Highs and Lows

I miss reading blogs. Most of my favorites have packed up and moved on by now. Instagram is fun but just not the same. I enjoy reading quilting/sewing blogs and design blogs. But mostly I enjoy hearing bits and pieces about life. I've been inspired and challenged by the words that others put on the page. So maybe I'll return to blogging, maybe I won't. Today I feel like writing and this feels like the space to do so.

We're in the midst of discovering life in a new (well not so new to me) city. I'm loving the adventure. I am over the moon to be experiencing an autumn season that doesn't involve 80 degree temperatures and a distinct lack of changing leaves. The changing seasons with a toddler is exciting. He loves collecting leaves and talking about acorns and chestnuts. We take a walk nearly every day to collect treasures to take home. 

In the midst of this I carry grief around with me. My body is still healing from the loss of the baby we were expecting in March. I'm still trying to wrap my head around this terrible news I've only had two weeks to digest. I'm trying so hard to be easy on myself, to rest when I need to. I miss being pregnant. I miss routine. I miss very much my sewing space and a chance to create. I know that I'll get back to it in time. My heart aches for things to feel normal again, whatever normal is when a member of your family is now missing. And so I take it slowly, each day as it comes. Just keep swimming. Find beauty in each day. Give thanks for what I have been blessed with.

what? i have a blog?

This is a test. Comment if you actually read this.

Stranger Danger

Last week I left my house to go to Bible study and as I stopped at a stop sign in my neighborhood a man on crutches painstakingly made his way across the street in front of me and continued on down the road. And so began the internal monologue, "Oh my gosh that guy is attempting to walk all the way down that road on crutches?! That stinks. Maybe I should give him a ride. No wait, a strange man getting into my car is not a good idea. I wonder how far he has to go because that road is really long. I should just drive on. No, wait I should really help him. But what if he tries to hurt me? Or rob me? Oh fine ok I'll help him."

Yes, my brain is confusing sometimes. I moved my stuff off the passenger seat, tucked my purse down along the driver's side door, and decided that I'd smack him with a crutch if he gave me any trouble. I pulled up beside him and rolled down the window.
"Excuse me, I don't normally pick up strange men off the side of the road but would you like a ride?"
The man hesitated for a moment and looked shocked.
"Yes actually I would. I'm trying to get to an appointment over by the hospital."
"Hop in, I can take you there. It's on my way." (By the way the hospital is over a mile away from where we were).
So with some trepidation on both our parts the man got into my car. He began thanking me almost immediately and then asked how my baby was doing. Long awkward pause. "Excuse me, what?" Your baby ma'am, how is the baby doing? Slowly I began to realize that perhaps he thought I was someone else. "Um, sir, you don't know me." Oh! Aren't you the woman who lives in the white house a few down from mine? "No, but I do live just up that street, we haven't met before but I thought you could use a ride this morning". The expression on his face was PRICELESS as it dawned on him that he was now in the car with a woman whom he had never met before. If I was at all worried about letting a stranger into my car I need not have been because it seems that the man who got into my car was just as freaked out to realize that he had mistakenly gotten into the car of a stranger! And that is the story of how I met Pedro Sanchez.

Just a few reasons why my parents are awesome

My parents came to visit and ended up helping me with a ton of projects. My dad put new rotors on my car, repaired the bumper which he may or may not have made a tiny rip in while parking in the scariest parking garage in new orleans, and repaired the seat lever so that I can finally fold the seat down and haul around my yard sale finds and craft show stuff. Mom helped me make a tablecloth for craft shows out of sheets from Target and add a few inches to the hem of my bridesmaid dress which was too short.

They also helped me build an amazing apron display for craft shows! We found a twin headboard at the thrift store. It was for sale with the bedrails as well but I talked to the guy working there and he sold it to me for only $20 and with no rails instead of the $35 they were asking for! We also had to buy some brackets and other hardware. Here's the loot:


At first I thought I could get away with less expensive brackets for the back but we ended up having to return them. The holes in the two sets of brackets didn't match up.


I decided that if the knobs were along the top of the bedframe then it would need to be three feet tall. So we measured three feet from the top of the frame so that dad could saw off the extra wood of the legs.


Mr. T helped supervise the project from his favorite cat bed: the cardboard box from an ikea product.


Then my dad measured out four 12 inch sections from the 1 X 1 wood.


Then he and my mom sawed the 12 inch sections from the wood.


And then he sawed the bottoms of the bedframe off.


See? Now it's a little bit shorter.


Then he attached a bracket to each section of wood using my favorite power tool: the cordless screwdriver.


He drilled holes in the legs of the bedframe and then we attached the brackets using wing nuts and a screw. That way I can take the legs of the frame off when I transport it. It's less bulky and it also weighs less.


Next they drilled holes along the top of the frame.


And finally we screwed a bunch of dresser knobs along the top of the frame. I found all of these on bike rides around the neighborhood. Yes I'm the weirdo that carries a screwdriver with me so that I can gather them from furniture left out for the trash.


Here's the new display in action at a craft show. I can put eleven aprons on the frame and lay the rest on the table in front of it. It works out really well!

My parents also brought down a doll cradle I had when I was little. I'm using it to display my baby quilts at craft shows. I added the sign that I usually hang up on the clothesline for outdoor shows and a little tin full of business cards.

The craft show was a total flop. I paid $20 for a table and sold NOTHING! It was boring but at least I handed out a few business cards. I can't wait until my new ones come in the mail this week!

the real reason I have not been blogging

Here's the truth: my blog was ugly. Every time I felt like I might have something semi-interesting to say I would go to my blog and realize that it was completely uninspiringly ugly. Then I'd sort of click around on the templates and sigh about how I can't get anything exciting to happen with it. This happened a few minutes ago and Ta-da! There are tons of new template options! These have potentially been available for months and I have been clueless. I picked out a new template and adjusted some things and I like it! What do you think? Also, is it too wide for your monitor? I live with the man who has, no joke, six SIX computer monitors on his desk at work. So of course when our ten year old monitor bite the dust we upgraded to a flat screen monitor that is probably bigger than our sad little tv. Needless to say, I've no idea what the new layout looks like on the average computer monitor. Your input would be helpful.

Expect posts. Expect them often. Now if I can only figure out how to tap into the trillions of photos saved on Jared's computer and get access to them without have to actually use his computer we will really be in business.

Ok now I'm going to go finish reading Anne of Green Gables Book 5, whichever one that is. I've been reading them for the past month after receiving a large hard cover edition from Jared's grandmama as she was preparing for their move to a smaller place. I'm hoping to have an Anne of Green Gables movie marathon with Lex when I go visit. No one in this state will watch it with me! When asked on seperate occassions everyone here said "Ew".

Goodbye Pentax. RIP.

Our camera is no more! Sadly it chose to begin it's deathbed illness on the day of my birthday party. When I went to upload the pictures all were lost. I ran downstairs and somehow managed to take these pictures:




While Jared took me out to lunch for sushi some awesome friends snuck into our house and set up a garden birthday party! I had made the rainbow cake thinking that they would come over for cake and just hang out but I had no idea that they were actually setting up tea and cookies and decorating before I got home! I was of course mortified that I hadn't managed to get the clean cover back onto the ripped up couch. (The cat used to shred the corners of it before we finally covered it up). It's so silly that I get all worked up about having a spotless house when all of the people coming over have seen it in far worse states. The party was awesome, ugly couch and rain, or not. They had intended for it to be outside but it rained for literally eight hours the night before and everything was soaked in the backyard. Inside was just as great because each guest brought me a flower to plant out in my garden and they hung tiny butterflies from everything. When I get a working camera I'll take some updated pictures of my garden. I had taken some before all of the flowers were added.

The cake in case you are wondering I used a white cake recipe from The Joy of Cooking. I had to double it in order to get all of the color layers. I used natural food dye and I made cream cheese frosting. I've been watching Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution and trying to think a bit more about what I'm eating. I feel very strongly that processed foods are not as good for me as whole natural foods and I'm trying to cut out as many processed foods as possible. And then there are the days when it's time for dinner and I haven't even made a grocery list let alone started cooking and suddenly it's 8pm and we find ourselves eating Burger King. Every now and then isn't so bad right? I told Jared that I'm on the edge of a Food Revolution but that it hasn't taken root yet. I'm working on it though. Hey I also did Pilates two days in a row! Living healthier has it's ups and downs but I'll get there eventually. In the meantime I need to go buy a new iron. Seems irons can grow black mold which you don't find out until you decide to use the steam feature for the first time in forever and you are ironing cream colored fabric for a custom order.

Wow. So hi, it's been a long time! I really need to update this place. I'm going to work on getting a new look and also I am going to start blogging again. Things are going to be even more random because I plan on adding posts about quilting and crafts, recipies and healthy eating, organic gardening, and the usual mayhem. I'll be back with more soon!