Sophie is so excited… She's invited 5 girls, and I really hope they can all attend! 🙂
I'm loading up on aspirin as we speak. 😉
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Colonial Love
I'll be without a computer for a few days bc my hard drive is about to crash and burn (keep getting those nasty warnings), but before I call Breanna's computer friend to come to the rescue, I thought I'd hop on here and show you what I got back from Jill Rensel Art Studio a couple of weeks ago.
I can't remember off the top of my head what this pattern is called, but I do know that it's by The Goode Huswife, and I'll soon be stitching his companion to go along with him…
As you can see, I've still got the cardboard backing on it and no glass yet.. I just haven't had the time to mount it and get it all finished! I'll plan on doing that this week so I can finally hang it up.
Isn't Jill the best?? 🙂
Keep your fingers crossed that my poor workhorse of a pc is an easy fix. If it is, then I'll see you soon!
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Number 17
I remember the first time Sophie tried to be on a soccer team. She was so excited. We signed her up, paid the fees, bought her a new soccer ball and uniform and cleats, and geared up for her first game. When the whistle blew to sound the start of the game and the girls all started scurrying around the ball, Sophie was there too. But she wasn't scurrying around the ball. She was sobbing.
We called her to the sidelines to find out what was wrong and to comfort her. We begged her to rejoin the game. We coddled and cajoled, but there was no sportsmanlike conduct to be had from Sophie.
"What's wrong, Sweety?" we would ask. "Are you hurt? Did someone step on your toe? Are your shin guards too tight?" We even thought maybe the parents cheering and yelling had frightened her.
We found out later what it was. In Sophie's 6-year-old voice, she explained why she quit soccer and never wanted to return to the game: "I was ready to play the game, but when I saw Sabrina on the side of the field playing with some other kid, I got jealous and didn't want to play soccer ever again."
Sophie is now almost 10 and the scars of betrayal by her older sister playing with some other kid have healed.
And I'm proud to say she has returned to the game.
Watch out, sideline kids. A ball might come your way when you least expect it.
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I Heart My Family.
I had a lovely Mothers Day, and I hope you did too. 🙂
One of the things I did to help my family celebrate me (haha) was to make them their favorite dessert… Oreo Freeze. If you'd like the recipe, I'm posting it just a click away at Four Seasons Cafe.
And after that, I'm off to drink some coffee and stitch!
OH! And before I forget, Sophie wanted me to please let anyone who will listen know that she has finally updated her blog. 😉 (Is that okay, Sophie?)
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They’re coming to get you, Barbra…
Last week I visited Breanna in Lincoln to help pack up some of her belongings, as she'll soon be back home from college. But before we could get started on all the trips up and down the elevator and back and forth to the car, she and I did a little running around. Besides going out to eat and visiting a quilt shop, she took me to a beautiful cemetery she'd explored the week before – and gotten lost in.
I told her a long time ago that I love visiting cemeteries… they're so peaceful, and I love walking around and reading all of the names and dates. I wish so badly I could walk through a really old cemetery, but we don't have any. (My guess is that Nebraska – as we know it – simply isn't old enough to have really old headstones.)
Nevertheless, it was a gorgeous day, and I had such a nice time with Bre. When I asked what made her venture into a cemetery by herself, she told me that it reminded her of me, so she stopped to visit.
I'm not so sure how to take that.
This picture doesn't give an indication of just how many headstones there were.. they truly were as far as the eye could see, and I can understand how my Bre got lost.
Here was a name I really liked…
Doesn't that have a great ring to it? Mackey Boone. I love that.
Breanna liked this one…
Such a pretty monument…
I love how the granite starts to turn green on some of the older ones…
Here's my girl, seated under a tree on a pretty metal bench we spotted. After she sat down, she noticed the tree was surrounded by flat headstones, and it gave her the creeps. 😉
This was Breanna's favorite part of the cemetery…
After about an hour or so, she and I finally decided it was time to hit up a Starbucks and get busy on her dorm room. Besides, I was starting to get a little creeped out myself. After all, you know what they say about there being zombies in cemeteries…
P.S. This is poor Barbra, from the original Night of the Living Dead movie. I have a feeling she would not have found Breanna's little joke amusing.
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My Day
Today I…
Cleaned my house.
Finished all the laundry – 6 loads.
Printed and packaged an order for Hoffman.
Mailed out a birthday present.
Wrote some bills.
Fixed lunch for Mike and I, which we ate outside at the little table on the back porch.
Weeded some of the landscape.
Was nice to the Yorkie.
Stitched on a model.
Watched an episode of The Office, season 3.
Spoke on the phone to Breanna, saying "Okay, honey," when she detailed for me everything she'd like me to cook for her upon her return home from college.
Fed the dogs. The Yorkie too.
Went grocery shopping.
Made Sabrina clean her room.
Spoke to my mother on the phone about what I'd be cooking for Breanna upon her return home from college.
Took some photos.
Played soccer with Sophie in the back yard.
Balanced my checkbook.
And bought myself some flowers! For the first time! (And definitely not the last.)
It was a very, very good day.
P.S. I also updated my blog. 🙂
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My Happy Place
My computer is about 10 steps from my stitching spot on the couch, which is situated right in front of a large living room window. A few days ago I looked up from whatever I was doing at the computer and noticed how lovely the tree outside was, silhouetted through the window covering.
It was about 6:00 in the evening, and I loved the soft glow. I was almost tempted to go work on the model that was sitting – all tossed aside – on the arm of the couch! (Yes, that is an orange highlighter on the end table… I definitely need it for this chart.)
Today we're heading to Kansas to visit K-State with Sabrina. She's going to check out their pre-vet program, and we'll also be tending to some things around my in-laws' house. I'll be taking that model with me, although I'm not sure how much I'll get done on it!
Before I leave though, here's a picture Sophie took of me with my new hair-do. Or my hair-don't, as my mother would say. I'm not actually that hunched over yet – I was bent down at that moment!
Enjoy your weekend!
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Anew
The beauty of spring never ceases to amaze me.
On a chilly, sunny morning last week, I stepped outside and teased Sabrina about all of the "snow" on the lawn. She was relieved to see that I was referring to the petals that had fallen to the ground, although a snowfall this late in the spring would hardly surprise any of us Nebraskans.
When I returned home from taking her to school, I decided to take some photos of the grass and the beautiful, fragrant tree in our front yard. (My apologies ahead of time to my husband, Mike, whose photo does not appear in the following lineup.) I loved the contrast of the green and white…
Yes, I actually got down on the ground and took that photo, hoping with all my heart that none of my neighbors would come outside.
Then I stood up and decided to take some pictures of the blooms left clustered in the tree, before they lost their grip on their branches, following the others to the ground…
There were millions of them!
I got a little closer…
And closer…
And closer still…
If only there were such a thing as garden faeries!
I decided to head out back, since that's where the sun shines brightest in the mornings. The lilacs were stunning… and next to lavender, they're my favorite scent…
A visitor…
This was me, collecting the lilacs for the basket in the banner on Four Seasons Cafe…
I actually loved that top photo, and used it as my desktop background. Sophie thought the flowers looked scary, and didn't like it very well.
I stopped to look at my flowering almond, which had finally died. I used to get so mad at our dog Chase, who would chew it down to the ground every fall, and every spring it would grow into the most beautiful shrub. She wasn't here last fall to chew it down, and it didn't come back this year. All that it could muster was this tiny reminder of what used to be…
I think I'll plant another one of these shrubs this year, bc I really miss all those tiny pink flowers. I wonder if I stuck little hot dog pieces on the branches, would Friday would chew it down for me in the fall?
Well, I may not have a flowering almond any more, but I do have one thing…
My very own garden faerie! ;)
Happy May Day!
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A Winner!
Goodness, what a busy day I've had! For the first time in many, many weeks (okay, since October), I actually had lunch with girlfriends! At Panera! It was such a fun time! Oh man, I need to get out more.
I've added up all the entries – including the extra ones that were posted in your blogs (thank you!) – and after entering the numbers in a random number generator, the winning number is……
6
BETH TWIST!!
Thank you to EVERYONE who entered and left such sweet, encouraging words and compliments regarding the new blog. I've never met a kinder group of people! And now you all have really got me in the mood to bake, which is NOT good for my love handles. Oh well, if I'm going to have them, I may as well have 'em good.
Congratulations, Beth! I actually find it quite hilarious that yours was the winning number after your comment: "You KNOW you want to pick me." LOL – that has never worked for me in giveaways, and I've used it plenty! What's your secret? 😉
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A New Blog and a GIVEAWAY!
Mom and I have been talking for quite some time now about how we'd love to start a recipe blog, and we've finally got it under way! It's a very new blog right now, so there isn't a whole lot to look at just yet, but in time we hope to have a nice collection of recipes for all of our favorite things – muffins, soups, pies, and anything else we attempt to make in our kitchens that we'd happily make again.
Since we love to cook and bake according to the season (although I have been known to make my mother in-law's German Pancake Soup in the summer), we're calling our new blog Four Seasons Cafe, and the link is in the sidebar. I hope you'll stop by once in a while with a cup of coffee (or tea!) and see if there's anything to tempt you to make or bake in your own kitchen!
To celebrate our new blog, I'm having a fun giveaway! I've been given the opportunity to award a $60.00 gift certificate to one lucky winner, good for anything at one of CSN Stores' 200 places to shop! Perhaps you might be interested in the corner tv stands from racksandstands.com…. Or what about a cool kitchen rack? There are so many possibilities to spend it on… you could get something from here, or perhaps here, or maybe even here or here!
Here are the rules and the details:
1. To enter, just leave a comment on this blog, or send me an email. I'll be choosing a winner on Friday some time, and if you post about the giveaway on your blog, let me know and you'll have two chances to win!
2. This gift certificate is for a one-time use at any of CSN Stores' 200 online stores, and it may be used toward a larger purchase. Some stores offer free shipping, but for the ones that do not, the winner is required to pay any additional shipping or international fees that apply.
3. This giveaway is open to US or Canadian residents only, as this is where CSN is able to ship.
4. I'm receiving no compensation for this giveaway, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to have it!
I leave you with a picture of some baby mulberries growing in my back yard… they'll be making their reappearance on Four Seasons Cafe in the fall – in a pie! (But don't wait that long to visit…)
Good luck to everyone, and happy shopping! (And thank you to Jess at CSN Stores!)