I "Heart" Pinterest

Pinterest consumes many people's waking moments, mine included. It just amazes me the things you can find on there. Tonight for dinner we tried a recipe from there and also one from Allrecipes  which is  my favorite recipe site ever.

The Pinterest part of dinner came to us from over at Dinners and Dreams and it was marinated mushroom skewers. Now I had to make one of the ingredients for the marinade and I may have not divided stuff right and it was too hot but my husband really loved them. Next time I double the recipe I'll not double the harissa. He dipped them in Ranch dressing to cool them down a bit but he ate them all before going for his second piece of chicken so that's how I knew it was a keeper. Our marinade for the chicken is here at Allrecipes. I didn't have red wine vinegar but did have white wine vinegar so I winged it and used what I had. It was SO good! The recipe made quite a bit so I saved the extra for the next time.

In trying to move forward with my plan to do more craft fairs and vendor fairs I worked off and on all day today on building up my inventory for such things. I am very pleased with what I got done and it is really motivating me to be consistent. I still had a fairly lazy Sunday and relaxed but also was productive and made a yummy dinner. GO ME!

New Beginnings

Well we've done it. Took the plunge to buy a new house and sell our current home. We signed the papers yesterday for an agreement and now it begins. I'm very excited and really feel I need this new start. It has been very strange looking for a house and not having to include Kyle in the equation but I've talked to him in my head and told him what we've been doing. This house just seems so different now without him and does not have the meaning it used to. I run so many errands I'm rarely home to get housework, sewing, cooking or anything else done. I need a place I don't feel I am running away from to call home.

This one is actually in town. Right now we are 15-20 minutes outside of town so this will save a lot in gas. It also puts us closer to my daughter's job that I'm running her back and forth to as she doesn't have her driver's license yet. My mom lives another 15 minutes the opposite way out of town so it was taking me a half hour to go visit her. Now just a quick trip and I'll be there! I'm very excited about that. Another bonus is that it's on a street that leads to one of the entrances into the cemetery where Kyle lays. I'll be able to just walk to see him each day and it'll be exercise.

It has a nice open plan with 3 bed rooms, 1 1/2 bathrooms, a living room and a study. A nice big kitchen which we can put our stacking washer and dryer in so I don't have to do laundry in the basement. The attic has been done into usable space but not really living space so my husband will put his painting things up there and we can do crafts up there. One of the bedrooms is to be my sewing room. I am SO excited!!! There are quite a few built in features likes shelves, pantry, cupboards in the bedroom, and even a desk in the sewing room. It has a front and back porch, a nice small yard like we want. All we want is enough room for the dogs to go out. No green thumbs in this house! There is a shed in the backyard to put the lawnmower and tools and such. We have a driveway so we don't have to park on the street but there is no garage. We don't mind though.

Now I have to figure out how to sew for craft fairs and pack and organize :)

Goal One.... Check!

I have a confession to make. I have not sewn since last December. I have bought A LOT of fabric and supplies but have sewn nothing. My poor sewing machine has looked at me as if forsaken but today I cleaned off my sewing table, wiped down my sweet little sewing machine, organized my sewing supplies and set an 8 x 10 photo of my handsome son to the right of my machine. I've spent so much time trying to not be home and around everything that everything has suffered. My house, my cleaning, my hobbies, my family, my poor dogs even. I need to get motivated though because the craft fairs for Christmas are going to be here before I know it and I won't be ready. I can't do that to myself because I enjoy my sewing and I enjoy the people at the fairs. I have also spent a good deal of time looking for other ideas to sew for the fairs and am anxious to try them out as well.

I also want to try out some non-sewing crafts. I am so appreciative of everyone's tutorials that they post here online. I want to make some dry erase boards from some cool frames I've been collecting and I snagged a really great deal on an entire box of white ceramic tiles at a yard sale. I got the whole brand new box (not sure if there's 50 or 100 in there) for $2.00! I want to make some coasters and I have a few good ideas for that.

Tomorrow my goal is to get my cutting table sorted so that I have NO excuses to get started. I look forward to showing off my finished products SOON!

Winds of Change

I know that I have been silent for some time. My life has been going through a lot of change but one of the biggest and most unexpected was the loss of my 15 year old son. On June 15th, at 2am in the morning, he suffered an acute asthma attack in his sleep which led to respitory arrest which ended with cardiac arrest. Try as they may, the paramedics and doctors were unable to bring him back. The words that no mother should ever hear rocked my world. We had such a special bond and I never knew that I could hurt this much. He had so much potential and was taking all honours classes next year as he said he needed to buckle down and get serious about college. He cared about so many and hated when people hurt. And funny..... he was SO funny. I've never met anyone so quick witted that could hurl comebacks that made you laugh til you cried. I visit him every day to make sure nothing has happened to him. I suppose it's like checking in on him once he fell asleep. No matter how old he got I still needed to make sure he was ok. Now it's time to find a purpose in life since my life was being his mother. I have an older daughter who is 19 but she has always been a free spirit and yes, she needs me but not in the same way. So I sit here missing his big brown eyes, his boyish smile, the way he'd come down the stairs and put his hand in mine never saying a word just hold my hand, his amazing sense of humor and the way he loved me.

As I have grieved, two of the notices for this year's craft fairs have come in the mail. If anything they will maybe jump start my sewing again and give me something to keep my mind off things. I haven't done any sewing in so long I probably will have to relearn! I did however order a walking foot and it came in the mail today. I'm hoping it helps me with my Minky sewing. It's been giving me such hassle the last few times I've tried. I made a baby shower gift for one of my best friends but I was upset how it turned out. Maybe I'll make another one if the walking foot makes a big difference.

I leave you with a photo of my handsome son who was taken too soon. I love you Boo.

Randomness

I need to remember that this blog is not just for my sewing but about life in general. I haven't sewn in quite some time and I need to get motivated but for some reason or another I keep getting sidetracked and never get to it.

I went to my family doctor for one of my 6 week check ups and discussed the new treatment with him. I suppose I needed his approval before I felt like it was going to be a good idea. He seemed very pleased and excited for me and has high hopes that this is going to be the answer. I do have an appointment this week to see a surgeon about the umbilical hernia I have as that needs to be taken care of before I can start the Remicade. I've been feeling pretty good for the most part the last two weeks and trying to get a lot done. I've been unpacking boxes that have sat for the last three years since we moved in here. My mentality for the most part has been that if I haven't needed it in the last three years then I probably don't need it now.

My daughter is 19 and finally got her first job. I'm a bad mom I suppose as I've never pushed her until now. While she was in school I rather that she studied as she had a harder time than most. I'm proud of her though and she is really loving it. I was worried about her being able to do it, I will admit but she has proven me wrong and I'm pleased! She said to me last night that she feels really good about herself when she comes home at night and feels like she's accomplished something. I think this is going to be the road to her self confidence and having ambition to do something with her life.

Spring is here but I wish it would just stay decently warm. One day it's 70 then the next it's only 50. The grass is growing and we still don't have a lawnmower. Hopefully we can find someone to help us mow before it turns into a jungle like last year.

For some random cuteness here's my lovelies

Love, love, love my babies!!!!!!!!

Woot! Sold my second item on Etsy.

I was very excited to see I've sold another item on Etsy. I am hoping that this will now motivate me to get sewing. I have so many ideas that I want to try as well as get stock piled on the easy projects to sell that I already know. Between my booth at the co-op and Etsy I really need to get working!!!!!!!!! I keep trying to talk myself into it. With all the snow we are getting I doubt the kids will have school tomorrow so my goal is to just work work work on several things.

This is my motivational post to myself. Rah rah rah! Siss Boom Bah!