Shhhh, it's a surprise

Ok, as promised a post about my most recent creative exploits. I've sewed more half square triangles(enough for a quilt for my Mom) and more hourglasses. But I decided not to bore you right now with pictures or facts and figures (actually I lost count of how many I've done). And I basted my Dad's quilt today (check one of my to dos off my list) and quilted about 1/3 of it. If I push, I my be able to have it done to take this weekend when I go see him at the hospital. I won't be able to leave it there, but I can show it to him.

Now on to the "show" part of this Show N Tell post. Yesterday I decided to "document" my eyeglass case pattern and experiment with a better way of sewing the lining. So naturally I made myself a sunglass case and made one of my best friends Christy a case for her glasses. Naturally, I made some custom Shrinky Dink buttons (I wish I knew which blog I originally saw that on) and bejewels.


Christy is currently in possession of my 1969 Singer sewing machine. She keeps saying she's going to start quilting some day. I made her a travel pillow pillowcase in my recent sewing binge. Like most Moms, once she got it home, it immediately became public domain to her Hubbie, two boys, and two cats. So I know this will be hers and stay hers!

All my friends out there try not to look to hard at these eyeglass cases, cause you might be receiving one at Christmas!

And finally, a Melissaism, a question I pose to the readers of my blog....Have you ever had a dream about your spouse or significant other where in the dream they've done something that really makes you mad or disappoints you? And then the next morning, you can't help but to be pissed at them in real life? Is it wrong to have them make up for their dream-self's actions? I know what the reasonable and logically answer is....but as most of you know, I don't always subscribe to that train of thinking. Let me know your thoughts....just curious!

Tagged...

I've been tagged by my friend and kindred spirit Shannon. Thanks Shannon! So now I will play along. I haven't done one of these thingys in awhile, so I'm going to play along. I am only going to tag Kate and Christy though. If you want to play along and I didn't officially tag you, feel free to leave your answers in the comments!

Now on to the game...

Rules
Each player answers the questions themselves. At the end of the post the player then tags 5 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment letting them know that they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answers.

The Five

Ten years ago…
1. I had just told Hubbie that we were going to start "trying" to get pregnant and how much sex that entailed. He was happy to say the least. I ended up being a Fertile Myrtle and got pregnant the first try and put an end to his glee.
2. I had just turned 29 and was not looking forward to 30.
3. I was working full time at the same place I'm working part time now. (There's a long funny story there.)
4. I was not a quilter. Had no aspirations to be a quilter. Didn't even own a sewing machine.
5. I was still driving Little Red, my Volkswagen Cabriolet, those were the days!

Five things on today’s “to do” list…
1. Blog with pictures my sewing project from yesterday (shh don't tell Christy that it involves her surprise).
2. Make check up appointments for the Munchkins.
3. Burn new songs on my MP3 player. I'm tired of my rotation. Need new tunes, man!
4. Baste my Dad's quilt.
5. Walk on the treadmill (yeah, right, I just put that one on the list for due diligence sake)

Five snacks I enjoy
1. Greek olive hummus and pita chips
2. German Chocolate Cake flavored coffee, half n half, and sweet n low
3. Mini Reeses Peanut Butter Cups
4. Chocolate Chip Cookies
5. Vodka tonics (alcohol counts for a snack, right?)

Five things I would do if I was a millionaire…
1. Take my friends and family on an extravagant trip somewhere cool
2. Start my own business(ala Designing Women) where we sit around and talk about where we're going for lunch and employ my friends.
3. Kids college fund(I have to have a responsible thing on my list)
4. Pay someone to finish my basement!
5. Buy Hubbie a brand new red truck! Due to automotive issues beyond our control, I've gotten the last three new vehicles in our family.

Five places I have lived…
1. Spartanburg, SC
2. Stone Mountain, GA
3. Marietta, GA
4. Lawrenceville, GA
5. Cumming, GA
OK- Just take 2-5 and say Atlanta, GA. I was just splitting hairs! I'm a proud member of GRITS (Girls Raised In The South, what can I say!)

Where the Hell is Matt?

A friend of mine sent me the link to this video. I then found the website, "Where the Hell is Matt?" Click and take a look. Apparently, I've been living under a rock for the last couple of years...his videos are famous and Stride gum has sponsored some of his trips. Anyway, the point is, these videos make me smile every time I watch them. And I wanted to spread the fun!

I've been sewing more half square triangles, finishing reading Eclipse, and taking care of Munchkins, counting down the days until school starts.

I'll post some pictures and a more coherent post later!

Thought this was cool thing!

I found this on another blog today.
Thought it was cool.  Click here if you want to create your own.

Seriously, I have a problem

Hello, my name is Melissa, and I'm a sewaholic!

Seriously, I'm on a sewing binge. I guess this is my way of coping. Some people drink (ok, I admit there has been wine involved with the sewing), some eat (and yes there has been some high caloric treats recently), some exercise (none of that), some clean (HELL, no), some throw themselves into work (I don't think so) and then there's people like me, sewaholics. I've been burning through projects. Here's the quilt I'm currently making for my Dad. I've got the top done...now it needs a name.
I'm thinking of something with reflections, kaleidescopes, or maybe the ocean. Suggestions from the peanut gallery?

Then I've mentioned the pillowcases I've been making here's the library of the ones created lately.And finally a piece of good news, the long lost stuffed kitty Kit, Rose's favorite stuffed animal that we thought was lost in the car wreck showed up. When Hubbie went to get the last of our personal items out of the van, as they pried open well of the back of the van out dropped, Kit. She had been shmushed to 1" high, lost an eye, part of her nose, and "broke every bone in her body." We operated and now she's fine.

Friday! It's Friday! Whoo Hoo!

So I guess you've guessed it's Friday, and I'm happy about that. There's something to be said about reaching the end of another week and having a weekend to look forward to. I "returned" to work yesterday. By returning, I mean working a couple of hours from home. With my life being in fruit basket turnover mode, I won't be able to actually physically return to work until the Munchkins start school in August. So until then I'll try to work remotely a few hours a day. The rest of my time will be dealing with the Munchkins as their summer vacation winds down. That will entail, trips to the pool, going to the movies, loading and unloading the dishwasher endlessly, and some sewing squeezed in there.

Yesterday and today I started work on some more half square triangles and hourglasses. I'm doing them in batches so that I don't get too bored on any one step. The assembly process is:
1. Marking diagonals on 5" squares
2. Sewing first seam down one side of line. Chain piecing all the squares.
3. Sewing second seam down other side of line.
4. Snipping squares apart.
5. Cutting along line.
6. Pressing squares open.
For hourglasses, start at step one and repeat.
Today I completed 128 half square triangles, 128 hourglasses, and to step 6 the first pass on 64 more hourglasses. So for anyone keeping score:
- My dad's quilt - I've got all the half square triangles done. Now I just need to find the solid square fabric, borders fabric, and backing. I think I'm going to make my Mom a quilt like this too, so more half square triangles.
- My hourglass bed quilt - that's a total of 192 squares done, 358 left to go.

I've found that if I'm having trouble "shutting my mind off" when I'm going to go to sleep, I can imagine sewing half square triangles instead of counting sheep! It really works.

Of course I had to lay out the squares for my dad's quilt.

Sorry the picture is so bad. I was fighting a charging cat who apparently thought she was being paid to run through the squares and mess them up and the Boss Lady who was telling me how I should arrange the squares. For anyone who saw my earlier post about which square configuration worked best, I decided to use both! Ha ha! Cheers for me! The empty squares will be a solid dark turquoisy blue that will also be the inner border and then an outer border of a nice chocolately brown. It's name hasn't materizated yet....that's the next order of business.

When I made the Shrinky Dink button, that inspired the Munchkins. Rose naturally wanted to make Chinese characters and snakes (she was born the year of the snake).
And then Lily decided to make buttons of her own for her newest quilt project, "Big Cats, Wild Cats." Here's her fabric selection with the buttons.

This weekend will bring a visit to my Dad, tennis with Hubbie, pool with the kids, and I hope more sewing!

Stayin' Busy

New addition: Old Red Barn is giving away a quilt. Enter...but don't win...that quilt is mine! Old Red Barn

In an effort to keep my mind occupied and avoiding house work, my mind has been working overtime on different projects. Pillsbury cookoff, new recipes, and new sewing projects. My favorite type of projects are for people I love and ones that I can start and finish in a day. And my friend Kate can attest, I'm an avid pattern changer. I'm always taking quilt or bag patterns and reswizzling them for my own amusement (remember the teddy bear pattern that became a kitty!)

Since the oldest Munchkin just got her first pair of glasses, naturally, crafty Mom had to whip her up a quilted eyeglass case. I made up the pattern and construction as I went. I added a flap so her glasses wouldn't slip out in her backpack. And then I recently read a blog about making custom buttons with Shrinky Dinks (OMG, who knew!), so this seemed like the perfect time to experiment with that. And to finish it off, BEJEWELS! Around here sparkles make anything better. The best reward is the reaction I got from the Munchkin,"Oh Mommy I just love it so much!"

What a Day!

What a day...what a day! As if the fates hadn't taught me that things can change quicker than you think. We went shopping today to "look" at new cars. While we were out I got a call from my sister with news about my Dad. Today while my Mom was visiting with him today, she was talking to him and he moved his feet and wiggled his toes! The nurse asked him to do it again and he did. He's still really sick from the septic shock, but the doctor gave him a 5-10% chance of walking again. And the doctor has to confirm that he did it. But OMG what a piece of good news!

Then the other piece of news is that we bought a new car. And in true Melissa fashion, the new car already has a name, Mushu! Yes, in my family we name our vehicles. My beloved past autos were:

- 1987 Volkswagen Cabriolet - Little Red - a true college/young professional woman zippy fun convertible - now resides in my parent's basement
- 2000 Volkswagen Passat Wagon - Big Blue - more sensible Mommy vehicle, had many days of the sun roof rolled back jammin' to the Wiggles with the Munchkins in their carseats
- 2005 Toyota Sienna Van - Bullseye - after the Passat was deemed "a lemon", the next purchase in the Mommy vehicle path, "Drive like the wind, Bullseye."---RIP my red friend 6/28/2008

And now drum roll please, my 2009 Toyota Camry, Mushu! As the youngest Munchkin so clearly told her aunt, "We have to meet our new car before we know it's name." So welcome to the family Mushu. We're so sick we even named the rental car we had, "The Rollerskate."

So there we go....my day in a nutshell!

What a week!

Well, this has been the week from Hell! But most fortunately today brings some good news and hope my way and I'm finally starting to feel more like myself.

First, Monday my Dad's vital signs started to fail and the doctors told us it was a matter of hours before we lost him. He has developed sepsis (a blood infection) and his body was in septic shock. Monday is a day that I hope will soon fade in my memories. Since then he's slowly been making forward progress. The doctors are quick to remind us everyday that he's gravely ill, but he's stable now and slowly, very slowly being taken off medications and machines as he becomes stronger and his body's systems are starting to sustain themselves. Thank you to all those who have kept us in their thoughts and prayers!

There's something to be said about little girls and their Daddies. Throughout most of my adult life he's been, Dad, Father, Papa Bear, Jim, or PawPaw. There have been only a handful of times I've called him Daddy as a grown woman. One of the most recent time was 8 and half months pregnant with a two year old on my hip at the beginning of one of Georgia's summers the air conditioning at my house went out. When he asked if I wanted him to come over to look at it, I just cried into the phone,"Yes, Daddy!" And now this week, before I realized what I was doing, every time I saw him in the hospital hooked up to all the tubes, wires, and machines, as I left, I squeezed his hand and said,"Bye Daddy. See you later. I love you."

Next, as therapy for all the stress, I've been on a sewing mission. I've made countless pillowcases for everyone. My mom found these travel size pillows at WalMart and I've been making custom pillowcase for everyone. Then in an effort to pass time I worked alittle on my hourglass quilt. It's going to be bedsize. So that meant marking more fabric and sewing more half square triangles. Then I pulled out those 5" squares from a fabric exchange and started making half square triangles with those. Those are going to make my Dad a new quilt. Naturally, when I got enough put together I started playing on the floor.


Not sure which one I like best, any opinions?

Finally, the oldest Munchkin got her first pair of glasses this week. She picked out the frames all by herself. She so sweet. When we walked out of the eyeglass place she exclaimed,"Oh my. I didn't know everything looked like this. I thought I was seeing what everyone else saw."
Y'all take care...

My birthday - Independence Day

Today is my birthday. It's definitely a weird one.

First a quick update on everyone.....

The Munchkins are doing fine. Black eyes, a broken arm, and a lost favorite stuffed animal. All in all we came out of the crash so very lucky. Hubbie had to go try to salvage some luggage and things from the van. He took pictures. I looked at one. I will not look at the others. My babies are safe and practically unscathed, that's all that matters to me. And Hubbie has been wonderful through it all. He's driven countless miles taking everyone to and from hospitals, dropping off clothes and necessities, and providing errand running for everyone.

My sister and niece are well on their way to recovery. My sister is still sore. My niece had her surgery. Her jaw is repaired and her leg is in a cast. She'll be using a walker for the next 6-8 weeks, but she'll recover completely. They are this minute on their way home from the hospital. And although the people at the children's hospital were some of the nicest we met, my sister said she never wants to see the inside of Scottish Rite again.

My mom and dad. My mom is ok. She's sore and she has gotten some rest. She's going to have a long road ahead of her with my Dad's recovery. My Dad has a spinal cord injury. His back broke in two places. He had surgery yesterday to repair the broken bone. The chances he'll walk again are very slim, but as the doctor said, every patient is different. There's no way to really judge how injured the nerves are so it's going to be a matter of time and physical therapy before we know.

Now a Melissa thought...a few weeks ago a video was played endlessly by the media of a woman being hit by a car and the bystanders and witnesses who didn't stop to try to help. Since my family's tragedy, my faith in people has not been shaken. From all the people who witnessed the accident and helped my family at the scene, to the very nice man who stopped and pulled my daughters from the van, to my friends who dropped everything and came to the multiple hospitals to help juggle all the chaos, to the other beloved friends, family, and acquaintances who have offered over and over their time and assistance to help us get through these messy days, to the people that Hubbie and I work for who have told us to take the time we need to get things sorted out, and to all the other people who have heard our story and offered to help and kept us in their thoughts and prayers, the massive flood of concern and love has touched me. People are good.

So I guess that's my birthday present this year....to know that people are good.