July 2018

A lot has happened since my last post.  I think I'm ready to see Fall arrive this year... I need cool weather and a change of pace.

We had to say goodbye to this sweet angel last Wednesday night.  It was a very sad night and has been a very sad week for me.  This little guy taught me a lot about love.  I'll love you forever, Tumpy.

Yesterday I had a birthday:

It was a nice quiet day.  I received a few phone calls.  Hubby took me to a favorite seafood restaurant with a river view in Sneads Ferry, NC.   And I was able to take a nice nap with my other two doggies.

I did sneak away for a few days and see this little sweetie back in late June.  It was a good visit and I sure wished I could see that baby more often.  I miss her sweet mommy too.

I bought myself a quilt from an antique shop while in Tennessee.  I just loved the colors and the design.

Sweet Annabelle started preschool last month.  She LOVES getting up to "go play with her friends."

Grandma borrowed a vintage bike from their great granddaddy :-))

These two guys came to spend 9 days with Grandma and Papa  while their parents went on an anniversary trip to NY. We had a nice week.... Avery lost a tooth and Chandler learned to ride his bike without training wheels!!

We took the boys fishing one day; Avery had more luck than any of us.  It was his day.

I painted myself a new quilt block that we hung on the fence. I love the bright colors on this one.

color, color everywhere!

What I've been reading:

I read my first Jane Austen book and totally loved it.  I found an online FREE college lecture series to go along with the book, if anyone else is interested.  Hillsdale College  There are other free things to study there, too.   I also just finished reading another classic :  A Tree Grows in Brooklyn that I highly recommend.  

Tumpy 2008-2018

Birthdays and deaths always make me turn inwards and examine a lot of things about my life.  (we also had two friends to pass away yesterday) It can certainly lead to depression, which seems to be easy for me to slip into... but I am trying so hard to make this into new ambition for myself.  I need to make some positive changes in my life , and I have a few ideas already.   I need to stop wasting time, as time is very precious, and it goes so quickly.  If you pray, I would love for you to add me to your list.... I sometimes wonder if anyone ever prays for me, since my Mom passed away.  :-((    If there is anyway I can help lift any of you up, please let me know.  Love to all!

beautiful hydrangea picked from my brother and sis in law's new house in Bath, NC

Mr. and Mrs. Claus are Here

Look who is here to welcome everyone to our home!

This is a fabric panel I bought from ebay a couple years ago with the intention of somehow using this couple in the center of a Christmas quilt.   I couldn't see that happening anytime soon and I wanted my grandchildren to enjoy Mr. and Mrs. Claus now.

I pieced together some batting and used a blue striped sheet for the backing.   It didn't take long to sew it all together,  to do a little free motion quilting on some areas, and then pin them to the wall.  My brain is already thinking of some cute embellishments to make them  stand out even more, but that may have to wait until next Christmas.

The panel was meant to be turned into a door panel, so they are quite tall... I think they are taller than the grandchildren.  My dogs have barked at the new couple off and on all afternoon!  I'll be glad when they get used to our new house guests.

Mr. and Mrs. Claus hang on the wall in front of my little tree, which looks kind of skimpy in the picture.  I didn't dry quite as many orange slices to hang this year, but I do think it looks a little better in person.  The lights twinkle and I love the little glow in the foyer.

Avery, Chandler, and Brinley  (and mom and dad) were here for Thanksgiving and stayed a couple extra days with Grandma and Papa.  They colored these nativity scenes for me  while they were here and I am enjoying looking at them everyday.  Annabelle will be here next week and she will get to color her nativity.

She and her mommy will stay a couple of weeks with us and I am looking forward to their visit.

I don' t know how I managed to not get a picture of Avery during their visit, but  please pray for our little guy if you will, as he has hernia surgery  scheduled for next week.  This will be his second hernia repair.  He's a big boy and doesn't seem a bit worried about it.

This is Brinley Kate just before we left to go eat at my dad's house.  It was a great day... everyone was there except for April and her family, which was a huge accomplishment for us to get everyone else together at one time.

I'm sure you all are very busy too.  Take time to enjoy the little things and be 'present' in all that you do!

A month of grandbabies

Grandma's surprise

A few weeks ago, I planted myself on the couch to take my daily afternoon nap.  Hubby was at work so I knew I had plenty of time for an uninterrupted nap.  I had only been down for a few minutes when I heard the front door open (I thought I had locked it).  I yelled "are you home already?"  I heard the sweet voice of my TN daughter saying "We are! and we are here for two weeks!"  What a great surprise!  I had no idea and they arrived just before Mother's Day.... my April and my Annabelle.  I had not seen them since Christmas, so it was just the most perfect Mother's Day surprise.

It was so cute because Annabelle (now 2 years old) sensed all the excitement in the room, and she danced around and shouted excitement with us!

Then after this little guy graduated from preschool, he called me on the phone one day to let me know he was out of school for summer vacation.  (he is my facetime buddy) He wanted to know if he could spend a week with Grandma.  Of course!! His mom drove for 1.5 hours and I drove for 1.5 hours and we met in Raleigh, so I could bring this precious sweetie home with me for the week.  Papa took us out on the boat, which was really fun.

Before the week was over with Chandler, this big guy called me to tell me he would be out of school later that week.  He wanted to know if he could come home with me when we brought Chandler back to Raleigh the next week.  Of course!!  So I had another fun week with another sweet soul.  

Taken at Chan's  preschool graduation

The little girl in the pink dress (Brinley Kate) hasn't had her turn yet, as her family is heading to the beach this week.  But soon will be her turn to come stay with Grandma and Papa for a few days.

Grandma was actually thankful for the break, because as much fun as it was, Grandma was exhausted!!  God knew what he was doing when he made raising children a young woman's job.  ha ha

Fishing at granddaddy's pond

Supper the first night he was here!

Annabelle left her little pool here, they all enjoyed it!

Mother's Day

Its been a great summer so far!

Testing 1 2 3

Hello out there!  I'm trying a different way of blogging today.  I hope it works, because I miss posting.  I still read blogs most everyday and I love seeing what everyone is up to this summer.

Just a funny Annabelle picture

Since my last post on trying to make lists and get more done, I have to say life has been going better.  I'm not where I want to be, but I have managed to get a few more things checked off my list.  Since I gave up ebaying, I no longer feel the urgency to check the thrift stores several times a week.

I'm trying to keep my 'leaving the house" days to a minimum.  My goal is to only leave two times a week on a normal week.   I feel much more relaxed and can get so much more done on days that I can stay home all day.

I made zucchini muffins this morning using this recipe:  (I hope you can enlarge it if interested)

It's one I found on Pinterest and this is my second time making them.   A nice old timey recipe that is very good.

I made six jumbo muffins and two miniature bundt cakes.  I only have two of the bundt cake pans, but hope to get a few more soon.  These make nice little gifts, especially for single people or couples.

Notice this dish towel.  It's one I embroidered for my grandmother several years ago.  After she died, it was returned to me.... unused.... even though I had told her to please use it.

Once it was returned to me, I thought how silly for us to make pretty things, but never use them.  I have put the towel to good use and think of her when I pull this one from the drawer.  That's another thing I want to do for myself; embroider more pretty dish towels.  I will enjoy them and I know my grandchildren will like them when they visit.

Avery, Chandler, Annabelle, Brinley Kate

Speaking of grandchildren, here they are in a picture we took at Chandler's preschool graduation in May. (He's the cute guy in the necktie)  Annabelle (in green dress) was here visiting with her mom from TN, so it was a rare occasion to get a photo of all my grand's in one photo.

It's been a great summer so far!  I hope yours is going well too.

Christmas Quilts

When I found out my grandsons were still using their baby quilts, I knew I had to spring into action to make new quilts. Chandler's baby quilt barely covered his 4 year old body.

So I finished them both before Christmas, using mostly scraps from other projects. These are large enough, they should last for awhile as they grow. Both boys were happy with their new quilts.