Dream On sneak peek

I, finally, got everything cut out for the Dream On quilt. Now to sewing blocks.

Whimsical Forest Apron

I really like this picture of Etta. She looks so sweet in this apron. It's in the shop.

Foto Friday-Unfinished Business

It seems that it's normal for quilters to have WIPs or UFOs. For those of you who do not know these acronyms, WIP is Work in Progress and UFO is Unfinished Object. I guess I'm right there with other quilters because I've got a stack of UFOs.



This picture doesn't really show the whole stack. There are more underneath. In reality I think there are only four (soon to be five) UFOs.

My WIP is this one.


These are the blocks to a postage stamp quilt. Since taking the picture I sewed all the blocks into rows and half of the rows are sewn together. Then it will get added to the UFO pile. Then I'll get deeper into the mystery quilt.

Meanwhile, let's see what everyone else came up with for "Unfinished Business" over at Renaissance.

Gold Finch

Spring has sprung

The geese have returned. There's still ice on the pond in this picture. It's long gone now.

Chippy has also returned looking for food he must have buried or thought he buried. I assume he knows.

Amy went picture taking

This is one of my favorites.


Julie's snow adventure.







If you look carefully at the above picture, you'll see sled marks. Apparently, Julie really did go sledding.




I do believe Julie had fun in the snow.

Etta gets a turn

Etta got a turn to model a couple aprons that are for sale in the shop.

GREEN Foto Friday

The week's challenge was GREEN.

Here's how the snapdragons are coming along.


The tomatoes, peppers and other flowers are all coming up nicely. It's fun to see them growing.

Go to Renaissance to see what everyone else came up with for GREEN.

Something new for the dolls

Julie was the one to witness the change.



Several weeks ago I saw a post with pictures on AG Fans Board of a doll storage set up. The items were from IKEA. So a couple Saturdays ago we took a little trip to Pittsburgh to the IKEA store.



We bought two wardrobe frames and several shelves. Each frame is about 93 inches tall, 39 inches wide and 24 inches deep. Each shelf can be placed where it's needed.

Before they could be built we had to wait for the new carpet to be installed. A week after our trip we were putting the units together. Let's just say that was a character building event.



Here they are in a semi-finished state.


We're going to put a shorter, smaller frame between the two large ones. It will be for storage of doll clothes. We'll put in a couple tension rods for hanging things and a basket for shoes.

And now hubby is feeling better, the dolls and their things are in one place (well mostly).

Foto Friday & Selling news

Yesterday someone bought nine items from my shop! This person from Canada who signed up for Etsy at the beginning of February already has a feedback of over 650! So someone on one of the AG message boards figured that if she spent just $10 per item that's over $6500!! Who knows what she's doing, but speculation abounds. :) I'm happy to have the money, but now I'm in a sewing frenzy (or I will be).



On to Foto Friday. This week's challenge was "CAPTIONED." I really had a hard time getting my mind around that. But here are a couple options.





My other option was sort of taken out of my hands by that lady who bought most of my shop! I was going to put in a plug for helping to bring Katya home. (You may go here to see about her.) And I was thinking to use something similar to these pictures in this post. So instead of having five coats to caption I pretty much only have one! (A portion of the sales go to help with the adoption expenses.)



If you want to help bring Katya home go to her blog and donate to Reece's Rainbow by clicking on that donate button. Or you can get to my shop by clicking on it in my side bar. Granted, there's not much in there now, but that will change as soon as I get back to sewing.

Go over to Rebecca's blog to see about Foto Friday.

Dream On

Last September I read this blog post over at Twin Fibers. Twins embarked on a quilt challenge. They each had the same fat quarter bundle to work with. As twins they wanted to see how similar or different their quilts would be.

Since my friend, Christine had recently moved to a state far away from here and I really missed her (still do) I thought it might be something we could do together. We discussed it in October while I visited her. Due to the holiday and other projects in place we decided to put off beginning our quilts until, well, this week. We have about two months to complete our quilts. If life gets in the way, so be it. We finish when we finish, but the goal is around the beginning of May.

I did remember to take pictures of my fabric before I cut it and I hope to get shots of each stage along the way.

We each have a Dream On layer cake (42 ten-inch squares).


I also bought white for my blocks as well as fabric for binding and backing.






Stay tuned for the end result and maybe a sneak peak here and there.

Polka Dots for Katya

I listed this coat today. One coat sold today also! :)



For those who feel sorry for the other dolls, Adria was selected to model this one. As for Kit, she makes a great model because her hair is short. If a doll has longer hair the back of the coat doesn't show quite as well. Long hair could be put up in an up-do, but I get lazy.

Head over to the shop and pick out a coat for Easter or St. Patrick's Day. Let's see, birthdays, the first day of spring, just because--other reasons to buy a coat.

New in the shop

If you know anyone who likes dolls, especially 18 inch dolls, direct them to my Etsy shop. A portion of the sales goes to help our friends adopt Katya. Click on her button in the sidebar for more information.

To get to my shop click here.

Foto Friday (on Saturday)

It's now Saturday night and I should go to bed, but I want to share my Foto Friday pictures.  This week's these was EDIBLE.  Here's what will be EDIBLE, Lord willing.





Last Sunday afternoon we planted our tomato and pepper seeds along with some poppies and snapdragons. By yesterday the poppies were coming up as was a roma tomato. :)

My favorite of these two pictures is the one that clearly shows the Hillbilly Tomato stake. What a name!

For The Love of Family -- Homeopathy

I got this article in my email today. The author gives a few examples from her life where she used homeopathy to help her family heal. Click on the title below to go to the newsletter. In the newsletter, right after the article there's a yummy sounding recipe for peanut butter cups. You might want to check it out. :)

For the Love of Family -- Homeopathy!

Recently I was asked in a blog for some personal examples that demonstrate the power of homeopathy…here is an excerpt from that blog, that again reconfirms my commitment to this profound yet gentle science.

Well, I'll tell you an incident that occurred only last weekend to my husband who is a professional ski instructor. He took a nasty spill, rolled and landed (hard) on the back of his neck. When he finally came to, there was a crowd of concerned skiers and the ski patrol gathered around him. I'm still not sure how he got home, nor is he, but he was clearly dazed, confused and shaken up quite a bit.

Now, since we live on a ski hill in New York, and my family spends every snowy hour they can on the slopes, I've made certain they each have a bottle of Arnica Montana in their ski parkas. This time, however, Arnica was not the best choice because of the fact that he was dazed and wobbly, so the pain was not as important as his state of mind.

I gave him Nat sulph 1M and within half an hour, he grew a smile on his face that indicated the transformation. "Thank you", he said. "My mind was fuzzy and I felt fragile and confused." There are so many incidents in my life in which Homeopathy has given my family and me the kind of power all families ought to have available.

Our son had fear of a big exam that was forthcoming a few weeks ago but was calmed by Gelsemium taken every 4 hours. He aced the exam, but more importantly, he was not uneasy the morning of the exam. Also a few months ago, my father had a suspicious lump appear only to have Lycopodium resolve it within 2 days.

But the most profound story is the one about my Aunt Mary. Unfortunately, this one is not bestowed with a happy ending. Aunt Mary was my Godmother with whom I was very close. We spoke on the phone weekly. Years ago I had given her a Homeopathy kit so she could call me should she needed my help. Well, one night she slipped and sprained her ankle. Normally, she would have called me to get a remedy, but this time, she just went to the doctor without phoning because she knew I had a busy week that week. I would've indeed recommended she have her ankle looked at to be certain it wasn't a break and then a Homeopathic remedy for the pain, swelling and quick healing.

Instead, on the way home, my uncle stopped at a drug store to get Darvon, following the doctor's instructions. That night, she took the Darvon and within 6 hours, she died in her bed. The "cause of death" was cardiac arrest, however, no one in my aunt's very large family had ever had heart issues and only weeks prior, and she had been given a "clean bill of health" from the very doctor who prescribed Darvon. Down to my toes, I knew it was the Darvon, so did my mother and my uncle. When I reviewed the dangers of the drug on line, it was logical that the drug had caused her death. Now 2 years later, class action suits are sprouting everywhere against the manufacturer. The FDA has finally banned Darvon and Darvocet. Just for the record, it's been prescribed since 1957. The reason it was taken off the market? It causes cardiac abnormalities and arrest in people who don't have a history of heart disease, even in recommended doses. How many unsuspecting folks have been poisoned by this drug in the last 40 years with the cause of death appearing to be something else?

This kind of loss is always difficult. But the salt that stung the wound deeper is that first; my aunt trusted the doctor to give her something that was safe. Second; that the very remedy that would've offered her quick and more importantly, a harmless method of healing was only 20 feet away in her medicine closet…… in her Homeopathy kit!

This is the kind of story that I hear on a regular basis from clients and students all over the U.S. As mothers and others, we need to protect our families and the only way to do so is to arm ourselves with knowledge: Homeopathic and nutritional knowledge. Well, there's also the protection we gain from holding to our faiths and scrutinizing what is taught in the schools. But it means diligence.

I entreat all mothers to not be a "good little patient". Be the one who questions every decision a doctor suggests and knowing your alternative options. This is not a time for compliancy. Be a fierce lioness when it comes to your family. Be a mighty mom…read, study, educate yourself. Then get to the job at hand…of being the most protective person in your children's lives. And when they're set well, take care of your parents, your aunts and uncles, your friends, pets, and so on. I can't think of a responsibility more important than this one.