Fresh

I love that word and all the excitement it brings with it! Just think about it. There's nothing like fresh sheets on a bed. You climb in and the laundered yumminess is quite sublime. It never grows old for me. That wonderful feeling of Friday nights on clean sheets. I look forward to it. It makes me enjoy the task because I relish the outcome. Fresh flowers are the same way. I always check my local grocery for clearance flowers that need a new home. I love snipping and placing them into simple vases around the house. They are cheery and bring a sense of "cozy" to each room. I love seeing them. Again, it never grows old and I look forward to the next bunch I will bring home and put on display.
Fresh fruit that drips down your face and arms can't be described in words; it needs to be experienced.  It makes me anxious for warmer weather and the bounty that it brings. Sweet citrus, ripe melons and juicy berries all at their peak of goodness.
Fresh starts are by far the best of all things fresh. I mess up so many things, so many times, but I can usually start over. I can cut out pattern pieces again, rip out stitches, scrap a bad batch of cookies or catch up on scripture reading when I fall behind. I am so thankful that His mercies are new every morning! Each day I can move through it knowing that I might not achieve all that I set out to do. I will probably fall short in my own eyes or that of others. I will probably feel a sense of guilt over something I did or didn't do, but I can look forward to a fresh start Lord willing. I do hope you experience something "fresh" today!

Savor

Have you ever just "connected" with a writer after reading just a snippit of a story?  I have found this to be true with Shauna Niequist. I ordered Bread and Wine for my Kindle just after Thanksgiving and have been touched by so many of her life stories. It was an exciting surprise when my sister-in-law gave me her devotion book, Savor, for Christmas. She has inspired me to take time to talk to friends more deeply, write letters to people who are important to me and even develop a cooking club starting in the near future in order to experience deeper fellowship with women. God always knows what we need and when. I am savoring that thought today! If you are looking for a new read for 2016 you might want to check her out.

linen sprays

I am a habitual sheet washer! Every Friday

I strip the bed, wash and then hang them out to dry if possible.  There is nothing quite like climbing into a bed freshly made with crisp, clean sheets. My husband even looks forward to Friday for this reason.  If it wasn't such a chore to make a tempur pedic bed, I would wash them daily. That's a bit excessive and obsessive to be honest. I do however believe in linen sprays. I usually purchase mine at TJ Maxx.
They are typically 4-6$ each regardless of brand. This spring and summer I have really been enjoying Pecksniff ' s rose & peony spray in our master bedroom.  I have been using a lovely lavender spray in our guest bedrooms. If you pull your sheets back in the evening and give the bed a quick mist, your sheets will smell nice when you crawl into your cozy bed. A cheap way to bring some sweet zzz's and avoid daily washing.

kitchen tile going down soon

Well we are finally  placing our tiles down on the kitchen floor. My husband is VERY particular  so we lay them all out to make sure the tiles look right together. We have really liked using Ditra board by Schluter. It is so easy to work with. That's  the orange  grid you see under the tiles. We are using Noce

 Roman stone. We are doing a staggered pattern with 18 inch and 12 inch tiles. Can't  wait to put it down  permanently.

Hardie Plank painting....yet again!

Well as much as I would like to think that we were done with painting all the Hardie plank for this house....it is not over yet. Painting outside today. Great weather for it. This board is made of cement and is more durable and fireproof than wood or vinyl siding.  You can buy it primed or painted in a variety of colors. We found it much cheaper online and primed only. These will be the siding for the front and back porch areas. Last 2 places to get it. Back to work now!

Whoa baby...it's been awhile!

Obviously this blog has taken a really long backseat. We are still building our house. Crazy I know! I have had so many friends ask me about posting again. I will take pictures and post about house progress very soon. Today though I am giving you some pics of some monogrammed burp cloths that I did using my Brother LB 6800 and the monogram it program. I just love this cotton hot air balloon print for a little baby boy. How about you?

Catch Up Pictures

Have been working on so many things at once that I have quite a few pictures to post.
First, I finished Beth's quilt and have a picture of her (and me) with it. She is lovely-Beth I mean. She loves her  quilt which makes me very pleased.
Second, I finished a simple fringe scarf in a mustard colorway of alpaca and silk that I bought on Etsy from A Yarn or a Tale-love that shop.
Third, I finally finished my first crocheted afghan. I used Nature's Choice organic cotton yarn in a mixture of almond, walnut, espresso and french vanilla. This thing is so warm and soft. It is a good lap size or larger. I am short so it covers me from neck to feet.
Lastly, whipped up a cute vintage 80's material scarf for Mary. She loves anything nautical and my mom gave me a huge chunk of this material while I was in Knoxville last weekend.

The house is moving very slowly since hubby works all day. I did manage to get some more Hardie planks painted and nailed in all the remaining electrical boxes. We have rid the yard of all the trash and have gathered up all the supplies that need to be returned. Hubby is working on the trim so that we can get the siding on, so in the meantime I just keep painting planks(storing them in this handy dandy holder hubby designed to allow them to dry).

Beth's Quilt Done

I finished Beth's quilt today. I washed and dried it and it looks good. I have not taken final pics of it yet, but I will. Made a trip to Knoxville this past weekend. The kids all went to the UT UK basketball game. I went to quilt class with my mom and hung out with my sisters for a bit. It was a nice little trip. Found out my son had a touch of pneumonia so he is now on meds to knock that out. Progress on the house is incredibly slow. Have managed to get all the Hardie plank either in the house or on the porch. Have about 80 planks painted so far. We have marked for almost all of the electrical boxes as well. Will hopefully post some pics of the house and the quilt soon.

Still Fighting the Flu Bug

My poor kids! They all still have the flu, but today is my youngest's worst day so far. She hasn't really moved much today from bed except for the infrequent potty breaks. I worked on getting Etsy orders caught up and designed a few new bags. The builders are here and we now have stairs going to the 3rd floor. Still no stairs from down here to up there yet. Several of his workers have the flu and only worked until lunch. Have been working on my afghan at night so it is coming along. Hope to do some work on Beth's quilt this week/weekend. Will see how Katy is feeling tomorrow. Here a the pics of the shingles I promised. I also added one of the large dormer from the inside. This is the same window that was too tall. We decided to cut the ceiling area in that part back some so it will be recessed. I think it will add some interest to that large area.

Slow Going

I have been so busy this month with Etsy orders that I don't feel like I am getting anything else done. I did order my french vanilla Nature's Choice yarn and have started the middle section of my afghan. I have discovered that I love Greek yogurt with granola and Honey! Never realized what a tad of honey could do to counteract the sour twang of greek yogurt-but I love it.  We have all of our shingles done and have started attaching electrical outlet boxes in the addition. Also had our siding-James Hardie plank- delivered. We have been doing a lot of clean up in the house, but the workers are back tomorrow to finish our framing and stairs. My oldest 2 came home for the MLK holiday and both now seem to have the flu. Hope we don't get it! Celebrated hubby's big 45th while they were home. Ate dinner in the soon to be dining room upstairs. Will post some pics soon, but wanted to check in.

Coming Along Nicely

Well I would love to say that I have been so overwhelmed by house stuff that I just haven't had time to post, but that would not be quite true. I am overwhelmed by how pretty it is and how I can't wait to be in it! They are still not quite done with the framing. We have the fireplace that goes through the middle of the house to frame and still have to finish the first floor framing, but it is almost done. We received all of our Hardie plank siding yesterday. Wow that is a lot to paint. The shingle guys were here yesterday and the front porch is covered. Now we just have to wait for the rain to stop.
In the time I have had not working on the house, I have been working on Etsy bags and crocheting and quilting. I am working on an afghan made from Nature's Choice Organic cotton yarns in almond, espresso, walnut and the french vanilla mixed. I love the feel and weight of this project.
I have just about completed Beth's quilt top. I love this sweet quilt. It just reminds me of Beth and all her interests and family activities. Hope to get that done today since it is raining. Would love to have it in sandwich form.
I have done a few cowls and washcloths, but mostly cleaning up the inside of the house addition and keeping nails out of the walkways. Have been cooking a lot, but we took Thomas back to UK this past weekend so the meals have gone back to soups and easy one pot meals.

Hope everyone had a great Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Yes, We Really Have a Roof

Yesterday the workers built all of our front porch and framed for the large 3 section dormer window in front. Today they have put all of the OSB roofing on and the roofers came to put all of the felt paper on. As I write, they are putting OSB on the sides of the house. It really is starting to come together. They wanted to get it closed in today because we have a chance for severe storms tomorrow. (that means no work for them again)

On another note, I made some yummy pumpkin muffins this morning. I used some amish sweet potato butter along with pumpkin and added a vanilla pudding to the mix. I topped them with streusel topping and YUM.
I also made peppermint bark and wrapped all of my husband's work goodies today. I have had all of my kids home since Monday at dinner and have loved every minute of it. We went Christmas shopping all day yesterday. We have eaten and laughed and just enjoyed being together. My daughter goes back tonight after dinner and we won't see her again til Christmas day. Boo Hiss! I am so thankful for the few days we have all spent together.

All Done and an Apron to Boot!

I finally finished all of Beth's blocks today. I hope to lay them all out once we have a sunny day so I have good lighting. I did decide to make an apron today though. I bought this Riley Blake panel from an Etsy seller and found a heavier fabric in my stash to back it with. I thought it was too thin for me without the extra backing fabric. I will take a picture of mine soon, but this is the panel. It was a super easy fast project. I recommend finding one on Etsy in one of the 2 colorways and sewing it up.

Progress and Procrastination

They have been steadily working on the house this week. It is really starting to take shape. I on the other hand have felt a little unproductive this week. I have worked on a few of Beth's blocks, but mostly Etsy bags. That is great, but I don't see things getting done. I bought a couple of remnant Minky pieces for $5 on Etsy and did manage to cut them out into squares today. I plan on sewing this together for our builder/neighbor's daughter who is due in February. Not bad for a $5 Minky purchase. The colors are so cute for a little boy.

A third floor in the works

Well it has been an interesting week. My hubby has had the flu, we had several days of rain, that held up the building process and my daughter has had two choir performances. I am glad to say that after a full day of rain on Monday, the builders were back today and really accomplished a lot! The third floor, which is basically just four bedrooms and two baths, is almost completely framed. They also framed the three front dormers. Tomorrow they will start on the beams that will hold the roof. Yesterday, I baked a cake and also homemade bread. Figured since it was raining I might as well eat. Today I have been sewing and completing a few bag orders. Just lack two blocks to be finished with Beth's blocks. Will take a pic once I have them all laid out.

Christmas goodies and Burlap Bags

I really love burlap. It is itchy and kinda has a weird smell but it is sturdy and functional and comes in different colors too. I ordered these bags online a few months back and really didn't know what I was going to do with them. Yesterday was our final co-op for 2012. I wanted to give some goodies to all the sweet families we do school with. I filled the burlap bags full of coffee beans from Starbucks and dipped pretzels and made homemade peanut butter cups and candies to go along with them. My daughter printed some cardstock tags (realized she put an apostrophe in and had to add home) and I distressed them with brown ink. Stapled them to the front and Voila!

Up On The Housetop..Bang Bang Bang

It has finally started and I am so excited! We have had builders here for the last 3 days and there has been a lot of progress. The roof was covered in a layer of ice this morning so they had to squeegee it off before starting their work.  Just thought I would keep up with our new addition on here so I can look back at the pics.

What's Going On?

No I am not going to give you a rundown on Nicholas David's version of this on The Voice-(which I loved by the way). I am jotting down a few of the happenings around here. My 2 college kids were home for Thanksgiving break and we had so much fun. Shot guns, rode the VW rail buggy, went to the movies,decorated our brown paper tablecloth for Thanksgiving, ate tons of food, played music, bought new phones, and of course the not so fun things like laundry, dishes and homework too. My youngest daughter celebrated her 15th birthday on Thanksgiving day. I bought her tickets to the Alex Goot concert in Indianapolis and we returned from there today. She had a total BLAST! Met with our builder today and equipment starts arriving tomorrow-yippee-progress! Have been working on Beth's quilt blocks and only have 6 more to go. Will get some pics of those up here soon. Have bags to stamp tomorrow, but wanted to post some pics tonight.

Latest Project-30 personalized stone trivets

Been working on 30 of these for a few days. I really like this font that I used on them. Listed these as a neat bridal party gift. These were done as an order for a church. Another good idea. What are you all up to this weekend?

Sneak Peek at house plans

The weather this weekend was absolutely gorgeous! I helped hubby move several motors from our old barn to his new barn. Lots of tidying up in the new barn too. Yesterday after church, our sweet friend Nancy came out and she and I went walking around the farm collecting a little of God's handiwork. It is amazing how pretty some of the "weeds" are. My husband calls anything grass like that comes in the house for decorating-weeds. I enjoyed spending time with you Nancy! We were looking at our house plans while she was here and I thought it might be nice to post a couple of pics of what the finished product will resemble. The anticipation is great, but our guest pastor hit home yesterday with "being content" with where God has you. I am focusing on that today. Knowing that God has grand plans and He is definitely in control and is fully aware of our contract and our time. When the house is done, I will want to say that it was all in God's Good and Perfect timing! Help me be patient and content today Lord and rest in You.

This is not exact because the bottom photo shows 3 windows on the basement side and 2 of those will be removed and become our garage. The back porch will all be covered by the roof, not just that small portion. We also have a double front door, but you can at least get an idea. I think it is funny to look at it with no grass or ground around the basement. Still plan on taking pics along the way. Hope you all have a very productive and "contented" day.