A Touch of Fall

I'm in the autumn mode, as many of you probably are. This morning, the air turned crisp and cool and I had to get out my fall decorations. I don't do a lot of it, not nearly the amount I do at Christmas, but I like to add a little touch of fall around the place.

A few weeks ago, I saw this on Pinterest and decided I want to try to do something similar.

I scoured the flea markets for a rooster I could feel comfortable buying. Every time I found one I liked, it was from $25.00 to $65.00 and that just wasn't in my budget. Low and behold...yesterday....my birthday...I found this lovely little man for $12.00. I grabbed him up with my birthday money.

I got out the rest of my supplies...

 and went to work. This is what I finished with.

I love it!!

Yes, that's the table that still needs refinishing.... It's still on my to-do-list...But in the meantime, my rooster is enjoying his view.

I also found a wonderful solid wood drop leaf table that I brought home to use for a cutting table. Needs some work, but when I get her fixed up, I'll share the before and after with you.

Happy Fall Y'All!!

Out of the Ordinary August

I would have to say that this has been the most usual August I can remember. It's been jam packed with ups and downs and fun and the not so fun.

First, SR retired. And what a joyous day that was!! He wanted to take a little trip, so we drove up to Branson, as I've mentioned in a previous post. I came home with two vintage sewing machines and some fun stuff.

The following week I gave him a little family party to celebrate his freedom and all my children were here. It was the first time since Mother's Day that both my grandbabies were here.

I can't believe how fast these two have grown!

It was quite the day and we all enjoyed it immensely.

I got behind on my sewing due to the trip and the food poisoning I experienced as soon as we arrived home. Not fun, but I lived.  Then....my sewing machine died. This is what it looks like now....

 It wasn't worth saving, so we gave LMW a screw driver and let him go to work on it.

Then we made it into a warehouse and loading dock. He has had a lot of fun with this thing. (And don't be alarmed, I assure you it wasn't worth repairing and it couldn't be used as it was.)

My mother-in-law and her sister both gave me their vintage Kenmore machines, but there were a few little things that needed tweaking on them before I could really sew with them. So, SR and I went to the nearest Janome dealer and scoped out the stock. I was excited and a little sick when we came home with this bad girl...

I'm still not comfortable about spending that much money, but SR assures me it's worth it. We left MIL's machine to be tweaked, and just yesterday picked it up. It sews so sweetly that I used it as much as I did the Janome yesterday. I had a marathon sewing day to try to catch up.

So, it's the last day of August and September begins on the morrow. I hope it's a bit more relaxed than August was. It's been a whirl wind summer for me and that is highly unusual!

Up and Down, Here and There

It's been quite a ride the last week and a half....

Last Thursday, SR and I headed out for Branson, Missouri to browse the flea markets and just get away. We drove up through Greenbriar, which is a mecca for flea markets, but we decided to only stop a few places and we'd stop at others on the way back. Good call because I kept finding things I wanted and I didn't want my money to run out before we reached our destination!

Three days of walking through shops was hard on this old gal, but worth every bit of it. I came back Saturday with lots of treasures.

A quilt rack with shelf, vintage decorative items, a wonderful vintage rotary phone and some classic albums for my LeLe. I also bought two vintage sewing machines.

Aren't they beauties?!!! They work too! (Although they need some tweaking and cleaning) I paid less than $100.00 for the pair, and just today at the LQS, I saw machines similar to these displayed for $300.00 each.
SCORE!!

Saturday night, I realized I also brought home something I didn't plan on....food poisoning. Here it is Wednesday and I'm still dealing with it. Not fun. But it will pass eventually.

Today, my sweet mother in law sent me her 30+ year old Kenmore machine and cabinet. BE STILL MY HEART!!  She is so good to me! Look at that group of accessories that came with it. Two boxes full. Man Oh Man!!

The quilt in the lower left corner was made by SR's great grandmother.

The reason for my sudden interest in all these machines is that for one, my three year old Brother bit the dust. Just talked to the repair man and it is going to cost me more than half of what I paid for it to get it fixed. No thank you. I don't need it now. Yay me!! Second, my good friend Y has really been encouraging me to get an older machine because they are made so much better and work so well.

I'm still working to get my sewing room just like I want. It's almost there. I'm way behind on my sewing due to being away, being sick, and being without a machine. I have some catching up to do!!!

The Final Countdown!

Well folks, next week is my husband's last at work. He is RETIRING!! Woo Hoo. We can hardly wait. For 30+ years he has worked at the railroad in a neighboring city and had a 60 mile round trip drive five days a week.  Everyone keeps asking him what he's going to do with all his free time and he is insistent that he is going to ENJOY doing NOTHING!! And if I know my husband....and I do of course....I believe that! He's the most laid back, restful, piddling kinda guy I've ever known. Give him his remote and recliner and he's a happy camper.

He does plan to spend time taking LMW to the deer camp and other places that guys go.

LMW decided his "Tow Mater" needed a little body work. Future mechanic in the making???

And he says WE will be doing some traveling. As a matter of fact, the week after his retirement we are running up to Branson for a couple of days. We love to browse flea markets and antique stores and just drive through the winding highways of North Arkansas.

We will be able to run up and see our Little Klaire more often too.

In other news, I'm redoing my craft/sewing room and am excited about it all. It's going to take a little time due to the cost, but when it's finished, I think I'll have a wonderful set up. I can't wait!!!  Life is GOOD!!

Summertime

July 21, 2013
Summer
Hot
Dry
Blah

That's kind of how I feel in a nutshell. No particular reason, just Summertime Blahs. Not blues, cause I'm not unhappy at all. I'm kind of in a slump though.

The sunburn I received at the lake has bothered me not a little. Still have about four bad spots, but by tomorrow they should be my old self.

Can't seem to really focus on any one thing in particular. I'm working here and there on projects but have no real pressure to finish them. I do however, expect to receive quilt blocks from the ladies who donated them for the Moore OK tornado victims. Sometime this week I will be getting enough blocks for two quilts. I will square them up, sash them and quilt them. Then I will send them on their merry way. That should get me focused and moving again.

We finally received an inch and a half of rain this afternoon after not getting a drop since early June. What a blessing!!!

I decided to make a stand/cover for my new tablet pc. Found the tutorial, quilted some really cool Jason Yenter fabric and put the thing together. About half way through, I realized it wasn't a cover, it was just a stand. Harrumph!! At least it's something I can use, but I'll have to begin again with a different fabric now. :/ I want something that will protect it as well as hold it up. I've made one before, don't know how I messed up. There you go, Summer Blah. Ha!!

I have some things going on this week that don't involve sewing, but after that, I'm going to give myself a good stern lecture and get back to work. I have a LOT to do!!!

New Experiences

Lately I've been doing things I either have never done, or haven't done in longer than this poor brain can remember. First off is that I attended a quilt show  for the very first time.

It was held in Hot Springs and was very enjoyable and I will elaborate on the other blog. 

Second, I purchased a tablet pc. Man!! This thing is awesome. There are only a few things it won't do, and I have my trusty desktop for that. I'd been saving money to purchase a monogram/embroidery machine, but when my laptop's wireless capabilities died, I figured the tablet was more practical. I'll use it every day, and the other only occasionally. This is what I bought. 

ASUS MeMO Pad Smart ME301T-A1-BL 10.1-Inch 16 GB Tablet

Third, a very strange thing is happening to me....I'm not obsessed by quilting right now. Oh now, don't get me wrong, I still LOVE IT, but I seem to be in a slump. I have projects waiting on me and I keep putting them off for short little paper piecing blocks. Strange and unusual.

Fourth, my husband is retiring next month. We've never been at home together for any length of time in all the 36 years of our marriage. It will be a new experience for sure, but we have plans to play with the grandchildren and do a little in-state traveling.

Fifth, my sister and I are going to drive over to Lake DeGray one day this week, just the two of us and spend the day. 

I've not had the pleasure of doing that without children or a group. Should be a little more relaxing. 

Sixth and final, I'm behind on my favorite blog reading. I have just been so busy with other things that I haven't taken the time to actually sit down and read them. I'll catch up though!!

So, there you have my new experiences. Nothing earth shattering, but fun for me. 

Summertime And The Living Is Easy....?

Actually, not so much.

LMW had his tonsils out June 28th. Poor baby is still in a lot of pain. Now this child has a pretty high tolerance for pain, but when he spends several hours crying because he hurts, you know it's bad. I'm praying that yesterday was the worst and it will be downhill from here.

I've been so busy, I haven't had a chance to post the rest of my vacation pictures.

This is my yard.

A mole we can't seem to catch.

Even when we see him digging up and we grab the shovel. How he moves from that one spot so quickly is beyond me. Finally had to resort to a trap. I'll let you know how that works.

It's not all bad though.

LMW and my great nephew made friends with my sister's horse. Too hot and too many horseflies to actually try to ride him.

I'm on week two of my new walking regime. Clothes aren't feeling quite so tight.

I finally finished a major sewing project and I'm very relieved about that!

This little lady is growing like a weed! Just look at that face!

 It's the FOURTH OF JULY and we live in a free country!! God bless the USA!!