a new toy!

I was searching for craft projects I might do with Kiara when she is over.  I feel it is up to me to foster her creativity. (I have my own dear grandmother to thank for teaching me all the "womanly arts"- knitting, crocheting and sewing, etc.)

So in my wandering around I found this project called a "flextangle".  I don't know if Kiara will be interested in it, but I just HAD to try it!


This is the template all decorated with zentangle. 




After folding and gluing it looks like this.

  You rotate the sides to get a different kaleidoscope on each side!

  

 Isn't that fun???

The zentangle one was my first impulse but to make it look like something she would want t try, I also did one with colored sharpies

If you have a child who might be interested, it doesn't take that long.  And I just used a glue stick, so you don't need the glue they show.
Have fun!!

Earth day is tomorrow.  In the 45 years since it began a lot has changed.  But there is still more to do.  Never forget that every little bit helps!

I am grateful for:
A cornstalk sword fight with Kiara
Crockpot cooking
Getting the serger to work passably well again
Giving up  perfection in favor of finishing
Color in the world again!

Finally- Spring!

Spring has finally arrived for real here in Western NY.  We have had a rather glorious run of weather since Easter. (when it snowed, by the way)               

I am very happy to see my crocuses create their carpet of color right outside the door.  I also love how happy the honeybees are!

The mini irises also put on a nice early season show of color!

Of course, the spring also bring with it a long cleaning list.  But at least I get to do THIS kind of housework outside where I can listen to the birds and frog singing, watch the birds squabble over nesting sites and soak up the sun's bright energy after a long grey winter. 






Inside, I am still plugging away on baby stuff.  It is almost down to "any minute" and I couldn't be more excited. 

I just love these tiny socks I knitted for him. 













And, even though the diapers have given me many frustrating moments- and may result in me buying a new serger- I can't wait to see them wrapped around a tiny little behind.  Aren't they adorable?









I spent a few minutes playing with the lino block stamps we cut in ArtCGirlz, using the versatex inks I just got.  Someday when I can play with fabric again, I'll find a good home for these.

Now for the editorials--

1- I placed an order with CT Publishing when Kathi alerted us all to a great sale.  Yup, great prices.  However, their service blows!  I got a confirmation of the order, then a notice that it had shipped, but when I clicked to get tracking information, the website said my order was "awaiting fulfillment". So I sent in a message asking for confirmation and tracking information.  I finally got a response 5 days AFTER my order arrived; having been delivered to me by a neighbor since the mail service is the absolute worst lately!

2- I switched to the digital edition of the American Quilter magazine when I renewed my membership this year.  I don't have to recycle paper waste I don't create, plus I can store infinite issues digitally (in theory).  However, they don't let me know when the new issue is available- usually 2 weeks after it hits newsstands.  And this month the pictures are so blurry I might as well not even bother looking at them!  In a magazine touting pictures of winners in one of their shows. 

3- speaking of the postal service, if you have been having as much trouble as those of us in the Rochester- Buffalo area have, please contact your representatives to demand better service!  At the very least use the contact us link at the post office website EVERY time you have an issue.  I filled out this form for mail left unsecured on my porch and the postmaster called me back the next day!

Remember, the number one threat to our society is complacency!!

I am grateful for:
Friends I can laugh with until my sides hurt.
Pizza
Daffodils on my desk
someone to commiserate with
really awful old horror movies,like this one, on dvd .

Bittersweet reunion

 This is Tim/ Tina.  She was brought in to the shelter a couple of weeks ago- about three years after she was adopted from us.  There were at first conflicting reports of what had befallen this cat and lead to her being returned to our care.  One of the issues was supposed to be littler box issues.  ( I believe this is used as an excuse when people have no good reason to get rid of a cat they no longer want- second only to someone developing allergies)
Anyway,  I wasn't there when she was turned in.  But when I got there on my regular Wednesday at the shelter, I went to meet her and noticed the tiny stub of a tail and immediately knew she was part of my very first group of foster kittens!  I was so sure because I adopted my cat from that litter.  That's right- Tim (because she was and still is a very timid cat) is George's sister!!!

So, after a few days of keeping Tim in the "nursery" to make sure there weren't really any litter box issues, I decided to let her play with her sissy.  I don't know if cats have this kind of long term memory, but after an initial sniffing and watching each other phase, they are playing like they have never been apart!   

I tried to get a picture of the two of them together, but this was as close as I could get to that.  They lay in separate spots, watching each other very intently. As soon as one of them moves, they both run like hell.  It's hilarious but very hard to photograph.  I wish they could stay together, but I am allowed one cat and only one cat.  (sigh)


My grandson, who I hear will be named Jonathan, is a mere 7 weeks from making his appearance into the world.  I am still trudging along trying to get diapers made.  But I also finished his second, larger, quilt.  I call it "Snips and Snails". 

I ended up drawing the faces on with pigma markers. 






















The quilting is m ore minimal than I usually do to keep it soft for him. It has a flannel back and Grampa Al wanted to keep it for himself!








I was thinking this morning that the first Earth Day was 45 years ago.  In 45 years it seems like nothing has changed.  The planet is in more trouble than ever (just ask the people in California!).  I will admit that the concern has become more widespread and at least there have been some steps taken.  I doubt it will be enough to prevent the damage from becoming much worse before it gets better. 
But there are folks out there trying to create big changes.Check this out!  Solar highways- can you imagine!  The video is amazing- they want to use garbage as a raw material!!!  This is the kind of innovative and sustainable technology the planet needs.  I pray every day that someday the folks in charge will wake up and support these ideas.  I fear it will not happen in my lifetime.

I am grateful for:
A real go-outside-with-no-coat-and-enjoy-the-sunshine Spring day!
Watching George and Tim play
The very nice people who work with the elderly where my aunt lives
Sewing room time
Passing on precious family mementos- and the love they carry-  from one generation to the next

Too late to turn back now

As you may have heard (several times) I am going to be a grandmother in a short 8 weeks or so. 

I was just thrilled to hear mom wanted to use cloth diapers.  Now keep in mind, I used cloth diapers over 30 years ago, and- as they say here- diapers have come a long way since the days of pins and rubber pants.  (personally I blame Martha Stewart, who seems to have  created this need the world has to decorate every last element of our lives)  My babies were born in the dark ages, when your choices were prefolded or unfolded.


So when we talked about it, I mentioned diaper service. (do those even exist anymore?).  She said she was going to talk to her cousin who used cloth diapers.  Apparently that cousin recommended diapers like these:
http://www.diaperjunction.com/blueberry-mini-deluxe-pocket-diaper.html 


I knew a friend of mine had made diapers for her grandson. So I offered to do that- and consulted my friend, who helped me wade through the mountain of free patterns and information for making diapers available online.  She even sent me some of them, now that Freddy is in big boy pants!








Linda said the first thing I would need is a snap press. (I call it "the snapplicator")












Before I started cutting into the good fabric, I made a test diaper, which gave me a chance to see how the snapplicator works.    How cute is this? 
The baby came with a kit and patterns for some baby stuff I tried to knit for my boys.  I say tried because I wasn't much of a knitter then.  Lucas used to play with this baby, who he called "Elizabeth"- don't ask me why.











And I have finally gotten to the point where I think I know what I'm doing.  So I got out the good fabric, called PUL.  Cait picked this one out. 

And here is my work table.  You can tell I'm working hard because of the mess.
It was a long, and tiring afternoon, where I learned a lot, but accomplished little.

For example, I learned that when you put a snap in backwards, you better have a good pair of side cutters to remove it.

The snaps have two parts, of course, which are called a stud side and a socket side.  I call them innies and outies.

 The PUL is tough and kind of stretchy so it was very hard to get the pin on the snap to go through it.  The website recommends an awl.  I tried a very fat needle, but the hole seemed to close back up.  Then a light bulb came on!  I have the tools to set snaps like these- you tap the metal gadget with the hammer and it makes a tiny hole- prefect for the plastic snaps as well! 




So this has become a rather labor intensive process.  I started thinking with what I have spent, I could have just bought more of the pre-made diapers.  But I've come too far now. 



Meanwhile, I discovered the cutest baby hat pattern in my collection.  It didn't specify a size, so I just went ahead and made one.  Looks like I can save it to give him on his first Christmas!

Did you hear that in Florida, there was a ban on the words climate change in government offices?  How stupid is that?  Like it will go away if we don't talk about it!!
This video shows how ridiculous that kind of thinking is!
GCC is holding their annual ecofest April 11 from 10 to 2.  They do an e-waste collection, among other activities. 

I am grateful for:
Getting to see Cinderella with Cait and Kiara
Finding some great people to help me with my aunt's taxes
George's sister has come to visit.  In a perfect world, she would have stayed with us 3 years ago!
I have crocuses!!
Spotify and headphones

My quilt, my friends and I went to the Quilt Week Lancaster!

I was absolutely thrilled to be chosen as one of the 200 quilts  on display at the AQS "quilt week" event in Lancaster, PA last week.  I know my quilts will not win any awards at these shows, so to me the award is being chosen!                               I don't know why they only show 200 quilts, in all honesty. There could easily have been another 50 0r 100 quilts on display and still plenty of room for the vendors.  But I am apparently one of the rare people who goes to quilt shows for the quilts.              

My bestest in the world friend Mary Lee came along, and we met up with Carol,  one of my online quilting friends, when we got there. 

The variety of quilts was nice, and of course we had our favorites.
This one, Fern Rising by Claudia Pfeil, just amazed us!  It is nearly impossible to get a picture that does it justice.  It has over 27,000 crystals on it.  When you stand in front of it, it just sparkles!

Another of my favorites was this one, called Diamonds by the Yards, by Helen Doyle.










The hand work is amazing- no matter which technique she used in any block.

I think this one would have been my pick for best in show, Tinks Choice by Laura Trenbeath



The piecing and machine quilting are exemplary, but she also painted on it (in the border) and added what must be thousands of crystals and  gold colored studs!!  It has everything.

 Robbie Joy Eklow's work always makes me smile

 I loved the colors in this piece by Karen Kay Buckley and Renae Haddadin

 This one was kind of hidden in a dark alley, but I still loved it!  Called Butterfly by Nancy Tejo

 This is called "Doodle Bird" by Joanie Zeier Poole and Pam Levenhagen. The center panel is hand painted, if I understood the description.  I don't know if the black ink was added before or after the quilting, but it was meticulously done.  Just stunning!

















 This piece grew on me the more I looked at it- Hope Springs, by Jan Martin

 The bubbles make this one- Chasing Bubbles, by Hiroko Miyama and Masanobu Miyama. The quilting in the little girl's dress is pretty amazing as well.

















And the quilting in this one just amazed me.  October Sky by Bethanne Nemesh.  There is so much detail in it- and  the shimmer of silk besides.  Just stunning!

At the city Limits, we enjoyed this sculpture.  I want one!!!

I didn't get a picture with kathi and Tracy.  We joined up with them for dinner Friday evening at Annie Bailey- a great Irish Pub.  Fish and chips=Delish!!!
Earth Day is coming.  At GCC they hold a waste collection event- where you can safely dispose of old electronics, among other hard to dispose of items. Saturday, April 11. Check the GCC website for details as it gets closer. 

I am grateful for:
Being part of the show
good friends to share the event with
The snow is melting rather quickly
I saw robins, a killdeer and red-winged blackbirds
almost time to set up the nursery for tiny kittens

Being 6 again for a little while

Kiara came and spent a while with me on Saturday.  Now that I am not trying to do everything and keep the kids busy, I can enjoy getting down on the floor (down is easy, up is the hard part) and playing with her!  This is the great joy of being a grand parent, I guess.

It seems her current favorite activity is building forts.  So we pulled every chair and spare blanket into the bedroom and built one!

It was pretty roomy in there, so we spent a great deal of time inside.

We took in plenty of toys and supplies.  We played "go fish", and had some girl talk and used our imaginations to tell some really fun stories.  I felt like I had time traveled and become a six year old myself for a while.  It was so much fun, I completely lost track of time.

While we were playing Barbies, Kiara noticed that her dolls didn't have a blanket.  So off to the stash we went!  I never miss an opportunity to sit her at the machine.  

And now her dolls have a proper "blanket"!

Tomorrow I am heading off to the AQS show in Lancaster where  my quilt was chosen a "semi finalist".  I know I will never win a prize at a show like this, but it is just thrilling to see my work hanging alongside those who do!!

I am grateful for:

A little girl to play with

Watching Outlander at last, on DVD!

Macaroni and cheese

Time spent with friends