Work!

Miles is "going to work" here. He announces this, and then gives us all kisses and hugs before he takes off to his sister's room. His job must be interesting since it requires several bags, an apron, and a hat!

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Here are the bookmarks I have been working on. This is a great project for anyone who struggles with their sewing machine. If you know me, or have been reading this blog for awhile, you know I have problems with my machine. I am sure they are all user problems....Although I would never tell my machine that! Anyway, making these allowed me to build some confidence in my sewing abilities....

This weekend I made some pillow shams to go with our duvet. Nothing quite matches perfectly, but I love that. I am really proud of these. The lines may not be perfect, but they look okay!

I made the little brown pillows out of place mats! I didn't spend a dime on this project. It was all made from things we have used at one time or another!

Yikes-a-roo! No coffee! What?

I'm smiling now. It's been a looong morning. Mimi wanted me to fix tortellini for breakfast. I said "no" and she melted down. She can throw some doozy fits. I ignored her. Then I discovered I have a bag of WHOLE coffee beans, and NO way of grinding the boogers up. I attempted with a knife, but it was futile. So, I loaded the kids up and went to Starbucks. They gladly ground them up, and we got a pumpkin muffin for the road. In a few minutes I will be caffeineted. :)Then I guess I will be boiling some water for the tortellini.

Have a great day!

I was tagged...like a week ago.

I am lazy. I was tagged so long ago, and I never answered any of the questions. I am not sure my answers are interesting, but I will answer anyway!

What was I doing 10 years ago?
I was in college finishing up my BS in Sociology.

What is on my TO DO list today?
I don't have day-to-day lists. I tend to make longer lists with no time frame in mind, and I mark things off as I go. On my list:
-figure out how to get my bobbin loaded with thread
-get rid of all clothing that doesn't fit the kiddos
-give the dog a bath before it gets tooo cold
-finish making bookmarks and maybe do a post on it

What is my favorite snack?
Hmmmm. I don't know. I LOVE butternut squash. If I could eat it every day I would. And I load it with curry powder when I cook it!! Also, I love brown sugar pop tarts.

If I was millionaire what would I do?
Not much really. I would pay off a couple bills and add on a bathroom, but that is about it. I think the temptation to spend would be there, but I would try to resist it, since I really think having a life revolving around things and the acquisition of things leads to unhappiness. I would save it. And I would make a hefty donation to Heifer.

5 Places I have lived?
Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Nebraska...and many more. I have lived in lots of cities....scattered about.

Alright..mission accomplished! I can mark this off my list! :)

Being Random

This is next to my little desk. This is half the actual drum set. Kevin is a good drummer, so I don't mind it much. The kids have treated the set with much respect, so I guess it will stay. :) The only room without an instrument is the bathroom. Sometimes they can get rather loud on the set, but that is okay. I would much rather hear random piano keys being played or drum being banged than noise from the TV.

We are all better. Whatever we had was horrible, but passed by quickly.

No new crafting for me going on...I am working on making some bookmarks. I may post a little tutorial on it. I am in the process of making a lot of things for X-mas. I figured I will let people pick and choose what they want from a box of things I made. It is a lazy way to gift! The pressure will be off of me....I would like to make a pledge to give all handmade gifts, but I don't think it is possible. My dad is an avid reader, so I am sure he will get some books from us.

Have a wonderful week! Enjoy the weather!

We Surrender!

Dear Horrible Virus,

YOU WIN! Now please leave us.

Mimi, Moe, & Karen

Genocide in Darfur

Last night Kevin and I watched a documentary on Darfur . Please go to your local library and check it out:
The Devil Came on Horseback

The genocide in Darfur has claimed 400,000 lives and displaced over 2,500,000 people. More than one hundred people continue to die each day; five thousand die every month.


Go here and see what our elected government officials are doing about this. And tell them this is important to you and your family. Remind them we promised "Never again" after the Holocaust.

Also, here is an article the AP released today.


Thanks, Karen

Scary Times

Pumpkin Picking

My Momma's group met at a local orchard today! We had a lot of fun. I am so grateful for the mommas in our playgroup. It is lovely having a group of friends for the kids and me! It is nice to have such wise friends around when it comes to kids and parenting. Sometimes when I am at my wits end, I get some of the best advice from them.

In less than a month we will be electing Barack Obama! (Had to get that in there!)

Looove this time of year! Have a great weekend!
~Karen

My Superheroes!

Sorry for the bad lighting here, but it is hard to get a pic of a superhero!

I hacked together a couple capes for Mimi and Moe. By hacked, I mean I ACTUALLY sat down at the sewing machine and sewed. Hard to believe? Well, if you examine the capes closely you will believe me! They are faaaar from perfect!

It was a lot of fun seeing them run around and pretend fly. I have plenty of scraps left, so I think I may make a couple more. Visitors need capes too!

Hmmm. Thanks...I guess.

Today we went on a play date, and all the kids did great. It was one of those relaxing play dates where all the kids find something to do. No fussing, fighting, or crying! AH! :)

Today I finished up some signs. Hope they work in the room, Amanda!

After that I did the Pilates tape. I am getting better. It still hurts during and afterwards. But, I am getting farther in the tape than ever before!!! :)

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Then I got the mail.....Woo Hoo ! Looks like I got something....What could it be????

Looks like some sort of sample maybe.....


Woo Hoo..what every girl wants....samples of tampons and maxi pads.

Gee...Thanks...I guess.

Have a great Tuesday!

Improvement? Crafting! Fall!

Hello! Happy Monday! Hope everyone got off to a good start this week.

I got this crazy notion this bench needed recovering, and that it would be EASY! Yeah, right. It wasn't horrible, but easy wouldn't describe it either! Hopefully it was worth the effort. You tell me! ??

Before:


After:



A BIG THANKS to Kevin for helping finish this project. My sad muscles could not get the job done! Thanks Kev!
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And on to my hoarding...Here is another stash that I am ashamed of:
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Here are projects half finished:

I made this in honor of Fall. I love this time of year!

Music by Sia!