Things that Make Me Happy ☺ part 1

First off, thanks to all of you that let me vent and gave me some feedback/moral support on my little "issue" from last post. Just an update on that scenario... while Monday was bad, Wednesday was even worse. I will spare you the details, but Miss Brianna will not have to suffer the stress of swimming class any longer...at least until she is older and is READY for it. My philosophy is that a birthday gift should not cause you undue stress or anxiety... agreed?

Besides all of the ruckus related to the aforementioned swimming nightmare, the rest of my week was pretty crappy also. I have finally acknowledged and accepted that my (unwanted) return to the working-world will be a coming reality. With the economy, rises in the cost of EVERYTHING, and a dwindling savings account (thanks to our fixer-upper house), it is just going to have to happen. Too bad I can't find an at-home job... but they all seem to be scams. In my field (nursing), the hours tend to be long and unpredictable, which sucks while caring for a family. I have been praying like crazy for guidance, or even a MIRACLE, to help me cope. Any thoughts/prayers from my cyber-buddies would be much appreciated ☺

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So, enough with the depressing, boo-hoo talk! Now that I have that off my chest, I am going to choose to be as happy as I can be. In doing so, I want to share a few things that make me happy:

I love the smell of freshly-chopped herbs, and the crisp sound as my knife glides through them.

Mmmm... and I love sneaking a piece of delicious pepperoni when no one is looking!

Mostly, I ♥ the smell of a fresh-from-the-oven, homemade pizza...and eating it is pretty special, too!

☺☺☺

I don't know why I didn't think of it earlier.... but I moved my favorite Black Apple print into the kitchen, where I can enjoy it all of the time. I know, all of us BA fans say we have a new favorite with each new batch of paintings (myself included). However, this really is my all-time favorite because it moves me sooo much! I think I saw this print on etsy before I ever saw Emily on Martha or knew anything about her. This would be the lovely Terrarium print , and the inscription on it reads:
"If there is no love in the world, we will make a new world & give it heavy walls."

What a wonderful sentiment! I hope God gives me the grace to start living my life this way ☺

Bloggin'... in general

Wow... it is getting so late already, and I just finished making a late-night grocery store run, ALONE. I had to get Brianna's school supplies for preschool... the only thing on the list actually for her was a folder. The rest of the stuff (crap) is for the classroom, like tissues, hand soap, paper towels, and construction paper. (We are paying good money for school, so not sure why we also have to supply the basic needs...) Also, this Sat is my 10 year class reunion, so I had to get some fixin's to make some food for the carry-in lunch at the park. It is family style, but there is cocktail hour at the country club that night...the kids will be at grandma's!

This world of blogging is so much fun, and I love reading other people's thoughts and making new e-friends. Being a stay-home mom, sometimes I feel a bit isolated... the blogosphere really makes me feel connected. It is fun to take pictures, talk about things, and have people read and comment on them. I guess what is bringing this up today is what happened over at The Black Apple blog today (and a few other times, from what I gather). For those of you who don't know, the blogstress Emily just moved cross-country, and shortly after reaching her destination her beloved cat became very ill. After vet visits/emergency surgery, he is recovering but she is left with a hefty bill. When I read the blog this am, I was pleasantly surprised to see that she is running a 2 day sale, in effort to increase sales/raise money to help with all of the vet bills. Finally, a very good excuse to purchase a few prints I have been coveting for as long as I can remember! BUT... of course, a few people had to make some nasty posts on her blog, saying she was tacky and taking advantage of people by using her cat's illness as reason to boost sales, basic bashing and name-calling. I suppose that is the down-side to the blogworld, and the anonymity of the Internet allows some people to say some pretty nasty things to and about people that they really don't know. I have been lucky enough, that so far every single comment I have received has been kind, encouraging, and thoughtful.

A big good-night hug to all of the great blog-readers and bloggers out there... keep it real!

♥♥♥

More Adorable-ness!

Blog-reader Jenn sent me some pictures of a tea-towel she has completed with the Sublime Stitching Black Apple patterns. How cute! I like how she used the house patterns, which I haven't used yet. I really enjoy seeing other people's take on the same pattern, with different choices of color, pattern placement, etc. Great job, Jenn, and thanks for sharing!

Chock Full 'o' Adorable

Ahhh... all done. My sweet 'n' sassy stitching project is completed, except finding some coordinating ribbon to hang them with. The hubbinator is playing softball in Quincy tonight, so it sounds like I get a chance to make a craft-run! Woo-hoo :-)

Here are some pics of the completed project(s). Please try to ignore the awful picture quality (which is probably what is killing me on etsy, from my peer critiques). I am counting the days until I can get the new Sony HDNA camera... I am hoping you don't have to be a great photographer if you have 14.5 megapix, right? ;-)

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This is the largest of the 4, and my favorite. Sam looks wistfully at Sophie,

as she haughtily stands on her pedestal of books,

with potential love-birds fluttering about.

The crest of the "Little Ghostie Who (Thought He) Could".

You gotta love those tiny little teeth!

Hedgie waves "Bonjour!" as he walks through the forest of one tree.

I am still contemplating whether I should fill in the beret with red, or just leave it outlined. What do you think?

Who DOESN'T love Creeping Bunny...

especially as he creeps up to nap your mug of hot tea!

All together!

(Did I mention I need a new camera?)

What a fun project. These were my experiment, and now I can't wait to embellish clothing, etc. with the cute little critters. Check out http://www.sublimestitching.com/ for these from Emily Martin and many other awesome patterns. I think the Julie West patterns are next on my list.

If anyone out there is also working on the Black Apple patterns (or any other SS pattern), email me a picture of your project. I would ♥♥♥ to see what other combos other crafty minds have thunk up...I will post the pics on my blog!