HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

I just wanted to wish everyone a Very Happy New Year!! May 2012 be an exceptional year for everyone!!

So what is everyone's New Years Goals?

For me, I am trying to keep it simple:
1. to be the best mom that I can to my 3 children
2. To live, love, and laugh more
3. Try to get a bunch more sewing done (however, that is dependent on the needs of the 3 children...lol)
4. Do a massive purge and reorganization of my home (there really is way to much stuff!!!)

I am hoping for 2012 to be an exceptional year! The end of 2011 was rough, but I have done fairly well to adjusting to being a single mom, and I am determined to make 2012 a successful year on many different levels!! I can do it!!

Here is to wishing everyone a healthy, happy, and successful upcoming year!!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

BLOG HOP PARTY!!!!!

And the winner is: LORI :)   Congrats!!!


Lori left this comment:
My son is the youngest of all the cousins and as the older teens get tired of making cookies, decorations and singing carols he has missed out abit. Two nights ago we grabbed big flashlights and headed out into the forest where we found a peerfect tree and decorated it to surprise all the local joggers and hikers. we sang carols at the top of our lungs alll the way home!







Oh my gosh, I am so excited to be a part of this wonderful Blog Hop Party that Michele from the Quilting Gallery has put together! THANK YOU MICHELE!!!!! And Happy 4th birthday to the Quilting Gallery!!

I have been wanting to blog so much more than what I have, so this should be a wonderful beginning!! I am looking forward to reconnecting with my blogging friends and making many many more!! And what a time to host a give away, during the season of giving!!!

There are over 250 blogs participating in this Blog Hop, and each blog will be having a give away, so it will be worth the time to hop on over to each blog and see what is happening!! For a list of the blogs that are participating just go here and there will be a complete list for you!! This list will be posted December 10, and the party will go until December 17th. Oh what a great week this will be :)

Now on the the goodies. Well, I know some of the stuff that will be given away. A lapel stick, some fabric, some other goodies I can find, and I am thinking that there will be some other surprises added in too!! I can honestly say that I rather procrastinated in getting everything collected before this post...ooops ;)  I will post pictures later of some of the goodies :)

To enter in to this giveaway:

1. comment on this post telling me your favorite family activities to do over the holidays :) (for me it has been making chocolates, cookies and crafting with my 3 wee ones, and watching them decorate the Christmas Tree).
2. For a second chance, follow my blog and comment here letting me know that you are a follower ;) 

Hope Everyone has a great time!!! Looking forward to meeting many new blogging friends :)

Christine

Yippee!!!

I am so darn excited!!!

It has been a long month with no internet at home!! But the month is over and I have my internet back...YIPPEE!!!!!

There is so much I want to share with everyone, some great pictures to post and in the near future a give away as well!!

It has been a long day, and this past weekend I dealt with 3 children with the flu, so needless to say I am absolutely beat!

I will be posting things much more often now, and looking forward to reconnecting with everyone!

WOW it is GREAT to be back!!!

Christine :)

Brief post!

I have so much to share, pictures, good news, product review and giveaway! However all of that will have to wait until the middle of November :( I am in the middle of switching internet providers so it has been a challenge to get everything done that I have wanted too.

I am having blog withdrawals...ack! It will be so nice to get back into the swing of things!

There have been so many major changes I have been dealing with, that getting some things back to normal will be wonderful!

Stay tuned for some more news on a give away coming up!!

Phew....made it through the last 2 weeks!

Whoa, the last 2 weeks have been crazy!!

First of all my twins turned 4!! Wow where did that time go! They are growing up so fast!! The weekend before their birthday was busy with 2 parties...and the second party was held later in the day for a smaller crowd, so I cooked a full meal for everyone! Phew, was I tired, but WOW was dinner tasty!!  Then as a result of such a busy weekend, the birthday girl and boy were over tired.  So there were a few nights of early bed time!!

Then this weekend in Canada was Thanksgiving. Well another 2 days of family, fun and tasty food!  Was a great time!! I am so very thankful for my 3 precious babies. They are all healthy, growing and smart children. They really are my world!

And to end the weekend, I stopped by my mailbox, and found a sweet little slip saying that I have a package at the post office...hopefully I will get there tomorrow and see what is awaiting me :)

in search of...

Hi Everyone!!

With Christmas less than 3 months away, my mind is beginning to really think about what I am going to give to family and friends. I tend to make several of the gifts that we give and I would like to stick to that if possible. I am also hoping to use up a bunch of my wonderful fabric stash to help cut the costs this year.

For the past couple of years, the twins have helped me make gifts and this year I am sure that I will have all 3 wanting to help. Sure does make me smile that all 3 like sewing at such a young age :)

That being said, I am looking for some project ideas. Items that will be quick and simple to make.  I am thinking some mug rugs for adults with a mug to go with it, maybe bags, or quilted notebook covers.  The little girls in the family are easy, but the 9 and 13 y.o. boys...a bit more of a challenge. Just like the ladies I find are easier to create for then men.

Oh what to do, what to make....I am hoping to collect ideas soon and finalize what I am making so I can have everything done by December 1st.  I am hoping to keep December wide open or family fun and holiday activities!!

So, any suggestions would be welcomed!!

Christine

Super Excited!!

I am so darn excited, still rather speechless to be honest!


Alisa from Quiltish by Alisa Jacobs was having a give away, and I thought I would comment to get my name entered. Well, much to my amazement, I was the lucky winner.  Alisa's blog is wonderful!! And Alisa just published her first e-book, Rise & Shine. If you have a few extra moments, you should really hop on over to Quiltish by Alisa Jacobs and enjoy...such inspiration!!!


THANK YOU ALISA!!


What did I enter in for...well an   GO! Baby Fabric Cutter from Accuquilt!! All I can say is OH MY GOSH, I AM SO DARN EXCITED!!!!


I had to choose 3 dies as well. I found that to be harder than anticipated as there are a lot that really caught my eye! But after some process of elimination, I finally decided on the GO! Rose of Sharon by Sharon Pederson, GO! Feathers, and the GO! Strip cutter-2 1/2". 


I have always wanted to get on of the cutters with the Rose of Sharon dies, and the GO! Feathers, but it was that last choice that I was having a hard time deciding on! I liked the GO! Critters (which would be great for using with my children), and the GO! Rag Square 5 1/4", the GO! Square-5", and there were a few more on that list.  I think I can anticipate a few more of these dies finding there way to my house now :)


Now, comes the waiting. I think now I have the motivation to get all the rest of the house cleaning/purging/organizing done. Cuz I certainly know that once that little package arrives, cleaning will be the last thing that I will want to be doing :)


Gosh darn, I am so excited....WOooooHOOOooooo :)

Oh my goodness....I won!!!!!

Things around my house are crazy busy on a daily basis. The 3 young ones require a large portion of my spare time. As a result, things I used to do on a regular basis are not much of an option right now. Two of these would be sewing, and blogging. Both of which I love and miss dearly, but the children come first.

Well the other day, I had some free time (the kids were playing nicely and not getting into mischief. LOL) and I sat down at the computer and read some of the blogs I follow on a regular basis. Well, Jeanette over at Inch Worm Fabrics was blogging about organizing the sewing space and asked what her readers do.  I replied that I as well am in the middle of cleaning/purging and organizing and that all my fabric will be going on a shelf.

Well, Jeanette was also going to do a mystery fabric giveaway...how exciting I thought!! And well, I WON!!! When I was notified, I was so shocked and surprised! I am so excited to see what arrives in the mail!

Inch Worm Fabrics has such an amazing blog!! I look forward to seeing new blog posts. Also, Inch Worm Fabrics has a store and OH MY GOODNESS, love the goodies that are there! Well worth the time to go and take a look!!

Jeanette, I just personally wanted to say thank you so much for having this give away and I am thrilled to have had my name picked! Looking forward to sharing with everyone what will be in the mystery package!!

Christine

Purging, rearranging, and organizing...

Well, the 3 wee ones have been keeping me very busy over the summer. And I must say it has been very enjoyable. Now, with fall just around the corner, I am getting into the swing of purging unused items, I have been rearranging furniture and rooms, doing some deep cleaning and getting the house completely organized.

So far, I have managed to get both the kids rooms almost done...just need to purge a bunch of toys! (Its amazing how many toys have accumulated over the last 4 years with 3 kids!!) I have steam cleaned the carpet and a arm chair, I have managed to set up a better cleaning routine that works so much better for me. And one of the best things is I have been able to stay caught up on the washing, drying, folding and putting away of laundry. And I must say with 3 kids there seems to be A LOT of laundry!!

I am hoping that with in the next few weeks, I will have a lovely little sewing area where I can leave my sewing machine out and projects readily available to work on. I am going to do my best to sew 15-30 minutes a day and see how much I can truly accomplish.  I have some simple little project ideas I would like to make for Christmas. I am also planning on making the girls new Christmas dresses, and something for the little man.

I am setting goals to have all projects done by the end of November so the entire month of December, I can be busy with the kids doing fun family activities!

Oh am I looking forward to the next few months to see how much I can actually get done!!

Hope everyone is doing well :)

Christine

Finally.....

I hope that everyone is doing well!!

It is interesting how life works. I had hopes to blog often and big dreams for this year. However, life does not always make things easy resulting in change of plans...lol. Working full time has definitely had a larger impact than I thought it would. The kids are loving daycare, how ever, the time away from me has been hard on them and they require all of my free time in the evenings and weekends.

Despite all of my new challenges, I am happy to say that one of my sisters got married on the weekend. Her wedding was absolutely amazing, and she was truly a beautiful stunning bride!!

In the limo on the way to the ceremony

I was one of the bridesmaids and both my girls were flowergirls!!

The 3 of us in the limo

The girls were truly amazing the entire day..and my oldest daughter I must say is quite the little party animal...she danced the night away until we left at 1130 pm (to be honest all the kids played until we left :) )

For the bride and groom I did make a custom wedding cake for them. It was a huge success with the couple as well as all of the guests, caterers and management of the hall they rented!

Full view of cake on top of water fountain

Closer view of the top 2 tiers of the wedding cake

Close up of the Calla Lillies I made out of fondant. They were tipped with blue and silver.  Made about 150 of them.

I am so very happy for my sister! The gentleman she married is so wonderful to her, he treats her very well and truly makes her happy!!

Now that the wedding is over, I am hoping that I may get some good quality time with my sewing machine. It has been a very long time and I am really missing it!!!

Hope everyone is doing well!!!

been super busy!!

There has been sew much going on!! And sadly, blogging had to be put to the side :(

Here is a quick bit of a run down. I was commissioned out by a dance studio to create and sew a costume for 1 dance class, and then several tutus for another dance class.

For the costume, I have to say it took me longer than I had anticipated. There was no pattern for what the class wanted, So, I drafted up a pattern and thought "WOW, was that ever easy!! However, the prototype was HUGE!! So back to the drawing board I went. long story short, it took me a few times to get it right. And then, once things were to the right size, I was busy getting everything sewn, and ready for delivery! This costume that was needed was to resemble the jacket of a children's story book character "Madeline".  I must say, when everything was said and done, they turned out well. There are things I would have still liked to improve on. But for drafting a first pattern, I think it was pretty good. Most importantly, the girls and their parents were extremely happy with them :)

Front view of the Jacket.  My little model was about 2 sizes smaller that the class that needs them. So that is why it looks rather big and baggy on her :)

Back view of the jacket

The tutus were all the same, red with some black. I needed to make 12 of those.

12 of these were needed for the one class. All of them identical

Then, among all of that, it was decided that I need to go back to work full time, so I had to find daycare for the 3 young ones, and also a full-time job...both in which I was successful with!  To make it special for the older 2, together we made them a special backpack. My daughters was a Tinkerbell, and my sons was a Disney Cars! Both of them are well loved and I must say I am very happy that it made their day!! For these darling backpacks I used a pattern from the Moda Bake Shop here. I did alter the pattern a bit to suit our needs :)

Both backpacks completed

Close up of front

View of the back

I have also seriously debated in entering into the McCalls Quilt Design Star 2011.  And I think I may have the perfect entry...just a few more things to do to it and then pictures :)

And finally, I am done sketching a secret project that I am very excited about!!!

Oh, these next 2 weeks are going to be very busy, but will be well worth it!!

Just wanted to say......

THANK YOU!!!

I know I have not been the most regular blogger...I must admit I am rather inconsistent to be honest! I do try, however, with 3 wee young children, blogging seems to happen when I have lots to say,something to share or a few spare moments!

With that being said, I just wanted to send out a big thank you to everyone that stops by and says hi, and reads what I am up to!! You all really are the best!

Again,

THANK YOU!!!

THANK YOU!!!

THANK YOU!!!

Hope you all have an amazingly fantastic creative day!!!!!

Starting this weekend....

So, I have had all supplies for a Dear Jane quilt for some time now, well I am FINALLY going to start making it!!!  For some reason this quilt terrifies me and excites me all at the same time! So I figure now is as good as ever to just jump right in and start with a block!

 I will post pictures when they are complete :)

Crafts, quilts and pillows! Lots of Pictures!!oldes

Oh we have been sew busy here. Right now it is really cold outside...-25 and with the windchill -35. Last night it was actually -35 before the windchill....brrrrrrr. With that being said, it has been indoor activity week and trying to get lots done!!

So here is what we have done so far!! The kids did some crafts using up all those itty bitty scraps of fabric I had,  taught my son a bit of sewing knowledge and he made his very first sewing project, and I completed a quilt top. So here are some pictures (there will be a few as I love the pics). I hope you all enjoy them as much as I do!!

Oldest daughter creating her masterpiece

Proudly showing off her work

Close up of her masterpiece

Little mister creating his masterpiece

Proudly showing off his work

Close up of his masterpiece

Little mister pinning the pillow together (was closely supervised and there were no pin pokes!)

Me teaching him how to guide the fabric through

him guiding the fabric through himself

Learning to put the pins away once they are removed

Pulling pillow right side out

Stuffing the pillow

Hand-stitching the opening closed

TA DA!!! One finished Spiderman Pillow and one VERY happy  little boy!

Prep work completed for quilt top

Called this one Hawaiian Sunrise. 

Front on view.
Pattern used was called Windowpanes Designed by Bradie Sparrow

It has been such a great week of creativity!!! And it is so much more enjoyable when my wee ones enjoy creating as well :)

If you are interested in the Windowpane patterns, hop on over to A Quilty Kind of Girl and get one from Bradie!

And just because I thought this was cute, here is my youngest daughter. She was playing peek-a-boo with a bucket! 

Peek-a-boo!!! 

Well, off to get some work done! Hope that you all have a fantastic day!!

My New Nephew!!

Well I received an early morning phone call letting me know that baby was born!!

He made his entrance into the world at 615am, weighing 5 pounds, and measuring 16 inches long. He is so so tiny and the sweetest little bundle of joy!!

so tiny all bundled up

big cousin holding him and very happy about this!

making faces

all cuddled up with his new blanket!

Oh, new babies are such a wonderful joy! And this Auntie is over the moon happy!!!

Patiently waiting.....

Last week I was busy making a few things, and I managed to get everything done with time to spare. You see I am waiting for the announcement of the arrival of the newest family member. We know its a little boy and I am so excited to be an Auntie again!!!

This past weekend we held a baby shower for my sister in law, and I for this I made a couple of things. One was a blanket (which our family has named Budzy's) and I also made a diaper cake. Also, several people pitched in and we bought her a stroller/car seat combo, some sleepers, a monitor and diapers. The mommy to be was so happy and greatly appreciative of everything.

Today she has gone into the hospital for an induction, so now we wait....I hope my littlest nephew decides to arrive soon!

So, here is what I made :)

Budzy (baby blanket)

front and back of the budzy

close up of the fabric I used for the front of budzy

Picture of the diaper cake. I usually add more to these, but we opted for very simple as it was the table center piece :)

Hopefully soon I will be able to post some pictures of my new wee nephew on his budzy!!

Hope you all have a wonderful day!!

Hugs,
Christine

Tutu's are done!

Well I have completed the custom order for Tutu's. And I must say that I am very happy with the way that they all turned out! It was a change to have a large order like this. Usually I do one or two, but this ended up being for 11 Tutus! I was happy to get them all done with in a few days of confirming the order!

These are the wands that I made to go with the Tutu's

Here are all 11 of the Tutu's together

close up of one of the Tutu's

The lady who ordered these came and picked them up this morning and was very happy, and that made my day!

And to make my day better, I received a message from someone who would like to place an order for dance class! They would like to see a sample in person and then decide from there! How exciting!!

I have also begun the new baby blanket, which I am hoping to have completed tomorrow!

It really is a great feeling to be back to sewing and my crafting

Been a long time.....

Wow has it been awhile since I have made an entry in my blog!! Not doing so well with keeping up in daily posts for the last month. There has been so much going on, and my kids have really needed my undivided attention. As a result, blogging was put on the back burning for awhile. I am hoping that things have settled down and things will return to normal!

I am currently working on a birthday party order for 11 Tutu's, making a baby blanket for the arrival of my newest little nephew (end of Feb), and designing some quilts while I await the arrival of some fabric!

Well, I am hoping to be in touch with everyone much more, but hope that you all understand that my wee munchkins need to be my number one priority!

Hugs,

Christine

My baby is 1!!

Yesterday was such a fun day! My youngest daughter turned one!

Where did the time go! We had such a great day, we all (myself and the 3 kids) went out for lunch at McDonald's. Then once the kids were finished eating off to the little play area they have for kids! Oh it was so so much fun! There were lots of smiles, giggles, laughter and lots of fun!! Then off to Walmart we went with Grandma, where we looked around and found a few goodies.

We are having a birthday party this weekend, so I have so much I need to do before then. I have picked out a sweet little cake for her which I will be doing tomorrow. Then there is the cleaning that should be done (seems like so much more work is involved with cleaning with 3 young children ;) ) Oh I am so excited!!

Once this weekend is over, I am excited to be able to take some time for myself and pull out my sewing machine! I am missing the sound of that machine :)

Well off to get a wee bit of cleaning done :D

Cuddles, cuddles and more cuddles!!!

Today was a day full of cuddles. Both my girls are suffering from a nasty head colds. There has not really been any naps today, but there has been lots and lots of cuddles. Both girls have been beside me or on me most of the day, and when they were not, my little man was sitting with me getting hugs!!

Now that the 3 of them are in bed asleep for now, I am going to just take it easy and do some hand stitching, maybe some sketching, or maybe I will just take the night off and get some rest!!

Night all!

Getting back into the swing of things!

With all the holiday hustle and bustle, the family visits, parties and just fun, routines seem to have gone awry! Finally I am getting some sense of organization and routine back!

Today, the kids were back to smiles and almost back to listening much better, daily chores are getting all caught up and I am feeling a bit of breathing room...wooohooo!

Tonight has been a big relief, I have managed to get caught up on the laundry. It is all folded and in the morning shall be put away..phew what a relief, and trust me, if you could see me now, I am doing a huge happy dance!! Laundry is my LEAST favorite chore..blech ;)


      

I managed to get another side of my husbands wall hanging done last night!! This is FANTASTIC!! I can not wait to have this one completed, done, finished and off of my to do list! This one has taken me over a year to do and has challenged me every step of the way! When you all see it, it really looks simple, but it has been one that has pushed me out of my comfort zone and literally be a challenge every step of the way...nothing has been easy with this one...not even the binding..oiy!

Well off to make the to do list for tomorrow! Have a great night all!

Determine that the thing can and shall be done, and then we shall find the way. 
Abraham Lincoln

And the New Year Begins!!

As the New Year was approaching, and I was frantically finishing up sewing projects for gifts, I was always thinking how I wanted to make this year amazing! I have definitely set goals, but more so, I have dreams that I would like to fulfill! And I am going to BELIEVE!! Believe I can do anything I put my mind too!!

This past year, I was able to submit some projects to possibly be published. It was a first for me, I was nervous, excited, apprehensive, and to be honest was rather uncertain. But as I busily sewed away at my wee machine, the excitement grew, and the confidence escalated, and I must say I was very content with what I submitted. However, the first round, my projects were not accepted (projects are still being looked at so there is still lots of excitement and hope). To be honest, I looked at this as a learning experience, and trust me I learned a great deal. But the biggest thing I learned is that having my work published is a dream, something I never really even thought possible so never let my mind go there. However, this year, I am going to work my hardest to have this dream come true!  A girls has gotta dream big, and I am doing just that!!

I am also going to sit down and start something just for me! I am going to start my Dear Jane quilt. In away, it has started as I have all the fabric for this beauty. But now I need to take that first step, nah...I mean just jump in with both feet and get it going!!

As for blogging, oh I have great ideas for here as well! I am planning on blogging much more this year! Meet many more new friends and keep in touch with the great friends I have met already. I am hoping to have a few give aways through out the year. I am planning on sharing my opinions of products I have tried. Oh I think this list could go on and on and on! But I would really like my blog to be a place of fun, happy and inspiration!!

Have a great night all!! Off to get some binding done!!

Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.
Harriet Tubman

Happy New Year!!

Well 2011 is here!! Happy New Year to all of you!

The end of 2010 was a crazy time of year in our home! I was busy finishing up several gifts I was working on, not to mention all the fun activities planned with family during the holiday season. And the much needed time that my 3 munchkins required!!

I am happy to say, that I managed to get all the gifts pretty much completed. What I did not get done was the binding on my daughters quilt, and the binding on my husbands wall hanging and the bead work for the wall hanging. What I did complete was 7 candle mats, a reversible bag, a pair of pajama pants (forgot to take pics of), a bunch of hair clip holders, some hair clips, and then a bunch of baking...phew!! That was a fair amount!! So, FINALLY here are all the pics I promised!!

4 of the candle mats

back of 4 candle mats

other 3 candle mats

back of candle mats

one side of reversible bag

other side of reversible bag

For information on the candle mat I have it posted here

The reversible was designed by my good friend Bradie Sparrow at A Quilty kind of Girls Designs and the pattern can be found here at the Moda Bakeshop.

For the other projects, I will take the pics when the binding is completely attached to the back :) and for the pajama's (they were M&M's fleece), the hair clip holders and the hair clips...well....I forgot to take the picture of them :(

Now on to some more cute holiday pics.  These are of my oldest 2...little Miss Claus and little Mister Claus:

my little Santa's helpers

Holiday hugs!

Well, 2010 was a pretty good year! But I want 2011 to be even better.  I have some new ideas, goals and dreams to work towards and fulfill, but more on all of that tomorrow!!

Again, Happy New Year to all of you!

Chris :)