Been a Long Time Coming

Well, this is awkward, I do not even remember how to blog, can't put a sentence together worth a hoot, but will give it a shot to try to give an update. What I really want to do is share with everyone what has been going on, and also to provide a timeline for myself, not to mention have someone to share some of my works in progress and finished objects with, as well as spotlight some awesome artisans, so here we go:

Personal life: What have I been up to, oh my, well, as far as my transcription business, that disappeared back in May, I lost my final account to VR (voice recognition and the EMR-electronic medical record). It was a very tough month, I had to let my remaining 5 ICs go, two of which I had known for almost 20 years...the first thought, after thinking how difficult it would be to let go of my ICs was not how am I going to pay my rent or buy groceries, but how in the heck am I going to be able to pay for my granddaughter's dance and gymnastic classes!! LOL!!

Yes, that is me in a nutshell folks, Miss Know How to Prioritize, oh yes, I also thought about how I was going to get to go up to Orlando next month too, anyone who has followed my sporadic posting knows I love to head up there with my GD in Sept..my B-Day month, yes folks, I celebrate the whole month! Na, just kidding.

So, I what I decided to do was to continue with my part-time VA for the clinic up north, that is 20 hours a week, and focus on my online studios, so I threw myself into work like a loon, and it has been a task, still working and debating if this actually will work, but decided to try to give it at least until the end of the year. I am grateful to have this to fall back on.

In the meantime, my GD decided she wanted to take tennis for a while, instead of gymnastics, which was fine with me, as it is a less expensive sport. Her ballet was supposed to start the end of this month, but I am going to have to wait until mid Sept to sign her up, July and August are extremely slow retail online months and finances just will not allow it this week, so it should be fine to get her going next month. She starts her first year of school this month, tomorrow as a matter of fact, so no more coming to spend the day with grandma early on Wednesday and Friday, it is a sad and happy time for me, she is growing up. Here she is at tennis practice.



What has kept me sane during this transition; knitting! Okay, before the eyes start rolling and you poise your finger over the mouse to click to the next blog...knitting is not the thing of yore that grandmas did,,,wait, I'm a grandma,,,but its not the same knitting! It is super relaxing, puts you in a zen like state, especially if you have some really soft yarn to work with and are knitting something that makes you happy. I just finished two projects for my son;

A Mankerchief in black, grey, red, and green for one:



A slouch hat in chocolate and burnt orange for the other:



What I am currently knitting is the Spectra for myself, but quickly running out of the main color yarn, so have to pick up some more, I really love this pattern, I've decided to make the scarf much longer, I want it to fall below my knees, love the way it curls in and the Noro silk yarn is fun to work with to see the various color wedges develop.




And a mystery Knit Along that I am so-so about, colors will be difficult to match with clothing, but I am thinking about some brown slacks and maybe a beige solid top?




All of the knitting above, with the exception of the hat, are from the designer Stephen West

For the hat, I love the hat and my son, who turned 24, was super excited about it, so I do believe that I am going to offer a similar version in the studio in the fall.

For the studio, I have finally incorporate some adult designs. The latest two is from a set that I worked on for a family going to Disney that wanted to have matching shirts for the Mom, Dad, and the 3 sons, so this is what I came up with..

Daddy and Me button down shirts:



Ladies mock collar shirt from Cars fabric:


My granddaughter wants me to make one for us when we go back to Disney, she wants a top and matching crop pants for both of us to wear, along with our Disney ears and lanyards and charm bracelets, so that will be fun and I am big enough a Disney nerd to go right ahead and make that happen!

Okay, for my works in progress, I am currently working on a Yo Gabba Gabba Toodie tutu two piece dress. I have reworked the tutu to a matching pink satin with the tutu bottom instead of the interchangable petticoat design, since it wears better for the little ones. Also working on the matching Toodie tulle shoes. I have an order for a personalized ballet bag, but the parent did not send me the name for the bag, I have contacted them twice, but have no reply, so will wait a few more days and then have to send un-personalized, which makes me sad, but I want to get the bag out for them. Lastly, I have an order for the new personalized Robot nap time pillow which was just added to the studio last month.








Alright, that is a semi wrap for me now, off to have coffee, cereal, and get to work in the sewing room on this rainy day. This has been a tough year and I hope that for anyone else out there having a tough year, that you have or can find something to help relieve stress and bring joy to your life.

My hiatus is now over, and I do plan to blog more frequently and have plans to showcase some wonderful artisans, post updates about my goings on, and keep in touch with friends and family.

Happy 40th Birthday Sesame Street

Sesame Street has been around for as long as I can remember. I can recall vividly rushing in from elementary school so I could watch Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers. While Mr. Rogers is no longer with us; Sesame Street remains. I have watched this as a child, with my children, and now with my granddaughter.

Sesame Street premiered on November 10, 1969 and is the longest running children's program on US television and here is to another 40! I have some wonderful charm bracelets in my online studio that you can receive free (please see shop announcements for details), these are the Sesame Street characters I have and below is a sample bracelet, your choice of charm would be crafted with complementing beading .

I wanted to share some vintage Sesame Street clips with you that hopefully will bring a smile. Enjoy!

Two Little Girls and a Little Dollhouse, ahh the memories.

My First Rollercoaster

Not so Vintage, but was my son's favorite over 20 years ago! New way to sing the ABCs, still love it.

Four Parks, Three Days, with a 3 year old. Disney BDay Trip Part 3

For our second day, I planned for us to go to the Magic Kingdom in the morning to catch the opening ceremony. For breakfast, why a stop at the Main Street Bakery. Wanna check out the goodies there? okay, but be sure to come back. (bakery menu) We chose donuts and fruit for my GD and I had a wonderful muffin, yum...okay, getting ahead of myself here, love the bakery, but boy, it was packed!! Back to the opening....

We were not the only ones who had decided to get to the park early, but it was nice to see the decorations and they had hula hoops out to keep the kiddies occupied.

It was the first time I had seen the opening ceremony. It was fun to see the train arriving into the station with all the characters aboard. Best time for a train ride is 2 pm or from 8 pm when people are going to get spots for Spectromagic, plus you will get to see the park at night, beautiful.

First ride was the carousel, which is my GD favorite. Did you know there are 87 horses and one chariot. Cinderella's horse is the horse with the gold ribbon on its tail and a wide re bridle. Right next to it...why Prince Charming's horse of course!

Also, if you have not seen Mickey Philharmonic, it is a great show and it is a perfect attraction to get out of the heat and boy...was it hot!!!

Hot, yes indeed, it was in the 90s every day during our stay, see, my GD was even hot with her spray bottle and riding in a shaded stroller.

Alright, ready for my second freebie? Hot and tired I pulled up to a cart where a CM was chatting with another worker about a movie..not in a major rush, I stood there for maybe a minute or two, when he finally noticed me, he apologized profusely and when I ordered our diet soda, he said it was on Mickey! Wow, okay not as good as my gift from Mickey the day prior...see Trip Part 1 but still, a freebie is a freebie.

We were super hot and tired so back to the Beach resort for a rest, change of clothes, and a spray in the terrace garden, however, my GD managed to get more spray on herself than the plants!

After relaxing for a while, it was back to the parks, this time taking the ferry boat over to Hollywood Studios.

I have no idea why, but my GD liked the "soda man" as she called him. Since being there last year, a new section with Toy Story Mania was added. We had a nice time in the park.

Last year, when we saw Fantasmic, we had preferred seating by reserving the Hollywood and Vine Fantasmic package. (Info on the Dining packages) . I tried to book it this year as well, but calling 30+ days out, none of the packages were available, so I decided we would grab some food and wait in line to get a spot and eat in the stadium. What a mistake that was, we had to stand in line for a very long time with a lot of people, only to have some people really pushing when they finally started to let

us in to take a seat. Not a very Disney experience.

I would not go back to see Fantasmic without the preferred dining package with a little one in tow. But, we made it through the show and it was back to the hotel for day 3, the last day and my birthday.

Stay tuned for final installment!!

Do You Remember Eight Years Ago

I recall driving to work, eight years, it does not seem that long ago. Beautiful sunny South Florida day, heading to my job as department manager in Miami from my Ft. Lauderdale home listening to the radio when they announced that a plane had hit one of the towers, seemed accidental; shocking, but during my hour drive, by the time I arrived to my destination, the shocking had turned into the horrific. A second plane had slammed into the other tower and we were under attack and that nation would never be the same again.

In the days that followed we all cried and mourned together, became angry together and bonded together with songs such as “I’m proud to be an American,” being more considerate of our fellow Americans, purchasing American flags to display on our car windows.

Where are we now as a country eight years later? Do we still have that comradery? Why does it take tragedy to bring people closer together?

My hope on this anniversary of the tragic events of 9/11/2001 is that we all try to not let the worse bring out our best; that we strive to show our loved ones how truly dear they are to us, we try to help our neighbors and treat others the way we would wish to be treated, we try to bring some happiness every day into the lives of ourselves and others, and that we strive to set good examples not by what we own, but by who we are.

I love the group U2 and found this clip of their halftime performance at the Superbowl after 9/11 and when the backdrop of the curtain falls during their performance, it stirs me every time I see it and I wanted to share this video with you. Let us not forget not only the events of 9/11 but also the feelings they inspired.

I would love your comments on where you were during 9/11 and/or how that day changed your life. Thank you for reading.

My Favorite Mac & Cheese

Okay folks, I love me some macaroni and cheese! Have loved it since I was a child even though it was only cooked by my mom using the blue box with the powdered cheese that sometimes was not mixed enough and you get those little lumps of a powdered cheese ball in your bite...hmmm, that was a special treat! Sometimes there would be strips of the American cheese on top for added umph. Add some pepper to it and you have something special. What's that you say? Add pepper to anything and it is something special!! Well, that may be the case, but with my favorite mac & cheese recipe you add dry mustard....okay..and a little bit of pepper too! Intrigruied? Read on...

This recipe is from the Queen of Southern Cooking! Me...oh wait! I mean Paula Dean!! Best part about it, super easy (cooks in your slow cooker) and super delicious. My kids love this recipe! Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni (an 8-ounce box isn't quite 2 cups)
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stuck) butter, cut into pieces
• 2 1/2 cups (about 10 ounces) grated sharp Cheddar cheese
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed Cheddar cheese soup
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Directions

Boil the macaroni in a 2 quart saucepan in plenty of water until tender, about 7 minutes. Drain. In a medium saucepan, mix butter and cheese. Stir until the cheese melts. In a slow cooker, combine cheese/butter mixture and add the eggs, sour cream, soup, salt, milk, mustard and pepper and stir well. Then add drained macaroni and stir again. Set the slow cooker on low setting and cook for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

Monday Musings from a Grandma

It is raining here, what else is new in Florida huh? Today, I received a phone call from my granddaughter's mother that yes indeed, she will be starting head start at the end of this month, no more two week visits for me and I was very cheerful, hung up the phone, and bawled like a baby. I have begun to realize just how quickly time passes. While she is only 3, it seems like yesterday that she was a tiny infant dressed happily in her easter bunny outfit...

Then it was off to starting to walk some and being able to actually go out with her mom and dad (that is my son...yep, I can remember him as a baby as well)....

Able to really enjoy her first Halloween last year.....

And a cupcake after ballet class this year....

Why was I bawling? Because I will miss hearing her clunking down the stairs in the morning when she wakes up with her "crazy Frodo hair" as she likes to call it, I will miss watching Lord of the Rings over and over again with her and both of us saying lines from the movie, I will miss singing with her, taking her to story time at the library, going to ballet class, watching Noggin to the point where I actually like the shows and the songs between the shows, I will miss my ever-ready model she loves to take pictures in her new outfits grandma makes for her, her laughter, and doing our beading together, hers with a lace with large beads, and me with mine. I will miss everything about her and while, yes, I will still get to see her, it will not be exactly the same because this phase is over you see; the time before school where you are pretty much everything to them. I will see her on the some weekends, that is very different from weeks on end.

Moms, childhood goes by very quickly. Enjoy every moment that you can, every age holds its own special magic and passes very rapidly. Cherish each moment and find delights in simple things. Make special moments with your children.

I do not usually post videos in my blog, but watch this one it sums up my whole posting in this one song....

Trace Adkins

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