coralorchid

My youngest was in this years Christmas play, without big sis for the first time. She had two speaking parts, one being the opening of the play, and a song to sing solo. She practiced a lot, at home and at church, and she was ready. Every word in every part was perfect. I was very proud of her. She wasn't even a bit nervous, or at least didn't show it.

 I looked for these, on my digital camera and in my PC picture files, and did not see them. I thought they had been deleted from the camera before I had the chance to download them onto the PC. Then, today I go browsing through my PC pics, guess what I find? Yep, they'd been right there all the while. My oldest downloaded them for me, without telling me, but that's o.k., because I was happy to see them. There won't be many more Halloweens to celebrate with them before they're all grown up.

As you can see, the witch's pet spider has snared it's latest victim.

I would like to know, where did it go? I'm the proud and totally terrified mama of a teenager! Teen aged daughter that is, it's petrifying! Not to mention that I, myself, turned over another year of my own life shortly after she turned 13. Where did the sweet days of pony tails and fairy tales go?! She's so grown, every bit as tall as me, maybe a tad taller, and well on her way to a life without my constant supervision. What's a mother to do?!! I'll just die if she ever sets out for a life far, far away from me! I hope she realizes one day, soon, that she needs to keep us close, because we love her and need her, too. I hope both my girls can live out their dreams, but keep close to daddy and me! I'm sure we'd be willing to travel, and move to stay close to them. Let's just hope they don't go in different directions! Do I sound overbearing? I can't help myself, it's a sickness, and I'm overwhelmed with thoughts of sweet girls lost in a cruel world! But, then again, they both have a healthy dose of mama and daddy's attitude and strong will to survive, overcome, and conquer all that life throws at them. So, look out world!         As part of her birthday celebration, although not on the day of her b-day (one week later), we took them to a county fair. It was our youngest's first time going and the teen's 2nd time. We had a blast! It was so much fun!

Here's a few pics:

Oh yeah, our 13 year old daughter is a hunter. She received a hunting knife, pants, & boots from us, and a cake with a deer on it as well as a Pizza Hut dinner from Ms. Joanna, a dear friend from church. Thank you, Ms. Joanna!

I saw true talent, today, at www.ColorMePink.com . A young lady performed at a pub for a contest, her first performance of this sort. She blew them away, she blew me away! Great voice and guitar skills, I think she wrote the song as well, not sure. No matter, she's fantastic, go see for yourself. The video is on the "Homeschool" page listed as "Haley's Gig".

Where does the time go? How does it get away from me so swiftly? Summer just flew by, and before I knew it, I was smack in the middle of trying to get organized for the new school year while pondering exactly how to get started. We homeschool, so I can't just leave it up to someone else to tell me what's needed and point us all in the right direction. No, that happens to be my job now. It can be exciting and daunting all at once, but well worth every ounce of effort. Head on over to the homeschool page for a peek at this effort. As for our summer, we kept it simple, swimming in the sound, swimming at grandma's, and BBQ with friends. It was a good summer, despite the economy. You don't need a lot of money, but a little more time sure would be nice.

Affordable & Ultra Eco-Friendly! Got old clothes that don't fit or just way out of style, but the fabric is in good shape (maybe a cool print or pretty color), and you just can't imagine letting it go to waste? A mini skirt could be a cool new purse, with a shirt for the lining, the bodice of a dress could become a beautiful sash/accessory, and ruffled trimming can be quite handy as a set of shoulder straps. Oh, and the dress's tag makes a pretty cool patch, or decorative feature.

Scrap fabric, left over from other projects, has become brand new drawcord pencil bags for the new school year. There's not much that I actually throw away, I save, save, save, for future ideas and rainy days. Not one penny was spent for these projects, I had it all on hand.

The pillow, pillow case, and two drawcord bags are for my sister. I've been sewing and crocheting all sorts of things lately. I love crafting and working with my hands, it's relaxing, and gratifying as a constructive/productive hobby. My sister is crafty, too. She paints, makes dreamcatchers, builds birdhouses, and refurbishes old/antique furniture. I think she'll like these, and find them useful. I'm no professional, though, more like a perfectionist wanna-be. She may find a flaw, or two.

Camp pillow and drawcord bag -

made from pant legs.

Yes, a pair of 70% cotton, 30% nylon, drawcord waist pants.

I cut off the legs, cut out the back pockets, and took out the drawcord. Turned inside out, both legs were sewn closed on the cut end. Then, turned right-side out, one leg was stuffed with polyester, cluster fiber fill, and with leg's pre-hemed end folded inward, hand sewn closed to become a firm and comfy camp pillow. The other leg's hemed end was punctured through the outside of the folded material; the drawcord was fed into one hole, through the folded hem, and out the other hole. I carefully sewed a few stitches on each side of each hole to prevent further ripping and freying (careful to avoid sewing over the cord). Finally, the pockets were sewn in on each side of the inside, near the top of the bag. Small buttons were used to make the tack stitching for the pockets look better on the outside of the bag. They become a decorative feature, rather than a practical feature on the outside, but the pockets are very useful. And there you have it, 2 gifts made from one, unwanted pair of pants.

HAPPY FATHER'S

         DAY!

...it's been a while. Forgive me, no excuses, just apologies. Lately, life has been a bit like a train wreck, in slow motion. But, what're ya gonna do? There's no stoppin' it, just roll with it.

So, for the sake of comic relief and perhaps a sanity check, I'd like to show you my favorite photo of my hubby and girls, along with a statement my oldest daughter found. Keep in mind, we don't condone violence, we're just protective of our girls.