Seussisized.....

Liam loves books...

Liam really loves Dr. Seuss books...

Liam turned ONE last weekend...and the theme for his party? Dr. Seuss, of course;)

Oooohhhh, I said to his mother, I've seen some new Dr. Seuss fabrics recently that are colorful and fun--surely we can think of something to do with them!!


We decided on a cover for the gift table, and that worked out beautifully, but after the party, it could transform into a quilt for the Seuss lovin' boy.

Liam and his book nook...

Seussisized!!

Marilyn

Good Intentions/Excuses and Creative Swaps Mail Art

Alas, my poor neglected little blog! My intentions are good, but my weekdays are full and my evening energy is pretty much non-existent.....AND I wouldn't change a thing! Remember my sweet grandbaby born almost a year ago? And my new childcare "job"? Well, after having the summer off, we're back at it and I love our time together;)

This is Liam on Thanksgiving (sorry for the sunny glare):


His mommy's little rocking chair came down from the attic and he was trying it out--nice fit, I'd say. I sent it home with them for a second generation of memory making...*sighs* and *smiles*.

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So now, after making the proper excuses;) how about some pics of creative stuff?

I think I'll pick up again with another Creative Swaps project...this time, Mail Art.


I started with white 5x7 envelopes and traced mandalas onto the fronts and part of the flaps. I colored them with my favorite prismacolor pencils and filled in the rest of the white space with coordinating chalks. After protecting them with a spray sealer, rubber stamped words and images were added. The postage photo is one I took in Taos, NM and used to create stamps at Zazzle during one of their postage sales.

(backs of the envelopes)
Although it was optional, I decided to include a postcard (which just happened to be the perfect size) in each of the envelopes--more rubber stamping, my contact info and faux postage--very simple. I also included the web address for the mandalas I traced.



All of the envelopes were mailed individually to Lenna so they would go through the postal system. After the Dec. 4th deadline, Lenna will swap out the envelopes and return them to us in a mail art envelope that she creates.

I've been enamored with mail art for a such a long and I was so excited when I read about this mail art swap! I can't wait to see the pieces I receive back and I'll share them with you when they arrive! For now, there are many to see on the Creative Swaps blog and they're wonderful!

Marilyn

Still Another Way to Play with Fabric

When it comes to my crafting, there is one constant: more projects on my "want to make" list than I have time! Add grandbabies to the mix and the list gets longer, and even more fun:)


I finished a fabric tag book this week, inspired by Gwen Marston's book, Fabric Picture Books. I got to play with bright colors and fun patterns; the possibilities are practically limitless...






And the rewards are priceless...how sweet is he?!


After a visit with the little guy yesterday, I headed home, having waited out a huge windy, rain storm. Seems we've had way too many of those this summer. But then the rainbows appear and I never tire of those!



Marilyn

Here a Swap, There a Swap...

Oh my, two weeks since my last post! Where does the time go?!

Most likely fun times spent with these two cuties...




And I've also enjoyed some time in the craft room. I made a couple of potholders for the KC Modern Quilt Guild potholder swap...

(fronts)

(backs)

We swapped them at last week's meeting and I came home with two amazing potholders!!

This one is from Jaime--isn't the fabric adorable?!


And this one is from Alex--I love the purple and gray, and the grommet!


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An ATC Swap in Mary's Your Vintage Gluebook Online Class is soon and I finished my six cards this afternoon...


This has been the best online class--Mary is an excellent instructor and shares so much information and beautiful images too! I need to show you my lesson pages, and will do that soon, but for now you can see some lovely work in the class Flickr group.

Marilyn

Craft Day Shadow Boxes

Today, thanks to Liam's mom (who wanted me to continue with craft days) and his grandpa (who wanted that too and offered to take care of Liam), I enjoyed time with my regular crafting group at Karla's.

Vicki, (This Art That Makes Me Happy) was so nice to send several of her shadowbox die cutouts and Altered Fairies Creative Scraps to Karla for us to play with...sweet, huh?


Beth's:


Shawn's:


Mary's:


Karla's:


And mine:


What fun to craft the same project but end up with a variety of results...thanks so much, Vicki!!

Marilyn

Sweet Boy.......

I spent my days this week with this handsome young man...

...our 3 month old grandson, Liam ;)

And I get to do the same thing again next week and for seven more weeks after that...because I am the lucky grandmother providing day care for the little guy.
I love my job!

We had a great week and I'm learning quickly about the new equipment and toys available since my children were babies! Who knows how up to date I'll be by the time summer arrives:)

The change to my schedule is moving around the time I have for crafting, at least initially. But when it comes to prioritizing, there are two things I always find time for, family and creating!

Marilyn

February Quilting Bee Blocks...and more

Another month almost over...maybe it seemed to zip by because it's a short one??!

Kinda fun to measure a month with quilting bee blocks though...here are the ones I made for February:

In Sew Connected 2, Doris is making a neighborhood quilt and asked for simple houses and, if we wanted, we could add embroidered details.


Ruth is making a similar quilt, "About Town", in Bee Obsessed.


It's my month :) in Stash Busting Bee International and I've asked for blocks for an I-Spy quilt for the grandbabies! Some really cute blocks are being created.....I can't wait to show them to you when they arrive and I've had a chance to lay them out!

Doll Quilt Swap 8 is wrapping up soon and I'm getting close to being finished...here is sneak peek #2. I'm ready to stack, quilt and bind it and it will be on it's way:)



The second meeting of the newly formed KC Modern Quilt Guild is tonight and I'm very excited--it's such a great group quilters! I think they are expecting twice as many as the first meeting.....how FUN!


Marilyn

Baby, It's Cold Outside!

I hope you all are staying warm too!


Marilyn

Whole Lotta Lovin' Goin' On

Soooo, this is one reason why my poor little blog has been neglected lately...

But, really, which one would you choose?! (Can you believe he's one month old already!)

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I am finding time for some embroidery too---for the Hoop Up! Stitch & Send swap. I just started on this block for a group member whose theme is "Japanese Garden"...


...and I just finished this one for a "Whimsical Forest/Woodland" theme.

(pattern by Hannah)

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This one isn't for the swap but it's one I started in early autumn (hence, the leaves, acorns and fall colors) but set aside. I worked on it around the holidays to keep my hands busy and finished it up---not sure what I'll do with it yet?

(pattern from Sublime Stitching)

I hope to get around to my regular blog visits again soon. I've missed seeing what you all are up to and your gorgeous creations!

Marilyn

Christmas Joy!!!

Our beautiful new grandbaby!

A boy, Liam, born Friday, 18 December 2009 at 1:41am
7 lbs. 2 oz. ~ 20 inches

SWEET SWEET BABY !!!

Marilyn

Trick or Treat!

Definitely a TREAT!!!




Happy Halloween!!!

Marilyn

Getting Ready For December 20th

Completed, laundered and ready for...


...first daughter's baby shower last Sunday! It was a lovely afternoon hosted by one of her long time friends.


Can you believe this cake?! It was so adorable and also very tasty!


We asked grandbaby Cole to test out the Bumbo seat (I swear he gets cuter every time I see him)...lots of new baby things available that I've learned about these past several months. It's amazing, and they're all so cute and really some good ideas!


After we took the dozens of wonderful gifts back to first daughter's house, I asked her to pose with baby's quilt.


(By the way, she loves it!)

Marilyn

Cutest Photo Ever :-)

This is first daughter (expecting a baby boy December 20th) holding our little grandbaby, Cole...


Cole patted her stomach and laid his cheek on it as if he knew his cousin was in there--ADORABLE!!

Marilyn

Babies, Babies, Babies! (*Smiles*)

How cute is this little guy?!


To ease any worries, I stayed plenty far away from the nest to take the photos (and I think the telephoto function on my camera did an OK job). These photos are from just last week and already this week, he and his nest-mate have flown the coop! (I'm using "he" and "his" for no particular reason, but really, look at the hairdo...male--no?) I do remember seeing one of them sitting on the edge of the nest Monday morning and had I known that they were leaving for good, I would have wished them "Godspeed!"


Actually the timing was perfect. The nest is in a tree right under our bedroom window and their little "peeps" were getting louder each day and their song was monotonous--just one note. Do birds need time to learn the prettier songs and/or does it come with practice? Hmmm....

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Speaking of Cute Little Guys!


Grandbaby Cole:)
Two months old already!

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AND...Remember about a month ago when I gave you a sneak peek of this quilt top:


Well, I can now share with you that it is a baby quilt for our second grandchild! First daughter and son-in-law are expecting a holiday-time baby, due December 20th! Yippee!

Marilyn