Monday, February 25, 2008

Will the REAL Me, Please Stand Up.

I am pretty much a vanilla person. My house has white walls and beige carpet. Most of my window coverings are off white or beige. My clothes and jewelry are very conservative. The gal who cuts my hair gets very frustrated with me because I have gotten the same haircut forever. She keeps trying to talk me into something more "trendy". I don't want to stand out in a crowd, vanilla, white cotton underwear is who I am.

So please explain this to me.



This is my Super Bowl Bonnie Hunter bargello top. Yeah, I know the Super Bowl was a long time ago but when you don't start something until after it is all over, you are late and that is me too. I am not a BOM or a Hour a Day or even a Quilt a Month person. It's not when I do it, just that I finally do it!

This is NOT a quilt that I would display in my home but I love every bright color in there. There are over 47 strips in the first strip set and each one was different so there are well over 60 bright fabrics in this, all from my stash. Now all fabric makes me happy but the bright ones reach out and say, "You just have to take us home, NOW!" Most of the time I have NO idea what I would do with such fabric and I wait until I find a fat quarter or a remnant but I have a nice box labeled "brights".

I think in my past life, if you believe in such a thing, I was a painter. I painted large canvas's with lots of bright swirls of paint. I don't think I was very successful at it though, and opted to be vanilla in this life.

I often mention that quilting for me is a journey. Well, this one was no exception. I thought a lot about what this quilt said about me, and who I am. I love color, lots of bright, loud color. I just don't quite know what to do with it though so it comes out in my quilts and makes me happy. Next quilt will be vanilla to make the other side of me happy too.

What were you in your past life?

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Happy Birthday to Amelia!

A little bird told me that the 20th is Amelia's birthday. So drop on over to Amelia's Musings and send her your good wishes for a great day!

NOTE Katie asked mentioned 100 degree temps here in Feb. Maybe what I wrote is only clear to me? Has happened more than once in my life! LOL Our average temp now is in the mid 70's. The 100 degrees will be happening here when those of you in the middle of winter snow and ice right now have Spring, late April or early May.

Monday, February 18, 2008

Early Spring in AZ.

This is for Belvie and Finn and anyone else out there who is fighting the ice, snow and cold of winter. The great white hunter planted these today, he will do tomato plants out back tomorrow. The grands came over and we did our annual planting the cucumber and sunflower seeds. Julia planted another apple seed. Two years ago she did one and it did great but it died last summer. If we are to have these kinds of flowers here in the desert, got to have them now. When most of the country is having Spring, we are in the midst of over 100 degree temps already and they just fizzle!



Do you remember that tree I showed in December that was brown, yellow and gold? Well, just a few short weeks later and it is green and is in bloom. All those neat little white flowers will turn into nasty little round things that drop and make us call the tree bad names but, it's pretty now, don't you think?





When I was about six or seven and living in a mountain town in Colorado, there was a neighborhood grocery store just across the street from our house. I was allowed to freely go back and forth, life was safer and gentler then for a child. One day, my mother sent me to buy a lemon. I don't remember what it cost but as I was coming home with my lemon in hand, a lady walking down the street stopped me and asked about my lemon. I told her I had just bought it at the store. She asked me how much and I told her. (never mind I was talking to a complete stranger who was comfortable talking to a child on the street..........that is how it was in the mid 50's). She told me that where she lived, she had a lemon tree in her back yard and she could just pick lemons without going to the store. Then she gave me whatever coin it was that I had paid for my lemon. She said that way, it was like she had given me a lemon out of her own yard and to enjoy it. She went her merry way down the street and I ran home, thrilled because I knew my mother would let me keep the coin the lady gave me.

Now why after 50 some years, I still remember this, I have no idea but when I look out my kitchen window at my neighbor's lemon tree that hangs way over into our yard, I think about that lady. Of course, I can't find a child to do that for. Number one, kids don't just run to the store anymore. And number two, if I stopped a child on the street and gave them money, I would be sitting in a jail cell somewhere. Sad commentary on the life of a child in today's world.



Hope to have something quilty soon!

Please Blogger, fix spell check!! My spelling skills were never great but after using spell check for a while, they are even worse. So if it is mispelled, folks, just smile and do your best!

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Exhausted!

Remember all those boxes of fabric I dug out of the closet to sort? After much moaning and groaning, I finally finished them and got them labeled and back in on the shelves. I still have some things I printed out to put in the binders I keep them on and some WIP that I need to get all together but it is looking better. I might even have a picture of the sewing table here soon. I know where it is now!







Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Valentine for Fiona

Have you ever had someone give you a Christmas gift that you didn't expect? You don't have one for them and you stand there looking like a idiot. If you go get something and give it to them later, it is pretty clear that the reason you are giving to them is because they gave to you. It gets embarrassing for everyone at this point. Then when the one giving you the gift is a little one, you really feel bad.

I made Halloween bags for all the neighbor kids this year and beings I wasn't going to be home for trick or treat, Colin and I took them around to the houses. I don't know these people very well but they were so pleased that we thought of their little one that they both thanked me on seperate occasions. Christmas Eve they brought the little one over and she had a box of candy for us. And I stood there like the village idiot with nothing for her.

I have been waiting for Valentine's Day so I could do something for Fiona. Last night, I made this bag out of pre quilted fabric and today I filled it. The pocket has crayons, a memory card game and some stickers. The bag has a cute stuffed dog and a color book along with a box of candy hearts. I will let Colin deliver it when he is here tomorrow and hope that I have redeemed myself to that sweet little girl.

Then there is the issue of the fun I had making the bag and shopping to fill it, I am giving but I definately got a lot out of it for ME!

Monday, February 11, 2008

Weekend in the Snow

I know for some of you that are really tired of fighting snow and ice, it is hard to believe that my family drove for almost 3 1/2 hours to spend the weekend in the snow.
We rented a cabin in Greer, AZ close to the Sunrise Ski resort. The kids went up on Friday night after work, the great white hunter and I came up on Sat. morning.

Here is the view outside the cabin.




Julia and I went down a very steep and bumpy hill on the sled. Needless to say, I only went once. A few of those bumps were so hard that my breakfast got jarred and I thought I was going to lose it at the bottom of the hill. So, I just took the pictures and let Papa and DD go down on the sleds with the kids. I am a wimp!





This is a view from the road showing the ski runs at the ski resort. Our DIL and SIL skied. Most of the SIL's slope time was helping Julia on the bunny slope. They signed her up for a lesson and then he helped her practice on Sat. He went back on Sunday morning to ski alone while we went sledding. She had a rough time with the lesson, a few tears were shed but once she stopped crying and the instructor worked with her, she loved it and did really well. Next trip, lessons for Colin!




Several of you mentioned coming for milk and cookies after my last post. Wouldn't that be great if we could all sit and do that? It would be so fun to meet you and sit and chat. Then we could all sew! One of the frustrations of making friends this way, is you are there and I am here!!

Spell check is not working again............so if it is mispelled, just make a good guess!

Friday, February 8, 2008

Cookies, Anyone?

I know, it's lame but it is as about as creative as it got around here today. We are celebrating the great white hunter son #2's birthday this weekend and I promised cookies. I have to tell you, though, that I am NOT old enough to have a kid that is 38 so I don't know where he came from. And if you believe that, you will believe that I am done sorting all those boxes of fabric.

Wednesday, February 6, 2008

I Hope You Voted

Yesterday was election day for many. In the State of Arizona, people registered as INDEPENDENT for their party choice are not allowed to vote in the primary elections. So as a life long registered INDEPENDENT voter, I did not go to the polls.

It seems to me that not allowing people who do not choose a party the right to cast their vote goes very much against the "freedom to choose" that our great country was founded upon. No where does it say "freedom to choose, only if you choose a party." I will be allowed to vote in the regular election, however.

I was reading a discussion where people said you should claim a party just so you could vote. I don't think so! I do not wish to vote party affiliations, I want to just pick who I think is the best person for the job. Sounds simple enough for me.

Why have the great white hunter and I always been "Independent" voters? He comes from a bible belt Baptist Republican family and I came from a Irish Catholic Democrat family. We both found ourselves more interested in the canidates than party politics and decided to go our own way long ago. This is, the first state though that does not value our voice. Poo to you, AZ!

On a quilting/de-clutter front, I am sorting fabric. I will be sorting fabric for a while! I decided that the best way to clean the sewing room would be to just empty out the closet and re do the fabric boxes and some craft supplies, then work around the room.

I had all the fabric sorted by color and holiday but when I bought more, it didn't get put in the right box because they are so hard to get in and out of the closet because of the way I have things stacked in there. Hopefully, once I get them sorted it will make some space in both the closet and the room. One box of craft things I no longer use is going on the garage sale.

I need to get this room in shape so I can get back to sewing. Too, we have a friend coming to visit in April and she will need a bed to sleep in.......think I can make that deadline?


Monday, February 4, 2008

The End of the Rainbow

It is wet, dark, cold and down right nasty here in the Valley Of the Sun today. It was raining when I got up and has been raining off and on all day. About two I looked out and it was really dark and nasty, they say on the news that the worst is yet to come.

Ugh, my mood seems to match the weather. The great white hunter is cranky too. It is just a day to wrap in a quilt, be lazy and eat all the stuff you aren't supposed to eat!

I bundled up in my hoodie sweatshirt, put on my old shoes and trudged off to the mailbox, hoping that the mailman brought a new magazine or something. After I got the mail out of the box and turned around, this is what I saw.




You know, you can find good in everything if you just take the time to look for it. I didn't see it going to the mailbox because my head was down. I had to look up crossing the street and there you are! The rainbow was a full one, I just couldn't get a picture of the ends. If you look close, there is a second one behind the side rainbow. Isn't it great?