Made with Love...

In honor of Valentines I thought I would share about all of the things that I enjoy doing which to me require love... For me, no project meal or gift means much if it is not given, made or thought of with a loving intention.. Its' one of the reasons I dont like gift cards.. I want the gift to speak to me of the person and often I won't stop searching until something calls me.. In the case of food.. I think of the person and what they like..

In my hubbies case it means HOT and Spicy food.. So this week it was not one but two hot salsas.. which could then be on hand for tonights pork chop dinner..

For Missy, its a little headband or hair clip to accessorize for Valentines..

Even Maya has learned that homemade goodies trump store bought candies.. For her Valentines exchange she wanted Caramel and chocolate covered pretzels.

Mind you she was clear on the color scheme and insisted that pink was only for girls and that we had to get red for the boys....Maya loves to decorate with melted chocolate.. For her teacher it was Caramel Apples.. what else?

Just like food, fabric can be addictive.. Quilting, my form of therapy, is another outlet for my energy and love.. This month my challenge was 2 quilts.. One for Sophia's 5th birthday and another for the baby on the way... Well after much searching and hair pulling. I found fabric lines that fit.. For Baby boy it was Max and Whiskers because what boy doesn't love cats, dogs, fish and turtles?. I hope this quilt will grow with him...
For Sophia it was a perfect match with Freebird by Momo.. The palate is girly without being sickenly sweet. The line spoke to me when we were in Washington as a girls line..It has some strong reds and some bright pops of orange.. Not to mention some fabulous butterflies and polka dots..

Now and always its about LOVE!
Alex

Painting fun...

This year we decided to have Maya and Mateo make ornaments and spend time together instead of exchanging gifts.. Not only does this take the craziness out of figuring out what to buy our October babies for Christmas but it gives us an excuse to hang out..

Maya and Mateo decorated and personalized their ornaments and had fun being silly...
Looks like we have a new holiday tradition..Making Ornaments...
Alex

Cinco de Maya!

No, that is not a typo.. At our house Missy decided it was all about Cinco de Mayo.. She wanted to take Tostadas to school and oh yeah, she also wanted some authentic Mexican garb.. Sure, let me just wave my magic wand..

Of course, I had to scramble to think of what she could possibly wear to pull a Mexican look for the day.. With all of 24 hours notice I went into action. I called neighbors and aunts.. I was able to get a home made skirt with the colors of the flag.. Why didnt I think of that? I ran to Joann's on my way to book club and picked up spools of ribbon in the traditional Red, White and Green of the Mexican flag and some Red Satin.. I figured I could make a wrap/shawl of some sort..

I was up until 12 cursing satin (Note: Fray block does not dry clear on satin. Don't say I didnt warn you..) but I managed to get the edges stiched..

Maya was thrilled with the shawl but couldnt believe I hadn't sewn her a blouse! What?? I don't sew! I quilt! Is she new? I am amazed I could even figure out the shawl but that was a rectangle trimmed in lace, close enough to a quilt top.. I am just saying..

It makes me giggle at how funny Maya is..She gets an idea and then its all about making it happen.. Wish me luck I have a life time of ideas coming my way.. The adventures of mommyhood..
Here is little Missy in her "Authentic Mexican" outfit..

OLE!
Alex

A sneak peek...

I am working on a gift.. Julie quilted it for me.. I can't believe it turned out..Her blog here makes it look amazing...

I have loved the ideas in Jan Patek's book for years.. I finally had a good reason to make one.. Miss Jump walking in the garden was just too perfect for words..

I can only hope that the person on the receiving end will love it!

Buzz,

Alex

A little "window"...

No, we aren't remodeling the house... Missy's first tooth fell out last night.. Daddy helped it along with some tugging but the tooth would not budge until it was good a ready..

On her way to brushing her teeth, Maya shrieked in happiness..

"Mommy my tooth fell out!"

She was so excited she almost lost it.. Which led to another issue..we couldn't find the tooth pillow Ms. Lisa made in preschool. We searched high and low.. Its MIA. So Mommy had to whip one up..Not that I have any fabric or anything.. She settled for some scraps and she was thrilled to hide her tooth for the tooth fairy...

The tooth fairy visited last night and at 3am Missy came in to let us know that she had gotten an entire dollar..

Another milestone..Time Flies..

Buzz,

Alex

It's a sickness I tell you...

Fabric has this power over me. For my fellow quilters, I know they get it. As someone who is dipping my toe into real sewing, its even more dangerous.. Whereas before I would see a quilt or a hanging now I see aprons, bags and clothes.. Its dangerous. It's expensive.. Today as I was roaming around the blogosphere I ran across some cute sewing sites. As I admired their done projects.. I clicked around and landed here: http://www.piecenquilt.com/

The site has a cute blog but what grabbed my eye was the bright ad for 40% off total order.. Are you kidding me? I mean I have seen 25% off and I have even seen the clear out sales for Christmas fabrics but 40% off on new stuff..NEVER!

I thought well, its old fabric, they have nothing I want or nothing I even know about. I was wrong.. I found several lines that I have dreamt about and more that I know I must have in my stash for upcoming projects.. I almost called Deanna to wake her up when I saw her line "Authentic" on the front page.. I know she will whip up some cute outfit or cover a chair in that amazing fabric..

I have to wait and let it sink in. I am off to workout and figure out in my head how much fabric I can buy before I will notice it on the credit bill.. I have NEVER purchased fabric online. It wasn't in me to buy online. I figured if I restrained myself to what I had to physically find and purchase I would surely keep within my budget. My budget is very worried..Wish us luck.

Namaste!

Alex

Christmas Projects

Yes, I know the shock of Halloween having passed is still fresh.. However, its already November.. The air is crisper.. My mind starts to think of baking and tamales..It's almost Christmas time.. The holidays are trurly my favorite time of the year..

What is not to like? I mean , for us, having a "forced" two week vacation is amazing.. We get to lounge, sleep in, take day trips or longer without worrying about work..

This year we got a good start on the Christmas shopping but more importantly the projects are under way.. I tend to have a handle on the Christmas list as I do not like to see a mall in Decemeber unless its for the decor..We are over 80% done with the store bought Christmas gifts, now we can focus on the creating memories and those projects!

Yes, there are always more projects than time.. Well this year is no different. I had one big project that I HAD to get done. Having a deadline like Julie's Nov 5th deadline for quilting or the fact that the item is a CHRISTMAS gift really lights a fire under me.. Its been a long time coming and my fingers are raw and my joints are sore from all the stitching but the "It's a Wonderful Life" quilt has been submitted.. I worked and pieced and adjusted the appliques.. Its Done!! Julie will quilt it and when I get it back I will bind it.. I can only hope they like it as much as Martin does.. He couldnt believe it was not a keeper..

It's a Wonderful Life Quilt

Happy Saturday!

It's time to bake an apple pie...

Hugs,

Alex

Friday!

I am so excited. I took a half day off of work to regroup. To spend time with my mom in Maya's class and to get ready.. Ready? for what you ask.. I mean we all know that once marriage, kids and the 9 to 5 kicks in Friday nights are rarely glamorous (can you hear G-L-A-M-O-R-O-U-S, playing in the background.. Right!)

I am getting ready to host some great friends.. It's CRAFT night! I am hosting a monthly craft night so we can all work on one of the gazillon projects we are working on.. We all have unfinished projects, quilts and scrapbooks.. Its going to be a small group eventhough I am sure I invited half my address book..Sharon is treking up from P.B.. Deanna from Fallbrook. Melissa and Sarah are new friends and both local.. It was an open invite to anyone who had stuff to do. I am providing the table space to spread out without distractions.. Martin has agreed to host dad and Maya movie night upstairs while us girls chit chat and craft well into the wee hours..

Its not even dinner time but I finally got a min to sit down. I want to read some more of my book before I dig into project land. I haven't decided what to work on tonight. I have a few quilts that need backs.. I finished a Shutterfly photo book of 9 months of 2008 so I am almost caught up.. Not to mention I have a few ideas for Christmas that can be started anytime.. I am sure I will sew.. I have been looking forward to sewing..

Speaking of sewing.. Julie at Tattered Threads was featured on Paula Prass' blog for making that stinkin cute quilt for Sissy..Check it out here.. I was so excited for Julie.. I mean afterall we have know how awesome she is but she was our little jewel. I am glad the world is discovering her. The blogosphere is a smaller world.. a fun and friendly world.

On that note, I am off. I need to quilt a few hundred quilts before Christmas..

Stich, Stich,

Alex

Trying to sew

Last night's class was an All-American treat.. Julie our favorite paper crafter, decorating queen and quilter extraordnaire made the cutest little pillow for our class project..

This girl only knows Fancy and we love her for it.. I can't tell you how exciting it is to walk into a class when you know someone has put the thought and energy into it..This is Julie's Americana table set up..(oh and let me tell you about cherry chip cupcakes..YUM!)

Anyhow.. Back to my original story.. let me tell you it was a night of blunders for me.. I showed up to class without my machine's power cord. I wasn't thrilled with my fabric as it was a very modern take on Americana.. In the end, I think it will work but it took some convincing..To top it all off, I couldnt figure out how to gather my fabric for the ruffle..
Julie and I are on the same page.. we are sticking our feet into the "Sewing" versus "Quilting" arena..This was a sewing thing.. this was a make your brain see fabic in a different way..Not to mention discover how trurly useful your machine is..
Thankfully, class is around the corner from my cousin Monica's and I was able to ask Arthur to bring my machine over.. After fumbling around with her machine, I managed to get a few pieces together. The ruffle however, was not possible.. I ended up unpicking the entire thing last night.. will have to save it for Sunday.. I just looked up a sewing tutorial and that helped.. I think...

Wish me luck!

Alex

P.S. Have a great 4th of July!

$5 find!

I have been wanting to post about this for 2 weeks.. It was my new "honey do" project.. Martin has taken to sanding and painting like a fish to water.. As a matter of fact, he took to this project so fast I have no "before" picture.. Look at this cutie..

I was out for my morning stroll, I was feeling guilty because I didn'g get up at my O'dark thirty on that particular Sat.. The universe had something better in store for me.. I had no clue.. As I passed a corner street pole I noticed a "garage sale" sign.. I usually ignore them as I don't usually find anything good. I don't have the gift that my aunt Hilda does.. Anyhow..for some reason I noticed the sign and felt like I needed to check it out. Again, this was odd. I had no money with me and the sale was off my path and away from home.. Something was tugging at me.. So I figured I'd extend my walk and make up for the late stroll.. As the sale came into sight I noticed an old school desk. The kind I remember sitting in during my elementary years..

I walked faster and straight to it. It was covered in stickers but in great condition. There was a $5 yellow sticker on it.. I thought surely it was not the price tag just one of the many stickers.. But with confidence I asked if it was really selling for 5 bucks.. The owner smiled and said yup..we just need to clean things out.. I quickly explained that I was walking and had no money with me but if she would hold the desk for me I would be back to buy it in less than 15 mins.. she agreed.. I literally ran home. I don't run but I did that day.. Afterall, there were two older ladies there asking about the desk ( I accidentaly walked in the wrong direction to a dead end and had to pass the sale by on my way home.. I raced by saying.."it's mine, I will be right back".. )

Once home I grabbed car keys and asked Martin for cash- how he always has cash is beyond me.. All on my own I figured out how it get it to fit in the back of the PT.

Martin finished it last night after about 2 weeks of working on it.. Today Maya sat at it to color and then throughout the day just to sit.. Before I sent her to bed she was coloring and she started chanting "I love my desk"... I couldn't agree more.. What a find!