Nap Time

No one told me it's nap time!  

I hope you're having a good weekend!  I am!

Hugs,

Tania

Garland Valance

 Today is show and tell!  I have been wanting to do this for umm several years now and finally did this window!  I loved how it turned out I have to stop by and look at it every time I go past my creative room.

I have another small window in my room to do but I have something very different in mind for that one.  

Create, create, create!

On to something else!

Hugs,
Tania

Clothes Pins

I really like clothes pins, don't you?  Seeing one reminds me of an old fashion summer.  My mom used to hang most all of our wash in the summer.  The sheets always smelled so fresh.  Those were the days my mom changed our sheets daily!  I'm serious, I can't imagine doing that I change mine once sometimes twice a week but every day, three beds!

The reason for this post today is I have been going through a little more than two years worth of several magazine, I got so far behind I had piles of them so I stopped all subscriptions and decided to go through one each morning.  I think I have 4 or 5 left!  Any way I got off track a little. As I said I was going through a magazine, Mary Jane's Farm Girl.  There was an article on clothes pins.  The only american clothes pin company closed in 2007 and this couple who lived on a  farm noticed the cheaply made clothes pins not made in the USA and how the springs weren't  as strong and sturdy, the wood wasn't as good and no protective coating on them.

Hmm I think to myself.  I have a basket of clothes pin on my refrigerator I use to hang out a few thing on the line and I mostly use them as chip clips...any one else do that?

I took a look at them, I bought them at Walmart within the past 5 years so they can't be the ones made in the USA. Then  I remembered out in the garage I have a pail of them, the ones I used when Mr. Man and I were first married.  I compared the two and I am lucky to have some of the ones made right here in the USA.  The picture above is my old original clothes pins.

Now see the comparison.

Can you guess which one is made in the USA and which is from another country?  If you guess the one on the left is made here you're right.  Can you see the difference?

I bet you thinking to yourself I need to take a look at my clothes pins.  

Hugs,

Tania

                      Yellow Daisy Festival

We had a very busy weekend.  I painted our laundry room and scrubbed the floors really good, I mean tooth brush to the base boards good.

Sunday late morning Mr. Man and I met up with Erica and Mickey at David's Bridal to pick up Mickey's flower girl dress.  It fits her perfectly so she better not grow much by December.

Then the four of us had a quick lunch at Wendy's.  It was so good to see them if only for a short time.

Once we went our separate ways Mr. Man and I went to Stone Mountain for the Yellow Daisy Festival.  It's an out door craft show that also has many food vendors.

Here is what we bought, can you tell we were hungry only food items were brought home.

We have a spice packet to make a dip, a jar of spicy onion relish that you can eat as is or make into a dip.  A multi purpose orange ginger sauce.  It is low in calories, sugar and sodium so this will be great for my salads.  I have been using salsa in my salads because dressing are just too fattening.  Also in these cute cloth bags is powders to make yummy drinks.  One is a caramel apple cider and the other honey spice chai both are delish!!!

It was nice to walk around outside with the free Humana pedometers that they were giving away but it was very hot and humid. 

After painting and all that walking I could hardly move Sunday night.

Did you notice I changed the appearance of my blog?  I have had that same background for years and decided to go with a cleaner look...for now.  I just love the picture of Minnie on my purple quilt don't you?

later!

Hugs,
Tania

I have had a very busy week!  Making things and getting the laundry room ready to paint, that will be on a later post.

Thursday I took the day off from all this creative energy I have been fortunate to have to do a little shop therapy.  

Here are my great finds!

 I couldn't pass up this Longaberger basket!  Great to have out this time of year as I will soon be decorating for fall.

 These two doilies will be perfect for a project I have in mind.  Once I have made it I will share.

 I could pass up this cute pumpkin either!  The shop owner of Antiques In Old Town has a blog and I follow her and she posted these cute little pumpkins.  

Later that day Mr. Man and I went to Mickey's karate class.  I do have to say she is really good and I'm not saying that just because I'm her Mimi. : )  

My muse has been keeping me busy these days so I decided to name her Sparkle...she sparks my creative side.  I hope she does stay around for a while I have had some pretty good ideas lately I just need to get them done!

Thanks for the visit!

Hugs,

Tania

Newest Addition

Through much frustration I planned out a new bag and feel pretty good about it.  This one isn't for sale it's my prototype.  But I have many ideas running through my head to change is up and be creative.  It will be a whole different and new line.

 I also made the flower.

It's late afternoon and I am emotionally exhausted from all the creative thinking I had done today but I am looking forward to tomorrow to get making more of these!

They are really nice and sturdy too!  I will be carrying this one while shopping this fall, free advertisement as well!

Hugs,

Tania

Busy, Busy

I have been busy once again filling my Etsy store with bags. The holiday season is fast approaching and people will be buying presents.  

I have made these bags and recently added them.

I have several more to add also I want to make a few baby quilts to add to the shop before Halloween.  

Last night I met up with Erica and Mickey at the bridal shop to decide on a flower girl dress for Mickey and with Candi via text a decision was made!  We purchased her dress and sash!  

Now it's my turn!  Ugh!  I have been watching what I eat since last Monday and of yesterday I am down 2.5#  I have a goal and it is reasonable.  I don't have a lot to loose I just want to feel good about how I look in a formal dress.  I did look at a few dresses last night I just don't really like the colors they offer mom's of the bride they are so drab and lifeless.  So I am on a search.

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs,
Tania

On A Roll!

A couple of weekends ago was the weekend my Sassy Stitchers group gets together.  I have been a bad member this year.  I was there in January and this month!  I usually have pretty good attendance.  But I have had issues with RA and my eyes that prevented me from going.

But like I said I was there this month and I have the sewing bug once again!  My muse has returned!

The picture above is a large type of pouch or cosmetic bag.  I bought this little kit (or I need to say Mr. Man bought me this kit) from the shop hop Mr. Man took me on for mother's day.  It came with the pattern, this ubber cute fabric, zipper, charm and ribbon to put the charm on to attach to the zipper pull.  So any who I made this bag...

And this small wall hanging quilt also a kit from that same shop hop.  The kit came with everything except the batting, now that's a good kit!  I am hanging this in my creative room to put my shop pins on.  I have all of them on my jean jacket which sadly is too small for me now.  It will be nice to display my shop pins on this cute spool quilt.  It looks like there is only purple and blue on from this picture but there is purple, blue and a mint green.  My new photo editing program isn't what I had hoped.

Anyway it is show and tell day for me today!

Since I am thinking of mom a lot lately and dreaming about her I thought I would share with you what I miss most about her.

As fall is approaching my mom and I would go to all the fall festivals and craft shows together.  We would make a day of it.  Really a whole day we would go out for breakfast, usually at some small town cafe/diner they do serve up the best food!  Fattening? YES!  But so yummy!  Then we would shop, shop and more shopping and stop for lunch usually some place she doesn't get to go to very often cuz Tony my step didn't like to frequent thos places like Red Lobster.  Then we would shop some more until dinner then we would part ways.  I do miss our long fall shopping days.

I know many of you too are shy to  leave a comment and that's OK but I hope you will leave a comment...If you're mom is no longer with you, what do you miss most about her?

Thanks for the visit!

Hugs,
Tania

P.S. I'm trying the largest font today.  I don't know about you but I have old eyes so I hope this is better.

New Journal

I started a basic journal the first of the year.  I keep track of what I am eating, I have three goals to complete each day so I write them down and check them off as they are complete.  I also keep track of my activity such as exercising and my walks.  Then the next day I go back to the previous to write about my reflections of that day.  

Oh also I write at the top of the page what I am grateful for and my feelings that day.  I use to write also how long and how well I slept the night before but some how that got dropped off.

Yesterday I ran out of pages in my journal book so I needed to make a new one and actually this one doesn't go to the end of the year but very close.

 Here is my newest journal.  I took more time creating this one than the last. 

I have my tabs in place and there is washi tape on each page.  I double up the pages with washi to make them sturdy also I use colorful pens and you could see though the single pages in my first book.

I also have pages for "To Do" for those bigger projects like painting a room, making curtains things like that.  I also have a wish list on one page and I also have a page for Christmas ideas and shopping.  

It was difficult at first to keep up daily but I would at least get in three maybe four days in a week but I am pretty much on track daily now for a while and it really has helped me be more mindful of my eating and my time.

I started this journaling because I have been in a funk since mom passed.  I have some bad eating habits that have returned and I was starting to feel depressed.  Lack of interest in my hobbies, I wasn't getting out of the house too much and I was wasting a lot of time watching TV and playing on my computer.  I needed to track my activity and such to make my self aware and it has worked!

I'm still struggling with the eating as I have most of my life but getting on track with that as well.  I am getting out and enjoying life more and I remind myself daily to smile three times a day for no reason.  I usually get out of bed and do one before anything else.  I know sounds weird right?  Well they say that if you smile you trick your mind into thinking your happy and then you are.  It does seem to help.

Talking about getting out, me and Mr. Man went out Sunday to some antique shops that I found earlier in the week and had a wonderful day, wonderful weekend.  

We also talked about if we are moving our "creative spaces" downstairs or not.  I voted I stay put he cleans out the garage and moves in there and builds the shed under the deck like he has been wanting to, put the garage stuff in there and we make the basement as a rec room!  He's on board with all of it!  Yay!  Now to get it done!

Whew I chewed your ear off enough!  My first thing to do on my to do list today is clean house so I'm off to get it done!

Hugs,
Tania

Happy Belated Birthday

                  Happy Belated Birthday Mr. Man!

Erica was in MN over Mr. Man's birthday, he wasn't forgotten on his special day, he had gifts to open and dinner of his choice but it was just me there to celebrate with him.  So we planned to get together to have a little belated birthday with him.

 Erica and Mickey arrived Saturday and after dinner we played bingo then watched a movie.

 Sunday morning Mr. Man opened some more presents, we only gave him half of his gifts on his actual birthday.

What he is holding up is a corn on the cob holder to use on the grill.  I gave him the lighthouse you see on the table.

 He is grilling burgers with his extra large spatula he received from Erica on his birthday.

Not extra large, HUGE!  Fun for him to try it out, he could flip four burgers at once.

Then he and Mickey cut up some fresh pineapple.  Well Mr. Man did.  It was delicious!

It was a really nice weekend.  Erica, Mickey and I snuck out for a bit to do some wedding shopping for Candi.

You haven't heard from me for a while because I was busy scrapbooking.  I was working on 2012 and have most of it finished, all I have left to scrapbook for the year is when Mr. Man and I went to North Carolina to follow the quilt barn trail.

Well I am off to my creative room, I am sewing today!

Hugs,
Tania