Exuberant

Poppin' colors in the pepper aisle!

Child's Play

I got to interact with three kids this week, though none of them in person.

I had the opportunity to Skype with my munchkin granddaughters twice! Today they showed me their equestrian skills.

Skype screenshot, so it's a bit blurry.

A couple days ago, Dale and I went to Ruff Park in Springfield, Oregon. It's known for it's beautiful magnolia trees that are just about to pop into bloom. It's also known as a great place to hide and to find painted rocks. I found this big smooth rock under a tree. It's larger than the palm of my hand.

We think it's a rain cloud. Do you agree?

I've never met Aiden, Age 6. So thank you, Aiden! You made my day! It was fun to find your painted rock. I'll re-hide it soon so another painted rock hound can have a bit of joy.

Throwback Thursday - 2006 Part 9

This week we travel back to August, 2006. I finished three ornaments, one bookmark, and a quilt square.

Joy

This darling ornament designed by Lizzie*Kate ended up being more of a challenge than I'd anticipated.

First, I decided to use a scrap of fancy fabric I'd received in a grab bag. It's a white evenweave, probably 25ct Lugana, with little silver flecks in it. The pattern called for any dark colored fabric.

I picked some fibers from Gentle Art to stitch with, but ended up changing the colors quite a bit. I finally ended up with:
* Gentle Arts Sampler Thread in Pine, Cherry Wine and Gold Leaf.
* Instead of a white in the border, I used a pale blue DMC Light Effects floss.
* Then I used a DMC stranded metallic in green for "Joy."
* And added some DMC stranded metallic in gold to the star so it would twinkle, too.

I finished my Joy as a basic padded ornament. The fabric shown in the background of this photo is what I used to cover the back of the ornament.

Mini Minnie Mouse

This is another quilt square for charity. It was made into a quilt using a winter theme with the Disney characters.

At that time, I decided to use every Sunday to stitch for charity. It was one way to celebrate the Sabbath -- by using my time for others. A few of the other stitchers in my cross-stitch group joined me in this pursuit. I stitched the majority of the square on a single Sunday.

This design is from Ultimate Cross Stitch Collection from Leisure Arts.

Song

In 2006, I took part in a Lizzie*Kate 12 Blessings of Christmas stitch-along. This is the first of twelve ornaments in this set. I decided to stitch and finish them as shown on the pattern card.

I used Gentle Art Sampler Threads and Anchor floss. The special hand-dyed wools from Weeks Dye Works were fairly pricey, but are very nice quality. I also bought the little button accessories. I made the cording with some gold crochet cotton that has a pretty metallic spun in.

I kept this set of ornaments for my family and display it every year near my Christmas card display.

Bunny Bookmark

This is the felt version of the bookmark I made out of suede and posted last week.

This bunny was a freebie chart I found online by a designer named "Dawn." As charted, it was too large to fit on a bookmark. So I decided to stitch it in petit point -- one strand of floss over one thread of the linen. (I doubt I can see well enough to stitch tiny stitches like that anymore!) The bunny came out the ideal size.

The main difference between how I constructed this bookmark from how I made my suede bookmark is that the bunny is all glued together instead of being sewn together on the sewing machine. I decided to use a hot glue gun, but it could be made with a white tacky glue as well. The bit of stitching around the window is just for decoration.

I chose to use two different shades of purple felt. The lighter shade of felt is cut 1/4" smaller all around than the darker shade of felt. This way the dark fabric forms a contrasting border.

I still use this bookmark, fourteen years after I made it! Having put the bookmark together with glue worked just fine. The stitching is not at all damaged by using glue. The bookmark is still soft and pliable. It's not archive quality, but it wasn't meant to be. It's certainly held up well.

Love

This is the second of twelve ornaments in the 12 Blessings of Christmas set by Lizzie*Kate. It's part of the same set as the Song ornament shown above.

I love the tiny charms that come with each chart. They make for a sweet finishing touch.

Goodbye, Davaz Family

Hello new young family!



It's official today. Electronic signatures completed. All the physical documents are signed. Everything is notarized. Stamps have been licked. Post office visited.

"The check is in the mail."

(but really, direct deposit. Oh, these newfangled ways!)

The sale of our home in Post Falls was completed today. Tonight, a new family gets to have their first hours of sleep in their new home.

Rest well, my friends. May those walls hug your family and help them thrive the way they hugged Dale, Jeanne, Julie, Jodie, Tabby, Rolly, Ashley, and me.

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If you need an excellent real estate agent in north Idaho, we have one to recommend!

February Goal Update

During February, I continued working on my 20 Goals in 2020 and made some more good progress. If you recall, in January I concentrated on finishing 20 jigsaw puzzles, while making progress on the other goals. In February, I concentrated on finding geocaches. I completed several other goals. I also gave attention to my word of the year, Settle.

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Overall Statistics

By the end of the month, I completed three goals and made progress on eleven others.

In February I feel more settled due to completely organizing our bedroom closet and the laundry room.

We made progress on settling the bedroom by getting a new bed. Unfortunately, not all the parts for the undercarriage drawers came in the box, so it's still not completely put together. It's a dream to sleep on, though.

I also rearranged my Studio. It's better, though it still doesn't feel like it's done.

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Goal Details

1.  Transcribe session from last year's Skamania Celebrate Your Life retreat
     Finished in February

2.  Create a watermark for my photos
     not yet

3.  Memorize the names of all the U.S. presidents in order
     not yet

4.  Make one baked treat or a batch of cookies each month
     I made two dozen toll house cookies in February

5.  Find a new doctor, a new dentist, and a psychiatrist
     Had my first appointment with my primary care physician.

6.  Put together 20 jigsaw puzzles
     Finished in February by completing puzzles 16 through  20

7. File all new digital photos once per quarter
     Not yet, but I did a preliminary sort in February

8.  Zero out email box once per quarter
     I didn't make any further progress in February. 

     My email box exploded by adding 50 more.

9.  Learn to cook six vegetarian dishes
     Not yet

10.  Listen to 20 podcast short series
       I listened to three more podcast series in February:
      * Box of Thoughts with Gabbie Hanna - (not recommended)
      * Article II : Inside Impeachment with Steve Kornacki - (very timely and informative)
      * So You Wanna Be President with Chris Matthews - (recommended)
      This brings my total to six series completed
      
11. Find 20 geocaches
      I found 19 in February! On two of the outings, I earned a souvenir: 

      Palandrome Day and Leap Day.

12. Watch 20 movies from my Netflix / Netflix DVD / Amazon Prime / Hallmark queues
     None in February. 

     I did manage to get the DVD player on my computer hooked up.

13. Celebrate 20 minor holidays
      I celebrated two in February: 

      * National Palindrome Day (found a geocache) - February 02
      * National Pistachio Day (ate some) - February 26

14. Read / listen to 20 books / audiobooks
      I finished one in February: 

      *  It’s Not What It Looks Like by Molly Burke - February 1 (audio)

15. Write 20 #throwbackthursday blog posts about my 2006 and 2007 projects
      I wrote three in February, covering May, June and July of  2006

16. Create a preliminary design for permanent furniture and fixtures in my Studio
      Not yet. But I did do a big reorganization of my Studio, 

      putting most of my supplies down the hall, 

      and making more room in my Studio for actual workspace. 

      Now all my sewing machines are set up and my sewing/cutting table is in place. 

      My computer has a new corner so that it no longer blocks the window 

      so I can admire beautiful sunsets.

17. Master bedroom closet organization
      Dale and I finished this in February and we couldn't be happier with the outcome.

18. Convert cassette tapes to mp3 or get rid of them
      Not yet. I'm still not sure I want to do this, and may substitute another goal.

19. Paint some rocks
      Not yet. But I have decided to have a painted rock garden by our front door 

      where we have two large planters full of rocks. Dale's on board with this idea.

20. Buy furniture: couch, loveseat, glider, dining room table
      The couch and loveseat are in place. 

      I bought glider, but have yet to put it together.

All in all, I feel like I've made excellent progress. We'll see how well I can continue these goals now that my family's life has additional complications with extra doctor and therapist visits. We'll see if I'm able to work toward my personal goals. I may need to substitute some of my fun goals with those more geared to health and wellness for Dale and me.

This Guy

I missed a few blog posts this last weekend, but for good purpose.

My sweet husband, Dale, had a stroke.

Not to worry! He's doing well, has full function of his body, and is in good spirits. The part of his brain that was affected has to do with short-term memory, some minor vision problems, and slower language skills. He still walks and talks and eats and climbs stairs and completes all his normal activities. His mind is just a bit slower than it was last week.

As his brother quipped, he's now on the same plane as the rest of us mere mortals.

As he quipped, he gets to be his own science experiment now as he recovers.

We're blessed to have great health insurance and access to wonderful health care professionals. We've got a course of action laid out ahead of us. The prognosis is good. Our positive outlook is intact. We're just a bit tired this morning and plan to take it easy for a couple weeks.

So ... how was your weekend?

Throwback Thursday - 2006 Part 8

This week we travel back to July, 2006. I finished five small projects that month.

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First Christmas

I stitched this ornament/door knocker for my oldest niece. She was expecting a baby at the end of October. I wanted to make a little something special for her.

The design by Lizzie*Kate was charted for some specialty threads. Since I didn't have them on hand, I chose my own colors. I also used beads instead of making the red scatter stitches. When I did the finishing work, I added an extra layer of batting on the front of the ornament to give the ornament some poof. The cording is from a spool I had in my Christmas stash and is finished as a tassel on the bottom of the heart.

Quilter Bear

I stitched this design as another quilt square for an elderly woman named Doris. The entire quilt was composed blocks stitched with these "Bears with Personality." The bear designs are by Lynn Busa for Leisure Arts.

Peace

My sister who lives in Hawaii is a peace activist. I've long admired her spunk. I made this for her 2006 birthday, finishing it as an easel/flat fold. The design is by Cecilia Turner for Heart in Hand.

Adonis Blue Butterfly

This butterfly was for another charity quilt. The entire quilt was made of butterfly squares and stitched for an ill 12 year old girl named Maryah.

The design is from a book called Butterfly Charted Designs from the Archives of the Lindberg Press.

I completely miscounted the stitch count when I decided to make this butterfly. I thought it was twice as big as it is! So to help fill up the quilt square a bit more, I added a border of my own design, using some of the same colors in the butterfly. I like the way it turned out!

Suede Bookmark

One of my stitching friends told me about a bookmark kit she purchased. The bookmark was made of leather or suede with a spot where you put a piece of stitchery. I loved the idea and thought I might be able to replicate it.

I bought a piece of suede from a local fabric store. They had a wide variety of colors in fabric that's 55 or 60 inches wide. I bought just six inches. (I can make a lot of bookmarks!) The mouse design by Ghirigori was an online freebie chart.

I like this finishing technique quite a bit. Later, I used the same technique using craft felt instead of leather. It also turned out well and is a much less expensive alternative. This bookmark was donated to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and given to one of the sick children there.

In August 2006 I stitched two ornaments, two bookmarks, and a quilt square. I intend to share them on the next #throwbackthursday.

National Pistachio Day

Some people call this Ash Wednesday.

In the Davaz house, we're observing National Pistachio Day.

Comply, we must.



Yum!

Celebrating minor holidays as one of my 20 Goals for 2020 was a great idea!

Overexposed

Dale and I went out for a ride to explore some local countryside. I brought along my big girl camera and was messing with the settings while doing some front seat photography.

There's something soothing about this overexposed shot through the trees that makes me smile.

StudioTime

After working long and hard all weekend, my new Studio has order and is inviting. So I spent the entire day inside.

Lemon-Ups ... it's Girl Scout Cookie Time!

True, some of it was ironing and folding towels and underware. I find those peaceful and zen-like activities. Wrinkles smoothed from Dale's dress shirts. Freshly laundered towels folded into soft piles. I like the way it's one job that has a defined beginning, middle, and end. There's satisfaction in completing a job.

Not everything has a place  yet

As I puttered, I took time with several spiritual thought leaders via the online Celebrate Your Life Soulfest.

The best StudioTime leaves me refreshed, body and soul. And soul. And soul. And soul. I'm grateful my room is ready for creative activities again.

Cottage Grove

Geocaching with my daughter at the covered walking bridge in Cottage Grove, Oregon. The Centennial Bridge was built in 1987. Jodie scored the cache is in that bush on the left.

The structure of this bridge was interesting on the inside. Is it called Post and Beam? Whatever it is, it's gorgeous craftsmanship.

On the Move

Dale and I are still trying to make sense of our new home ... no ... in our new home. As much downsizing as we did, we are still having a hard time fitting the items we brought with us into this new space. Last week I managed to rearrange the laundry room. I go in there now just to open the cabinets and look at all that order. It calms me and makes me smile.

One more room settled.

We got our master bedroom closet organized last week, too. I may have to do a blog post about it. I'm over the moon with how it looks. I go into that walk-in closet, close the door, and bask in the order and symmetry.

Another area settled.

Dale's been working on the garage. He's brought a lot of order to it over the last few days. There's still much to do. But I'll bet we can park at least one car in there before too long.

My Studio however...

:: sigh ::

I'm still trying to make it work. Part of the reason the bedroom closet works so well is because we moved one of the seven foot tall bookcases that was in my Studio into that closet. However, all the art supplies that were stored on that shelf need a new home.

After much deliberation, we decided to move the other three seven-foot shelving units out of my Studio and store my stash down the hall. That area is starting to take shape. My dressmaker's mannequin even made it upstairs from where she was tucked in the garage. So here's another corner of order.

Now I'm trying to figure out a new layout for my Studio that makes sense. It's chaos in here. I want to return to creating.

I've got my computer corner almost set up. (Thus, my ability to write today's blog post). I've moved my sewing/cutting table from the kitchen(!) into the Studio. I've added a small folding table for the sewing machines, and another small table for crafting. But none of the furniture has a home yet, nor many of the supplies. I've got cardboard moving boxes literally stacked to the ceiling in my bathroom and most of my office supplies taking up space in the bedroom.

Chaos!

The first thing after removing the bookcases was to move the computer and the six foot folding table away from the window. I want to be able to be closer to this every evening! The school. The sports teams on the field. The dogs catching Frisbees. The clouds playing in the western sky.



I don't want to have the window shades down and miss the nightly show.

A girl needs her priorities!

A girl also needs to make some more decisions about what goes where ... instead of getting sidetracked with sunsets and writing a blog post.

Crocus

I had a small crocus bed by my front door when I lived in Idaho. It was beautiful and I savored each flower as it struggled through the snow and frost. My bed never looked like this!

Such beauty

Delicate petal cups reaching for light.

Read more about Frances Ellen Watkins Harper

Throwback Thursday - 2006 Part 7

This week we travel back to June, 2006. It's still The Year of the Ornament, but I stitched only one that month.




Sunflower at my Window

One of the stitching groups I was part of decided to participate in an outreach project. We created bookmarks that were donated to St. Jude's Children's Hospital.

I picked this chart by Handblessings (Eileen Gurak Needlework Design) from my stash. I'd received it as a freebie with a stash shipment. The design is charted for Weeks Dye Works threads on Nordic Blue Jobelan. Instead, I chose to use up bits and pieces of things I had on hand -- some bright DMC colors and a scrap of Fiddler's Cloth. I backed the bookmark with a remnant of autumnal fabric from my stash.

Skater Penguin

This perky little guy is the final piece I needed to pre-stitch for the Denver finishing class.

I don't have any designer information about this pattern. His silver skates and bright beaded eye are adorable. What a handsome chap!

In the class, he was finished as a "tall triangle." Much like the box I showed last week, the base of a tall triangle is composed of foam board, sturdy cardboard, or tag board. The base is covered in batting, the fabric, and the stitchery. Then they are glued or sewn together. The rough edges are covered in cording, and decorations are added.

Goofy

One of the gals in the Cross Stitch for Charity group got a bit behind in her stitching and asked for help with a couple quilt squares that she'd promised to stitch. Since I was between projects and could hit the deadline, I offered to stitch this block for her. She donated the chart and fabric; I donated my time and talent.

The finished Disney quilt was to be gifted to a sick child named Jennifer. It feels darn good to stitch for others ... especially when it is appreciated not only by the child, but by a fellow stitcher I was able to help out.

Frosty Friend

I found this design by Forever in my Heart online. It was charted in black and white and appeared to be a good choice to make into an ornament. The charity group I took part in had a gal that volunteered to turn our stitching into completed ornaments. While doing the finishing work, she'd insert a chip that played a Christmas tune. Squeeze the ornament for an extra surprise.

There are some stitched projects I've made that just never worked. This is one that embarrasses me. The problems usually arise from bad color combinations, inappropriate ground fabric, or a poor floss choice. I definitely got the background color wrong here; the floss choice is questionable, too. This poor lackluster thing simply lacks pizzazz.

You stitch, you learn.

And on that sad, sorry note, I'm done with June! In July 2006, I stitched five pieces and plan to share them on the next #throwbackthursday.

Sunshine Yellow

It's a beautiful Spring-like day in Eugene today. No clouds! Lots of sun. Temperatures in the 50s.

I went out for a walk in the neighborhood with my big girl camera for the first time since moving here. The crocus are in full bloom (more about them later this week). The daffodils are just starting to wake up and raise their heads.



Perhaps I'll soon settle in with a regular camera walk before to long.

Oh, The Places You'll See!

I took a little break from my online life over the President's Day holiday weekend. After finishing all the puzzles, and messing with googly eyes for weeks, I got thin on ideas for blog posts. I have some ideas, but they involve editing a lot of photos and writing long posts. I'll get to them eventually, but I was too pooped.

So over the weekend Dale and I did a project for the house that took more ingenuity than time. But it broke a log jam that's been keeping us from settling in here. We figured out how to configure the walk-in closet in our bedroom to fit all our clothes, including those usually kept in a dresser. We finally figured it out! And figuring that out is helping me breathe new life into how I'll set up my studio and another storage area.

Also over the weekend, Jodie and I did some geocaching. She bought a car that can carry us onto back country roads, so we were testing it out. That car is a champ! For both of us, finding 20 geocaches is one of our 20 in 2020 Goals. Jodie reached her goal yesterday. I have only two more caches to find.

The thing about caching is that even if you can't find the cache when you get to ground zero, you often get another kind of prize. That's what happened at a cache called Bird Hunting:

click for larger image

It was such a pretty day, and such lovely territory. The road overlooked a piece of BLM land that had been replanted in trees about seven years ago. The trees are thriving. We watched three birds of prey sailing on the winds. We took time to savor this beautiful valley, with a backdrop of snow-covered mountain peaks.

click for larger image

I'm lovin' livin' in Oregon.

February Welcome

Our front porch

Valentine's Day

photo credit unknown ... not mine

Windows

Here's Puzzle #20 of the 20 puzzles I planned to put together for my annual 20 in 2020 Goals.
It's 300 pieces of pleasure.

I'll let the charming individual windows speak for themselves.

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Ahhh, those eyes! A window into the soul.