Welcome!

A mini banner!

2011-02-22T13:49:00.000-05:00

I wanted some very cool banners for a wall in my house so I came up with this.

To me, it's old world... my rooster thinks he's kinda old world too, so I figure it's a nice match.

Recipe:

Cricut Potpourri Basket (see more info below)
Salvaged wrapping paper, scraps and cardstock
Tulle (that scratchy stuff that makes you think of bridal veils... you can get it on spools)
Tiny buttons
Oxford Impressions stamps. (These stamps are my very favorite in this genre.)
Zip Dry glue
Zig 2 way glue pen
Provo Craft fancy edge scissors
Staz-On ink pad
standard hole punch
Stampin' Up ribbon

I started with my Cricut and the Potpourri Basket cartridge. The pennant shapes (little triangles) are actually from a Christmas tree image on the cartridge. I just cut the bottom off. It was hard to believe I didn't have a triangular shape on any other carts that I could use. Maybe I didn't look hard enough!

I cut three sizes, starting with 3 inch "Christmas tree". I cut everything out of salvaged papers that I have collected. The one above on the Cricut mat was actually wrapping paper from a gift from my friend Angela. Seems that most of my most favorite finds come from something she has given me! I cut the bottoms off (see original shape above) and then cut 2 3/4 size and finally 1 3/4 size "trees"... again, cutting the bottom detail off.

Here you see them laid out on a tray (this is my favorite vintage dinner tray. I use it often, and for a zillion things!) First, I glued the large and medium triangles together with my zig 2 way pen and placed the smaller sized ones between each larger one. (See completed banner if this doesn't make sense). I then put the stamps on them to decide how I wanted the images to flow on the banner. Once that was decided, I stamped with black Staz-On (by the way, the special cleaner is worth buying) and then punched holes with a standard hole puncher. The holes are carefully punched in each corner. Why carefully? It is easy to go outside of the corner and you have to recreate that piece.

Above, you can see where the holes are punched. I used the red excess paper on the right to test stamp a few images I've never used before. That's a good idea so you'll know how to properly stamp it.

Adding the ribbon and tulle: I used ribbon from Stampin' Up! of which I am a distributor. (hint! You can order from me!) First I ran the ribbon through and strung the entire first banner. Then I came back with the tulle and strung it behind the ribbon. As you can see, the small pennants are glued behind the larger ones to give the banner more dimension. Here's where I used the Zip Dry. It's pretty serious glue and I enjoy working with it.

First banner completed. See first pix for both displayed!

Feel free to post a comment or question! Have a blessed day!

Changes

2011-02-21T00:07:00.000-05:00

So I've been trying to redo my blog background since I never really did like the one I'm using now (rabbit on left, Alice? on right). I'm having a terrible time trying to get a new one on, so I'm going to give up on that and try an different site that offers free blog backgrounds. So sad this new one (pink chair and roses, as in the banner) won't work... it took 2 days to decide on it!

I'll soon be posting a sweet little banner I created. I'm making a lot of new things right now, so as soon as I get this blog looking a bit more like I want it, I'll share the latest!

Back soon!

The Captain

2011-02-11T00:39:00.000-05:00

I couldn't let the woman and child peer from that porthole much longer without the companion piece: The Captain. I don't know when I've enjoyed a project more. I'm very passionate about the sea. It has just always intrigued me from a mysterious, romantic standpoint. I remember when I was - hmmm...I guess 14 years old - I wrote a poem about a sea captain and the woman waiting for him. It was about the time the song Brandy came out. I still love that song.

Well, here he is. Reader, meet The Captain. Captain, say hello to my reader.

And here they are together:

I used the same products as on the previous post of the woman and child. I still have to name that one.

Any ideas?

Nearly a year has passed since....

2011-02-10T00:58:00.002-05:00

Nearly a year has passed since

My camera broke

That's the only excuse I have for having not posted in nearly a year. This, even after the not-so-legendary "I'm baaaack!" post. Apparently I wasn't really back; it was just a test to see if you were listening.

I still haven't had my camera repaired but I do have a nifty way to get the pictures out now! In a stroke of genius, we're using a media card reader since the little port thingie on the camera collapsed. It's a Fuji S7000 and I have love, love, loved it for years and will keep using it as long as I can. Imagine a beloved car... the paint is peeling, the driver's side window won't roll down (no fun in the drive thru) and the front bumper is tied on with string, but you keep driving it, amid stares and smirks. Well, that's my little Fuji S7000. It's been ridden hard no doubt, but has made a good living during the newspaper feature story days and paid for itself a few times over so I'll just keep tying its bumper on until the wheels fall off.

So I have a way to get my pictures out and I decide to try blogging again. The strange thing is that I had a lot of trouble logging back in so if you never hear from me again I'm stuck in cyberspace trying to find a way back.

Well, on to whazzup... or rather what's been up...

I have discovered Steampunk. I'll share some cards soon.
I'm making three quilts. yeah. I don't know why I would make three at a time but I am and it is sucking the very life out of me! Suckubus quilts, that's what I call 'em.
I'm knitting several things right now, most of which I will be taking apart in a fit of hysteria over having too many projects (quilts included) going on at once.
I'm enjoying the success of my first book: Dyson the Terrible Puppy. You can find it as an ebook by clicking here: Barnes and Noble.com. And check this out: it's only $2.99! Better get this one... my next book will be a billion dollars. I figure why wait to sell a third billion books when you can sell just one, right? Surely my marketing strategy will prove itself one day....

Here's what I created today during an unsupervised surge of creativity:

Above: Parts from an outdoor light that husband Ninja Man was going to discard. Well, they looked like perfect portholes to me, something one might need to create some awesome decor for a vintage sea cottage themed guest room... which I just happen to be working on.

I'm really into the Titanic stuff. I haven't figured out why... that's what we pay therapists for, right?

Products used: (WAIT! STOP! HALT! Still here? Great! If you click on the links below you'll leave my page. Apparently Blogger isn't sharp enough to open in a new window, so please right click on the link and select "open a new window" from the teeny menu so you can stay on my page till the end of the post. Or, you can stay indefinitely. Squatter's rights apply.)

Images (woman and child, cross, White Star Line tag) are all created from stamps by Oxford Impressions. I love the vintage artwork and the images their stamps produce are amazing.

Background paper: Stampin Up (I just happen to be a rep, so feel free to ask me about their product line!)

Hardware (lock and key) Jewelry findings at Michaels.

Ink: Black: Stazon. Brown: Powder Puffs by Quick Quotes. Teal: Martha Stewart

Don't be impressed, the doily is just a paper doily that I distressed. One should always have paper doilies in one's studio.

Porthole screws: four brads that happen to fit just right in the holes.

Glues: ATG gun, 2-way Zig Glue Pen

Here's the finished product. I hung it from a narrow black ribbon, stood back and realized I totally covered the entire decorative paper I so carefully chose! Oh well. I did say earlier that I was unsupervised....

Until next time! Hopefully this week....

2010-03-19T11:19:00.003-04:00

My sweet friend Melissa had a birthday this week, St. Patrick's Day! I made this card and envelope just for her.

The cupcake is Cricut's From My Garden, printed paper is DCWV, Embossing folder is the Happy Birthday folder from Cuttlebug, ribbon from Hobby Lobby and the ink and stamp are from Stampin' Up. I used brads from Michaels for the cupcake sprinkles I don't recall the brand. The punch is Martha Stewart.

Inside:

The envelope (top photo) is just blue paper, cut from a Stampin' Up stencil. I don't know if they sell these stencils anymore and mine is old. I put ribbon and a piece of cake on the front of the envelope since I wasn't planning to mail it.

Sewing next week!

Finished Frenchie Knitted Hat / Susan B. Anderson

2010-03-15T14:15:00.005-04:00

My March 1 blog post shared with you my efforts with the Frenchie Hat designed by Susan B. Anderson and featured in her Itty Bitty Nursery book. I have loved this hat from the start, and couldn't wait to make it! I confess I started it a few times because I confused myself by over thinking the directions. Any seasoned knitter wouldn't have had a bit of trouble, but I was rather new at this.

I don't want to keep you waiting another moment... here is Frenchie Hat on my grandson The AshMan. Asher is almost 14 months old and he just loves his new hat! He and I took the hat for a stroll this morning and he sported it like it was "made for him"! Good thing because it was! I chose these colors because he will get the most use out of it in the fall. It's for a toddler and is just a bit large on him now. Room to grow, I always say!

There are several things I love about this hat. I love the height of it, the tassel (mine is a lot longer and fuller than the one in the book, so that part is one's own preference) I love the seed stitching... a first for me... and the changing of color. I also love the yarn I used. The colors are Cotton Ease from Lion Brand and the brown yarn is "I love this yarn!" And can be found here.

On Sunday I finished the hat for the exception of the swirly detail, while waiting in the car for Ninja Man to come back from the store.

This is a technique that I haven't seen before... I assume it is something Susan created but I might be incorrect on that. Anyway, you crochet onto the hat then wrap the yarn around. What a cool, cool effect! Two evenings with this and the TV and I was done!

Thanks to Susan B. Anderson for a great pattern! I am ready to start the next one now! If you have another minute, please check out my March 1 blog on the hat.

God bless you all!

Reusable gift wrap! What a great, great idea!

2010-03-15T01:07:00.004-04:00

Furoshiki gift wrapping from RecycleNow on Vimeo.

I saw this on this blog and I think it is one of the most ingenious ways to wrap gifts or make a quick bag, especially for fabric loving friends! Check it out and let me know what you think.

Ditching something vintage

2010-03-12T19:42:00.012-05:00

Yes, you read it right! I'm ditching something vintage. Can you guess what it is? Well, since I will post pix that will give it away right now, I'll just tell you... it is my ironing board cover. It is frayed, torn, scorched and stained. It is loose in places that should be tight and so old that it almost broke in half when I removed it.

This vintage cover might be cool if it were never used but this was a huge asset to me for the last 19 years. NINETEEN! Heavens... it is almost old enough to drink and can totally vote! The ironing board cover manufacturer was so proud of it that they even dated it.

How sweet.

How could I have held on to this for so long???? I think I was just so busy using it that I didn't really think of replacing it until tonight. So very many pieces of clothing, fabric squares and craft projects have been heated up on this thing!

That square place in the middle is where I learned how NOT to do fusible webbing! The tear? Well, that's when I learned not to use my ironing board as a table while ripping seams from a sewing project.

So, I went to TJ Maxx to return a book I bought and used the refund to buy this:

Ahh. Laura Ashley. A breath of fresh air AND sweetly pressed dress shirts!

Lo and behold, not being one to actually READ labels, I discovered after opening the package that it is reversible! My biggest challenge: which side to use. Well, I love blue, so I'm starting on that side. I oughta get at least 40 years out of this one, don't 'cha think?

Just flip it over in, say, 2030!

But wait. There was a slight problem. Wrinkles.

Say it ain't so.

Well, there's only one fix for that...

Iron it!

And just so you'll know... the ironing board IS vintage and I won't part with it. It has broken more than once (the kids thought it was a great surfboard for the yard one summer) and Ninja Man has brought it back to life over and over again. My mom in law gave it to me and she had already had it forever! I have no idea when it was made, probably 60's or 70's. It is big and sturdy and heavy. I love it.... especially with it's newly pressed cover.

Not so homely now, huh?

Hey, I think I'll get Ninja Man to refinish those legs... I'm thinking a pretty robin's egg blue! We'll see....

Meanwhile:

Pups Hoover and Kerby wholeheartedly endorse this post!

My stick family! Too cute!

2010-03-06T14:58:00.001-05:00

My Stick Family from WiddlyTinks.com

Coolest video we have seen !

2010-03-06T09:40:00.002-05:00

Click here. Cool, cool video.

Or:

object width="425" height="344">

Frenchie Knitted Hat / Susan B. Anderson

2010-03-01T07:10:00.006-05:00

Without a doubt, Susan B. Anderson is my very favorite designer for knitted baby gear. Her hats, sweaters and toys are so far superior to what else is out there that I get all wiggly thinking of the colors and yarns I'll use for the next project!

I'm not an advanced knitter. I'd say I'm barely intermediate and if I could just follow directions I might actually BE intermediate! Anyway, all that to say that even I can produce something cute, cute, cute from Anderson's patterns!

I was so excited to share my next project with my Saturday needlework group that I carried one of Anderson's books with me. I took Itty-Bitty Hats to the coffee shop and poured over it, trying desperately to find the little baby hat called Frenchie.

I turned page after page, checked the table of contents, went back through the pages... It wasn't there! Then I realized... silly, menopausal me! It is in Itty Bitty Nursery!
Soooo, when I got home I opened the book right to it and was so happy to know I wasn't going crazy!

As you can see below, this little hat is just CALLING to be knitted and perched on a baby head!
I've just started this hat and I'm loving the colors!

I'm using Lion Brand Cotton Ease, mainly because there is no one local carrying the Spud and Chloe line of yarn! While I could order online, I have to see it and feel it before I can buy! Lion Brand's Cotton Ease is W O N D E R F U L ~ AND it was on sale at Michaels! The colors I selected were terracotta, maize and lime. I already had the brown yarn, same weight, so I tossed that into the mix. The Lion Brand yarn is made in Turkey (so refreshing to find something not made in China) and is machine wash / dry. I love it! By the way, the brown yarn is called "I love this cotton" and I'm pretty sure I bought it at Hobby Lobby. I confess this is my second attempt at Frenchie. Yes, I tried it when I first got my book. It would have turned out great had I known how to count my rows and keep up with which is the inside and which is the outside. Yeah, I had trouble with all that.

So here I am, a few projects later and finally having those basic foundational steps under my belt, it is actually turning out like it is supposed to! By the way, that little chain link detail will be added at the end... it will go on the brown stripe and I'll probably do it in green and yellow. Will see about that. Meanwhile, life goes on and I have to work for several hours today before I can knit some more! Oh, to have been born into money so I wouldn't have to work for a living... but then again, I might not appreciate something as totally wonderful as an Itty Bitty hat, carefully knit for my little grandson. I thank God for making me who I am and that while sometimes I struggle with the foundations of things, He's right there keeping me grounded.

Have a blessed day!

Thank you card using Cricut Wild Card

2010-02-22T16:21:00.003-05:00

Here's a twist from what I usually do... most of you know I'm a sewer, but I also love, love, love scrapbooking and card making!
I made this thank you card using a Stampin' Up stamp for the message on front and the Branch card from Provo Craft Cricut Wild Card cartridge. The stamp and envelope are 7". I used DCWV Jewel cardstock and Mariposa mat stack and topped the card with a dotted teal ribbon from Michaels. The brad and hardware (on the branch) was some I had in my stash.

This card is for a women's group at my church who booked me as a speaker for their special event in January. I am so appreciative to them!

Toodles for now!

Minkee grocery cart cover for baby!

2010-02-14T16:05:00.005-05:00

I made a cart cover for my grandson Asher, using Simplicity's 4636 Baby Accessories pattern (see image below). I carried it with me on a trip to the hardware store so I could try it out on a grocery cart. It is a great fit and I am sure the little man cub will love the soft Minkee fabric! Constructed completely of Minkee, so you know it is snuggly and comfy!

This, being my first one, isn't perfect cuz that's the way I roll... I get impatient and don't change thread colors so my stitches show when they shouldn't, but here it is:

The pattern called for the cutout for the legs but not for a safety strap, so I improvised and made a buttonhole manually to thread the belt through. I zigzagged down one side, wide at the bottom, then zigzagged again back up and finished off with wide zigzag at the top. It looks just like a huge buttonhole. I just slit the center with small scissors and cut the opening, then put a seam on either side of the opening beside the zigzag stitches to keep it from raveling. Minkee sheds a bit, so this will keep it nice and neat.

Should'a used white thread but like I said, I was over anxious and didn't really think about it, so you can see the buttonhole effect on the back.

Here's the pattern... easy enough for even beginners! Few pieces to cut out, and you can do it from all the same fabric, I just used what I had.

Puppy LOVE

2010-01-27T21:56:00.003-05:00

I can't believe I haven't posted since November. Well, sometimes there's a blip on the screen of life and we get caught up in other things. My "other thing" has been FaceBook, a time sucker indeed.

But here I am, and I hope to post a lot more goodies! Meanwhile, isn't this the most adorable pair of guys?

And they call it.....

Puppy love!

Yes, we have a new baby, the one dressed in little boy blue. His name is Dyson, he is a rare breed: a Boston Terrier-sneaky-neighbor-dog mix. Word has it that he is most likely an American Bulldog / Boston mix.

Either way, he is incredibly sweet and smart beyond smart. He was sitting on command the first week we got him (he was only 9 weeks old then) and is almost housebroken. Yes, I'm taking him out a lot, reminding him that the yard is the best place to do "those" things, so perhaps in reality, I'm the one who is trained!

Here he is pictured with his BFF Hoover, aka The HooMan. Hoover is our 5 year old Boston and Kerby, their other friend is the original pooch and is 11 years old. We have quite a sweet menagerie, each one a huge blessing.

See you in the next post!

oh no. Where have I been?

2009-11-08T21:40:00.002-05:00

Yeah, it's November for heaven's sake and I haven't posted lately! Where oh where have I been? Well, for starters, I've been trying to finish the sock from Hades... yes, the same green sock I've been working on for soooo long. If I could just not get interrupted.... yeah, that's my story and I'm sticking to it. Anyway, my needlework group had a great, great turnout last Saturday at the local coffee shop. We had 10, I think, all ages and interests! We had knitters, crocheters (oh, you should have seen some of the finished items they brought!) cross stitchers and a bow maker! We even had a young lady of 9 or 10 who has learned to crochet berets for her cat! It was awesome to see women gather, some bringing their moms, another brought the crocheting granddaughter. Makes me miss my daughter and sisters!

I have been surrounded by loving friends who are fulfilling any possible inklings of empty nest syndrome! It is amazing, this work that God does... I haven't had the chance to be very lonely at all.

So this is to say I haven't forgotten my blog, just regrouping a bit and hoping to have some pix to share soon! On my needles right now is "the other" sock for Ninja Man. On another set of needles are booties for some fave twin friends!

Stay tuned and check back soon for the latest!
God Bless!

Sister Barb's Birthday Card and a Little Gift

2009-10-28T04:55:00.010-04:00

I set out to make a birthday card for my sister Barb. She was born on Oct. 29 (yep, mysteriously close to Halloween) and I was born on Thanksgiving Day. Sister Carol was born on April 1, April Fool's Day. I can't tell you that without mentioning that my husband was born on Christmas Eve. Daughter on Elvis' birthday (yeah, who knew??) and son John the third (John III) was born on June the third. Brother Dave is stuck with Aug 19, which I have yet to find something to attach to.

Anyway, in my quest to try to remember special events (Okay, I rarely do, but my heart is in it!) I decided to make Barb a little something for her birthday.

Check the end of this post for links to each of the product lines mentioned!

First is this nifty tile that holds a little pad of post-it notes. Don't we just love post-its? What I didn't love was it kept falling off the tile since the sticky on the note isn't really strong enough to hold the whole pad up. I added adhesive from my cardmaking supplies and voila, success!

The tile is one I made in a Stampin' Up scrapbooking show that I held at my house for my friend Lucia, who is a distributor for the company (and a wonderful, precious soul!). Anyway, it is simply a white glossy tile with a solid square of scrapbooking paper on it (green) and a slightly smaller patterned square (dots) over that. The circle was a premade delightful little sticker from Stampin' Up and I used my Cricut machine and black vinyl to make the monogram of her initials. Easy weezy!

The card front is just like it looks: heavy stock covered with Amy Butler patterned paper, some rubber stamping, a chipboard "happy" note, and "blessed, sweet, loved" stamped on white paper slips glued down with pink dots on each end. The ribbon was in my stash and is just a solid band with a short piece tied in a single knot at the top.

Inside the pocket is a note to my sis. I included scripture and a ribbon on the end of a premade scrapbooking tag. A simple pink background (from a paper stack from Sam's Club) and trim that matches the front (Amy Butler) was just right for the solid pink paper greeting and "Celebrate" stamp.

The back is also finished and features ribbon like the front.

What made this card easy: Cricut, Stampin' Up, Amy Butler's amazing patterned paper, Fiskar's paper cutter, scrapbooking tape and K&Company TagPad precut tags.

What made it difficult: trying to put into words what my sis means to me. Always a challenge since I love them both so much!

Baby oh Baby!

2009-10-21T23:28:00.005-04:00

I had a speaking engagement last weekend so John and I made the trip with our grandson Asher John-Ryan, our son The Boy, his wife Emily and three, yes, three dogs. Do any of you recall when you could stuff a family of five into a huge car and still have room to add three dogs? Those Chevy's from the 1950's come to mind... I'm pretty sure we could walk around in those, even after the whole family got in!

So John and I, wanting to spend some quality time with our grandson, offered to sit in the back while The Boy and wife rode up front. Thankfully, one of the dogs is theirs and she rode with them. Our pups were angels the whole way, riding in our laps. Asher was the best of all, a great sport even though he had to sit for almost four whole hours. The speaking engagement went well and I made a new friend in the process. God blessed me so much I can hardly count the many blessings.

It was a wonderful weekend. Baby time, pups in lap, meeting sisters in Christ and a safe trip home. God is good all the time. All the time God is GOOD!

Breaking news: I just snarked these from my daughter in law Emily's Facebook! I'm totally smitten with this little guy...

Disclaimer!

2009-10-14T21:19:00.001-04:00

All of the books on review on this site have been provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Handmade Jalie cloth diapers with PUL!

2009-10-11T22:30:00.009-04:00

Our grandson, The AshMan, uses "real" diapers and I have been eager to make some for him. My friend Vicki gave me a link for the pattern and I ordered it from Jalie Patterns in Canada.

Instead of cutting the actual pattern, I traced the pieces and cut my tracing paper. This is also because each pattern piece is marked with all sizes so I can use it as our little guy grows. Right now he is in the 6-9 month size and I can continue making diapers with this pattern through 2T... This one was $12.99 plus shipping and considering the extensive use I'll get out of it plus the price of disposable diapers, that's money well spent if you ask me!

The pattern was not difficult but only because there is a video on the website you can use. I couldn't have made it without the video!

Here's the finished diaper!

There's a story about the cute little koala bears on the tabs... my friend Heather is a preschool teacher and one day she gave me a little plastic sticker of a giraffe. I was so excited, certain that I could sew this sticker onto something for The AshMan.... sure enough, Heather and I went to Michaels and she found the stickers! Very cool, I thought! Don't they make the diaper even cuter? Yeah, I thought so too... by the way, the stickers are sewn on... easy because they have a neat little edge that you can run the needle in!

So having no baby at the house to try a fancy diaper on, Mr. Grumps was kind enough to let me put it on him. "You're just his size," I told Mr. Grumps. He just grunted.

The back fits nicely!

The pattern calls for PUL, a special soft fabric (it's the light green) that repels water. I have learned from my friend Leia (a "real" diaper mom who is expecting Precious #2) that you can't bleach this or use fabric softener because it will break down the stuff that makes PUL water resistant. Leia also provided this link with info about washing cloth diapers. Yeah!

The inside is flannel.

Note that it is indeed a Noah's Ark print. After all, we are expecting a flood or two in this diaper. So anyway, I prewashed it and it is soft as a baby's... well, you get the idea...it's soft. The strip lying beside the diaper is the liner. Check this GREAT idea out: another friend Rachel, who has newborn twins and a 3 year-old said you can use a maxi pad for the inside! How cool is that? What an awesome idea! I will recommend this to Emily, AshMan's mom.

Every diaper has a little "hidden surprise" and this one is no exception! I selected the "Pocket" diaper pattern (there are 3 types you can make from the Jalie pattern) and there is an opening at the back waistband that holds a 4-layer soaker pad. The layers are sewn together with a seam running down the center and a tiny stitch on each corner. The edges are not sewn closed so it will dry easier once you've washed it.

So between Vicki, Heather, Leia and Rachel, I've certainly had plenty of help on this project! You know, it really DOES take a village!

All I need now is a grandson to model this cute little diaper! I hope to get a cute pix of him when he tries it on next weekend. Until then....

Ultimate porch swing

2009-09-30T22:10:00.005-04:00

Are you ready for this? It is more than a swing... more than a porch swing! Yes, it is the (drum roll please...) Ultimate Porch Swing!Ninja Man made this for me in no time at all. I saw one on a Saturday and by the next Saturday afternoon, I was napping on my cottage porch!

The idea came while we were in Newnan and I came across a full-sized bed swing while visiting a neat little shop on Labor Day where I found some great fabric that I'll be featuring on the blog later. . Wow, it was pretty stinkin' awesome. The trick was finding a mattress for it... We didn't want an expensive project, and we figured the wood and hardware could be done for under $100.

As you can see, it would be no fun without a big ole fluffy mattress!

Can you imagine what happened next? My dad, who lives near Newnan just happened to have a new cot-sized mattress that he needed to get rid of. He is designing something and this was a prototype that didn't meet his standard.

I couldn't believe it! My Ultimate Porch Swing was going to really happen.

On our drive home, we stopped by Lowe's. Even though it was Labor Day, they were open... so Ninja Man went in, got the stuff we needed and the very next afternoon when he got home from work he started working on it.

He used screws to hold the wood together and he was careful to sand down any parts that might give our little grandson a splinter later on. He used super strong chain and reinforced the beam in the porch roof since we don't have many "small" sized folks in our family.

The result is this:I have not yet sewn a cover for the mattress, but I can tell you it will have handles so we can carry it in and out easier. For now, I have this sweet quilt that I just lay on top of the mattress. It also comes in the house at night.

Having napped a time or two on this wonderful thing reminds me that our ancestors had a great idea with the sleeping porches they used back in the day. Nothing like a cool Savannah night, curled up in a heavy quilt while swaying with the breeze.

Thanks Ninja, thanks dad. I love it.

Sock it to me! THE KNITTED SOCK!

2009-09-30T14:51:00.003-04:00

Here it is. THE sock.

Yes, finally.

Why is this a big deal, you ask? Well, considering I had so very many restarts on the grandson's baby socks that he outgrew them before I finished them, this one only took 3 tries and about 3 weeks!

I'm kinda full of myself right now.

But then I realize that my husband actually needs TWO of these... and I'm back to reality.

So I'm getting up my double pointed size 5's and this wonderful Italian yarn (can't find the label but I will update when I do to tell you what brand it is) and I'm starting on the next sock. This one will be easier because I think I've figured out all the hard stuff now.

My friend and neighbor Heather and my new friend Margaret at Unwind yarn in Savannah are the most patient sock teachers EVER, by the way!

I'm also thankful that I recorded Knitty Gritty on a day that Stephanie Pearl-McPhee was on! She was great in her instruction and I could pause her as much as I needed and play it back!

So that's my story... I guess now I can stuff a sock in it! :0)

God's Certain Security

2009-09-29T10:54:00.001-04:00

Certain Security

Posted: September 16, 2009 - 12:15am

Savannahnow.com
By Kathy Bohannon

People are worried about their finances these days. Saving for the future is a big deal. Working hard to have savings, checking balances, watching stock exchange reports, it's all part of the everyday. Economic turns in the past many months prove that many of the most solvent planners have lost big time.

When young people marry and start their lives together, love is enough to see them through. Nearly 33 years ago my husband John and I set up our household with mom and dad's sofa, a delightfully decorative Spanish L-shaped monstrosity that had some sort of gold corduroy fabric covering its cushions. The black wood was striking against the faded gold fabric that had somewhat survived through many years of four kids jumping on it and adults napping upon its former luxuriousness.

But we were grateful for having something to sit on, and love saw us through.

Our cars were old. One was a 1966 Plymouth Fury. It was a land shark, which might be cool to have now but back then it was like driving that Spanish sofa monstrosity along city streets. The other was a 1968 Grand Prix. He and I bought this when we were dating. It cost $850 and we combined our measly paychecks to make payments for nine whole months. I spent a lot of frightening moments as I had to pour gasoline straight into the carburetor. More than once a flame shot up as I started the vehicle. Putting gas into the engine was a prerequisite for driving, as it often wouldn't start without it.

Just as we were thankful for the ugly sofa we were also grateful for having something to drive because we were kids in love and we didn't care. And even though I was stranded more than once along the highway, love was enough to see us through those times.

When we began buying "nice" things, we could only afford the kind of stuff you have to put together yourself. A book of instructions would be spread out on the floor with parts strewn about. We would help one another with each step until the project was complete. It was part of the whole "love" thing, and we enjoyed going through it together.

Economics are a fact of life, no doubt. But money shouldn't define us. It shouldn't matter if we have the latest and greatest of things. They will all end up in a heap at the dump one of these days. None of the "things" that we slave for are eternal. There's not one electronic or metal or plastic or paper that is going to be there when all is said and done, and there certainly isn't a human that will be there when all is said and done.

So what do we have? Ephesians 5: 5 says, "For this you know with certainty, that no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God." I love this because the Bible says "certainty." I have not been to a single bank or retail store that can offer "certainty." Money back guarantees? Sure, but certainty? I haven't seen anyone to offer that, ever. We need to consider if we are immoral, impure or covetous. Do we idolize our "things" or other people??

Embracing immorality and impurity, being covetous or idolizing isn't going to give us any eternal security of the biggest inheritance that is just waiting for us. What if we've already been these things? We have. We're human. We ask and God will forgive us for it and we can move on. Toward Him.

Forgiveness will be given. A brand new life is promised. A few verses further in Ephesians tell us, "...you were formerly darkness, but now you are the light in the Lord; walk as children of light."

Wow. We can toss out that tattered former life, the one we had to pour frightening things into just to keep it running. The one that was faded, ugly and worn and we can walk as children of light. Especially now, God's love is enough to see us through. His promise is certain. He gives us eternal security.

He's even given us a book of instructions. It's all just part of that whole "love" thing that God offers. The difference is that His won't fade or break down. It's forever.

And it's guaranteed.

Adorable Asher!

2009-09-28T19:38:00.001-04:00

This is my 8 month old grandson.

He is too precious for words.

Sweet Little Hoover Boy

2009-09-24T22:48:00.004-04:00

Last year my doctor told me to create a routine in order to reduce stress. My evening routine is so pleasant that I find myself looking forward to that time all day. It is the time when I put on my nightgown, stretch out in my recliner, pick up my knitting and relax with my sweet little Boston Terrier Hoover, lying on my legs.

He is so accustomed to our "quality" time that he waits for me to get settled, looks across at the shabby chic quilt I made, watches as I drape it over my legs, then he jumps up and snuggles in. I took this photo tonight as he was lying with me in my chair.

Just as sure as I am typing this, I know for a fact that God sent this little angel to comfort me. He came into my life at the most perfect time and I love him dearly.

I thank God for the sweet wonders of life and the compassion and gentleness of this little dog who loves me unconditionally.

Knitted Village. I know. Why... ????

2009-09-24T09:12:00.004-04:00

A knitted village

Since I love to knit, my friend Kaye suggested I check this out...

I would hate to dust this "village".

Besides, I thought old ladies only knitted afghans. While I must admit they are rather talented, what possessed them to do this?

See the rest of the pix here.

Grandkids

2009-09-24T08:59:00.001-04:00

I received this from my cousin Laura. She and my friend Robin always send the very best forwarded emails!

Grandkids

1. She was in the bathroom putting on her makeup under the watchful eyes of her young granddaughter as she'd done many times before. After she applied her lipstick and started to leave, the little one said, "Gramma, you forgot to kiss the toilet paper good-bye!" I will probably never put lipstick on again without thinking about kissing the toilet paper good-bye.

2. My young grandson called the other day to wish me Happy Birthday. He asked me how old I was, and I told him 62. My grandson was quiet for a moment, and then he asked, "Did you start at 1?"

3. After putting her grandchildren to bed, a grandmother changed into old slacks and a droopy blouse and proceeded to wash her hair. She heard the children getting more and more rambunctious and her patience grew thin. Finally, she threw a towel around her head and stormed into their room, putting them back to bed with stern warnings. As she left the room, she heard the three year old say with a trembling voice, "Who was THAT?"

4. A grandmother was telling her little granddaughter what her own childhood was like: "We used to skate outside on a pond. I had a swing made from a tire that hung from a tree in our front yard. We rode our pony. We picked wild raspberries in the woods." The little girl was wide-eyed, taking this all in. At last she said, "I sure wish I'd gotten to know you sooner!"

5. My grandson was visiting one day when he asked, "Grandma, do you know how you and God are alike?" I mentally polished my halo and I said, "No, how are we alike?'' "You're both old," he replied.

6. A little girl was diligently pounding away on her grandfather's word processor. She told him she was writing a story. "What's it about?" he asked. "I don't know," she replied. "I can't read."

7. I didn't know if my granddaughter had learned her colors yet, so I decided to test her. I would point out something and ask what color it was. She would tell me and was always correct. It was fun for me, so I continued. At last she headed for the door saying, "Grandma, I think you should try to figure out some of these, yourself!"

8. When my grandson Billy and I entered our vacation cabin, we kept the lights off until we were inside to keep from attracting pesky insects. Still, a few fireflies followed us in. Noticing them before I did, Billy whispered, "It's no use Grandpa. Now the mosquitoes are coming after us with flashlights."

9. When my grandson asked me how old I was, I teasingly replied, "I'm not sure.." "Look in your underwear, Grandpa," he advised, "mine says I'm 4 to 6."

10. A second grader came home from school and said to her grandmother, "Grandma, guess what? We learned how to make babies today." The grandmother, more than a little surprised, tried to keep her cool. "That's interesting," she said, "how do you make babies?" "It's simple," replied the girl. "You just change 'y' to 'i' and add 'es'."

11. Children's Logic: "Give me a sentence about a public servant," said a teacher. The small boy wrote: "The fireman came down the ladder pregnant." The teacher took the lad aside to correct him. "Do you know what pregnant means?" she asked. "Sure," said the young boy confidently. 'It means carrying a child."

12. A grandfather was delivering his grandchildren to their home one day when a fire truck zoomed past. Sitting in the front seat of the fire truck was a Dalmatian dog. The children started discussing the dog's duties. "They use him to keep crowds back," said one child. "No," said another. "He's just for good luck." A third child brought the argument to a close. "They use the dogs," she said firmly, "to find the fire hydrants."

13. A 6-year-old was asked where his grandma lived. "Oh," he said, "she lives at the airport, and when we want her, we just go get her. Then, when we're done having her visit, we take her back to the airport."

Halloween Hat: Ding Dong!

2009-09-24T00:33:00.003-04:00

I found this fabulous hat at Food Lion, of all places! It sings "Ding dong, the witch is dead" and well, you'll have to watch the video to see what else it does...

Felted cupcake pincushion

2009-09-21T22:15:00.003-04:00

So I finally found my Betz White book and ohhhh my calorie free goodness... I made one of her cupcake pincushions.

This is from thrift store wool sweaters that I felted, cut and sewed... I still have a lot of the felt left. I put a little "something" on top... not quite a cherry... but I had plenty of orange so I used it to make a fruity something with green leaves. To my woe, I realized just as I was making the last few stitches that Betz uses a contrasting color for the outside of the cupcake. Drat. Oh well, it is my first attempt and I am now on to trying more scrumptious things from her wonderful book! It is eye candy at its best!

Do check out her site and her wonderful felted goodies... it will make you drool!

I plan to get some of those fancy-headed pins to accent it... will post more later!

An Easy Labor Day Weekend

2009-09-15T23:54:00.003-04:00

Daughter Aubern Michelle and our favorite son-in-law Ian accompanied us to Powers Crossroads Country Fair and Arts Festival during our trip to visit them on Labor Day weekend. This annual fair is held way, way out in the country near Newnan, Ga. Check it out here.

We saw some unusual things such as THIS traveling ATM machine. We didn't use it, thinking it probably had a huge fee and well, it just doesn't look trustworthy to me. "Hello bank, I think someone stole my debit card number.... what?... oh, um, the last time I used it was in a truck in the woods.... " Yeah. I don't think so.

We lost Ninja Man for a few minutes and he popped up with these fried, yes, fried, Oreos. Ian is helping me hold them up because I cannot believe someone would batter and then fry an Oreo for heaven's sake. As if that wasn't enough, they covered them in confectioner's sugar. See that little bit missing from one??

That is the bite I took. And the only bite. They were incredible but I just couldn't put any more than that in my body.... it was just so, so wrong.

Then we saw this wonderful garden display. The porch has a water feature that pours off the metal roof into a pond and recycles back to the roof. I have ordered one from Ninja Man. We will see if he will indeed build it one day!

I, being a writer, LOVED this display of word art. Sweet words seemed to float in the air above everyone's heads. I would love to have all of them. One just wouldn't do. I would want them to float above my head all the time. Seeing as that would cost a fortune and is pretty much impossible, I left them all in the display booth and didn't buy a single one.

At the end of the day we retreated to our Aubern and Ian's new house with the huge, welcoming porch. Deep in the woods, this suburb girl just had to kick back on that porch.

And so I did.

It was a great weekend.

Beautiful twins wearing my knitted hats!

2009-09-08T23:55:00.006-04:00

Presenting Bailey and Rhett, twin siblings of Princess Addison! Here, they model hats made by yours truly. They are just adorable little ones and so scrumptious and snuggly to hold! I was blessed with the opportunity to spend a great deal of time with the Princess who, at 3 years old is the most amazing little girl ever. Her mom had to stay in the hospital for a while awaiting the babes and Addy and I got to hang out till her dad got in from work each day. Awesome days I'll remember for a very long time!

The images were taken by Abby Kruenegel... an incredible photographer. The one below is my favorite "baby in my knitted hat" pix! Visit Abby's website here

God is SO very present in the beauty of a child. How in the world can people deny Him when they see such perfection as this?

The Most Pathetic Wallet. Ever.

2009-09-03T22:40:00.007-04:00

So I set out to make a new wallet.

I didn't have a pattern, but had an old wallet that my friend Rebecca loaned to me. It was very much like this one except it wasn't ...

Pathetic.

This is a sewing blog, and things don't always turn out like we planned. I'm going to show you just how that happens, so sit back and get ready for the good, the bad and the pathetic.

The GOOD:

I love this Amy Butler fabric and I had just enough scraps left over from another project to make this wallet. The zipper was one of many in a thrift store bag. So the cost of the wallet is less than $1.

THE BAD:

People, I should be ashamed. What was I thinking? I have to confess here... I was a bit agitated the night I put this together. I think it was the wallet that was agitating me... that and the fact that somehow I completely sewed the dollar bill compartment shut.

The raw edges around the coin pouch are B A D. Bad, as in, why-didn't-I-just-go-buy-a-stinkin'-wallet-bad. Bad, as in, I-can't-believe-I'm-gonna-blog-this-bad. But you deserve to see the good, and yes, the bad. So here it is:

Ouch.

And now, so as not to disappoint:

The Pathetic:

I made a wallet last year... or longer... I have no concept of months... from an old Vera Bradley placemat (the blue one with the dorky flowers). It was ugly when I made it and it is ugly now. What it isn't is pathetic. Like the one I just finished:

The zipper is sticking out too far on the right (and it will continue to do so, as I had to sew up the hole I left in it!) and that snap? Ok, I admit that my "snap" skills are right on par, but just like in real estate: location, location, location!

I put the stinkin' thing too far up on the tab and put its connector too far up on the wallet. The result is a short snapper... is that a word? Snapper? Well, considering the fact that I'm having some wallet drama, it is now.

I should be ashamed to even share this but here it is: it looks like a tongue sticking out. "Help meee!" It says. And check out that curvey zipper! Just in case you think this is a "designer" effect, zippers aren't really supposed to do that.

So what to do with my Most Pathetic Wallet. Ever.? Move in, of course! I wanted to use on a trip this weekend because of its size. It is Mostly Pathetic but it is also mostly perfectly sized!

So I moved in and will test drive it this weekend. If I like the location of the compartments (there are 7!) then I'll incorporate those in the next version.

All moved in (yeah, my license is backwards behind that clear vinyl (and too short) window). My cards are all there, but the cash? Well, there's not much of it, but it's tucked inside a deep pocket just behind the green and yellow discount cards. You can just see the edge of the bills. In a perfect wallet world, they would be folded into the side like all self respecting bills should be, but I digress.

And I will now close up my Most Pathetic Wallet. Ever., stash it in my purse and enjoy what I can of it this weekend! Stay tuned: a new improved (OR a more pathetic) version is sure to make an appearance soon!

Another Jeep Window Bag!

2009-09-02T10:47:00.004-04:00

Marla Cox of Indianapolis, Indiana wrote to me to ask how to make the Jeep Window Bag that I posted about earlier. Here are the pix from her project! She did a fabulous job!

Marla said, "It was definitely much cheaper than the $150 window bag I saw online. I think I spent about $40 and it took me about 3 hours. My husband loves it! His windows are no longer laying around in the garage waiting to get scratched up. Thanks again for sharing!"

This is the divided section. You lay each window in between layers of felt.

Roll them up and secure them with ties.

Put the felt roll inside this weatherproof bag, and voila! You have a custom made window bag!

Way to go, Marla! It looks GREAT!

Asher at 6 months

2009-09-02T07:44:00.002-04:00

You Tube Talking Animals

2009-08-29T22:41:00.002-04:00

These are just too stinkin' funny.

Talking animals

Three great books

2009-08-28T19:51:00.002-04:00

I am so excited to share these books with you as part of the Random House Blog Tour!

I just don't know which one I like best, but if I had to choose JUST ONE, it would be Knit for Love, but mainly because it is about women and a girl who gather to knit, read and talk! My three favorite activities! You guys have to check out at least one of these fabulous reads.... Here's a synopsis of them all! Thanks so much, Random House!

Summary for The Confidential Life of Eugenia Cooper

The future is clearly mapped out for New York socialite Eugenia “Gennie” Cooper, but she secretly longs to slip into the boots of her favorite dime-novel heroine and experience just one adventure before settling down. When the opportunity arises, Gennie jumps at the chance to experience the Wild West, but her plans go awry when she is drawn into the lives of silver baron Daniel Beck and his daughter and finds herself caring for them more than is prudent–especially as she’s supposed to go back to New York and marry another man.

As Gennie adapts to the rough-and-tumble world of 1880s Colorado , she must decide whether her future lies with the enigmatic Daniel Beck or back home with the life planned for her since birth. The question is whether Daniel’s past–and disgruntled miners bent on revenge–will take that choice away from her.

Summary for The Sweetgum Ladies Knit for Love

Once a month, the six women of the Sweetgum Knit Lit Society gather to discuss books and share their knitting projects. Inspired by her recently-wedded bliss, group leader Eugenie chooses “Great Love Stories in Literature” as the theme for the year’s reading list–a risky selection for a group whose members span the spectrum of age and relationship status.
As the Knit Lit ladies read and discus classic romances like Romeo and Juliet, Wuthering Heights, and Pride and Prejudice, each member is confronted with her own perception about love. Camille’s unexpected reunion with an old crush forces her to confront conflicting desires. Newly widowed Esther finds her role in Sweetgum changing and is surprised by two unlikely friends. Hannah isn’t sure she’s ready for the trials of first love. Newcomer Maria finds her life turned upside-down by increasing family obligations and a handsome, arrogant lawyer, and Eugenie and Merry are both asked to make sacrifices for their husbands that challenge their principles.
Even in a sleepy, southern town like Sweetgum , Tennessee , love isn’t easy. The Knit Lit ladies learn they can find strength and guidance in the novels they read, the love of their family, their community–and especially in each other.

Summary for Rose House

A vivid story of a private grief, a secret painting, and one woman’s search for hope.
Still mourning the loss of her family in a tragic accident, Lillian Diamon finds herself drawn back to the Rose House, a quiet cottage where four years earlier she had poured out her anguish among its fragrant blossoms.
She returns to the rolling hills and lush vineyards of the Sonoma Valley in search of something she can’t quite name. But then Lillian stumbles onto an unexpected discovery: displayed in the La Rosaleda Gallery is a painting that captures every detail of her most private moment of misery, from the sorrow etched across her face to the sandals on her feet.
What kind of artist would dare to intrude on such a personal scene, and how did he happen to witness Lillian’s pain? As the mystery surrounding the portrait becomes entangled with the accident that claimed the lives of her husband and children, Lillian is forced to rethink her assumptions about what really happened that day.
A captivating novel rich with detail, Rose House explores how the brushstrokes of pain can illuminate the true beauty of life.

Cover art:

Author Bios:

Kathleen Y’Barbo is the best-selling, award-winning author of more than thirty novels, novellas, and young adult books, with more than a half-million in print. A graduate of Texas A&M University , she is currently a publicist with Books & Such literary agency.

RITA Award-winning Beth Patillo combines her love of knitting and books in her engaging Sweetgum series. Pattillo served churches in Missouri and Tennessee before founding Faith Leader, a spiritual leadership development program.

Tina Ann Forkner is the author of Ruby Among Us. Originally from Oklahoma , she now lives with her husband and three children in Wyoming , where she serves on the Laramie County Library Foundation’s board of directors.

Precious grandson!

2009-08-28T10:57:00.006-04:00

I still don't know what he will call me, but I call him The AshMan. This little fellow is so scrumptious we could just squeeze him!

Those blue eyes... wow. Such a happy baby!

We were bathing him in the kitchen sink when I got this photo. His Daddy Bo's shirt got soaked!

This was when I dried him off... He laughed and laughed!

Baby laundry... I had to photo it to remember forever how little he was on this day!

All scrubbed and loving being with Daddy Bo! We are truly blessed.

Brother Dave's Boiled Peanuts PERFECT!

2009-08-26T18:56:00.004-04:00

So Brother Dave said, "You might want to write this down." It's not a hard recipe, but everyone knows I am NOT comfy in the kitchen. I wanted a pool instead of a kitchen but the builder said it might actually make the house hard to sell later... whatever....

"Pour off the soaking water, rinse the nuts and the pot, then refill the pot with water. Add 1/3 cup of salt for every pound of nuts," he instructed, adding, "you DID get green nuts, right?" I assured him I did, then raced over to check the bag. Whew. That was close.

Since I had 2 pounds of nuts, I added 2/3 salt to the water, then the nuts. I got it all boiling, just like Bro Dave said.

"Turn it to simmer and put a lid on it," was the next step. "You should stir the nuts about every 1/2 hour, and cook for five hours." Just as I was getting nervous about being tied to a pot of boiling nuts all day, he continued, "and if you have to go off, just turn them off and back on when you return."

I followed his directions to a tee... except for the whole "stir every 1/2 hour".. sorry Dave, but I couldn't pay that much attention, so I stirred them every now and thenThen I poured off the hot water and it was time to try them...

They turned out incredible!! Scrumptious boiled peanuts! Thanks, Dave!

Brother Dave's Boiled Peanuts
David Deaton

2 or 3 lbs of green peanuts in the shell. (Dave prefers Virgina nuts)
1/3 cup of salt for every pound of nuts

Wash shelled peanuts
put in large pot of water, making sure the water covers them. You will have to have something to hold them down (plate or bowl) as they float!

Soak overnight

Next morning: pour off soaking water, rinse nuts and rinse pot.

Fill pot 3/4 full of fresh water
add salt
add nuts

Bring to a boil

cut back to simmer, cover with lid and set timer for 5 hours.

Stir occasionally, but Brother Dave suggests every half hour.

Enjoy!!

Brother Dave's Boiled Peanuts

2009-08-25T22:10:00.003-04:00

It's time for some boiled peanuts so I called my brother David for his recipe. Dave makes the best danged boiled peanuts.... ever.

"First you have to soak 'em overnight," he instructed by telephone. I poured out the vat of hot boiling water that I'd already prepared and changed it to cold.

"They'll float to the top," he added. They did. "Put something like a plate on top of them to hold them down." My plates were either too large or too small but this bowl that used to belong to my mom was just right. It's from the 1950's, by the way, and I love it. Mom served hot veggies or cold potato salad in it. It always reminds me of her in her apron and those wonderful meals she used to make...

but I'm supposed to be blogging about boiled peanuts... oops... got carried away....

Well, mom's vintage bowl wasn't quite heavy enough so I added this:

A glass straw dispenser. Perfect. All the little nuts are snuggled in for the night. Tomorrow I'll post the cooking process! Ninja Man had better get ready for some scrumptious boiled peanuts!

Amy Butler Wallet

2009-08-25T15:16:00.006-04:00

Coming soon: my new Amy Butler wallet. I just love Amy Butler fabric and this is some I have left over from another project so I decided it was time for a new wallet.

My plan is to finish it by tomorrow... Here's a preview:

The floral is going on the outside. If you look closely you can see I've topstitched it. There is a piece of heavy interfacing sewn to the back for stabilizing. Look closer and you'll see the piece of plastic (lying over the zipper) that I'll use for the window over the driver's license. I'll post pix of the process as I go.

I'm thinkin' fall

2009-08-17T06:40:00.003-04:00

Flowers in a shiny black pail arrived on the first day of fall last year, a sweet gift from my friend Martha to welcome the season. The flowers were from her garden!
The view from my porch. The bed sure needs some refreshment!

I made this arrangement to brighten up a table on my porch.

Can't wait to put my fall garland up!

A brisk fall day. I'm looking forward to one.

Stripes for the little Man Cub!

2009-08-13T21:44:00.003-04:00

I saw these adorable things for our grandson Asher and had to bring them home. They are from The Children's Place and the colors are just fabulous! This first picture has too much lighting, but I love the textures so I thought I'd add it anyway...

This next one is more true to the colors.

The AshMan is 6 whole months old for Heaven's sake, and I can't believe he is so stinkin' big. That just means there is more of him to snuggle with and I love his laugh! He is very funny already, just like his daddy was at that age. His mommy has a great wit and humor so he is getting this characteristic from both sides.

I figured a colorful Man Cub could have a colorful set for the fall, so I picked this out and just happened to come across some hand knit socks for him to wear with it! I'll have to see if I can find some brown shoes now...

I'll try to get a picture of him in his new duds and post it soon!

Mid-Ohio Quilter!

2009-08-08T09:15:00.002-04:00

I found this blog today by linking from the Moda Bake Shop... adorable stuffed puppy and kitty made with Moda fabrics! Check it out...Vickie at Mid-Ohio quilter has all kinds of great little surprises!

Discovering Cindy Woodsmall

2009-08-03T11:51:00.004-04:00

The Hope of Refuge by Cindy Woodsmall

This book is part of the Blog Tour I mentioned earlier. I can hardly put it down, but I love a novel like this that is centered around the Amish and their lifestyles. The story line is great and I'm not quite finished but I am so eager to get a few minutes in my day to continue the adventure. I am also eager to read all of Woodsmall's work!

Thanks to Random House for this great Blog Tour! With books like this to review, I'm having a blast!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Cindy Woodsmall is a veteran homeschool mom. As her children progressed in age, her desire to write grew stronger. After working through reservations whether this desire was something she should pursue, she began her writing journey. Her husband was her staunchest supporter as she aimed for what seemed impossible.

Her first novel released in 2006 to much acclaim and became a Christian Book Association best seller. Cindy was a 2007 ECPA Christian Book Award finalist, along with Karen Kingsbury, Angela Hunt, and Charles Martin.

Her second book, When the Morning Comes, hit the New York Times best-sellers extended list and the Christian Book Association best-sellers list.

Her third book, When the Soul Mends, hit the New York Times best-sellers list, coming in at number thirteen. It also made the ECPA and the CBA best-sellers list, coming in at number six and eight respectively.

Cindy’s real-life connections with Amish Mennonite and Old Order Amish families enrich her novels with authenticity.

Though she didn’t realize it at the time, seeds were sown years ago that began preparing Cindy to write these books. At the age of ten, while living in the dairy country of Maryland, she became best friends with Luann, a Plain Mennonite girl. Luann, like all the females in her family, wore the Prayer Kapp and caped dresses. Her parents didn’t allow television or radios, and many other modern conveniences were frowned upon. During the numerous times Luann came to Cindy’s house to spend the night, her rules came with her and the two were careful to obey them-afraid that if they didn’t, the adults would end their friendship. Although the rules were much easier to keep when they spent the night at Luann’s because her family didn’t own any of the forbidden items, both sets of parents were uncomfortable with the relationship and a small infraction of any kind would have been enough reason for the parents to end the relationship. While navigating around the adults’ disapproval and the obstacles in each other’s lifestyle, the two girls bonded in true friendship that lasted into their teen years, until Cindy’s family moved to another region of the U.S.

As an adult, Cindy became friends with a wonderful Old Order Amish family who opened their home to her. Although the two forty-something women, Miriam and Cindy, live seven hundred miles apart geographically, and a century apart by customs, when they come together they never lack for commonality, laughter, and dreams of what only God can accomplish through His children.

Cindy, her husband, their three sons and two daughters-in-law reside in Georgia.

Ribbit by Susan B. Anderson for Spud & Chloe

2009-07-26T21:42:00.005-04:00

A few days ago I blogged about Ribbit, this adorable frog pattern designed by Susan B. Anderson. As I mentioned, my yarn arrived from Spud & Chloe, and I couldn't wait to get started on this adorable little toy for my grandson Asher!

The first step was to make the bottom. There's a surprise hidden behind all these stitches!

It's a tennis ball! I think this is going to be one FUN FROG! Tucking the ball in the knitted body wasn't hard... could be my stitches are a bit looser knit, I don't know, but it's snugly closed up in there now.

A froggy bottom.

I am working on the last leg of Ribbit. The others are in the bag, waiting to be attached.

Here are the three completed legs and the "toes". You'll see there are some really LONG strings of yarn hanging off. That is because the pattern calls for the toes to be added separately. I left extra length to make sure they are as secure as possible so little Asher can't pull them off. He's just six months old, the age where everything goes in his mouth, so if that's the case here, then I want to make this super safe for him.

The "feet" look vastly different from one another. The one on the left looks correct, but I like the other two also, so I'll probably just use them as they are. Check back later in the week to see Ribbit finished!

Bathroom Redo on a Budget!

2009-07-25T15:42:00.014-04:00

Calling this a "redo" isn't quite accurate as we've lived here for three years and have never actually "done" the guest bath before. This is its first coat of paint and by choosing a color to coordinate with items I already had, I didn't have to buy anything but the paint!

I had this fabric, a heavy, 60" wide cotton drapery weight called "Madeline" from Moda. I have had a bolt of it for a few years now and am still not tired of it. I love its celedon green and soft pinks... perfect to obtain the look I wanted in the bath.

I used it to make the drapes over the shower curtain. It was slightly tricky because it has an up and down repeating pattern and I had to be sure to check that I didn't sew the designs upside down. Here, I was preparing to cut a length from the bolt. Note that my cutting mat is on a BED... yeah, don't try this... it isn't ideal at all. I was trying to knock this out and didn't move to the kitchen counter. It worked but I do not recommend it!

I always make a mess when sewing.

This is the painted bathroom after Ninja Man turned the walls from "construction man white" to a buttery cream that actually has a green tint to it. Pretty good, since my towels and rugs are green.

I recycled those wall decorations, putting them back where they used to be. It was cheaper than buying new and besides, I really still enjoy them.

Before the curtains are put in.

Because there was so much fabric to work with, I found that it was highly possible to mix up which was the top and which was the bottom. I placed a safety pin at the top of each of the four panels. It is an absolute must to press your seams in first if you want a crisp finish. I find it so much easier to sew the prepared lines... no guessing or extra measuring!

This is a coordinating fabric I chose for my tiebacks. They are just lengths of fabric hemmed on both ends and sewn into a tube. You turn them right side out, add buttons and button holes and Poof! You have tiebacks!

Of course, you know me... COVERED BUTTONS! Yeah... have I sewn anything lately without them?

The finished bath. Full curtains, "Paris" above the shower, a nice hanger above the toilet for wet towels and we're all ready for guests!

OOPS! I fibbed. I did buy the new "Paris" sign you see in the photo below. It was originally $10 at Hobby Lobby, but I happened to find it on sale at 50% off, so WOO HOO! A $5 sign came home to stay in my "new" guest bath! More about that sweet pail of hankies in just a minute....

I just loved this reproduction Rexall ad when I found it years ago. A friend of my son's said she was scary. Obviously I disagree! I love it!

This is a special display of my mother's vintage hankies. I received a bag of them when she passed away in March of 2008 and I have gone through them several times since, not sure what I wanted to do with them. I decided today that I would enjoy them so much if I could see them each day. There was this blank spot on the wall and I already had the metal pail, so I put the two together. I think mom would approve.

Knitted Baby Booties

2009-07-22T06:16:00.005-04:00

It's time to put on your seat belt for some CUTE!!!!Oh, yeah, Hoover is just so stinkin' cute you could just squeeze him, but we're not talking about puppies who take naps with their cute heads on pillows....

We're talking KNITTED BABY BOOTIES!

These are my first ever baby booties that I really like, made for a friend who had a baby girl. They are going to have to be "winter" shoes because of their rather large size (I think my needles were size 5) but cute is cute, so I hope in time she will enjoy them! I made little knitted balls instead of buttons since the baby will be older when she wears these and might have the dexterity to pull at a button.

The pattern was free (I'm all about FREE) and you can find it here Also visit Saartje's blog and see her beautiful creations from the Netherlands. Thanks, Saartje, for a very fun pattern... and easy too!

Spud & Chloe yarn: Ribbit: a Knitted Bouncing Frog

2009-07-20T20:07:00.006-04:00

I discovered Spud & Chloe through Susan B. Anderson's newsletter. Anderson designs patterns for the new yarn line Spud & Chloe. Check it out the free patterns (Ribbit is one!) here.

This little cutie is called Ribbit, a knitted frog pattern that opts to use a tennis ball instead of stuffing! I'm going to start on this tonight and make it for grandson Asher. He is almost 6 months old now and will probably get a giggle or two out of a bouncing frog!

I found the bamboo needles on eBay, a full set in all sizes for $12. I'm "okay" with them, but would like to have some nicer ones some day.

This yarn is just dreamy. My friend Heather ordered mine with hers and it came in time for our knit group meeting last Saturday. What fun it was to see her after several weeks of summer travel, complete with Ribbit's yarn!

So I'm off to my recliner to try and get over a bug I've been fighting, and all the while working on a little frog friend. I'll let you know how it goes!

More decorative pillows: Waverly, Tommy Bahama

2009-07-13T12:25:00.007-04:00

I'm sewing up a storm of pillows while visiting daughter Aubern Michelle and her hubby Ian. Each of them are pillow covers with removable pillows inside.

These are for Chelle and Ian. They are a perfect match for this antique leather side chair. I'm hoping to find a large wooden button for the front of the envelope pillow. The edge features the Tommy Bahama fabric casing canvas cord as trim.

Here's the mountain of pillows. I still have a few left to make!

Ian chose this black background tropical indoor / outdoor Waverly as the feature fabric. The photo doesn't do justice to the vibrant colors.

The back is a soft upholstery-weight fabric. And of course, covered buttons!

Back to sewing and a teeny bit of vacation. I'm never really "off" work due to deadlines, but I travel with laptop AND sewing machine so everything gets done!

Tommy Bahama pillows and the Traveling Sewing Corner

2009-07-09T16:13:00.009-04:00

I'm traveling right now and took a small folding table to my daughter's house along with my sewing machine, necessary notions and fabrics so I could make my sofa pillows while Ninja Man helps our son in law with some barn work on their farm.

Here's what my Traveling Sewing Corner looks like! Yes, it is crowded but most of this stuff isn't on it when I'm actually sewing.

So I found this Tommy Bahama fabric at JoAnn's and having a friend who was generous enough to share a coupon with me, I was able to get it at half price. It is the one with the print on it and is indoor / outdoor fabric and very, very nice to sew. The striped is Waverly, also in/outdoor, while the blue is a microfiber and the ribbed cream (you can barely see it at bottom, tiny triangle by the blue) is an inexpensive upholstery remnant.I made the pillows with the beige cotton fabric and polyfil stuffing. I do prefer pillow forms but the ones on clearance were $8 each, which is more than I was budgeting for. Once you make the pillow form yourself and cover it with the actual pillow cover, you can barely tell it isn't a form, so I often use stuffing instead.

So here's my first finished sofa pillow. It is about 2' X 2' and I'll make a second one just like this. The others will be various styles and sizes and will incorporate the other fabrics.
Here's the back with, well, you know me....covered buttons!

Ninja Man likes this button the best. If it didn't waste so much to fussy cut, I'd do them all like this one.

Stay tuned to see the rest of the story of Tommy and the Traveling Sewing Corner!

Blog Tour: The Kidnapping of Kenzie Thorn

2009-07-09T04:17:00.012-04:00

I recently received word of something called a "blog tour" and signed up to review a few books. The first one I received was an autographed advance copy of The Kidnapping of Kenzie Thorn, a Christian romance / suspense novel where the characters rely on God's direction.This is author Liz Johnson's first book and I look forward to her growth as a romance writer. Johnson's story line is great but in the first few pages it was revealed that hero Myles Parsons was falling for Kenzie. I would like the author to have allowed us to discover that a bit later, providing more intrigue to her story.

Still, Johnson's story has a great plot and would be a terrific quick read. It is filled with adventure as Parsons, who is sent to prison as an inmate, has a mission to protect prison G.E.D. teacher / granddaughter-to-the-governor Kenzie Thorn. Twists and turns keep the reader intrigued, revealing a surprise villain and ultimate love.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Liz Johnson grew up reading Christian fiction, and always dreamed of being part of the publishing industry. After graduating from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff with a degree in public relations, she set out to fulfill her dream. In 2006 she got her wish when she accepted a publicity position at a major trade book publisher. While working as a publicist in the industry, she decided to pursue her other dream-becoming an author. Along the way to having her novel published, she completed the Christian Writers Guild apprentice course and wrote articles for several magazines.

Liz lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where she enjoys theater, ice skating, volunteering in her church's bookstore and making frequent trips to Arizona to dote on her nephew and three nieces. She loves stories of true love with happy endings. The Kidnapping of Kenzie Thorn is her first novel. Keep up with Liz's adventures in writing at www.lizjohnsonbooks.com.

Savannah Candy Kitchen!

2009-07-06T08:44:00.011-04:00

Join us on our SWEET visit to the Savannah Candy Kitchen!What a sweet welcome to the candy store!
We dropped by the Savannah Candy Kitchen when my nephew Chris and his family were visiting a couple of weeks ago. There are two locations; City Market and River Street. We went to the one in City Market.

Here's Chris, wife Stacy, Jimmy and Samantha.

They are best known for their pralines. Some people say PRAH-Leens. We say PRAY-leens. Either way, they are very rich and quite a treat. I always think of my cousin Sally since these are her favorite things. We are pretty sure that pralines are made with magic and this guy is just making sure all the magic has been blended just right.

Praline guy chopped up a bunch and gave little samples. I love the praline guy.
If the pralines were too sweet you could chase them down with these. Yeah, these are real bugs, available in sour cream and onion or salt and vinegar.

The kids loved the wrapped candies and filled tins with their favorites.

The old buildings in Savannah are awesome. Thankfully we live in a time where store owners don't try to cover the old walls with paint or sheetrock and you can see the passages of time on the surface of the bricks (below). Here Ninja Man is telling Jimmy how salt water taffy is made. He knows how it is made because he is Ninja and can do anything, including make taffy, I'm sure. (Ninja just stood over my shoulder reading the blog entry and said he has actually made taffy. No surprise, Ninja Man!)

Taffy guy adds flavoring. At some point the taffy will go on the long wooden rollers and get pulled and pulled and pulled, then pulled some more. It is pretty fascinating but it didn't get to that point while we were there.

Candy apples. Oh, to be a kid again without tons of dental work!

Ever seen a grown woman cry? These were so scrumptious looking I just had to wipe a tear. I think they have some of everything in that store stuck to them.

Nutty, caramel apples.

I could have climbed in here and not felt guilty at all.
Climbing out? Well, that's another thing entirely.

They even have treats for the Kerbster and HooMan. We bought them a bone cookie. The chocolate they use must be yogurt because it was safe for them to eat.
Ninja Man and I bought a little piece of fudge and a peanut butter cup. Yep, only two pieces. We cut them up into teeny bites and munched on them for a week. There was a time we would have eaten that and more on the way home!

It was a sweet visit!

Thrift Store Furniture redo!

2009-07-01T00:03:00.007-04:00

I am drawn to wicker like Paula Deen is to butter.

If I didn't have Ninja Man to consider when decorating the house, everything would be wicker, rosy, fluffy, girlie, pink, vintage and... well, you get the idea. But I do have Ninja Man, which is better than all the pink girlie stuff in the world, and Ninja Man hates wicker. Therefore, I cherish the few pieces I have managed to sneak into the house.

I saw this wicker entertainment center at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Bluffton, South Carolina. It is very heavy wood with wicker on the outside. It is strong enough that a heavy television can sit inside.

Ninja Man and driven me and a friend to Bluffton and Hilton Head for thrift store shopping, and we were actually looking for storage for her house. I helped her with organizing some rooms in her home and our last task was to find shelving and cabinetry. I love my friend dearly but might have tackled her over this, but thankfully her hubby doesn't like wicker. Um, that sounds familiar...

Judging by the "artwork" I'm pretty sure a clown must have been the previous owner.

A clown with a penchant for paper flowers and a jar of decoupage glue. Egad.

Ninja Man may hate wicker but he loves a challenging project. Either that, or he can't bear wicker to look worse than it already does and it was going to give him nightmares to think about it. He didn't even come into the house upon arriving home with my "treasure" but began working immediately on removing the horrid "improvements" made by the previous owner. He fired up his hot steam cleaner. I didn't watch. Steam was rising from either him or the tool... not sure... but either way, he got the flowers / paper / ick off and was ready to go to step 2, which was painting over the, um, artwork.

It took Ninja Man about several cans of spray paint to apply five layers over what must have been an oil based paint. Every afternoon he would come in from work, roll the piece out to the yard and spray. This isn't just ANY spraying of paint, let me tell you... no, Ninja Man has a specific method he uses to prevent running paint and he does a great job.

And finally, about a week or so later, Ninja delivered my wicker entertainment center to its home inside the house. He did have to cut out the back so the TV would fit, but other than that it is just perfect.

And by the way, the piece was only $49. Add about $12 worth of paint and this is a huge bargain!

Jeep window bag

2009-06-30T23:34:00.005-04:00

I asked a neighbor of mine if he might be able to help me with my computer. It has a few bugs and needed someone who is knowledgeable to fix it. Of course, Ninja Man can do ANYthing but it is rather stressful for him and I was hoping to save him the grief he would get from me when he began to utter stressful noises while at my beloved keyboard.

My neighbor Jeremy said he would be happy to work on it and he actually had something I could help him with in exchange. We bartered (LOVE IT!) my sewing for his computer skills! I love, love, love bartering!

Jeremy needed portable storage for his vinyl Jeep windows. The storage included a bag that would house layers of felt that protect the windows when not in use. Jeremy outlined the project, gave dimensions and provided online references for the storage bag and felt linings.

We shopped for materials and here's the final product:

The bag is resting on the top of the convertible roof.

One end of the bag is sewn closed in a circle while the other has a casing with a drawstring that closes with a cord stop.

Jeremy found straps with buckles at Bass Pro Shop and I used them on the ends so he could attach the bag to the base of the Jeep's rollbar. I sewed the straps over and over again, reinforcing with an X within a square so they would be as secure as possible.

Below is the felt and windows. I loved working with it! I sewed ties on it so he could roll it up and keep it closed while he puts it in the bag.

Four layers of felt keep the windows from getting scratched. You'll see in the following pix that they are all tucked inside here!

Under each layer is another window... there are three windows, one larger than the other two.

And now he has a sweet window bag for his Jeep! There is plenty of vinyl left for additional things if he decides he needs or wants more storage.

Purchasing a bag like this could cost nearly $100 after taxes and shipping. We were able to do it for just over $30 in materials.

I'm all about bargains, and bartering is great in these tough economic times! Can't get much better than free!

Sweet Peas knitted baby hat

2009-06-28T21:40:00.006-04:00

I saw this pattern by Susan B. Anderson and just HAD to make this baby hat. It is called Sweet Peas and can be found as a download for $5.50 here.

The idea was to make it for grandson Asher, but seeing as I didn't pay close enough attention to the size, I messed up and made it in a 2T. The AshMan should be wearing a 12 month hat this winter so this one is up for sale.

Anyway, the pattern calls for two skeins of Tahki Cotton Classic, but I used "what I had" in yarn... the green I used is Vanna's Choice Dusty Green acrylic 3.5 oz yarn. The blue has a chenille effect and is TLC Amore. The color is Seagrass and the yarn is 80% acrylic and 20% nylon worsted weight.

So I was knitting the hat when in walks a baby. Oh yeah. She is only 16 months but I figured a little baby head is better than no baby head, so I put the tips on my size 7, 16" circulars and plopped the hat upon said baby. It just so happens she is the cutest 16 month old on the planet, so she made my little hat look soooo cute!

Here's the adorable result!

This was shortly after a scrumptious spaghetti dinner...

Anyway, I finished the "peas" yesterday and since my little model had to go home, I photographed it with a towel stuffed inside, hence the lumpiness!

So there it is in a nutshell... or pea pod... I enjoyed making this so much that I will be making a few more in the next days. This one whipped up in no time at all and besides, the AshMan needs one and there is something in the water here as several friend's babies are due soon. I think there will be a whole GARDEN OF PEA PODS on my knitting needles!

I forgot to mention that I took the hat to church and tried it on a baby head and it fits a 2-3 toddler just fine!

Thanks to Susan B. Anderson for her delightful designs! And by the way, check out Susan's new Spud and Chloe line of yarn here!

Under $50 Patio furniture remake!

2009-06-20T18:27:00.005-04:00

So Ninja Man and I talked about what to do with the dingy patio furniture. Replace it or paint and recover?

I started shopping. Patio furniture during a recession is at a prime... and not a savings prime! To get the tilty, swivel, rocking chairs and the glider would have run several hundred dollars, so that was all I needed to know, and the project was underway.

We decided to redo our patio furniture, which meant removing rust (Ninja Man) painting (Ninja Man) and sewing cushions (yours truly). I had a roll of fabric in the garage I'd been saving for something like this, since I never really liked the fabric it came with to begin with. I had forgotten what I paid for it, but Ninja reminded me that I didn't pay full price... I got it for 75% off the regular price... that made it about $3 a yard.

Here's what the original set looked like after baking in the sun for just 3 years:

Ninja went out and got some supplies. Meanwhile, I measured, cut and sewed, and voila! A brand spankin' new set, just ready for summer! By the way, I covered the existing cushions since the fillings were still in good shape. Just another way to save big $$ on a project such as this!

I'm looking forward to the lazy porch days in our future. We hope to screen in this porch someday, but for now, I'm just delighted with the outcome!

I love the Barrel Monster!!

2009-06-18T22:37:00.003-04:00

This photo is property of the NCSU alumni student newspaper. 21 year-old Joseph Carnevale created this Barrel Monster out of, you guessed it, highway department road hazard barrels. I happen to love the creativity of the Barrel Monster, though Carnevale was not within the law and has a few legal issues due to his artistic expression at the expense of the DOT.

This was in North Carolina, by the way...

What a hoot!

Something New!

2009-06-18T22:28:00.002-04:00

You guys might notice that now I have Google ads on my blog! Yep, I'm giving it a whirl.

Where are my posts???

2009-06-18T22:17:00.001-04:00

Well, the camera has been on the fritz and I haven't been able to post pix to go with my topics! I didn't think you guys would want to just have a ton of text, so I'll keep this short... I've been:

SEWING!

THRIFT SHOPPING!

READING A NEW AUTHOR!

PLAYING WITH MY CRICUT MACHINE!

KNITTING!

More to come as soon as I have some pix I can share! Please subscribe if you'd like updates!

Okay, okay, I'll post one of the last pix I was able to upload: This is the infamous Trapper Jack! He is a critter wrangler extraordinaire! We called him to wrestle a 6 foot gator from a pond in the neighborhood and he just happened to have this little guy with him at the time! Trapper Jack is afraid of nothing... and I mean nothing. Alligators tremble, snakes shiver and critters cringe when they see him coming. I was so impressed, watching him work.

Here he is with a 4 foot gator that he caught on his way to our neighborhood and later released in a more remote area.

Baby Asher standing!

2009-05-30T01:21:00.002-04:00

Asher is four months old as of yesterday, and his mommy took this pix of him and sent it to my cellphone. I have to laugh everytime I see it! It is just adorable! Sad though, he has my knees and his granddad Daddy Bo's tummy! LOL!

Baby burp cloths for a sweet little girl!

2009-05-28T17:19:00.005-04:00

Here are some sweet burp cloths for my friend's precious newborn baby girl. Julia Grace came into her mom and dad's life on May 21, and let me tell you, she is just adorable! I got to hold her today and I didn't want to put her down!

I made these for little Julia, surely thinking she needed more PINK! Can any of us get enough pink? I sure can't!

I first made a pattern out of scrap paper, then cut each panel out. You can cut several at a time if you choose... I'd stick with no more than four layers with the rotary cutter.

Use a 6 ply cotton diaper. I buy mine online at Target.

The edge of these diapers are uneven, so it is important to press, pin, sew slowly, and get it jusssstttt to the edge.

A nice, crisp edge.

Here are other fabrics I used.

I gotta tell ya, this is NOT my favorite one... I almost didn't give it to my friend because it is really not snazzy at all... I gave strict instructions they are not allowed to say who made it, so you have to keep it a secret too!

The pink solid is super soft flannel and the letters are made with just a soft baby fabric. I sure wish it had turned out the way I envisioned it, but live and learn, as my mama always said!

They do look sweet all stacked up... and yes, I'm hiding the funky one on the bottom!

A Knitted Baby Sock

2009-05-25T16:37:00.008-04:00

A real live knitted baby sock. Oh yeah.

As the girls in my needlework group can attest, I have had a project on my knitting needles for two (yes) two years.... I have been determined to make a sock, preferably two. I first started with an adult sock, self striping yarn, but couldn't tell my knits from my purls. I pulled it out many times, started over, dropped it for a while then tried again. Grandson was born and I was desperate to make him some baby socks.

Finally, just this week, I have made one. It isn't perfect so don't look too close! BUT I have started the next one and expect to finish it much, much, much sooner than this one! My sock-savy friends said I had an icky pattern, so that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!

I also found some cute-as-a-button Croc-like shoes for the little man-cub! I think I would have bought them even if I didn't have a little one to buy for! They are tooooo cute!
I started with this self-striping Clown yarn. It baffles me how it knows how to stripe. It is magic, I am sure.

Here's a closeup of my stitches.

All I needed now was the cutest baby toes on the planet.

Found 'em.

Here's the sock in the knee-sock form. Ninja Man says boys don't wear knee socks and I say patooie. Grandson AshMan can roll however he wants in this, the cool sock from his Mama Bo. Even more so when I finish sock #2!

Here's the cute little shoes... they are just right!

Where's the other sock? On my needles, dear one.... I'm hurrying!

The Knit Kit reviewed!

2009-05-19T00:11:00.002-04:00

My "official" review of the Knit Kit:

I love it. At $20 it was pricey but the size of it, larger than the palm of my hand, makes it easy to find in my bag, with everything I need in one tool, and the clicker... ohhh the clicker... for me, it was almost worth it just to be able to count off each row without looking for that little thing that takes two hands to use. So I give it 5 stars out of five for functionality, 3.5 stars on price.

My price suggestion for this item in this day of cool gadgetry: $12 to $15.

The Knit Kit has arrived!

2009-05-14T14:08:00.009-04:00

This is a new item my friend Angela shared with me. Check out the website here!

I went to the site and found a store in Georgia that I could order from. I ordered mine from The Whole Nine Yarns in Woodstock.

When it came, it looked like a gift! I love that! Wrapped in cute paper, I could have thought, "hey, this is a surprise!" But I paid for it, so I knew... still, it was fun to open!

Here's their card:

Here's the kit AND a thank you note!

Here's what it does:

It has a tape measure that comes out looking like a fish with a tongue!

A crochet needle for those dropped stitches tucked into the side:

A counter on top... push a button to count stitches, then turn a dial to reset!

Open the back for folded scissors, point covers and stitch markers! All PINK! Yippee!

This is a neat kit, now I'm going to actually use it. I think it was a bit pricey but it might prove otherwise... will post on that later. The Whole Nine Yarns, however, gets my vote for best service, ever!

Vidalia onions, cornbread and more!

2009-05-11T22:14:00.006-04:00

All of you guys know I am NOT a cook. However, I do enjoy making summer dinners. These are veggie meals with little or no meat. Rumor has it I do make good fried green tomatoes and fried okra, but on this meal I had to choose okra. Can't have too much fried, you know!

I cut up 3 squash and sauteed them in butter with a cut up Vidalia onion. If y'all haven't had a Vidalia onion before, then you are missing out. They are incredible! We eat them all through spring and summer till they quit selling them at the store. Make sure the label says Vidalia or you're not getting the "real" thing.

My fried okra is just cut okra dipped in egg then in a mixture of salt and pepper and flour. I put it in a gallon Ziploc bag and do the hokey pokey and I shake it all about... then it is good and ready for frying. Ninja Man tries to get me to use peanut oil but it really affects the flavor so I just fry it in canola...

The cornbread is just mixed from cornmeal with a tad of sugar, cooked in a heavy skillet. Our skillet is old and seasoned, just right for cornbread.

Cut up a fresh tomato and more Vidalia onions, spread a cloth on the table on the porch, pour up some sweet tea and it is slap-your-momma good!! YUM!

Doggie Ice Cream Treats!

2009-05-09T09:27:00.007-04:00

Did you say Ice Cream for the pups?

Yep! A sweet and healthy treat for your favorite little four-legged wonders!

This is a recipe our neighbor Richard shared with us, and Kerby and Hoover are just thrilled!

Here's the link if you want to go to the website!

Homemade Frosty Dog Treats

1 ripe banana

2 T. peanut butter

2 T. honey

32 oz. vanilla low fat yogurt

Preparation with an electric mixer -
In a mixing bowl, mash the ripe banana with a fork. Add the peanut butter and honey and mix at medium speed until smooth and well blended. Add the yogurt and mix again at medium speed until well blended.

Preparation with a food processor or blender -
Puree the banana. Add the remaining ingredients and process until smooth and well blended.

Pour or spoon the mixture into small disposable cups - about 3 to 4 ounce size. Ninja Man made this batch and spooned it up into equal portions.

Place the filled cups on a tray and freeze. Individual cups can be covered with foil or plastic wrap.

For small dogs, pour the mixture into ice cube trays. Cover with foil or plastic wrap and freeze.

I recommend serving this in their bowls, as we put them on the porch and they ended up in the yard! The dogs really love this treat! Thanks, Richard!

And here's another one for your little ones!

http://www.bullwrinkle.com/Assets/Recipes/Frozen%20Peanut%20Butter%20Yogurt%20Treats.htm

Homemade Dog Treat Recipe
Frozen Peanut Butter Yogurt Treats

1-32oz. container of vanilla yogurt
1 cup of peanut butter

1. Put the peanut butter in a microwave safe dish and microwave until melted.
2. Mix the yogurt and the melted peanut butter in a bowl.
3. Pour mixture into cupcake papers (or little Dixie cups like I did) and freeze.

Bon Appetit!

An awesome music video

2009-05-01T21:30:00.004-04:00

Check this out... it is awesome...

From Playingforchange.org

Rhett and Link

2009-05-01T05:44:00.004-04:00

I discovered this when I couldn't sleep... now I REALLY can't sleep... these guys are great! (Disclaimer: in case they turn out to be something other than clean, funny guys, forget this post!)

How I know I am a grandma

2009-04-28T23:34:00.010-04:00

I have wrapped hard candy in a dish in the living room.

Every single thing I start to sew starts with inspiration of making something for my grandson.

Same with scrapbooking.

I notice games and toys in the store that he might like when he is a year, 14 months, 18 months and so on...

I wanted to buy a pool float that he can use in 2010.

I did buy two suits... one casual, one dress, for him to wear when he is two... in spring of 2011.

He was here overnight and I miss his sweet smell, his soft skin, his wee toes and tiny fingers, his smile, his soft breathing when he is sleeping, his alert eyes, his cooing and his soft hair.

I am smitten, completely smitten with him, especially when I get to hold him like I did this morning and take pictures of his sweet little face.

Dear God, thank you for this beautiful grandchild. I'm in love.

Today's Column: Raining Cats and Dogs

2009-04-17T23:34:00.000-04:00

Savannah Morning News

Raining cats and dogs

Kathy Bohannon | Wednesday, April 15, 2009 at 12:30 am

Being in charge of my daughter's pets while she and her husband were on vacation had its moments.

As if to test my mettle, one of the cats, Misu, slipped outside, ran around the house and began tugging frantically at the locked screen door on the front porch. It sounded like a crazed killer banging on the door, trying to get in.

I peeked through the peep hole and no one was there. Of course, no one was there. The cat is only 10 inches tall. I didn't look that low on the ground as I was looking for a guy in a hockey mask with a chain saw.

Bang! Bang! Bang! The screen door banged so loudly even the dogs fell for it. A frenzy of barking at the door followed by my standing on my toes, peering through the peep hole and clutching an umbrella my hand must have been very entertaining to cat No. 2, Sophia, who smugly sat curled up on a printer in a nearby office.

It was then I noticed it was raining, and a very wet Misu was plotting her entry into the house. I felt it was in the best interest of everyone involved I make a hole for the determined feline by opening the door.

The next morning it was still raining. My two Boston terriers had traveled with me and, combined with my daughter's Italian greyhound and redbone coonhound, I had four dogs to take care of. These were four dogs that needed to go outside for an early morning relief stroll - and in the pouring rain.

Thinking they might be eager to go out, I was still in my pajamas when I headed for the door. The dogs were having none of the whole going-out-in-the-rain-to-potty plan. They were perfectly fine holding it in their teeny tanks until one of them would spring a leak. There would be no leak-springing on my watch, that's what I always say, so I put on my tennis shoes, which do not match my pajamas by the way, and I picked up Monty, the Italian Greyhound, and carried him outside. The other three sat waiting, as if watching to see who would win this contest.

I put Monty in the grass, and he took off hopping like the circus dog he is. One hind leg came up in the air, bounced a few times and was followed by the second hind leg, making it possible for him to do his acrobatic stunt on his front feet as he zipped across the patio and into the house. I followed him inside. His ears were bent and flopped to the sides, and he looked like he got the worst of it. The other dogs just stared at him, obviously wondering how he walks like he does.

I remembered then I had a few things I could use to make this endeavor easier. Both Monty and Ellie, the coonhound, have raincoats. I put them on the two dogs. My Bostons glanced at one another, still entertained with the human-is-going-out-there-again-in-her-pj's-and-she's-already-soaking-wet show.

There was the umbrella from the night before, so I grabbed it from the stand by the front door. I picked up Monty, who was now a circus dog in a bright yellow raincoat. I couldn't open the umbrella and fit through the door so I had to stand in the rain and open it as best I could while holding the little dog. I carried him as far across the yard as I could so he would have farther to run inside. Hopefully we would have success, that is, if he ever put his rear toward the ground. Just a few two-legged trots down the hill, and eureka! My plan worked. Circus dog bounced and skipped his way back into the house, yellow raincoat bobbing over his head.

Ellie was next, and without much fanfare, she managed to deliver the mail, so to speak. My Bostons were last, and they were not amused with the plan. Kerby shivered, though I held the umbrella over her. Hoover lumbered around the yard, not nearly as affected as the other three. We're not entirely sure how smart Hoover is, but we love him just the same. He blinked the rain out of his eyes and waited for me to go back into the house before he would follow.

By the time I came back in, I was soaked. The dogs wanted a treat, and I just wanted some dry clothes.

Both of the cats had taken care to position themselves to witness the entire event of dogs and human going out into the rain. Misu glared at me, slitting her eyes in warning. "Don't worry," I said as I walked by, "you don't have to go out there."

And then I remembered. There is a litter box in the garage.

I checked the calendar and marked the day my daughter and her husband would return. It would be a great day indeed.

Minkee Monkey Blanket and Onesie with a tie!

2009-04-16T20:32:00.020-04:00

I made this for my grandson Asher and can't wait to give it to him and his mom and dad. I hope he will enjoy it! The blanket is flannel with a solid green Minkee backing. As you know Minkee is soooo soft. The "tie" is appliqued with the monkey theme on Minkee background. Here's the finished set and directions!

The Minkee Monkey Blanket

The Monkey Blanket and Monkey Tie

I cut my fabric with the measurements of 36" wide and 46" long. Why? Because that is how much Minkee I had... no big science there. The strips you see on my mat are scraps I used for the tie. I didn't photograph the making of the blanket but will give you some tips.

Minkee stretches! Cut carefully
Once you have everything measured and cut, PIN along the edges. Don't try to rush and shortcut... pinning at this point is very important.
While sewing stretchy flannel and / or Minkee, keep it all on the table so the weight of your project doesn't pull and cause it to stretch while sewing. I don't use my walking foot when sewing flannel or Minkee.
If you have some stretching use the point of a seam ripper to gently feed the excess under the needle.. there should only be a small amount if you pinned properly.
Leave an 8" opening along one side.
Trim corners
Turn
Steam blanket edges with the iron and gently iron on FLANNEL side! Don't iron Minkee side.
Sew opening closed and topstitch around the edge of blanket for stability.

Now for the Onesie and tie!
You can use any Onesie set... I chose Calvin so The AshMan can be a snazzy dresser.

I made a pattern by just tracing near the existing stitches on the Onesie and marking a tie that I thought would be a nice size. You will note the pattern is folded in half. I cut along the lines that are marked so when I opened the paper both sides were exact.

The pattern should be two pieces because I cut the neck separate from the tie, but you get the idea. Disclaimer: I'm not a designer... I made this up as I went.

I used a blanket stitch like this one (image from Craftelf.com) to put the applique onto the Onesie. The illustration demonstrates hand sewing but you get the idea....

I sewed on the neck part of the "tie" and the fabric went up under the flaps at the shoulders.

In the photo below, you can see how the green Minkee is under the fold at the shoulder.

This is where I found the center and marked it. Simply fold the Onesie in exact half to find the lengthwise center. This also works if you need to find the center width, just fold in half width-wise.

I cut one of the cute monkeys from the flannel fabric, found my center and used the blanket stitch to applique it on.

I pinned the tie, matching my center marks. Remember the Minkee is stretchy, so sew gently.

I stitched the tie onto the Onesie, overlapping the Minkee on the curve at the neck. I stitched on top of the tie at the curve to give the tie a "tied" detail.
Voila! A matching Minkee Monkey Blanket and Onesie!

What in the world is Twitter? Twitter in Plain English!

2009-04-16T10:37:00.004-04:00

Finally, an easy way to understand what Twitter is all about. Thanks to my friend T.J. Rutherford for posting this link on Facebook!

Last week's column: Cat-sitting for demon felines

2009-04-13T19:02:00.004-04:00

Savannah Morning News

Front porch stories: Cat-sitting for demon felines
Kathy Bohannon | Wednesday, April 8, 2009 at 12:30 am

When my daughter Aubern Michelle and her husband planned a vacation, I agreed to take care of their animals. That meant driving from Savannah to their home in Newnan, where they live with two dogs and two very, very strange cats.

One of their dogs is weird because he walks on his front feet, tapping with one back foot on occasion to keep his behind up in the air. He isn't afraid of toys that outweigh him, and frequently runs around the house and yard, heavy bone in his mouth, fanny in the air. He looks like a circus dog.

One of her two cats cannot, should not and will not be touched. This has been the rule from the beginning. When I first met Sophia, she was spitting and hissing from the bars of a door on a locked crate. "Oh, she's just a bit afraid," my daughter said, discounting the fact the cat was displaying a full set of teeth, complete with fangs on upper and lower jaws. "Um, no, she's just a bit possessed," I assured her as I took a few steps back.

Sophia has been a case of nerves her whole life and she is allergic to grass. This makes her a house cat. Her co-cat, Misu, is also a house cat. I've had cats for most of my life and this one is undoubtedly the strangest one I've ever known, with the exception of the one we adopted from the pound who just sat still all day.

"All you have to do besides feed them is put them in the laundry room at night," my daughter instructed.

Simple enough, I thought. The first night I called them to come to the laundry room. They glanced at one another and didn't budge. An hour later I figured out how to get them in there, but it took about a third of a container of treats to lure them in. I set them down in a trail and Misu ate them all. I had to do it again for Sophia. I think I heard them snickering from behind the closed door.

The next night I started luring them in earlier. Again, they exchanged glances and ate almost a whole meal of treats before they were in the room for the night.

The third night I considered leaving them in the house, but 10 minutes into bedtime one of them was pulling at the bedroom door. I stumbled through the house to, once again, lure them in with treats. An hour later, they were snickering behind the door.

Sometime on day four, Misu gave Circus Dog the treats can. I think it was part of her plan, having had trouble removing the lid on her own. The dog popped his behind in the air and ran on just two legs, carrying the empty can all over the house. I forgot to buy more treats and that night, with nothing to lure them in, I figured it was time to get smarter than the cats.

I thought about locking them in at dinner, but that would be mean. Dinner was just after 6 and they would be confined for a long time before morning. I could just imagine the carnage. I wasn't sure the door could hold them; after all it is just wood and metal. Being the animal lover (or chicken) that I am, I let them out after dinner. They curled up and watched me for the rest of the night.

There were just a few desperate hours left in the day in which I could consider my strategy. Every time I walked by one of them they would either watch me by glaring or, if I got too close, they would stick out a paw in warning. Knowing, rather hoping, that I was smarter than these two cats, I figured there was only one way to get them in the room. I would have to pick them up.

There was nothing to protect me. There were no falconry gloves in the house to protect me from talons of death. No suit of armor to shield me from being stabbed in a counter attack. Not even a can of Whoop-Cat I could open up on them. It was just me relying on my superior intelligence. I was reluctant, to say the least.

I remember when I was a kid that I trapped a bug under a jar. My brother slid something between the jar and the ground, and my bug was my contained pet for the day. One of the cats was in a chair. A laundry basket was nearby. I would have to carry the chair and basket, and clear the doorway, slamming it shut before the cat projected itself back on me. Not the best plan.

In the end my intelligence paid off. I simply snuck up behind Sophia and before she knew what was happening, I swooped her up and she was secured behind the door. Misu was snarling and swinging at me as I grabbed her and held her at the farthest arm's length possible. Finally she was put up for the night.

I looked at the calendar. It would be several days before my duties would come to an end. Reaching for my grocery list, I made an addition. "One case of cat treats."

Thrift Store Friday!

2009-04-03T18:55:00.015-04:00

Ninja Man and I visited an abundance of thrift stores today! We started at Goodwill and made our way through town, going to several places recommended by friends. I found some great vintage linens and some pretty swanky clothes. I didn't use to shop for second hand clothing but gee whiz, when you have Polo and Talbot's tastes and a Target budget, you get creative.

So after two good washings for "just in case", I've got some pretty cool new duds.

We'll start with this Banana Republic Pima Cotton shirt. It's a man's shirt I think, but it is soft as "buttuh!" I will wear it and enjoy it tremendously!

For more buttuhry softness, I found this... again, I think it is a guy's shirt but I think it will be gorgeous this summer!

Now these capris are NOT for guys! The embroidered fabric is beautiful. Couldn't leave this behind.

Land's End, Coldwater Creek, Talbots! Yeah, with my budget I wouldn't buy these new, never have, except for some formals from Talbots. So when it comes to casual wear, I'm on the cheap, which is why I found these to be such great deals. The shop is a consignment shop called The Red Door in Tyrone, Ga. Wow. That pretty much sums it up. They have it laid out like a trendy boutique and you forget you are in a second hand store.

I got this sweater from a thrift store. I loved the differing colors and patterns and plan to wash, dry and turn it into something cool.. not sure what yet... but my Betz White book will be here any day and I'm sure there will be some great ideas and patterns there!

This tiny sweater was ONE DOLLAR. I couldn't believe it. I have no idea what I will do with it but I couldn't leave it behind. It is just adorable! And still has the new tags on it. I'm sure it was never worn.

Isn't the detail just cute as can be? I love the ribbon and ladybug and check out the differing knit stitches....

Even the back has detail... yeah, I had to take this home with me.

Ninja Man found these rubber muffin pans for only 2 bucks each! Much cheaper than in the stores. I'll have to ask him to make me muffins!

You might be wondering why, why, why would one woman need so many zippers? Because these were 25 cents each! Yep, I buy zippers. All the time. Mainly because I design purses and wallet type things that need zippers and I can incorporate the sizes of the thrift zippers into my projects. I prefer nylon teeth, so you won't see many metal in my collections. Nylon is so much easier on the skin when you're reaching into your purse!

Let's not forget the vintage linens!

I'll be using these on pillows soon! (And they were 2 for $2)

Why hankies embroidered with "Evelyn" and an "E", you ask? Well, anyone who has seen my Evelyn Witherspoon comedy act knows that this is right up "her" alley! Yeah, Evelyn is uppity and pretty much needed some monogrammed and embroidered hankies to carry around. Just don't tell anyone they were just a few cents each!

And Ninja Man wanted something too, so he got a couple of movies to watch while I'm washing all my thrift store finds!

One more thing I found (for $9) was this Bumbo seat for my grandson (for when he is old enough to sit in it!) The one I got is blue. I still have to buy a tray for it.

Tomorrow is yard sale day and one more consignment store. Whew!

By the way, total expended for today's shopping was under $40, the price of one new Bumbo seat!

Savannah Morning News: Today's Column

2009-04-02T06:19:00.004-04:00

From Savannah Morning News

Front porch stories: Taxed by anticipation

Kathy Bohannon | Wednesday, April 1, 2009 at 12:30 am

It is tax time. As my dear friend and relative Sally says, "I would rather eat a bug."

Let's face it. We all have our talents. Tax preparation is not mine. But as the commercial says, "I have people." People who charge to prepare our taxes but, yes, people.

For many years our tax preparation was much like organizing an army after a surprise attack. We would scramble in the trenches looking for W2s, interest statements and automobile receipts. We would find them everywhere, or not at all. We would pay almost every single year.

We would smile when friends would tell us how they were going to spend their tax refund. A needed water heater for one, clothes for the kids for another, small vacations for some and a second-hand car for others. We'd smile because we would have just shelled out a ton to pay our taxes and would continue to put more duct tape on the water heater, sew clothes for the kids, go camping in a tent and put gas in the old cars. It was OK, we were seasoned at it.

Still, back then it seemed no matter what we did, the old tax monster would rear its ugly head and eat us in one juicy bite. But those days are gone.

For the last few years that just happened to coincide with the kids moving out and no longer under our roof, I have been able to keep great records. No longer are papers stuffed in strange places like the bathroom, the kitchen and a kid's backpack. Yes, my W2 once spent a week with my fifth-grader. I'd already requested a reprint when she handed it to me and said she thought it was something the teacher needed signed.

I now have a file. It's like a real file for grown-ups. Oh yeah. No more digging around. And it is red. To me, red means serious stuff. Stop. Warning. Hot. Fire. Angst. Death and destruction. So, of course, red was the only color I would consider for such a thing as a tax file.

And my red tax folder is marked with the word "Taxes" in a Sharpie marker, in a real file drawer. Anytime I mark a file with a Sharpie, I am serious. Everyone knows this is serious stuff. Touch it, and I will do something drastic, like cook and make them eat it. The family knows better than to cross such desperate lines with me.

Inside my red file are all kinds of goodies, including receipts I drop into it throughout the year. When all the official tax documents start arriving in the mail around the end of January, my little red file folder begins to bulge. It's like a pregnancy, gradually gaining bulk and a life of its own. As I add the final W2, I know the time is near. What will we get? Will it be a bill or a refund? We never know, and as anxious and excited as we are, we may as well be anticipating a birth.

In these last few years I have had all of the necessary documents to give to the tax preparer except, that is, for the tag receipt for my husband's truck. It never fails. He has the receipt stashed away somewhere. I forget to ask, and he forgets to offer it.

The tax preparer never forgets.

This year was the same situation, a lone tag receipt that held up the process, but only for a day because my Ninja Man has his very own method of keeping important papers. I don't know where he had it, but just in the nick of time he produced it and we drove back to the preparer's office to surrender the information.

She pushed a few buttons on the computer, entered the numbers and pushed a few more buttons. I was on the edge of my chair, Ninja Man was doing something with his cell phone. I wanted to know what we'd birthed. I'd nurtured this little red file for months and it was lying there empty now and we were just moments from seeing what would come of it. The anticipation was almost too much. I dabbed my brow and waited.

Finally, with little fanfare, she announced what we'd birthed. The crying and wailing wasn't as loud as one would expect, as I had to keep it down because other people were trying to do their taxes in the office. The damage wasn't much compared to years past, but a check would be written. I sat back, exhausted, but relieved to have it all behind us.

Would we do it again? Sure we would, but mainly because Uncle Sam demands it. And just like childbirth, we'll be there next year with the same great anticipation, with as much preparation as we could muster and no idea what we might give or get.

We left the preparer's office, glad she makes it so easy for us. She gives me lists of things to do throughout the year to make the whole delivery a bit smoother. We'll make a few more tweaks here and there and try not to have a bill next year.

Funny, but in just nine months the W2s will start. I can feel the pains already.

Kathy Bohannon is a Georgia Press Association award winning writer and a regular contributor to Effingham Now. She can be reached by email at kathy@bohannonink.com.

Betz White Knitting, Felting, Cupcake Pincushions and More!

2009-03-28T12:53:00.005-04:00

Ok, this designer has got to be the most talented sharing the cutest felted things I've seen in a long time!

I couldn't get the whole page to show but this image of these precious felted cupcake pincushions (©2006-2008 Betz White Productions, LLC. all rights reserved) is from the homepage of www.betzwhite.com. If you love things like this as much as I do, check it out... she also has a second book that is coming out, (here's the first one) and you can see them on her website or her Etsy page. She also has a blog and I'm now among her hugest fans! Check out Betz and let me know if you are just as smitten as me!

Savannah, Ga. Video. Awesome!

2009-03-26T18:36:00.002-04:00

My friend Sharon posted this on her Facebook page...

Relax, take a deep breath, a sip of sweet tea and enjoy:

Today's column: A Potential Juror's Nightmare

2009-03-26T08:59:00.006-04:00

From the Savannah Morning News

Front Porch Stories:

A potential juror's nightmare

Kathy Bohannon | Tuesday, March 24, 2009 at 12:30 am

I've never been called for jury duty, though I've been registered to vote for at least three decades. It's something I have always wanted to do, and when my husband, John, was called to serve, I had a ton of questions for him when he returned home.

And then I got my notice. It was a summons, and very, very official. One problem was I was summoned for the week of March 16. In Savannah.

We live in the Savannah area, and there is no way, no how, I would venture into the city on the week of March 16, the same week thousands pile into the city for St. Patrick's Day festivities. No way, no how, except, of course, when the court says they desire my presence.

In preparation for my St. Patrick's Day jury week, I considered all the aspects. Parking would be a nightmare, but maybe I could find a place within a few blocks. I'd take my tennis shoes for walking on the brick sidewalks. I'd take magazines, my knitting and a good book.

I planned out what to wear, which is a big deal if you have a long way to walk from your car to the courthouse and not look too disheveled. I called the number given on the summons to get answers to some questions.

I found that if I come early enough I would find a parking spot in a garage. Another was that a juried court "might not" be in session on St. Patrick's Day. Hallelujah. I might just make it through all this.

What I discovered next did not make me happy. My knitting needles were considered weapons. I haven't Googled "death by knitting needle," but I suppose someone somewhere has severely maimed someone else while whipping up a pair of knitted baby shoes in a courthouse and has completely ruined it for the rest of us.

As it turned out, my number wasn't called until the last day of the week and John was able to drop me off in front of the courthouse. I was delighted to have not had to drive and park downtown. I arrived for court with a heavily laden tote bag bearing a small stack of scrap booking and quilting magazines, a Beth Moore book, my Sudoku puzzle book, tennis shoes and a baggie with a banana and energy bar. I was a bit concerned for my banana when it had to ride through the X-ray machine, but even though it was pointed on both ends they let me keep it.

I was disappointed once I got settled because we were moved around so much I didn't get a chance to do much more than just flip a few pages of my quilting magazine, which only made me wish I could have brought my sewing machine.

I decided it would be a much more pleasant experience for all of us if our tax dollars could go toward a nice little courthouse arts and crafts room. Put the scissors and knitting needles on chains if you must, lock up the glues and paste, but please, those of us who must cross-stitch, bead, knit, crochet or sew might not make it through a day of jury duty without it. I can't even consider the nightmare of getting sequestered without even a teeny needlework project in hand. There is cable television in the jails, for heaven's sake, what about a bit of scrap booking for the law-abiding citizens?

I lugged my bag from one room to another, and finally was given a juror number. I was No. 10. I've always wanted to be a "10," and now I actually had a 4-by-2-inch sticker proclaiming me as the only "10" in the group. It was a small victory, having had crafts withdrawals for the better part of the day.

When it came time for the actual selection process to take place, we were told there would be only six chosen to serve on this particular trial. Though I longed to be doing something - anything - else, I was quite disappointed to not be among the six. The six who would demonstrate American justice. The six who would render a verdict based on facts alone. The six, who would actually earn the $10 checks we each received by serving throughout the entire trial.

I put my heavy bag on my shoulder, pulled the sticky label "Juror 10" from my blouse and stood to exit the courtroom. Sad I couldn't serve in the way I'd always hoped, I called my husband to pick me up.

Before we disconnected the call, I remembered to ask him to bring my knitting bag.

"It's already in the truck," he replied.

I grinned. Suddenly there was a lilt in my step and the day looked bright again.

This whole jury duty thing wasn't so bad after all.

The Slim-Fast and Peeps diet

2009-03-25T09:13:00.013-04:00

Today's entry could be called:

Me and My Peeps

Twin Peeps

or

Peeps Intimidated!

CRAZIER than flashlight knitting is this new, ground-breaking diet! Yes! It is Slim-Fast with Marshmallow Peeps!

DISCLAIMER: Either you can drink Slim-Fast or you can't. You either love Peeps or you hate 'em. I know, so save your grunts for after you read this Peep story. It has a pretty sad ending.

Disclaimer #2: This really has nothing to do with a diet. It's all about the Peeps.

Here's how it came to be: I had a Slim-Fast for breakfast and was still wanting just a "little something"... well in the "little something" category, Peeps are high on the list! They are tons of sugar held up with marshmallow goo. Put on your HazMat gear (if it still fits) and dive in. Five of these guys are 140 calories... but what about two? I'm no mathematician but by my calculations, that's just 56 calories. Of pure sugar. I know.

There are Peeps rules.. in case you didn't know.

One should never, ever actually purchase these on their own. They are far too volatile on the hips and under the chins... BUT if they are a gift, all bets are off. Yep, you can eat 'em, or in the case of LAST Easter, we actually roasted them over an open fire.
Several of our neighbors gathered to roast Bunny Peeps at our house. I cannot say whose idea it was, but I'll bet you can guess... Anyway, our favorite Son-in-Law joined in on the festivities. I think he named his victim "Nuclear Peep."

By the way, those things flare up like hairspray on an 1980's Farrah Fawcett hairdo! The ears shot flames so high we could have carried them like torches on a posse, but no one was organizing a posse so we ate them instead.

Ian, (the favorite Son-in-Law) ate one first. He didn't look to excited, but you should have seen him afterward! A St. Patrick's Day green Peep would have been envious over the hue of his face!

You must be wondering am I actually in the stores looking for Peeps? Well, since they are not "really" on my diet, I have not purchased the first Peep this season... it is true!

BUT! A friend gave them to me, which means I can eat 'em or roast 'em, whatever I want. They're all mine.

Oh Yeah.

She knows I love Peeps and I have a few Peeps stories I've entertained and amazed people with. So when she saw these little guys, she, knowing I also love PINK, swooped them up and flew them right to me! How SUH-WEET! My Peeps, at only 56 calories, chased down with a slosh of Slim-Fast may not make culinary headlines, in fact, it might make a few culinary experts nausious, but I've never been known for having notable culinary skills (or tastes, as today's entry reveals!)

So I was photographing my Peeps when I saw them shivering... or maybe I THOUGHT I saw them shiver... sugar does strange things you know....

And I saw there are some NEW PEEPS IN TOWN...

Gangsta Peeps on steroids.

What happened next is tragic and I can't talk about it.What I can say is that this Peep is out of his misery now.

Milking the Treasury

2009-03-23T16:49:00.002-04:00

A friend sent me this cartoon today... WELL SAID!

Quilting for a Purpose: PICU

2009-03-23T13:57:00.006-04:00

My friend who works at a local hospital said the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit needed small quilts to put on the foot of the beds. These would be used to brighten up the environment as well as would be given to the child after leaving the unit or to the family if the child does not survive.

My friend brought this cause home to our needlework group, gathered volunteers and hosted a quilt piecing session in her home. It was awesome for many reasons: we were able to serve others who are suffering, we had an opportunity to create something together, some learned new tasks such as rotary cutting and ironing in specific ways,= and we pieced four quilt tops in just four hours with a fifth one cut and waiting for piecing!

(Me and another friend, Polly)

What an awesome and blessed day! A Sunday afternoon well spent.

Knitting with flashlights!

2009-03-20T19:00:00.007-04:00

W H Y??? BECAUSE KNITTING NEEDLES ARE BANNED FROM THE COURTHOUSE~

Anyone who knows me knows that I'm a rule follower. But sometimes those rules are made to be altered a bit... such as the rule that there can be no knitting needles when you're on jury duty. That's right, those little weapons of mass destruction have no place in the world of the judicial system.

So when I set out to do my civic duty, I took along my Vanna yarn and yes, two Maglite-type flashlights.The yarn would become something, not sure what, made possible by the non-threatening flashlights.

These little lights are the best ever for lots of situations. Ninja Man gave me my first one (the black one) years ago and I have kept it ever since.... that is until I temporarily lost it and he replaced it with two blue ones. Wouldn't you know, I found the black one and then lost one of the blues. Either way, I have two now, just right since I use them every single day. I carry one in my purse at all times and have used it for everything from reading on long trips at night to lighting the way through an unfamiliar room we might be staying in. I have another on my nightstand and it props just right so I can read before falling asleep.

Last night as I was reading with the light, I was wondering how in world I could go the whole day sitting on jury duty, or heaven forbid, sequestered for the weekend and next week, without knitting. Woe would be me. I'd met an older woman last weekend who told me she first knit as a child with two long nails. How smart is that!

And then it hit me.

I can have the best of both worlds and knit while following rules! Yes!

So here are my little lights, now known as emergency knitting needles.

I cast on.

And began knitting. Oh. This was fun.

While I didn't get to whip up anything while on jury duty (they only needed six jurors and sent the rest of us on our way) I decided to knit a bit to show you that it works. So here I was at the dinner table (tablecloth: Williams Sonoma, gift from daughter Aubern Michelle and her hubby Ian) knitting while a casserole cooked in the oven.

A finished row. Yes, the stitches are large and someone funky, but hey, when you have the need to knit, this works!

The pics are blurred because I was having to photo them with one hand. My camera is rather large and heavy, but you get the idea.

I got a bit froggy and decided to try purling. It worked!

Getting along fine here, the project grew rapidly because the stitches are so big.

Suh-Weet! I'll bet even ole' Vanna never tried this!

The timer on the oven beeped so I put down my illuminating project and returned my flashlights to their former duties in life. What fun this was!

Can you think of anything you might use for knitting, besides actual knitting needles?

Asher babe

2009-03-19T21:59:00.004-04:00

Here are some pix I took of The Ashman when I got to babysit for the first time! We were blessed to have him visit last Monday and Tuesday, and his granddad and I got to keep him for a few hours.

All of the pictures were with my camera phone so they are blurry...This one of him holding my finger is just so sweet...

Man. I am in love.

Today's Column: Home Envision

2009-03-18T08:59:00.004-04:00

Savannah Morning News

Kathy Bohannon | Tuesday, March 17, 2009 at 12:30 am

I was moving furniture around.

Again.

It happens on a frequent basis. I get cabin fever and decide to reinvent myself, my house, my hair and sometimes, even my husband, John.

"Let's clean out the pantry,"I suggested to him last weekend. It's the first sign that more is coming.

"I'm not moving the sofa again," he replied.

His response made perfect sense to me. After 32 years of marriage, John realizes any time I want to organize something, it is just a very small part of the bigger picture.

We might start innocently enough with the pantry, but there's going to be a complete overhaul waiting in the wings. Following such a project might be the cleaning out of cabinets or a bookcase, rearranging the living room, or, to his despair, cleaning out the garage.

I don't really plan it this way. I just get very inspired once I get started, and while sometimes this inspiration comes right smack in the middle of the night, I almost always let him sleep in.

Used to be, I'd do a lot of this on my own, but I injured my back a few years ago so John has to be the one with the muscles. In the past I'm sure he half expected to come home and see all of our bedroom furniture expertly arranged in the living room and the television, sofa, love seat and recliner squished into the master suite.

Come to think of it, that might not be a bad idea. I can seriously see the possibilities of creating a huge bedroom out of what was once the living room.

But I digress.

I've always justified my desire to move the house around to the fact it never costs anything more than a bit of sweat, and sometimes some blood, and to be honest, once or twice tears, when this urge hits. I don't go shopping for new curtains or even something as small as throw pillows for the sofa.

Granted, I might cut up an old jacket and make some pillows, but while that jacket might be missed come winter, I will have saved a ton and still enjoyed refurbishing the room. Forget the fact that by winter the room would have been moved around again and we would have pillows made from a shower curtain.

Blood, sweat and tears are part of everything worthwhile, I always say.

"Don't bleed on the carpet," I once told John after he had busted his knee on a coffee table I'd moved earlier that day.

"Don't cry," I told him once after asking him to move an iron bed for the third time in one day. He immediately corrected me, saying it wasn't tears but sweat, which poured from his face. Later when he stubbed his toe on the claw foot of that bed, I'm pretty sure I saw real tears.

I was used to seeing him sweat. It happens every time I begin sketching out a new furniture arrangement.

"It's a shame we can't move the refrigerator," I once commented. He would later make the mistake of telling me a friend had a refrigerator in the garage.

"Don't even think about it," he said when he saw my eyes light up.

"If the dogs didn't have such short hair, you'd probably shave them," he murmured last weekend as he slid the sofa against one wall.

I glanced at my two Boston terriers, both of which, feeling threatened they were in grave danger of being relocated, were sitting on their bed, guarding it.

"You know ... " I said, wondering for the first time if they are black and white all the way to the skin. "Forget it," John advised as he pushed a recliner just a "wee bit" closer to the window.

The most recent project involved cleaning out the pantry, moving the iron bed, cleaning out my desk, the linen closet and a hutch.

"I wanted to go to a movie," John murmured as he walked by carrying some tools to relocate a shelf.

"Look at how much we're saving by staying home! Isn't it inspiring?" I enthusiastically replied.

I'm pretty sure he agreed, and the fact I didn't hear his jubilant reply is because he was busy hammering very, very intently.

At the end of the day we enjoyed the fruits of our labor. We sat in rocking chairs on the porch, sipping sweet tea and chatting about what we would do now that all the rearranging was complete. To be honest, I was doing all the chatting, but I'm pretty sure he was very interested.

"You know," he said, as he slowly rocked back and forth, "there's nothing better than sitting on the porch in a rocker on a beautiful evening."

"Yeah," I agreed as I surveyed the porch. "And I'm thinking these two rockers would look so nice if we moved them to the other end of the porch and turned them just a teeny bit to the right."

His eyes glazed over. It was so sweet. I'm sure he could envision it, too.

In God We Trust!

2009-03-16T11:29:00.002-04:00

I received this email this morning...

Start writing "In God We Trust" on everything you send through the U.S. Postal Service. Here's why, and it is verified on Snopes.com

You may have heard in the news that a couple of Post Offices in Texas
have been forced to take down small posters that say

'IN GOD WE TRUST"
The law, they say, is being violated.

Anyway, we heard proposed on a radio station show, that we should all
write
' IN GOD WE TRUST'
on the back of all our mail. After all, that's our National Motto, and
it's on all the money we use to buy those stamps. We think it's a
wonderful idea.

We must take back our nation from all the people who think that anything
that offends them should be removed.

If you like this idea, please pass it on and DO IT. The idea of writing or
stamping 'IN GOD WE TRUST ' on our envelopes sounds good to us.
WE'RE HAVING A STAMP MADE TOO! Heck, lets use it as our signature on
e-mails too!

It's been reported that 86% of Americans believe in God. Therefore, we
have a very hard time understanding why there's such a mess about having
'In God We Trust!' on our money and having God in the pledge of
Allegiance.

Could it be that WE just need to take action and tell the 14% to 'sit down
and shut up'?

Bag to carry wet diapers

2009-03-12T15:02:00.004-04:00

My daughter-in-law needed a bag to carry wet diapers in, and she described it as something that wouldn't leak, so I set out to try and make one. She is trying to use only real diapers, not disposable, so this should help a bit in that effort.

I had two bed pads in my stash that are quilted with vinyl exterior. I was saving at least one of them to protect the beds when grandkid(s) come to visit. The other was fair game, so I used it as the inside of the bag. I didn't have a pattern but didn't really need one since the bag is so very basic... I did top stitch the handle to give it some definition and added Velcro to close it.

The fabric is from Hobby Lobby and matches one that Emily's friend used to make a changing pad, which she gave her at a baby shower. I figured it was cool to match them if I could, and voila! I found the fabric.
The cool parts of this whole thing are the quick closures (one must always think of mom being one-handed while holding babe with the other!) . Velcro strips on the inside to close the center, then Velcro again on the outside to close the flap. Hopefully is it a good design, but we'll know for sure when she actually uses it. The fun part is that I can tweak the design and make adjustments if it isn't as functional as I think it might be.

By the way, I did blow it on the top stitching... black bobbin thread for the handles shows through the blue vinyl. I'll have to watch that in the future because I love a nice finish.

Now I am on to other projects. I think I need to list some stuff to sell on Etsy... it is time to rustle up some revenue!

A Pet Peeve

2009-03-11T16:45:00.002-04:00

Though I don't like to use my blog to vent, I have to say I have a pet peeve... it is adult women who talk like babies. What is up with that? Ladies, it may have been cute in preschool, but trust me, it is not cute when you are all grown up.

I placed a business call to a local television station and their receptionist sounded like she stopped playing Barbie long enough to answer the phone. It was like fingernails on a chalk board.

I really couldn't take it, but I did because maybe, just maybe, she was the four year-old daughter of the station manager and the "real" receptionist took a potty break.

There's always that hope.

Today's Column: Happy to be Serving

2009-03-11T10:11:00.003-04:00

Savannah Morning News

Happy to be serving guests

by Kathy Bohannon

Tuesday, March 10, 2009 at 12:30 am

We are hosting some guests in our home as they pass through town overnight. We don't have a guesthouse, so they will be guests-in-the-house. There is no butler, no maid, no cook or valet. Just our Boston terriers and us.

Years ago, this would have made me lose sleep, but that is only because I had a sink full of dishes and at least 12 loads of laundry snarling at me every single morning.

I also had a husband and two kids in the house, as well as a few stray animals that followed the kids to the freezer for Popsicles and out the back door to the deck so they could eat them.

Having company back then meant a complete overhaul. We would clean for two days before a birthday party. We rarely had overnight guests because we would have to scour everything upstairs, too. It is easy to look back and realize why I wanted everything ship-shape for visitors, I wanted them to feel comfy and not fall over a pile of laundry or sit on something like a toy radar gun, which really happened once.

There's nothing like seeing a guest jump three feet from the sofa with the sound of a Star Wars light saber coming from their behind. Thinking we were under attack, my whole family ducked, further embarrassing our guest and ourselves.

Once, I completely forgot I was hosting a Tupperware party on a Saturday afternoon. I awoke that morning to a dreary day and declared it a "fend for yourself day." My kids loved "fend" days because they could eat whatever they wanted, lie around the house in their pajamas and basically do nothing for the whole day. John and I loved it for the same reasons, but also because our schedules kept us on frantic tasks throughout every week.

I loved slogging around the house and not caring about trudging through the mess, for this once-in-a-while reprieve from everyday responsibilities. There would be no dressing up, no make-up, no cleaning, nothing I didn't want to do. I put on my sloppy T-shirt, sweatpants and fuzzy slippers, piled my hair on top of my head like Pebbles on the Flintstones, and curled up on the sofa with a book. I was having a great afternoon when the doorbell rang.

There stood the Tupperware lady, dressed to the nines, waiting for me, the hostess, to welcome her into my home.

My mind started racing. There was no way to clean up the house, but guests would arrive within the hour. I informed the woman we were having a porch party. My husband set up a table outside, arranged several chairs and the kids began putting Oreos and Cheez-its on a platter while I zoomed up the stairs to do something a bit creative with my appearance.

I served nine guests on the porch with unmatched glasses, a pitcher of sweet tea, My Little Pony birthday paper plates, and a carefully arranged Oreo/Cheez-it tray.

From this I learned to keep a better calendar and also not to sweat stuff like having nine women visit when I totally forgot they were coming.

The bottom line was, nobody died. The day came and went, the Oreos and Cheez-its were a huge hit among the ladies who normally wouldn't touch them and the paper plates were an incentive to buy those cute Tupperware sandwich plates.

A week ago when we were asked to host the overnight guests, I dusted a little, freshened up the guest room, cleaned the bathroom and that was pretty much all the cleaning that was needed. The house isn't perfect, but it is lived in, and we are happy with it.

At this time in our lives we wouldn't miss a chance to host, even if the windows do need washing. It's for our church, and stepping up to the call is part of a mission for these young people who travel from town to town to share God's word.

So today I'll fluff the pillows once more, put fresh towels out and make sure there is soap in the guest shower. I'll sweep the porch and make rounds in the living room for strategically placed squeaky dog toys. It's one thing to be comfortable, quite another to sit on a squeaky toy and bolt across the room in fear for your life.

I hope our guests will relax, sleep well, enjoy their meals and return refreshed to continue their trip. By serving them we are serving God. It's a service that requires a bit more than kids' party plates and cookies, and even though it is not nearly the task it was many years ago, I'm blessed to be able to prepare for it.

Kathy Bohannon is a Georgia Press Association award winner and regular contributor to Effingham Now. E-mail her at kathy@bohannonink.co

A year

2009-03-10T16:32:00.001-04:00

Me, sister Barb and Mom.

It's been a year today since mom passed away, and it was a beautiful sunny day just as today is. My sister Barb and I spent a good deal of time on the phone and I hope to get to talk to dad, sister Carol and Dave before the day is out. Mom would approve of us remembering her with love, faith and happiness in our hearts, so I will.

Knitted Bear and Baby Hat

2009-03-10T16:24:00.003-04:00

I made some things for The Ashman and we delivered them on Saturday. This hat is about two weeks late because it was a bit small! He had grown so much in just that time.

Here he is modeling it for me! I won't put the pompoms on top when he is old enough to mess with them because they aren't safe, but for now he can't reach it so it's ok.

What a cutie!

And then there's the bear, designed by Susan B. Anderson. I found it in her Itty Bitty Nursery book of knitted baby things. It isn't baby proof, so it will spend its time on a shelf until he is way older, but I just had to make it for him. I stuffed it with strips of quilt batting so there isn't any small piles of foam or beads inside. I knitted his coat too, but I didn't quite understand the pattern, so it is a little big on Mr. Bear. His eyes and nose are embroidered with cotton thread.

Next, I want to knit him some socks and a sweater... we'll see!