I love yard decorating! I just do! We are so tacky with our Christmas...we may never know when to stop, but once you plug it all in, it just doesn't matter cos it's so pretty.
The head moves. Everyone knows it isn't real. Still, it's head moves. When we finally put this one to rest, the motor that makes that head will move can be used for good.
Someone threw that Santa away a gazillion years ago and I dug it out of their garbage, repainted it, put sand in the bottom so it's too heavy for me to carry and it's been ours ever since.
So quiet, so pretty....
Stoked kids are the greatest!
Annoying Orange from her brother. He always gets her the best presents..
I wish Matt Smith would have showed up in my stocking, but that would have been awkward. I mean if Mommy kissing Santa Claus caused problems, can you even imagine Mommy kissing the Doctor?!
Seeeeee, best gifts come from big brothers. always.
We had a Whovian Christmas around here. Glad Amy Pond stayed outta his stocking....
and that is how much I love my new Doctor Who shirt!
At the end of a long Christmas Day, the Angels slept.
I fell asleep to the sound of the waves, lightly tossing me in my sheets. I dreamt of pirate ships and mermaids, of burly men falling overboard, lured by siren songs...of sword fights, starboard sides...sharks swimming under the plank.
Blame it on the rain, on the Doctor Who episode I fell asleep to, the seriously 1000+ houses I looked at online, none comparing to the Dream House, of course. I think I'll just enjoy it...
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
I do not always know God's plan for me. I have to Trust him with a faithful heart. My heart wants to believe. Sometimes, my head gets in the way. Things happen, like you wake up one morning a week before Christmas and a member of the family is sick and can't move. Her body is telling us it can't keep up with her spirit any longer. and I want to question that.....as if my simple human mind has a better idea. Yesterday, I didn't have a better plan. Unless crying hysterically is a plan. I'm pretty sure it isn't...
Ten years ago, I was going thru a painful divorce. My son was one. I had two dogs I adored, but couldn't take care of. I had to give them to friends. I moved in with my boyfriend in his bigger house in Blue Ash with his two dogs. A lot happened then...I self-medicated and struggled. I missed my house, I felt like a failure and I missed my dogs.
Mocha loved me from the minute I came here. She followed me everywhere! Her sister, Whiskey, was not so accepting. She barked at me, she hid from me, she whined when I was in the room. then she would ignore me. Not Mocha! She went with me to the grocery, she played ball in the yard with me. She was my girl! When I grabbed my car keys, she followed me out the front door and hopped in the car. I never needed a leash, she never ran off. She stayed by my side.She played with Will when he got big enough. She slept in his room. She woke me in the morning with her nose.
You see, God gives me what I need when I need it. It isn't always what I want. Sometimes I don't even know I need it until way after the fact. I am glad he has a plan and that I have stepped out of the way. Even if that plan means Mocha's dog form here on earth has come to an end. How can I deny her Dog Heaven? How can I be angry that she gets to sleep with other DOg ANgels and run around on legs that work? Eat with a tummy that works! Not have weird itchy skin anymore...not be afraid of loud noises and hide in the bathtub...you know, when I think about it this way, what a beautiful plan for her!
I miss my girl this morning. I know she's in good hands. I am thankful for the time I got to spend with her. I love her!
Proverbs 19:21, "Many are the plans in a person's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails." (NIV)
Last night, I sat down with all of the gifts I have to deliver. You know, the custom orders. The beautiful things people ask me to make for them in exchange for currency.
I did something that surprised even me this season. I wrote out every order, put dates on it and then wrote out a calendar for each item. I made them sequentially. I stuck to the plan. These are just some of the results. The pictures are here only because the friends have already seen them...
My lovely friends entrusted me with their children's gifts...I met Gunn playing with the band Incline District, If you know me, you know I am mildly (ha) obsessed with Incline District! The fellas are just so nice! and dreamy! and fun to be around! I got a message from him wanting traditional stockings for his three girls. Now, I am anything but traditional. I have made a lot of stockings this year...a lot. When someone I admire and care for asks me to make them for their children, something changes the process. Putting those girls names on there, I can picture them with their dad....it puts the passion into them. It makes me love making stockings, even when the number has reached well over 100. The love I feel for my friends goes into each piece, woven into the fabric and threads...
My friend, Sean, was one of my first custom orders. I made bird pillows for his mom last year. This year, he asked me to make these for her....You may remember my sewing machine going out on me last year. I was heartbroken that my 18 year old Singer, Nina, was biting the dust. I didn't have the money to repair her and I was using my sister's loaner (which I still have- thanks, Beir!). Sean surprised me with not one, but two machines! A beautiful White who I named Marilyn. She is so trustworthy & she works so hard. She is getting ready for maintenance..but she helped me make these first.
My first turtle making experience ever! I loved making these little guys so much! I made a first set of prototypes, I worked out every kink in my pattern, I poured my heart into these fellas- they are embroidered and hand stitched! My mission was 12 Baby Loggerhead Turtles, newly hatched, to approximate scale. Here they are.
Now, I am not a felter. I am not a knitter, although it's on my list of interests I haven't attempted yet.
AS you can see, there are wet felted eggs in this photo. My first attempt ever at wet felting! Alpaca Wool is a funny thing and I have to admit, I am kind of smitten with it! I had fun making the eggs and I now look forward to Easter for different reasons than you may think...see, my sketchbook, my brain, my heart are full of new ideas! I didn't stop in the middle of my custom orders this year and make my hearts desires as they popped up! I stuck to the plan, I have a few orders still in the works. My plan says I'll be done with all of those on Monday and all of my children's gifts on Tuesday.
My long time friend, Jeff, came to my house 3 years ago on Fourth of July. He brought his beautiful son, Max. We had a ball! It was so good to see him and meet his darling child, watch him be a dad. Things, events in Jeff's life mirror my own and it has been awesome watching the miracle happen to Jeff. From afar, since he lives up north. Thank God for FB, that great wireless connector of friends. I get to keep up with Jeff. I got to make him this for his someone special! Hopefully, we'll get to meet her and spend some time with him soon!
(*hint hint, cleveland boy!)
As you may have noticed, I have a blue mannequin. Isn't she lovely? Pear fabric! The colors in this make me feel soothed- my friend, Bree, requested this and the Damask apron. Bree hosts a fantastic radio show- Queen City Awesome on 95.7 FM. If you don't know about it, you should! She interviews local bands and plays local music. Occasionally, there are some bands on who are playing in town! She is also in one of my favorite local bands, Slack Panther! Did I mention she is a hoot and one of my favorite people to be around?!
Damask and Hot Pink! What little girls are made of when they grow up a bit!
My dearest bestie, Adam, introduced me to his family last year.
I get nervous around parents. I don't know why, I just do! But his parents felt like hanging out with my parents, so we instantly hit it off! His mom is precious- Queen of her home, her fellas pretty much dote on her and she is mom of one of my favorite people. When she asked me to make aprons for her friends, I surged with pride. What an honor! She let me pick the fabrics with vintage feeling as a guideline...
She wanted three, so I made six! ha! I wanted her to pick. I ended up picking my three favorites for her!
I love the reds, whites and blues!
This one was the first one I made. It's a new design. I'm still working it out. I think it's adorable!
I have to head out this morning to go GC shopping. Not everyone on my list wants the things I like to buy, so off I go. To KTC. To places like Pottery Barn and Hallmark. Every day, my orders come in from Etsy and Think Geek. I wish all of my gifts were coming from Everybody's Records. I put out all of the gifts on the table last night and realized for the first time ever, I am not stressed out about Christmas. I won't be rushing around for the next week, trying to finish up everything. I did it! I have a little business I love! My kids are well kept :) Everybody has been fed and Holiday plans are in place. I stuck to the list, the plan and guess what? It turns out it is a pretty good one, I'd like to thank God for giving me the plan every morning. Funny how his ideas work out better than mine. Pretty much every time....
So, I'm ready for the Holidays. Our lights are up, the tree is decorated, I am wrapping gifts a week before hand instead of at 3 am on Christmas Eve. I am spending time with my friends. I am sewing for pleasure. I have the money to have both Marilyn and Matilda serviced, thanks to my awesome friends who buy the creations I make! I may even have enough to get the old girl Singer, Miss Nina, fixed! I am going to take my kids visiting, we are going to have play dates and you know how I have always wanted to just send people things just because I can? well, I am.
I am not going to live forever, this I know for sure. The past year of my life has changed everything for me. I am remembering everyday that God has a plan for my life. What I want may or may not have some bearing on it. or in it, really. What matters today is the time I get to spend with you, the love we get to share and how close I am to God. The rest has already been taken care of.
I share with you, my loves, some of my favorite Christmas melodies...
so hard for me to do....take it easy! i fill my schedule book with the things to do and the result is I am always creating something new! that is what a heavenly life looks like for me. here's a little peek at what I have been up to and why I have been virtually ignoring you...
I have a good friend who comes up with the most creative gifts for his family! I love it when I see a message from him in my inbox because it always means he has a new idea for me to work on! last year, I made these fabulous bird pillows for him. I'll try to find a pic of them to post. For now, thee are his dream this year...Loggerhead Turtles.
I love these little fellas!
Because I have never made a fabric turtle before, I had to start from scratch and design them.
I'll admit, it looks simple. easy peasy. no problem-o. But, for this girl, I have to have all of the thoughts line up with the ideas that bounce around this head of mine, so new projects usually take me some time to develop...these were no different. I have been everything turtle...fabric flying, scissors swaying, bringing shells to life...I almost made myself a mask and cape when I achieved what i wanted...!
My friend, Sarah, asked me to make her a jewel toned bag!
She showed me the colors she liked and I went with it!
Another friend had given me some vintage dresses that she thought I might be able to use for projects. This bag repurposed a beautiful blue gown with a sheer gold embroidered panel. As I was struggling to find the perfect fabric, I remembered it hanging in the vintage portion of my closet. The fabric is sheer, so it intimidated me. But I wrestled with it and when the fabric and I were done with our struggle, I realized no fabric is THAT intimidating! Maybe I'll tackle those fears one at a time...chiffon next?
She loves the bag!
She is the first friend I made when I joined PTA at hannah's school. She made me a really cool repurposed bracelet. You know those little tabs in a carton of milk, the plastic ones? I am finding them hard to describe...She adds jewels and bells to them and makes bracelets out of them! They are really cool! SHe has me thinking about composting and gardening and repurposing every time we talk! She let me borrow The Inventor of Hugo Cabret! What a great book, what a great friend!
My little model, she's a love so big!
The first incarnation of Sarah's bag...it didn't feel like her to me, so I started over. This one will go up on Etsy. Unless you want it!
I made 75 stockings for CCAT's Christmas celebration! I love that place! It helped me and my family so much, I am forever indebted to them. If you or anyone you know is struggling with alcoholism and/or drug addiction, this is the place to head. Not only have I detoxed here many times since 1994, I have witnessed the miracle of recovery happening in this place many times. Not as many as we'd like, but, man, they do such a great job! Most of my best friends I met as a patient here!
I have been reading at night, after the machines go to sleep. My friend RG over at imagine gnats sent me Hector and the Search for Happiness! It showed up in my mailbox one day and it made me so happy! KR highly recommended The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. After hearing so many times that I reminded people of the main character of this book, I had to check it out for myself. I mean, random customers at the Mall would say it and I was baffled. I really wish I had a dollar for every tie I have heard it. After finishing it, I was strangely proud that someone would make the comparison. Lisbeth is a tough cookie, but really kind of a loner and unapproachable. I have a version of me that I think I am then I bet there's the version all of you see and it's probably different. I am delusional. I know it. I'm ok with it. <3
I love my big, comfy bed...
and my organized madness....that wall paper is my dream come true!
I haven't had time to finish this dream, but it's coming together. In spare moments, I'll add another shiny black frame, freshly painted at my special table. I knew I bought stacks of frames for a reason...I need your art for my walls! Let's trade!
More turtles! This was the first batch- they will be good presents!
Aren't they beautiful?
The corduroy came from my awesome niece who is just in love with fabric as I am!
Loggerhead Turtles are fascinating...they travel so far just to crawl up the beach and lay their eggs. Most of the little fellas hatch and try to stumble awkwardly down to the water before a bird predator snatches them up for snacks. I looked at every picture I could find, watched every video and gobbled up info like a hungry kitty. I'm glad we have protected beaches for them to lay their eggs. I can't imagine hatching out of a shell, new to the world, learning to move my legs and then hustling my butt down to the big, open, blue, blue sea! What a life!
As you know, I like to dream big! I follow God's will for me because it is the easiest route. Although it doesn't always look or feel easy, it just is. When he tells me to do something, I may have a question or two...I may even procrastinate or falter while doing it, but my life goes easy when I follow his lead. My best ideas have always gotten mediocre, subpar, undelicious, sometimes deadly results. I am no good on my own...but with God, all things are possible.
I am obsessive! In everything I do, think, feel, I am passionate! I take risks, I dance on battlefields, I am not to afraid to stake a claim or voice a concern. Now, today, I have a dream. It centers around a piece of land and a beautiful old house that needs some serious love. I am willing to give that love, pour it in and watch it grow. So, I pray and I wait. God says hang on, you move so fast- this is a process, girl! Processes take time!
So, I pray and I Dream and I wait. God knows my heart, all he does is look at me- he sees everything! every fear, every hope, every fault, every gift.
He uses them to teach me things. I am learning patience. I am learning to wait.
If the Dream I have does not line up with the plan God has for us, well, my Dream will be just that. Sometimes, they are only Dreams. If God gets behind my dreams, they do come true. I have to struggle with that. Today, I feel really, really good about that. I am gonna sit still (not really, don't worry, I am working on your custom orders) and let God lead. Just in case, please don't buy my house. Have a look, it is so beautiful...if I thought you all could nudge on God for me, I'd ask. I know none of us can...
Jeremiah 29:11, "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'" (NIV 1984)
