New Things

I'm going to try and start keeping this blog more updated. I've been creating new items for both shops, and in my pandys shop, my new thing is very creative descriptions. I had a great time thinking up the story for my Wild in the Street Market tote....

She glanced at her watch nervously. Come on, come on she mumbled under her breath at the cars on the street. Seeing an opening, she bolted across 2 lanes of traffic to the farmers market. Her new boyfriend was going to be at her apartment in 30 minutes. She was cooking him dinner for the first time...and was running VERY late.

She walked up and down the aisles, checking each vendor's wares. She picked up some romaine and red leaf lettuce, cucumbers, radishes, onions.....further down, she added a nice loaf of poppy seed bread, a large bunch of celery and some strawberries. Okay, she thought, I can get home before he gets there. Grabbing a fresh squeezed lemonade, she hurried home. Not thinking, she tossed her empty cup into her Market Tote by Pandys of Lake Sunapee. The lemonade was gone, but the bottom of the cup was full of ice.

She ran up the stairs, unlocked the door and put her bags on the counter. She pulled out the vegetables and fruit. As she pulled out the loaf of bread, she realized the bag had ripped. Crumbs and poppyseeds littered the bottom of the bag. She then saw the lemonade cup on its side, the now melted ice slowly seeping across the bottom of the bag.

The doorbell rang. He was here. What to do? She quickly grabbed a towel and wiped out the bottom of the bag. Crumbs and water disappeared instantly. Hanging the bag on the rack next to the door, she smoothed her hair, took a deep breath, and with a shaky hand, reached for the door knob............................

and now that it's sold, I need to make a different one and come up with Chapter 2. Feel free to check out my shop for more descriptions...if nothing else, they should make you smile.

Rainy Mondays....

after a week of beautiful weather...pretty much suck!!! I have lots of ideas for new products in both shops, however, due to my own brain cramp, am without a sewing machine. I forgot to have it serviced for 2 years. It really likes to be cleaned, oiled and adjusted on an annual basis. So, here I sit, with 2 bored kids, cooped up inside, a mountain of fabric pleading to be cut up and made into something super cool, a brain full of ideas...and only a few pieces cut. Why? well, I have a great idea but it needs a few incarnations before it's fit for public viewing. As I am unable to stitch something together to see how it works, I am reluctant to cut out a bunch of fabric. I don't want to have to throw it out when I find the final product bears no resemblance to what I started with. And, since I only purchase small amounts of fabrics (helps keep the One of A Kind, Unique and Handmade feel in my shop) I hate to waste anything!!!!!!

Hopefully my sewing machine will be back soon and you can check out both of my shops for new and exciting items by the end of the week.

They listened, but...................

Okay, so we all know my kids aren't exactly the sit around and wait for someone to tell them what to do type. They have been really good lately about listening and doing what they should (taking their favorite toys every time they didn't listen got their attention) and really fun. So, yesterday, we got new sand for the sandbox, today, the kids were playing in in. Sarah came in with the castle shaped bucket for water, she wanted to make a sand castle. I said no water in the sandbox.

A few minutes later, they came in for dinner. I was in the kitchen, they trooped in and headed straight for the first floor bathroom to wash their hands. They were in there a little longer than normal, but everything sounded normal and they came out with clean hands. We eat, do the normal nighttime routine, head upstairs for baths and bed. I am doing other things around the house, no biggie.

Around 11:00, I head for the shower. There is sand all over the bathroom floor. I sweep it up..then notice the sand castle on the toilet lid. I look around and the castle bucket is in the bathroom sink...floating. The water is all murky. I reach in and scoop out handful after handful of white sandbox sand. Since they couldn't put water in the sandbox, they brought the sand to the water. Very creative, I think. I'm torn..proud of the fact they did what I said, impressed with the creativity...but, I'm not looking forward to taking the elbow off and cleaning the sand out of the pipes. I tried the plunger already.....water did not go anywhere.

Now What?

Okay, so I decided I needed a serger...especially if I'm going to be doing more with fleece. It arrived today. Dying to try it out. Kids are trying to beat each other senseless and fighting over EVERYTHING you can imagine, and somethings you can't. The cat is trying to help. I've had 5 hours sleep per night the last few weeks. It's not going well.

Bright spot? The dining room chairs are finally done, finished and in the dining room, at the table. So, I had a place to sit to try and figure this out. (Please, don't even ask about the sewing room-that's another entire blog post on its own) Also, the table has remained crap free, so there was a spot to set the serger and try to figure it out. I was going to lay out the fleece to cut last night, all I did was remove the runner and bowl from the middle of the table...NOTHING else was there. Of course, the cat helped with that, too, so I gave up until the cat distracter is home (George knows he really belongs to my husband, not me)

So, now I have this wonderful machine that I don't know how to use, a huge pile of fleece and TONS of ideas. Stay tuned...it may all come together sometime in the near future!

Time Flies

okay, I know..it's been a while. Still haven't found the instructions and software for the new camera..every time I go to look, something happens. Both kids and husband have been sick...one after the other, so I've been busy.

There is a light at the end of the tunnel--I keep getting rid of stuff, so eventually, I will find the box that the camera stuff got crammed in. Yes, I did the old, you hold the box, I'll sweep with my arm method of cleaning the dining room, living room, kitchen and den last month. The good news? The clutter isn't returning...since I'm pretty much tossing everything that isn't essential.

My Cat.........No Einstein Here

Today we woke up to snow and freezing rain. Snow up above the tops of my Sorels with a crust on the top. I waited til it turned to regular rain to go out and shovel, so I wouldn't create a skating rink. It was a snow day, so I vaccuumed the living room, got in the recliner with the kids and read a bunch of stories. Finally, it warmed up and was regular old rain. It was horrible, the snow was so wet and heavy. Kids are running in the puddles, they are soaked and freezing by the time we come in. I give them a bath and put on dry snuggly clothes, we play a game, read some more, have a late lunch, veg out. All of a sudden, Griffin says, I haven't seen George since we came in. The door wasn't left open but George likes to escape from time to time. I've had a shower, so I put jeans on under my flannel nightie and go out in the pouring rain to look for this cat who can easily walk on the crust and leave no prints. Twenty minutes later, I come in, wet all over again and no cat. Kids tell me I have to call Daddy and tell him, since it's his cat. I call. Tell Michael I've looked all over the house, can't find the cat. Looked out side, can't find the cat. He says, remember the last time George disappeared he was under the recliner? I hang up. I had the foot rest up on the recliner when I vaccuumed and when I was reading to the kids. I pull the lever, the footrest goes up and lo and behold, there's George, wedged in there.

Here's the thing...he was in there for over 3 hours, and we were on the floor right next to him for 2 1/2 of those hours!!! Do you think he could have meowed or something? Was he going to stay there and hope someone found him? Maybe I am just used to Echo, who talked all the time. She'd meow as she ate, slept, walked and would most definitely let me know if something was amiss. She would crawl into open drawers and burrow under things, fall asleep and get shut in, but she's yowl, scratch and claw til someone came to get her. Poor George. He's just not that smart, I guess.

Stay Tuned

Stay tuned...coming soon...the story of the Epiphany Scarf, pictures of the ugliest ceiling fan in the world...and pictures of the new dining room...I'll give you a hint...the wall color is Ladybug Red. Sarah is having her tonsils and adenoids out on Wednesday......lots of things happening at once, but hopefully it will all come together soon!!!