This and That

We wait impatiently for our little Klaire to arrive. Her mommy is more than ready, but the due date is not till April 13. Hopefully, she will arrive sooner than that.

LMW and I have been going here there and yonder trying to have a good time. He is at the stage where he gets bored easily so Nanna has her work cut out for her trying to keep him from getting out of control. Ha!

He's become very brave and can even climb up the tall tall slide all by himself...which I admit scares me a bit.

He has adjusted to going to sleep without his "poppie" (pacifier) and never asks for his "met mets" (blankies) while at my house. Unfortunately, he never naps at my house now either. I sure miss that quiet time but his Uncle J never took a nap either. I was a lot younger then and could deal with it better. Ha!!

I have just gotten back to sewing my ministry quilts after the holidays and preparing for Baby Klaire. It feels good.

The weather is hot then cold then hot then cold, as always in the Arkansas Springtime.

We are looking forward to SR's retirement in August. Actually counting the days now. We are so ready for this and he's tired and ready to come home. We plan to do a little traveling, but nothing major. Mostly just to places of interest in Arkansas, maybe Branson and the beach on occasion. I'm really looking forward to that!!

My friend Hillbilly Tonya is planning a quilting retreat this fall in Branson. I sure hope that happens because I really want to go. And I REALLY want to set eyes on her in live person. We've only corresponded online.

There you have what is going on in my world at present. Life is good. We are blessed.

March

The weather here so far in March has been lovely. LMW and I played outside just about all day yesterday. He was one tired little man, and Nanna was beat. I don't think I've been that tired in a long long time. But it was worth it.

He loves to have a mustache and beard drawn on his face. He grabbed an ink pen yesterday and started drawing... YIKES!! So, Nanna found an old eyebrow pencil and gave him a better set.

We've been feeding birds in the back yard and are having issues with those pesky blackbirds. I keep having to run outside and clap my hands to get them gone. And they keep returning. I guess we'll have to leave the feeders empty for a while to discourage them and get them to move along on their merry way.

I have a bone to pick with the clothing designers this spring. What about old and fat don't you people who designed Skinny Jeans understand????!!!

Photo courtesy Jcp

Ok, now this model looks very nice. But I can guarantee you that she is in her twenties and weighs less than 120 lbs.  I spent 2+ hours in Penney's  on Thursday unsuccessfully looking for slacks or jeans that were not skinny, and that would fit my lumpy body well enough to actually purchase. No luck. It's very depressing. I'm short and weigh...well quite a bit more than 120 lbs I can tell you that. Finding clothes that fit is almost impossible for me. The husband asked me yesterday what I was going to do since I can't seem to find anything that fits. I guess I'll have to try to start making my own clothes. I've never been successful at it, but desperate times call for desperate measures.... :/

I must get back to my "rat killin'" as my grandmother would say. Meaning I need to get back to my housework. I just thought I'd take a break and visit with you all a minute or two. 

I hope you all have a great weekend!!

It's Been a While

I haven't forgotten this blog, but I just don't seem to have too much to say if it doesn't pertain to sewing/painting/crafting these days. I wish I could come up with some cool blog posts, but the ideas have sort of just evaporated into thin air. In lieu of a specific topic, I'll just post more random thoughts....

We await the arrival of our precious little Klaire Allyse next month. I've helped fix up the nursery and sewed the bedding.

This child's closet is as full as mine already. She'll never be able to wear all the clothes hanging in there! And I'm sure she will get more since there is a baby shower on March 10th. Oh the fun of little girls!! I was blessed to be able to go with my son and daughter-in-law to a 4D ultrasound. It was amazing!! I can't even fathom how we can actually see what the little darling looks like. See for yourself!

It's a bit fuzzy because it's a picture of a picture, but you get the general idea. She opened her eyes, moved her hands and fingers around and even grinned. We were totally in awe. Well, me and the other grandmother. For our kids, it's common place now. They didn't even do ultrasounds when I was expecting unless there were concerns.

LMW is growing in every way. He forgets nothing and is like our conscience following us around. It sure keeps us on our toes and reminds us that we are witnesses and have a duty to lead him in the path of righteousness.

The weather in Arkansas has been  crazy, but then it always is. One day it's in the upper 60s and the next down to 35. Here there is a common phrase regarding the weather..."If you don't like the weather, just wait a day or two and it will change!" We haven't had the problems of our friends in the plains or north though and that's something to be thankful for. The jonquils are blooming and it's the first of March, so I expect to feel Spring weather. The local meteorologist tells me I'll have to wait as the ground hog was mistaken.

I've finished a quilt for my sister-in-law and had planned to surprise her with it this weekend, but she had treatment this week and wasn't sure if she would feel like having guests. I'll have to wait a little while longer before I present it to her. Disappointment.

I don't have any pressing quilting jobs now, and have been doing some fun paper piecing blocks. I'm running ahead of my block of the month sewing, but I get all excited to do something new and rush ahead. My sewing partner Janice is the same way.

My father-in-law's Alzhiemer's seems to be progressing more quickly now, and it's very hard on my mother-in-law. Please keep them in your prayers if you would be so kind. He's not an easy patient and it will get much worse. Her health isn't the best, and the stress is hard on her.

That's all for now. I hope you all have a great weekend and get some good weather!

Favorite Quotes

As you can see, I've already changed my background for St. Patty's Day. I know it isn't even Valentine's day, but that is really no big deal around here. Never has been and that's ok.
I love St. Patrick's Day. I love green. I love anything Irish.

Kiss me I'm Irish.
Top of the morning to ya.
Faith and begorra.
Oh Danny Boy, the pipes the pipes are callin'...

Had enough yet?

My almost 3 year old grandson....Gosh! I can't believe he's almost three...
He and I were walking yesterday and he wanted to go in a direction I didn't think we needed to go.
"Nanna, less go dat way."
"No sweetie, we really don't need to go that way. See all those cars? It's dangerous"
"Nanna, I know iss hard. But try."
Needless to say, we went.

"Nanna, when I grow up, I want to be a man." 

"That happens sometimes."

"Nanna listen, don't touch dat, iss hot."

"Nanna, I can't see your house."
"Well, it's over there you can't see it from here. Are you lost?"
"No, I'm with you."

Whirling Dervish

This is what LMW does when he doesn't take a nap and has to keep moving or fall asleep...

Muddling Along

I'm having trouble with another blog post. I've not done anything interesting, not finished any creative projects, not done much at all except just work on unfinished sewing projects.

We had a big snow/ice storm at Christmas and my son worked 16 hour days for two weeks trying to get folks' power back on.

My daughter-in-law is having some issues with pain and fatigue, but the OB tells her it's normal. I'm not sure about that so we'll see how it goes. We are waiting on fabric to arrive so we can begin sewing the nursery bedding. That's going to be fun.

LMW is growing up so fast it's amazing. The things he says and does are hilarious. I haven't taken any photos lately, and I'll have to remedy that soon.

Husband is counting down the days until his retirement in August.
I'm counting down the days to his retirement in August. ;) I'm looking forward to it, but can't really tell you why. I don't really know. Just glad he doesn't have to go back to that place any longer I guess.

I'm also counting down the days until our beach trip in June. Yeah, it's a ways off, but there have been very few days when I haven't thought about it.

As cold as it's been this winter, I noticed the jonquils and irises are trying to rise up. I even saw a bloom on an iris in Hot Springs the other day. It didn't register when I saw it, but later on I thought about it and was amazed.

Valentine's day is fast approaching, but we don't do it up big around here. The most exciting thing I'll do about that is to make a February BOM.

So that's my random post for a while. I'm trying to stay current with this blog. Everyone have a great week!

2013

I don't really do "resolutions", but this year I find myself really contemplating changes I need to make in my life. I don't resolve to do them, but hope and pray I am able to make a move toward them.
Let's call them goals, instead of resolutions, shall we?

1. More time in Bible study and prayer. Kinda speaks for itself there doesn't it? I struggle with this and am so thankful for the online Women's Bible Study that I check in with every day. It's not enough, but it's a huge help to me.

2. Slow Down. I have a genetic disposition to hurry everything. Rush rush rush is what my mind tells me. I inherited this from my mother, and it is one of the most irritating things I deal with. So, I need to keep telling myself all day every day to ease up and take it slower. It will be there when I get to it, and there is no task police to reprimand me if I don't get it done on the timeline my subconscious dictates.

3. More music. I used to listen to music constantly. I wind up with preschool jingles in my head all the time
now and I really don't like that. I'd much rather have Clair de Lune as an earworm.

4. I need to make a concerted effort to organize my family history. I have a huge amount of family research and photos, and they are in notebooks, but not really organized. That is something I'd really like to accomplish this year.

5. Quit obsessing over my weight. Yes, I need to be healthy and eat healthy, that's not the issue. I've always had a negative view of my body, and it doesn't help to have the extra pounds I see, but I need to focus more on being healthy, and less on how I look. And I'd really like to be comfortable in my clothes, so a healthy weight is what I need to strive for.

6. More quilting for me, myself and I. The past few years I've done so so many projects and given them all away. It is a good thing, and people really like it, but I need to do some things for my own pleasure and use for a change.

7. Last but not least...Enjoy life! We only have one, and it's short. If I'm not enjoying my life, what message does that send to my family?  I have always liked the phrase, "Don't worry, be happy." Take a deep breath, blow it out, let it go and be content. This will be the hardest one I think.

May 2013 bless you. May you bloom where you are  planted. May you bless others and enjoy your life.

All photos found on google