggest challenge : The cost - or - the learning curve???This is one of the challenges of decorating the shirts - I like to capture the perfect essence of the person -or - just make them laugh and sometimes it is very difficult to find what I am looking for  and that takes up a lot of time.

I really do love these daylillies .I do not remember ever hearing of them when I was younger and I only met them within the past 10 years. I love the beautiful colors that they have and that they keep the colors coming to paint my day with dreams in colors!

This little jewel forgot to bloom last year and I am so surprised to see it this afternoon . Well, if it is not afraid to tackle challenges - I should follow in its "petals" (WELLLLLL - it does not  have footsteps that I can follow in ????? :)

I have got to go feed DH -his stomach is rumbling and he is "dieing of hunger" as he says!  LOL Neither one of us look like we have missed many meals . LOL

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Have you ever Procrastinated?


Well, let me show you how to really get into Procrastination! LOL















I just could not believe what my eyes were telling me -so that is why I am taking different angles ! LOL


This is one of those times when you just turn around and take a gander - and then you do a "retake" -not believing what you see. That is a plastic tub with my embroidery threads in and it is not that big???










It doesn't seem to matter about which way you look at it -it is still so funny! I know this feeling. LOL

So, between Miss Rosie's melt-down and my wrapping presents today - it has still been a beautiful day. Now, I am doing some research trying to figure out some embroidery designs for the next batch. Sometimes I get lucky and sometimes I do not for days!

I did have one wonderful event-one of my girlfriends who has just lately became a widow stopped by for a few minutes! I was SO thrilled to see her! She is only 56 and her hubby was around that age also. Rheumatoid arthritis was what took him away -with pneumonia complications. He was such a wonderful person and I hate it so much. I have kept her in my prayers daily -- but did not call or stop by because I was afraid I would infringe on her grieving. I  had thought that her family would be there , but she said not. It certainly breaks my heart to see my friend so hurt.

Love to one and all and live like this is the last day.