Fonville Farm

Goodbye/Hello

2012-01-13T20:59:00.000-05:00

Goodbye/hello? What does that mean?

Well, I've thought about this for along time and I've decided to stop blogging here. I had a purpose when I started this blog and through life events it really strayed away from what I intended for it. And through the years, I decided that the name just didn't fit what I wanted anymore.

I've loved blogging here, when I've had the time! I've met lots of great people here and shared lots of memories, good and bad.

So with all of that being said, I hope that you all will follow me to my new home at Cook Sew Smile. I love the name and it fits what I want for my blog! I love to cook, love to sew and all of this makes me happy, so therefore I smile!

I will keep this one open mostly for the memories. So goodbye for now! Thank you to all of you who have been my friends here, I've enjoyed every minute of our time together!

Kroger Private Selection

2012-01-03T21:06:00.000-05:00

Kroger has some new appetizers, desserts and pizzas under the Private Selection label. Through Bzzagent I was able to try these for free! The desserts are amazing!

Snow Princess

2011-12-02T14:16:00.000-05:00

This past weekend my beautiful daughter rode in the back of a convertible through the middle of town in the Christmas parade in 40ish* weather! Why did she do this? Because she was the Snow Princess of course! I was so excited when she told me she was nominated! I was probably more excited than most moms and only because she was such a tomboy when she was little and I never thought that I would see her in a gorgeous fancy dress with her hair and make up done! I was just so proud of her! And when she told me she won, I couldn't wait to get out and go shopping! She wanted a long white dress! Other than getting a wedding dress, there were no long white dresses to be found! There were very few long dresses in any color to be found! I looked here in Atlanta and my mom looked in VA, but then my generous mother offered to just make it! How wonderful was that?!?!?! She now has an order for a prom dress from her very satisfied granddaughter!

I just loved her dress!

I can't believe she is turning 17 in one week! Really? Am I really that old?

I keep telling her to stop looking so much older than her age because that doesn't help me at all!

But she doesn't listen!

I can't wait to see her all dressed up for prom!

Bzzagent!

2011-11-18T15:42:00.000-05:00

Have you ever heard of Bzzagent? Well my sister told me about it a few years ago and I love it! It's a great way to get some free things and great coupons!

Just yesterday I got a package in the mail with 2 boxes of Truely Awesome chocolate chip cookies from Kroger for free! And lots of $1.00 off coupons! What did I have to do to get this? Just took a short survey and don't worry there are no personal questions asked! All I do now is tell people about bzzagent and the product that I'm reviewing and log back in to bzzagent and tell them what I thought!

Anyone can do it! So go sign up today and see what goodies that you can get!

Almost 8 Months!

2011-11-09T22:42:00.000-05:00

Wow! Time flies when your busy! I'm hardly ever on here anymore!

So what have I been doing? Chasing Lillie! That's right! She's on the move! She started crawling and pulling up the week she turned 6 months! 2 weeks later, she decided to sit up by herself! That same week, she got her bottom two front teeth which popped through the same day!

(run, run, run! that says it all!)

(getting all stretched out and ready for the day! haha!)

She now has 3 teeth and is walking around holding on to everything! She's already had her first busted lip and several bruises! She's just a rough and tough nosey little girl!

(see those teeth!)

As far as food goes, she'd rather not have it!

(ewwww, green beans! yuck yuck yuck!)

( mom, i still can't believe you gave me green beans!)

But if she has to eat, her favorites are blueberries and sweet potatoes.

(more please!)

But don't give her oatmeal, she throws up! I mean really throws up! Everything, til she can't throw up anymore, then she's just completely worn out. It's just so sad. We've done this twice before we figured out that it was oatmeal. And when I eat peanuts she breaks out in severe eczema!

Now this little seat is WONDERFUL! It packs up just like a bag chair! It's called a go-pod by kidco, and we love it! That's the only way I can keep her in one spot!

And I've been doing ALOT of this!

I love, love, love using our Bum Genius cloth diapers! They are just so easy to use! And they're just so darn cute on her and the clothesline;)

She loves bathtime!

(especially in granny's fabulous sink that mommy really really wants but will never get one like it!)

And so did her momma at that age!

(this was in my granny's sink!)

(don't we look a bit alike?)

She also loves her big sister! And I just adore them both!

(but honestly, how could you not just adore these two beauties!)

Lillie loves the pool!

So, I've been very busy! Can't you tell?

And one more, just because it's too cute not to!

And this is how she is 99.9% of the time! I'm so blessed!

November Sabika Specials

2011-11-09T21:12:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to share the November Specials for Sabika!

Honestly, pictures just don't do this jewelry justice! Once you buy your first piece then you're hooked!

I'm really trying to get Sabika going here in the Atlanta area. It's a great company with a great opportunity for anyone wanting a home based business.

I'm working with a friend of mine this weekend doing a vendor fair here in Douglasville at O'Charley's, so if you're in the area on Saturday come by and get a head start on your Christmas shopping! And if you're not in the area and are interested in something please let me know!

Check out the website for Sabika here!

Sabika!

2011-08-12T21:21:00.000-04:00

If you've never heard of Sabika Jewelry before then you are missing out on some of the most beautiful and versatile jewelry on the market! I have been in love with it for quite some time!

I finally decided to become a consultant!

This is my sister and I out on the town decked out in our Sabika! It is just so much fun!

If anyone is interested in something please let me know!

Sabika has been in business for 10 years. It started in PA and has spread to VA, WV, and NC. And now, I'm bringing it to GA! The jewelry is all handmade in Austria using Austrian Crystals and Rhodium plated. The jewelry is available by book parties and home shows. I'm available for both! No matter where you live you can have a book party and still receive all of the same hostess specials that you would receive by having a home party! I would be more than happy to send out some catalogs!

Right now the Spring/Summer line is 50% off! The Fall/Winter catalog will be available in September! https://www.sabika-jewelry.com/index.asp

1 month, 2 months and all the latest happenings!

2011-06-01T12:44:00.002-04:00

So I've gotten behind with posting. I've had really good intentions! But before its time to post 3 month pictures I thought I better at least get a couple 1 month and 2 month pictures on here!

Here's Lillie at 1 month! Yes she holds her little head up like this ALL the time! She's just so nosey and thinks she'll miss something!

She's about 6 weeks in these pictures! We started using our Bum Genius diapers and LOVE them! I have to admit I was a little intimidated by them, but they are EASY to use! I'm so thankful that I am able to be home so that we can use them. I think they are just so darned cute! They make her little tiny butt look huge!

She just loves her tummy time:)

(the quilt was the first quilt that I ever made! it was made by my mom and me using Eleanor Burns Quilt In A Day book. and yes it was made in one day! but it took us about 1 week to quilt it, by hand, in a huge snow storm! made in 1996. )

Lillie at 2 months exactly! In her sweet little smocked dress that I made for her while I was waiting for her to get here!

Daddy just adores me! And I adore him!

We had to take the camera to church and have a friend take a picture of us! But just this week I got a tripod and a remote for my camera! Can't wait to use them!

Last week Mr F took the week off of work and we headed to Tybee Island! I just love that place! It was wonderful! Nice and breezy and just soooooo relaxing!

Lillie just loved lying out on the beach! I just love love love her little bikini!

She loved the water! I figured that she would, she loves bath time!

I just love this one!

Lillie and I had the same feelings about leaving the beach! We didn't want to!

That trip was so relaxing and such a welcome getaway!

Things have been great around here! Just the normal stresses of a new baby. But she sleeps well, from 10ish pm-4-5ish am! I can handle that! Still nursing well too! At her 2 month check up she was up to 10.9lbs from 7.3 at birth!

We've had two trips back to VA! She's such a good traveler! Which is a good thing since mommy and daddy are always traveling! This summer we have a few more trips coming up, of course to VA, a trip to the NC mountains with family, and then another work conference for Mr F (that Lillie and I get to tag along for) like the one that we went to Canada last year for but this year will be in Minnesota. That will be her first flight! Hope it goes as well as the car!

I have been doing a little sewing when I can while she naps!

I've also been doing a little gardening when I can too! We have the veggie garden looking great right now! And I'm trying to decide what I'll be entering in the flower show this weekend! Our Penny McHenry Hydrangea Festival will be this weekend! I can't wait! Its been so much fun being on the planning committee. I will be back next week with pictures from the garden tours and flower show!

Hopefully see you all next week!
Oh and today I feel really really old! My baby, my oldest baby that is got her drivers license! I'm happy for her, but I'm terrifed too! And it made me cry like a baby!

One Year Ago

2011-04-08T13:43:00.000-04:00

One year ago tomorrow I gave birth to a precious little baby boy. I can't believe its been a year. I miss him everyday.

He was so precious and tiny. I know that if things had gone differently I wouldn't have my precious Lillie. But it doesn't make me miss him any less.

Little E, Mommy loves you so much. Happy Birthday.

Time is flying by!

2011-04-01T12:25:00.000-04:00

Lillie is two weeks and two days old. It just doesn't seem like she could already be that old! She is such a sweet baby! She sleeps well (only gets up twice at night!), eats well, and is just so happy!

She smiles all the time! Even when she has the hiccups!

These were all pictures taken by the hospital photographer! Hospital pictures sure have changed since Morgan was born! All of these were taken in my room in the bed with me. I just love them all! The photographer was so patient and good with Lillie.

The tiara was given to Lillie at the surprise baby shower that my garden club threw for us. My friend Mary found it at a doll shop and thought that Lillie had to have it! I just love it! And since Lillie has a tiara, mom had to have one too! Another lady in my garden club let me borrow one of hers for pictures!

This was during my very short labor! Lillie's tiara was patiently waiting for her:)

My family came to Atlanta for a few days. I was so excited! It broke my heart to see them go, I cried the entire day that they left. Not sure if I really missed them or if it was just the hormones! I think a little of both:)

While they were here my mom and I did a photo shoot with Lillie.

Here are Morgan, Colton and Emma kissing Lillie.

Lillie in her favorite spot, on my chest!

The red tutu I made for her, almost swallowed her!

Her sweet little foot!

My two girls! Morgan is in love with her, and she is going to be in love with her big sister one day soon too!

I just love this one too! Mr F asked why we have such a fascination with feet. They are just too cute, you can't help but be fascinated by them:)

Honestly, there is nothing about this little girl that doesn't fascinate her daddy. She has him wrapped!

Introducing.......

2011-03-17T15:27:00.000-04:00

Lillie Suzanne, born 9:54 am March 16.

7 lbs 2.2 oz, 18.5" long

She's just perfect! And looks exactly like her big sister!

I'm a Winner!

2011-03-14T11:20:00.000-04:00

How cool is this?!?! I just found out that I won a Shadow Work Embroidery DVD from Wendy Schoen and a floche sampler pack, all from the Sew Beautiful Blog!

It's been forever since I've done any shadow work, but I loved doing it when I did it for Morgan. I can't wait to get something started for Lillie!

I'm so glad that I found their blog, I've been in love with the magazine for the past 16 years! I have stacks of them in my craft room!

Congratulations to all of the other winners!

Sew Darn Crafty

2011-03-13T17:25:00.000-04:00

I'm linking up this post and this post to Sew Many Ways, Sew Darn Crafty linky party! Go check out all of the craftiness going on there!

The last of the creativity for awhile!

2011-03-11T16:17:00.000-05:00

So I'm thinking this will be the last creative post for awhile! I had to share a picture of the carseat cover I made using this tutorial.

I actually made last week and just hadn't taken a picture of it until now!

I just love the watermelon fabric!

Now, it just needs the baby!

Dress A Girl

2011-03-11T10:33:00.000-05:00

I am participating in the Dress A Girl sew a long over at Little Big Girl Studio.

You can learn more about Dress A Girl Around the World here. I completely agree, every little girl should have at least one dress! My Lillie has a closet full already and she's not even here. So this week I've put sewing for Lillie and the house on the back burner and started sewing for other little girls that I've never met, and probably never will. So far I've finished three dresses. I've prayed over each of them for the little girls that will receive them. Who knows, maybe these little girls will do great things!

I can see me making more of these in the future!

March 15th!

2011-03-04T08:48:00.000-05:00

March 15th is the BIG day! If she decides to wait that long! (I'm secretly hoping that she doesn't!)

My dr told me that she thought it would be best to induce me a week early because of my history and the longer that you wait you risk having placental issues. I'm fine with inducing so that I can plan things! Like important things, as in getting my family here to be with us to meet this long awaited baby girl! And the fact that almost weekly since moving to Atlanta I've heard on the radio, "Fire fighters deliver baby on side of GA 400!", "Police deliver baby on side of 285!", "EMS crews deliver baby on side of I-20 in rush hour traffic this am!" And yes, we will be driving on some of these highways to get to the hospital!

I don't want to be one of those ladies! I want to be in the nice comfy hospital in time for my epidural! Yes an epidural, I have nothing to prove! I would much rather be able to enjoy the birth of my child instead of being in agony.

Right now I'm just ready to get her here! I'm done with being pregnant for a while! These next 11 days are going to be long! I go in March 15th at 7pm to start the induction. So I'm figuring that she'll be born sometime in the middle of the night/ early morning on the 16th! At least that's what I'm hoping!

I had my last u/s this week. She is estimated to be about 7lbs 9oz, but that could be off a pound either way!

We didn't get any pictures to bring home with us this time, because she is head down and face down, which made it really hard to get any good pictures!

I'll be keeping everyone posted on when she arrives!

Catherine's Spring Line

2011-02-18T20:48:00.000-05:00

Go here and see my sister-in-laws adorable little girls dresses and tunics that she is making for her etsy store!

I just love the fabric that she chose! And they come in a variety of sizes. If you are interested in a specific size that is not listed, let her know and she'll do her best to accommodate you!

Catherine has been sewing for a few years and is doing an amazing job! She's also new to blogging!

She also has an adorable little boy with the biggest bluest eyes! And she has another little boy on the way, due in June!

Go by her blog and take a look at her beautiful creations!

(I tried to add a few photos, but for some reason its just not working for me)

Lillie's Nursery

2011-02-16T14:48:00.000-05:00

Lillie's nursery is finally finished! All it needs now is a baby!

I am so happy with how it turned out!

I hope she likes red and white polka dots!

I covered the chair and ottoman with fabric purchased here.

The flower pot was purchased at Hobby Lobby, my other love!

The basket was made by my mother-in-law.

The wall hanging was made by my best friend, April. That was actually the same fabric that I had purchased to make Little E's quilt out of. It came in the mail while I was in the hospital having him. It's still in the package and I can't bring myself to use it. April had no idea that I was going to use that line of fabric. I love her! She's been a part of my life for 20 years! We met when we were really little;)

The tutu was made by me using this tutorial.

The picture of the angel is actually a puzzle that was put together by Mr F, he wanted it framed and hanging in Lillie's room.

The raggedy ann dolls were my daughter, Morgan's, when she was little.

The cradle was given to me by my grandfather when I was about 4.

I made the curtains.

The bird mobile was also made by me using this tutorial. They were made from fabric that was in my stash that was purchased with a quilt in mind, a long time ago and had never been cut.

More of Morgan's raggedy ann and andy dolls.

My and Lillie's very first, and probably only, Coach bag! My girlfriend's gave this lovely bag to us! We kindof started a tradition that when anyone has a baby now we all pitch in and get a Coach diaper bag. I love it! Mr F says he has to have a man bag, he can't carry that one! No one said he was going to carry it:)

This wall is not finished yet. I am in the process of putting together a collage of pictures of our family that lives away from us so that Lillie can see them everyday and learn their faces!

We only have about 4 more weeks to go! I'm ready for it to be over right now! I've been pregnant since September 2009. I'm ready to have a baby in my arms and soooooo ready to wear normal clothes!

Mark your calendars!

2011-01-27T21:09:00.000-05:00

Mark your calendars for The Penny McHenry Hydrangea Festival!

Please help me get the word out! This is going to be such an amazing event! And I am so proud and honored to a part of the planning committee!

Babies "R" Us, I'm not happy with you right now!

2011-01-26T17:43:00.000-05:00

I'm really not happy with Babies "R" Us right now! We registered there last year when I was pregnant with our son with no problems at all. We had a very helpful lady that gave us advice but didn't push us in any direction at all. So when we went to register this time the same lady was there and helped us get everything set up. But then, after we finished another lady came over and asked if she could look at our registry and proceeded to tell me that I registered for all the wrong things, not enough items and started to give me advice on the extra gadgets that I might want to consider. Then asked if she could just change my registry for me. I told her that I was happy with the way things were, that I knew what I needed and wanted.

So today, I went back with a Medela Pump In Style breast pump that a friend gave me. All I need is new tubing and accessories and the pump itself works just fine. They do not sell the tubing, but they do sell the accessories. The same lady was working today, she proceeded to tell me that I could not use a second-hand breast pump that even with changing the tubing and accessories that there is still bacteria in the motor that my baby will not be able to fight off. She would be happy to help me with anything else, even a new breast pump, but not accessories for the used one. I have never heard this before, if it is the case then shouldn't each mother buy a new pump for each new child?

I had some reward bucks that are going to expire and I was so mad at her that I left and didn't get anything. It made me even want to delete my registry and re-register somewhere else!

31 weeks

2011-01-20T08:25:00.001-05:00

I'm 31 weeks. I go for my 32 week check-up next week. This was the check-up with Little E that they did not hear a heartbeat. It's so hard to believe that its been 9 months since I had him. In about 9 weeks I'll be going to the same hospital but this time I'll be leaving with my baby girl in my arms. So far everything is going great! She is soooooooo active! We've been going for monthly ultrasounds and dopplers, which have all been perfect. After next week I start going every week for non-stress testing. As of right now she is weighing about 3.5lbs, which is about 78th percentile for her age. That's great considering I was told that I would probably have a very small baby. If she continues at this rate she should be around 8-9 lbs.

I still have so much to do! I have one more trip to VA before she gets here, for a baby shower that my girlfriends are throwing for me! I can't wait to see them all!

Here are the pictures of the nursery and things that I've been making for it!

This is me and Lillie at 31 weeks!

An applique banner that I made for the nursery using my embroidery machine!

Baby quilt that a made using Bliss charm packs by Bonnie and Camille for Moda!

I know it looks small, but I had so many other things going on that I didn't want to get too involved and not be able to get it done!

The back!

The slipcover that I made for the chair that will be in the nursery and it has a matching ottoman.

My first try at smocking in 13 years! I just adore little smocked dresses!

The fabric was purchased in Montreal when we went back in the fall.

And this is the tree that I painted on the wall behind her crib. I really wanted a tree on her wall, but some of the vinyl ones were more than I wanted to spend. So I went to Hobby Lobby (LOVE that place!) and purchased a set of alphabet stencils and some paint. I stenciled the alphabet and numbers and then free handed the rest. I'm not a painter at all! So I wasn't sure how this was going to turn out, I think its kinda cute!

I've still got more to do! Hopefully more pictures by the end of the weekend!

I'm linking up with Under The Table and Dreaming.

Snowed in in Atlanta!

2011-01-13T19:01:00.000-05:00

For the past four days I've been snowed in. Rather iced in! It's rare for Atlanta to be so cold and have so much white stuff on the ground! I know that it's been a joke on the news about how many people live in Atlanta and how many snow plows we have. But we don't get that much snow, when we do it's usually gone the next morning and never needs to be plowed. I'd rather not have to pay more taxes to pay for equipment that is going to just sit here and not be used and have pay to store it.

So I've been at home since Sunday. Mr F couldn't make it out to work 2 days, and missed a business trip because flights were cancelled. The city basically closed down!

Since I'm not, shall we say very graceful, and I'm almost 8 months preggo, I've decided it best that I not get out to get any pictures or do anything else for that matter. So the pics that I do have were taken by Mr F or by me standing in the doorway.

It amazes me to see people's excitement about the snow when they never see it! It doesn't get me all excited anymore. They don't sell sleds here in the stores, there's really no need. So you see anything and everything that can be used to go down a hill! Including rubbermaid tote lids, trash bags, cardboard boxes and my personal favorite and oh how I wish I had a picture of this, a kayak tied to a rope being pulled by a pickup truck! Looked like so much fun that I really wanted to get out there for that one!

So I've been sewing to pass the time! I've made a few crib sheets using this tutorial, a cloth diaper, and I've started knitting a strawberry hat for Miss Lillie. I've also finished up her baby quilt, a banner for her room and smocked a dress for her! I have so many things to do before March 21! I'll post pics of the sewing later, blogger is acting up and not letting me post all of the pictures I wanted to.

Happy Holidays!

2010-12-17T06:31:00.000-05:00

I hope everyone is enjoying getting ready for the holidays! I know I am:) Although I have been moving quite a bit slower, but all for a great reason! Apparently I have a very active and above average size for her age perfect little girl still growing like a weed in my big round belly! We were told that she would probably be small, but now we're told if she continues to grow as she is now she will be 8-9lbs! I'm 27 weeks this week and so far all is perfect! Everything that can possibly be checked has been checked! She's perfectly healthy, and I'm perfectly healthy, just really tired! But that could be that I don't like to slow down either. On top of being growing a very active baby, I have been getting ready for Christmas, going to Christmas party's for the garden clubs, traveling to VA for my big baby girls Sweet 16, crafting, and a small amount of helping with the hydrangea festival planning.

If any of you have the weekend of June 3-5 free, then you should plan on being here in Douglasville, GA for The Penny McHenry Hydrangea Festival! And if you don't have it free, then you should rearrange whatever it is and be here anyway! It will be so much fun! And for the one's of you that live close by, you should be thinking about what you would like to enter in the flower show and/or the table designs! Remember last year was my first time going to the festival, first time ever going to a flower show and first time ever entering a a flower show, and I won first place for a day lily! If I can do it, so can you! And look where it has gotten me, I'm now the President of The Town and Country Garden Club! haha! Even if you don't enter, you should still come and see everything and take the garden tour! Check out my pictures of the tour from last year here! Absolutely amazing gardens! One of them has been featured in Southern Living magazine like 4 times! (and I'm pretty sure it will be on the tour again this year and also featured in the February 2011 Southern Living issue I'm told!) So go check out the blog, that is still being worked on, and continue to check there or follow it for all the updates as I get them!

I hope you all have a Wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year, in case I'm not back on here before!

I'm back and busy busy busy!

2010-10-28T22:24:00.000-04:00

Well, we made it back safely! We had an amazing time in Vermont and Montreal! But my week wasn't complete until I went to The Country Living Magazine Fair here in Stone Mountain Park just outside of Atlanta!

I have tons of pictures and stories that I will post this weekend!

I am taking on something new, something that I've never done before. I will be the new president of Town and Country Garden Club starting in January. That has also landed me on the planning committee of the 4th Annual Penny McHenry Hydrangea Festival that will be held here in Douglas County the first weekend of June 2011. We started the planning this week! There will be more details to come! And I'm starting a festival blog!

Anyone who has a chance to come here really should! Last year was my first time at the festival and I had a blast! That is where I won my first place ribbon in the flower show! There is also a garden tour that is amazing! One of the homes on the tour last year has been featured in Southern Living magazine a few times and is supposed to be in the February 2011 issue!

Here is an article that was published in Southern Living about Penny McHenry. I wish that I had had the chance to meet her!

I'm seeing Pink!

2010-10-14T19:13:00.000-04:00

I'm seeing PINK everywhere because.....

It's a GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That's right! I'm having a baby girl, due March 21.

So, I'm getting the sewing bug really bad right now! I got my pleater and bishops dress pattern out this week to see if I can still remember how to smock. It's only been about 13 years since I've smocked anything.

I can't wait to see what I might find for her next week in Vermont and Montreal!

My mom is having a Giveaway!

2010-09-24T10:32:00.000-04:00

Happy Anniversary to my Mom and Dad! 34 years tomorrow!

And for her anniversary, she is having a giveaway on her blog!

So go check it out! And good luck!

Best Buy has lost me forever!

2010-09-20T10:42:00.000-04:00

That's right! Best Buy has lost me and my family as customers FOREVER!

Last week, I took my laptop (which I did not buy there) in to be repaired by the Geek Squad. I purchased it online through Dell about 3 years ago. I've been very happy with it. But the battery stopped charging and then last week it was not getting any power at all. So I thought since I live 5 minutes from Best Buy, I would give them my business, instead of dealing with the hassle of shipping it back to Dell. BIG MISTAKE!

First of all, I keep all of my embroidery designs and photos on jump drives. The Geek Squad tech wanted me to purchase an external hard drive to back up everything, but only the things that I already have copies of. So I declined. I payed $35 to ship it off. This weekend I got a call from someone telling me to call the store that I dropped the computer off at and they would give me an estimate. The estimate was $285 for a new power source and a new hard drive. My hard drive was just fine when I took it in. My husband took over at this point, he knows more about these things than I do. No one could tell us anything about my computer except that it was not in front of them and that I could call this number and find out something. Our only questions were "What was wrong with the hard drive?", and "Was it recoverable?". How else were we to make an informed decision? If I had to start over from scratch then it would be cheaper and easier to just buy a new computer. But with each person that we reached, we got the same answers, "Your computer is not in front of me, I'm not sure where it is." "Can we speak to someone who has seen our computer or can you get a message to them?" "No, we can't do that, we never talk to them and they will not talk to customers."

So my computer is on its way back to me, my husband will fix the power problem and if I need a new one, it will NOT be purchased at Best Buy!

I just feel like this is very poor customer service. We should be able to get our questions answered. It's almost as if they expect you to not have questions and just spend your money because they say that you should. But Best Buy you came across the wrong customers this time!

My daddy has always said that he did not like Best Buy and would not go back there. He and my mom bought a new refrigerator and dishwasher there and both were duds! It's not the fault of the store, just the appliances. I guess I'm with my daddy on this now, no more Best Buy for me either!

The Truth Is......

2010-09-12T20:14:00.000-04:00

The truth is.....

that I'm a liar.

that I'm not always as ok as I may say that I am.

that it's easier to just smile and say that I'm fine.

that I'm terrified every day that I'm going to do something to harm this baby that's growing inside of me.

that I miss my baby boy every second of every day.

that there is not a day that goes by that I don't cry for my baby boy.

that some days I cry harder than others.

that I look at his picture and kiss his little face everyday.

that I cry myself to sleep most nights.

the nights that I don't cry myself to sleep, I lay awake and think of him.

that I don't think my husband knows any of this, because I haven't told him.

that its been 5 months since I gave birth to my sweet baby boy and it seems like it was just yesterday.

that when you go through something like this you find out who your true friends are.

that the ones that I so desperately want to talk to about all of this doesn't seem to be there.

that I fill my days with lunches and outings with the ladies from the garden club just so that I'm not thinking.

that sometimes I feel like I'm going crazy.

that sometimes I feel like I'm the bad friend.

that I don't want to feel like this.

that I am not writing this for sympathy, I just needed to write.

that I probably won't answer any of your comments.

that I miss my family.

that I miss me.

that I now know what to say to someone going through this.

that its better to say something than nothing at all.

that I have friends who still have not spoken to me at all, or when they did speak they never mentioned it.

that sometimes that is what hurts me more.

that I'm not angry with God.

that I'm sad, but not angry.

that I thank God every day for the blessings that he has given me.

My First Trunk Show

2010-09-08T13:00:00.000-04:00

My friend Karen, is having a wine tasting party at her house. She has made some homemade blueberry wine, Yum! Although I won't be tasting any for quite some time! She's also making some delicious, risotto (this I will definitely be able to sample) !

Anyway, she has asked me if I wanted to display some samples of my work to sell! I'm so excited! Maybe I'll be able to make some spending money for Montreal!

I'm hoping that this will be the first of many trunk shows for me:) After all, it is getting close to Christmas and time to start thinking about presents!

So these are just a few pictures that I have on hand, but I'll be doing some more bags of different sizes, embroidered towels, and burp cloths (after all I need to put that embroidery machine to good use!).

I can't wait!!

2010-09-07T10:56:00.000-04:00

Mr F has a business trip coming up in October, and like many of his trips I get to tag along! Of course this isn't going to be one of those boring trips like it usually is or one of the trips back home that I always tag along so that I can see my family while he works. This trip is going to be so exciting!

We are going to Montreal! That's right! Montreal! We will first be flying into Burlington, VT! Vermont in the fall! I've always wanted to go there and now I get to! He has vacation days that he is going to use at the end of the trip so that we can do some of the touristy things. Besides it's not often that my husbands job takes him anywhere other than the east coast and a few mid west states, never out of the country!

After meeting Mary on my last trip, it makes me look at vacations a little differently! I start trying to remember which bloggers live close by where I'm going and would I be able to meet someone!

So let me know if any of you live close enough that we might could meet up!

Even if I don't get to meet any bloggy friends, I'll still come home with some great pictures, Vermont Maple Syrup and probably some fabric!:)

This post comes with a warning!

2010-09-01T12:29:00.001-04:00

Warning: before you read this post I have to get a few things straight! I am in no way prejudice or judgemental or scared of someone with a life threatening disease. This post is written just because this was just too funny not to share! Please remember that I am a nurse and I know how to protect myself from certain diseases and therefore I am not afraid to go to the grocery store or Target for fear of catching something!

Last night, my dear Mr F called me from PA where he is on a business trip and asked me to meet a man and his wife at Target with an item that he sold them on craigslist. I'm not a person that scares easily, so I told him I would, especially since its a man and his wife. He told me what they would be driving and we were to meet in Target parkinglot. Target here is always busy!

So the said pickup truck pulled in beside me and there were two men in the truck not a man and wife. The man got out and came toward me, slurring his words like Otis on The Andy Griffith Show! "You must be Eric's wife". We made our exchange and then for the next 20 minutes I stood there deciding how I was going to kill my husband!

First of all, this man was probably about 6'4", slender with a beer gut, long greyish red hair in a ponytail, dirty blue jean cutoffs, a t-shirt, muddy workboots with dirty white knee socks. And he wreaked of pot and alcohol!

He proceeded to tell me that he had the f#@&ing Aids! (everyother word was the f word)! He continued, "Are you afraid of my f-ing Aids?, Can't you tell I have the f-ing Aids?, Don't you see the f-ing A on my forehead?, Aren't you scared to stand there, won't you catch my f-ing Aids?" All the time I was just looking at him thinking how can I get back in my car and leave. The other guy was standing beside his truck talking on his phone.

I told the man that I was a nurse and no I was not afraid of him and his Aids. His response was "Why can't you teach that to the rest of the f-ing world!" He has been HIV positive for 20 years. Which is amazing! He then told me that his wife of three years was also HIV positive for 20 years. Then, "We've been married for three years, we got married 1month and 2 weeks after we met. Do you have a f-ing problem with that if you do you can kiss my f-ing a$$!" Me, "No I think its wonderful that you two have each other." All the time thinking I'm divorcing my husband!

He then told me that he had been arrested 4 different times for DUI's when he wasn't drinking, it was his Aids meds, but that he was only arrested because the f-ing redneck cops around here know he has Aids and is trying to punish him for that.

He tells everyone within 5 minutes of meeting them that he has Aids. He said that he tells people in the grocery store checkout line that he has Aids, because it is his mission to educate people about Aids.

His friend finally got in the truck cranked it and started to back up, that is how I got away!

I'm sorry, but if it is his mission to educate people about Aids, he has no idea how to do it! I was not scared of the fact that he had Aids, I was scared of the fact that he was being absolutely obnoxious, drunk, and high.

I called my husband and told him a few choice words, and I will not be helping out with anything that he chooses to sell on craigslist ever again! We would be getting divorced had he sent the man to our house!

I can laugh about this today, but last night I couldn't!
I should add that I had just come from a memorial service and was still dressed up!

My Summer Vacation

2010-08-31T21:53:00.000-04:00

This summer while on vacation I got to meet Mary! Mary was one of the many ladies that participated in making that AMAZING quilt for me! I'm so happy that we vacationed about 30 minutes from her home. I packed up the quilt and hoped that we would be able to meet! She is so pretty and sweet and I wish we lived closer! She also has a beautiful daughter! We of course had our husbands along to be our photographers.

I can't even begin to explain how special it was to me that we were able to meet in person. We've talked back and forth through blog posts and emails for a while, but it was so wonderful to be able to see her in person!

Not only did I get to meet one of the amazing ladies that participated in making the quilt, she got to see the finished quilt in person! The pictures just don't even do it justice. I hope that I will have a chance to meet all of the ladies who had a hand in this!

Accu quilt Go Giveaway!

2010-08-31T09:46:00.000-04:00

My friend Karen at Sew Many Ways is hosting a giveaway for an Accu Quilt Go Cutter! Wow!

Go here to enter!

Summer has been busy!

2010-08-24T18:15:00.000-04:00

Summer has been soooooo busy for me and my family. There has been lots of travel, time in the garden, lots of time in the house with the air conditioning (especially on those 100* + days!), some time canning, and a little time sewing.

But this is what I've mostly been doing......

That's right! I'm making another one! (I just love that picture!)

I am due March 21, 2011. Too early to know what it is yet, but the ultrasound yesterday showed a 1 1/2 " very busy little peanut! The dr's are pleased with the progress so far. I will be getting ultrasounds every month until about week 24 then I'll start every other week ultrasounds with the specialist and in between seeing my regular ob. So basically a dr's visit every week!

I've had mostly afternoon sickness, but I think I may have solved that problem. I was taking vitamin B6 but I was taking the whole thing in the morning. The dr told me to cut it into thirds and take it throughout the day. So that's what I did today and it helped! Not sick yet!

I'll be back later to post some pictures from my visit with someone very special from blogland! I should have already posted but things got in the way.

House Number Planter

2010-06-24T11:52:00.000-04:00

I'm so bad about taking before pictures. I need to get better at that! I would love to do tutorials on some of the things that I make, but I get involved and forget to take pictures of all of the steps.

Anyway, here is the after pictures of my house number bucket that I did!

I printed off the numbers on card stock and cut them out to make stencils.

I painted a galvanized bucket that I already had with some hammered copper spray paint that I already had.

Then I traced the stencils with a sharpie and painted the numbers with navy paint.

I then sprayed the bucket with a sealer. Drilled holes in the bottom for drainage and planted flowers in it!

I just love it!

Meet Rosie:)

2010-06-21T15:18:00.000-04:00

Rosie is my helper. She is a great helper.

She loves wearing new clothes.

(a new dress that I made last week from fabric from my stash)

She loves being a model.

(the shirt was made from a man's shirt that I bought at the Goodwill! I just love it! and the skirt was made from some linen that I had in my stash. Don't you just love the rolled flowers!)

She's the best model that I have! She's not bossy or moody. She never complains or gets lazy. She's always right there and ready when I need her! I really need to find a photographer or a real model! But I do love Rosie and she is great at what she does! She's much better than I am! Especially when I have to be the photographer and the model!

(the shirt was made from a long sleeved top that I've had in a box of winter clothes for a while now that I haven't worn in a few years! the skirt was made from some knit that I had in my stash!)

I'm sponsoring a giveaway!

2010-06-20T22:56:00.000-04:00

Have you ever been to see Karen at Sew Many Ways? If not you really should! Trust me! It's so worth the time! But first you better grab something to drink, something to snack on, and a pad of paper and something to write with! She has soooooo many ideas for everything! And they are all inexpensive!

She has been hosting Sharing on Sunday on her blog for four weeks now. I offered to give one of her readers something of their choice from my etsy store!

So if you've never been you should go! And while you're there enter the giveaway!

I'll be back tomorrow to show you some of the sewing that I've been doing this week!

My "new" red cake plate!

2010-06-18T18:52:00.006-04:00

Today I went to the Goodwill here in town, and I love it there! It is so neat and clean! And it smells good! Everything is organized by color:)

But my favorite find today was this.....

it was only $2.00!

When I saw it, I just had this idea, why don't I paint it red! Now I have a red cake plate to match all the other red cake plates in blogland!

I used the red paint that I already had!

I only painted the outside so that I can still use it for food:)

This is a cloche that I got 50% off at Hobby Lobby! I just love that store! And I have a new love for garden cloche's.

Also while I was at the Goodwill, I scored a few really nice men's shirts!

One of which has already ended up into a .......

skirt! for me:)

It's so cute! I can't wait to make more! I wish I had better photos, but I can't take them of myself and Mr F just doesn't get into it!

I'm linking this post to the Weekend Wrap Up Party at Tatertots and Jello!

And to Frugal Friday at The Shabby Nest!

And to Sundae Scoop at I heart naptime!

How cool is this? Jamielyn saw my post on Tatertots and asked me to link this up to her site! *grin*

And to the Sunday Showcast party at Under The Table and Dreaming!

And Tutorial Tuesday at Hope Studios!

And Look What I Made at Creations By Kara!

Turkey Sloppy Joe's

2010-06-18T18:36:00.000-04:00

Last night we had turkey sloppy joe's for dinner. They were yummy! I found a recipe for the sloppy joe sauce on all recipe's. Then I made hamburger buns from scratch! They were perfect and soft and just tasted so good!

Field trip!

2010-06-16T16:47:00.000-04:00

Today I went on a "field trip" with the garden club! We went to a daylily garden that was just gorgeous! There were so many that I couldn't even begin to choose which would be my favorite:)

I have such a great time with these ladies! And every time we get together I meet someone new. I'm not sure that they know how therapeutic they are for me. It's so nice to get out and do something fun like that.

I think about my Little E all the time. Constantly. But I'm doing ok, mentally. I only have a few breakdowns a week now instead of everyday. We got the autopsy report back, and he was completely normal. There is no reason that can be found for what happened. So we'll try again, after I get straightened out. Tomorrow I go for a gallbladder ultrasound. My liver enzymes are still elevated and so is my cholesterol, which is all new since the birth. If it is my gallbladder then it will be removed to fix the problem. If its not, then a liver biopsy is next. I'm praying its my gallbladder, much easier to fix:)

You can see the rest of the photos that I took in my picasa album to the sidebar.

Enjoy!

New in Etsy!

2010-06-12T21:46:00.000-04:00

I've added something new to my etsy store. Its been empty for a while now, but I'm trying to get it going again. So for the past few days I've been making things to get it going again. I've decided that I'm a pretty crafty lady and there is no reason that I shouldn't put some of my many talents to use and make a little spending money while I'm at it! Besides I do have a very nice embroidery machine, plus a few more sewing machines, sitting around here!

This is what I've got in there so far......

They are made from flatware that I found at a thrift store, then I took wire and bent it around in different ways and hand stamped the letters onto aluminum flashing. I can stamp anything you want!

I'm not finished adding it all to the store yet, but I had to give you all a peak!

Hope you are having a good weekend! Mr F was in a bike race today, it was almost 100* and I was almost melting just sitting in my chair! I couldn't imagine peddling a bicycle for an hour!

A few more things to add to my list!

2010-06-09T09:09:00.000-04:00

Since I finished up my siggy blocks so quickly I've decided to add a few more things to my list of things to do! I'm not buying anything for these projects, I'm using up some of my stash!

First I'm joining along on Amandajeans quilt along. My strips are already cut and waiting to be sewn together!

Then I've just decided to join Karen for her snowball quilt along. I have a figgy pudding charm pack that will be perfect for this! I can't wait to get started on this one too!

My first flower show!

2010-06-06T20:23:00.001-04:00

This weekend was the Hydrangea Festival and it was so much fun! I helped out with the judges breakfast on Saturday morning.

I entered a daylily in the flower show. The very first flower show that I've ever even been to. And I won First Place! I was so amazed! I can't wait til next year!

Of course, Mr F asked if the scones that I made influenced the judges in any way ;)

I went on the garden tour of several homes around town. There were some amazing gardens! I got lots of cute ideas for my own garden!

On Friday night we went to the Hydrangea Ball and had a great time!

The ball was at Le Jardin Blanc and it was just magical!

We took more pictures than what I have posted, but they came out blurry.

Mr F had to have our picture made beside of the antique Porche. Boys and their toys! He would love to have one of his own! Maybe one day.

That is the dress that I made! I even made Mr F's tie! And here is a shot of the back of my dress.

I'm looking forward to next year!

Hey Ya'll!

2010-06-06T19:59:00.000-04:00

Last week Mr F had a business meeting in Savannah, and I got to tag along! We had a great time! We stayed in a cute little hotel on Tybee Island. We were able to spend some time on the beach, even at night!

I found a cute little quilt shop, Sew Much More, while Mr F was in his meeting. And of course I had to come home with some souvenir fabric!

The salesman that was at his meeting took us to dinner one night at none other than The Lady and Sons! And I'm sorry to say that Paula was not there, neither were Bobby or Jamie!

This was as close as I came to Paula! I really wanted to buy a set of her measuring spoons and cups, but I didn't have a couple hundred bucks to spare!

The food was great! And the best lemonade ever!

The view from our 3rd floor table!

After we left the restaurant we walked through downtown and saw a few kids running through the water, wish I was still a kid cause it looked like lots of fun!

The next day we took a trolley ride through Savannah. It was beautiful!

The oldest tree in Savannah.

This is the restaurant that was in Something to Talk About when Julia Roberts was in her pj's yelling at Dennis Quaid.

This was one of my favorite houses! I just love the door!

I can't wait to go back!

Just a few things.....

2010-05-14T12:02:00.000-04:00

that I've been up to:)

First off, I found a quilt shop nearby. Red Hen Fabrics is the only quilt shop that I have been able to find since living here. Its about a 30-40 minute drive during good traffic. I will be going back! They have great prices! I just wish they had more jelly rolls, honey buns, and charm packs. But I did get the fabric I'm going to use for the siggy swap. I picked out 4 different fabrics, 3 Amy Butler and one American Jane. I plan on doing the blocks in the same color but just using the four different colors in 101 blocks.

Then yesterday, I went out with friends from the garden club. We had a blast! We found a new antique store, and I was really good and didn't buy anything:) That was because I had already spent too much at Lowes! Then we had lunch, and went back to Lowes for more flowers. And then headed to Cool Beads for beads for a necklace to wear to the garden party. I spent about an hour or so at Mary's house learning how to bead. Thanks to Mary I have a new hobby, jewelry making. (like I needed something else to do)

I made a few extra pairs of earrings:)

This is the fabric that I'm making my dress for the party out of. It's so much prettier in person.

And the shoes to go with it! The shoes came first then the fabric:) Aren't they perfect for a garden party?

I've been busy this morning early, before it gets so hot here, outside working in the garden and repotting some violets and my orchid. We got some tomatoes, peppers, artichokes, eggplant, and asparagus planted last night. Tonight we'll plant the rest of the tomatoes and other seeds that I have. I already have basil, garlic and onions coming up. Everything that we have planted vegetable wise, has been from seeds that I started indoors except for 4 red pepper plants. I'm working on getting some pictures of the garden. It looks good, but there is just so much red clay here!

Now I think I'll go sew up some siggy blocks:)

To Keep Myself Busy.......

2010-05-11T09:28:00.000-04:00

I've joined a few swaps!

The Modern Siggy Swap!

And the Pincushion Pass!

But first I have a new dress to make for the garden ball that will be on June 4th at The Hydrangea Festival! I can't wait! My garden club is a co-sponsor for the event. I'm hoping that my violets will still be in bloom so that I can enter them in the flower show. Right now they are so beautiful!

And I have a few plants to get planted.

I think I have enough to keep me busy for a little while:)

4 Weeks

2010-05-07T15:53:00.001-04:00

I can't believe it has already been 4 weeks. 4 weeks tonight at 22:53 since my precious baby boy was born.

I think, for the most part, that my husband and I are doing really well. We have tried to keep busy gardening and being outside doing things together. I've gone with him on a few of his business trips, which happened to be back in VA so that I could see my family and friends there. That has helped me alot!
My blood pressure and my liver enzymes are trending down and I'm now down to one blood pressure pill a day. We still don't know what happened and maybe we'll find out something in a few weeks. I do know though, that my blood pressure had nothing to do with any of this, it only started going up while I was in the hospital.

We have had such an amazing amount of support. I can't even remember how many cards, emails, facebook messages, phone calls, meals, flowers, and other gifts that we have received.

One absolutely amazing gift is this beautiful quilt that was sent to me this week by my friends from the Potholder Pass. I've never met these ladies. 17 ladies that don't know me or anyone in my family, all got together and made these beautiful pinwheel blocks to put into a quilt in memory of Little E. There are blocks from Canada, Norway, Australia, the UK, and the US. I can't even begin to describe how special this is to me. These beautiful ladies did such and amazing job. Every stitch is just perfect! The fabric choices are just perfect! It is so soft and perfect!

You can see the whole list of contributors here on Amy's blog. (Amy, I borrowed your pictures as I have not had a chance to take my own yet, I hope you don't mind)

2010-04-14T12:29:00.001-04:00

I never could have imagined how hard this was going to be. It seems that there is something new to face each day. Learning to live with the reality that I am not going back to the hospital in June to bring home my baby boy, because the reality is I'm going to be bringing him home on Friday from the funeral home. For the last 7 months I've patted my belly and told him what I was doing, where we were going, everything. Now I catch myself starting to do that, but my belly is soft and flatter and just feels so empty.

I have my husband and I thank God that I do. Without him, I could not handle this. We have laughed and cried on each other. We've done everything together the last few days. But he had to go back to work today, I did not want him to leave, but I think he wanted to stay here more than I wanted him to.

We have had an amazing amount of support and prayers from our family and friends. It amazes me and fills my heart when I get on here and I read the comments from people that I've never met before and some that I have, and I see that they have posted on their blogs requesting prayers for my family. I can't even begin to tell you how much that it all means to Eric and I, and my whole family. I sometimes forget, not really forget, but don't think of how this has affected my daughter Morgan. She lost her baby brother and she is grieving too. My heart breaks for her, she was so excited about him. She was going to be a great big sister!

I will get back to blogging about normal everyday life at some point, but right now this is my everyday life.

I just want to Thank you all for being here for me and my family.

There are no words

2010-04-10T21:02:00.000-04:00

I don't even know how to start this post. I'm lying here in the hospital emptier than I've ever been before. (please forgive any mispellings and grammatical errors, I am on pain meds right now and no sleep)
On Friday morning I went to the dr for my routine 2 week checkup and we did not hear a heartbeat, after an ultrasound with a specialist we were sent to the hospital for an induction. My sweet little baby boy was born last night at 1153pm. He weighed 2.2 lbs and was 14 inches long. He was absolutely perfect, except he was not crying or moving or wanting to nurse like he was supposed to. The hardest thing that I've ever had to do was hand over my precious baby boy to the nurse to take for an autopsy knowing that I would never see him or hold him here on earth again. It's so hard for me to watch my husband and see how badly he's hurting. I'm hurting too, but its different when you watch your strong husband lose his baby boy, his namesake. We're both so thankful for the time that we had him to hold and to love on. We're so thankful for the friends and family who've shown their support and offered up prayers. We're thankful for the pictures that we have of our sweet baby boy and the little momentos that hospital has given to us. We're thankful for the wonderful nurses and doctors that have helped us through this tragedy. I thank God for the blessing that he placed in my life for such a short time.

My Mothers Garden

2010-02-14T13:55:00.001-05:00

I came across some of these pictures last week of my mom's garden and a cookout that she had there. Her garden was breathtaking! And the cookout, well the pictures speak for themselves! We had a GREAT time!

Also when I found the pictures I also found an essay that I had to write for an English class in college. It just happens to be called "A Walk Through My Mother's Garden". I thought I would post it here to go along with the pictures. I'm dedicating this post to all of my friends that are tired of snow and dreaming of spring.

A Walk Through My Mother's Garden

A walk in my mother's garden is perhaps the most relaxing, peaceful journey that anyone could take. At any time of the year you can see some beautiful hint of color.

In the dead of winter small purple, yellow, and white crocuses pop up from everywhere. Winter pansies are still in bloom and are strategically placed throughout the garden.

My favorite time of the year is the first weeks of spring. When you walk through the garden, you will see beautiful daffodils (of all shades of yellow), pastel tulips, little purple grape hyacinths, and the deep green of the newly budding plants. Red bud and Dogwood trees are in bloom. The lilacs fill the garden with such a beautiful sweet aroma. There is a bench that I love to sit on and watch all the birds that flock to the many birdfeeders throughout the garden. There is also a squirrel feeder at which the squirrels and birds fight over the corn that is put there for food. When the fountain is turned on it makes such a relaxing peaceful sound.

Purple clematises trail over the porch rails and the mailbox. In a few weeks the lavender will be blooming with its breathtaking aroma. Peonies in shades of light and dark pink will soon be in bloom. The sweet smell of roses fills the air. Climbing roses, tea roses and bush roses in colors of red, pink, orange, yellow, white and peach are scattered all over the garden.

Purple coneflower, daisies, brown eyed susans, and lupines start to add more color. White, pink, and purple butterfly bushes attract beautiful butterflies of all sizes and colors. Bees swarm to the gorgeous red bee balm.

By the time fall comes around the dahlias, chrysanthemums, and blanket flower add color to the fading garden. Nasturtiums are spreading all around the steps of the porch. Pumpkins sit scattered throughout the garden to add a little more variety in color.

At any time of year when I need peace and quiet I can walk through the garden, and I am truly amazed by the simple yet beautiful miracles that take place every day.

Can you see that my mom knows how to throw a true Southern Living outdoor kinda party? Those truly are the best kind!

As for the paper, I made an A+!

First round of potholders finished!

2010-02-13T14:22:00.000-05:00

These are the potholders that I made for the potholder swap. I hope my partner likes them! She said that she liked orange and green. The quilting was done by mom on her new Babyloc quilter. (see mom, I told you I would give you the credit!)

It was a secret swap, which made it lots of fun! I will receive my potholders from someone other than who I'm sending these to. I'm so excited and can't wait to get mine! And I'm gonna sign up for the next swap as well!

Now on another note. Has anyone elses blogger changed any? When I'm posting, I don't have spellcheck anymore and the way the pictures are uploaded is different. And I don't like it!

I should be ashamed of myself....

2010-02-12T16:00:00.000-05:00

...for not posting about this the second I got home last Friday! I was invited to join the Atlanta bloggers for a Valentine's Tea. It was just wonderful! I met some amazing new women, saw a beautiful home with gorgeous decorations, and had some fabulous food! I did not happen to get any pictures myself, but my new friend Sue at Rue-Mouffetard has some great ones! Go check out her post about our get together! I can't wait til our next get together!

Meanwhile, I'll just sit here and watch it snow:) That's right, it's snowing in Atlanta for the second time this year! Right now we have a little over 2" and its supposed to keep it up through midnight!

It's a Boy!!!!!

2010-02-04T13:01:00.000-05:00

It's been a few weeks since the ultrasound and I've been so busy, sick, traveling, working, and resting that I haven't even felt like posting.

But here he is! Isn't he precious:) Everything is right on track, growing perfectly and healthy, not too big and not too small.

I just love how you can see his little nose and lips.

When I was pregnant with my daughter 15 years ago, during the ultrasound she waved at me and somewhere I still have that picture. I thought that was the sweetest sight!

I can't wait to meet him in person.

Love or should I say Amour and a giveaway!

2010-01-17T13:43:00.000-05:00

My friend Paula at Castle and Cottage is giving away this adorable sign!

She is also auctioning one on ebay with 100% proceeds going to help the children of Haiti.
Go by her blog and leave her a comment and you'll be entered to win. But I'm hoping that I win:)

Ready for Some Gardening!

2010-01-16T16:31:00.002-05:00

So I've been thinking alot about gardening. I can't wait to get started! But somehow during our move all of my little garden tools, tote, and gloves were misplaced. I do still have all of the big tools! So I guess this means I get to do some shopping, cause I can't garden without the proper equipment. Right?

Now I can just see me in my garden now with my awesome pink garden tote full of tools and seeds!

And of course I'd have to have some fiskars garden tools, they are so pretty I would almost hate to get them dirty. Almost:)

Then I also have to have some new pruners as well. There are lots of bushes that need to be pruned around here and these look like just the tools to do the job!

And of course I'd have to have my new gloves! Pink to match the bag, don't you think?

Of course I'd have to take care of my hands after all of that gardening:) This is the yummiest! It is so soft and it does not have a strong scent!

I've joined the Town and Country Garden Club here in town. I'm so excited! We have our next meeting on Tuesday. Now if spring would just get here, I'd be all set!

Pot holder swap

2010-01-15T16:07:00.003-05:00

I've just joined a pot holder swap! I'm so excited! It's been so long since I've been in a swap. I just love getting things that other people have made and then knowing that something that I made is in someone else's home that I have never met and somewhere that I have never been. It's kind of cool to think that someone else is using my potholder, or maybe admiring it and afraid to use it and mess it up, which is what I'll probably do:)

I will posting pictures here as well as flickr.

We've been getting off easy! or should I say cheap?

2010-01-14T19:57:00.002-05:00

Since we moved here in June, our gas bill has been the same every month. My husband and I are smart people, but it never occurred to us that we were only paying around $30 a month for gas. Even in the colder winter months! Today, the very nice gas man came to my door to inform me that our meter was broken and he replaced it with a new one. But it was nice of him to wait until the temperature started to go back up in the 50's rather than the 20's we've been having!
See the pictures below, this is what my neighborhood has looked like for the last week. We got about an inch of snow with ice mixed in and it stayed for a whole week! So not the norm for Atlanta! The kids even got 2 1/2 snow days out of it, I think that's one for the records here!

So next month our gas bill will be around $150, give or take. Guess we get to refigure the budget!

What a funfilled week!

2010-01-08T17:57:00.004-05:00

I've had such a wonderful week! I have been feeling rather homesick lately. But my friend Kerry helped with that! She came to see me! It was just exactly what she and I both needed. Lots of girl time! We spent one entire day at Lenox Square Mall! And we could have gone back a few times:) We went to my favorite all time store, Anthropologie! And these adorable little measuring cups and measuring spoons happened to follow me home;) I've have been drooling over them for the last year. They are just so happy and springy feeling and just makes you want to bake. Don't they?

Then of course we found this adorable pillowcase for Kerry's daughter Ella at Pottery Barn Kids. I embroidered Ella's name it. Isn't it just so sweet! She's gonna just love it! I also did some altering on some tops that she bought.

I'm gonna miss her! I can't wait until March, she's planning a trip back to bring her boys to Six Flags!

Swag Bucks

2010-01-03T08:52:00.003-05:00

So how many of you have ever used Swagbucks? I've had an account for some time now and have never used it. But apparently its pretty neat and you can get all kinds of free stuff just by searching on the web. You can go [URL=http://swagbucks.com/?cmd=sb-register&rb=1346370][IMG]http://prodegebanners.sitegrip.com/images/swagbucks-468x60Alt.jpg[/IMG][/URL] and sign up. It's completely free. Who knows maybe I'll earn some really cool free stuff this year!
Not sure why it won't add the link but I guess you'll have to copy and paste.

Happy New Year! and a giveaway

2010-01-01T11:42:00.003-05:00

I'm hoping that everyone has a Happy New Year! And what better way to start off the new year than by seeing some wonderful sewing inspiration and a giveaway! Go here and see this fabulous cape that she is giving away! All I can say is WOW!
As I'm writing this I'm sitting here feeling all kinds of little fluttering in my tummy:) We have 19 more days and we find out, as Mr F says, will it be pink or blue? And he is down in the basement right now fixing the garage door that broke this morning. Thankfully it will only cost around $13 for a new gear box, instead of around $200 for a whole new opener. What a way to start off the new year, right?

Yummy chicken and rice dinner!

2009-12-30T19:56:00.002-05:00

That is what we had for dinner tonight! One-pot chicken and rice, from this months issue of Everyday Food. It smelled so wonderful while it was cooking! And it tasted even better! Of course I didn't get a picture of the meal after it was finished cooking, we were so hungry after smelling it cook that I forgot to grab the camera!
I was given a subscription of Everyday Foods, by my sister-in-law, for Christmas.
You can also see, in the above picture, that I had my new Rachel Ray Garbage Bowl in use:) And I had to throw in a picture of the pretty red quilted apron that I was wearing while I made dinner. Both were Christmas presents from my mom.
I've been having alot of fun with Photoshop, as you can see. It makes me want to get out and take some more pictures.
We've been busy since getting home, moving around furniture, taking down the Christmas decorations (which is way earlier than what I ever take them down), I made curtains for the garage, and we're getting ready to paint the guest bedroom, bathroom and nursery.
We go for our ultrasound January 20. I'm hoping that this active little one will cooperate and let us find out what it is!
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! Have a Happy New Year!

Baby Bump at 17 weeks

2009-12-18T09:09:00.002-05:00

So finally, here is a picture of my getting bigger by the day baby bump! I feel so huge! I think I was this big the day I gave birth to Morgan, but of course that was 15 years ago! But I still have 5 more months to go. I'm going to be so big, I'll have to find someone else to drive me every where because I have really short legs and I won't be able to reach the pedals! The good thing so far is I've only gained 3 pounds!

I'm getting so excited! We have our ultrasound in January to find out what it's going to be, yay! Then I can start making things, buying things and registering for all those sweet little baby things!

Christmas tree and some big news!

2009-12-07T14:44:00.003-05:00

A few pictures of my Christmas decorations so far.

Mr F hung the garland around the door while I was at work yesterday. It needs a little straightening and some lights!

This is my first artificial tree, not sure I like it. Its pretty. But its very thin and unsteady and doesn't have that nice wonderful fresh pine scent. I will have a real tree again one day!

This is one of my most favorite ornaments! It was my dad's mother's. This is my grandmother that Morgan is named after. My mom gave it to me a few years ago for Christmas with a very sappy card that made me cry and makes me cry every year when I open up my Christmas decorations. (I've kept the card and I put right on top of the decorations when I pack them all away so that its the first thing that I see the next year)

Well, I have some very exciting news! Mr F and I are having a baby! Baby F will be here in June. I'm 16 weeks, and dying to know what I'm having! I've been so sick and tired all the time. And I'm absolutely huge! Pictures are to come soon!

Christmas 2005

2009-11-23T14:07:00.005-05:00

It just hit me that I have never posted pictures of our first Christmas as a married couple. We had the biggest live tree that we (I) could find and we hosted both families at our house for Christmas morning breakfast. It was wonderful! And it was a white Christmas:)

My tree, it was a gorgeous tree, a huge tree, and my favorite tree. I'm sorry that I didn't have any before pictures of it. Before the accident that is. You see my tree was so big and huge and heavy that after all of the decorations were hung and it was all lit up and gorgeous, it had a huge accident. It fell. Just fell right over in the floor. It broke my heart along with many ornaments. Thankfully it only broke one really special ornament and that was the one we got on our honeymoon in Antiqua. We get an ornament on every trip that we go on:) Anyway, we ended up having to wire the tree to the wall. It was so sad looking after that, it just did not look as beautiful as it first did.

See how sideways it looks. I kept thinking all season that it was gonna fall again!

The garland on the stairway leading up to my grandmothers quilt.

Look at all of those presents!

This is Emma, all dressed up in her jewelry and her new pink cowgirl boots!

Don't know what the disgusted look was all about, cause trust me it was a good gift it was pink jewelry!

Look at how young they all look.

I just love Christmas time! I can't wait to start decorating!
I just love the wreaths on the outside windows and the snow all around. Looks like it should be on a Christmas card! I certainly won't have this in Atlanta.

Fall Decorating

2009-11-08T21:09:00.002-05:00

These are just a few pictures of some of the decorating that I've done for fall. I love fall and all of the colors and the decorating and my favorite of all is pumpkin pie! But I can't wait to start decorating for Christmas! I'm thinking I may even start some of it this week:) Especially since my lovely Mr F surprised me with a new 7 1/2 ft prelit tree! I typically have a tree in every room of the house. Of course all but one tree is artificial, you have to have at least one real one! But sadly last year was my last year for a real tree:( Mr F made me promise that I wouldn't do it anymore. He just doesn't get it! (but I'm sure that I'll make him forget that promise, say in a few years:) )
Enjoy the few pictures!

Another fabulous give away!

2009-11-07T17:20:00.002-05:00

Paula at Castle and Cottage is having a giveaway! The give away is for a gift certificate to her etsy store! She has some gorgeous signs in there! All you have to do is visit her site and become a follower and leave a message, if you want a second chance then blog about it! Good luck!

Back to Work

2009-11-05T17:57:00.002-05:00

I've been so busy lately, but not with anything interesting enough to post about. I've had a few trips to VA. And I had one fabulous weekend with one of my best friends! April, one of my great friends came here to Atlanta, she was my first house guest! We had a great weekend of girl time, shopping, eating, sewing, and a visit to World of Coke.
But then this week my time of leisure ended:( I started my new job. I'm so thankful to have a new job and to be back to trying to save lives and of course making some money! But it's been hard to go from waking up when ever I want to, to having to leave my house by 6 am to make it through all the traffic and be there by 8 am and sit in class all day! I feel like I'm in nursing school all over again! It's been excruciating! I can't wait to be in the ICU next week!
But the saddest part of all of this for me is that I've been here working and Mr F has been back in VA this week working and will be there next week as well. I wish that I could be there with my family.
Maybe I'll be able to get some sewing done and some pictures posted once orientation is over with. Hope you are all doing well!

Wow! Another Give away!

2009-10-30T11:16:00.002-04:00

Go here and check out these adorable handmade gingerbread men! And while you're there enter her giveaway! Good luck!

Give away at Prarie Flower Farm

2009-10-30T10:46:00.002-04:00

Go here and see this fabulous blog and her give away. Good luck to all!

Just couldn't help myself

2009-09-23T22:22:00.004-04:00

Wow 3 posts in one day! Can you tell I'm stuck here at the house by myself? I've just done so much today that I couldn't wait to share it all!

While I was in VA this past week I found me a nice little treasure :) I love baskets and I just fell in love with this picnic basket! And I had just the right embroidery design to put on the liner that I made for it. When I saw it sitting there, before it decided to come home with me, I had the vision of what it would look like. And it looks just like I visioned!

Don't ya just love it? Look at those cute little ants! I can't wait to go on a picnic now!

What I did today

2009-09-23T17:50:00.004-04:00

I like my aprons to be full aprons. Only because I tend to make more messes up top than down below. And I have several half aprons and I saw a makeover for them here. This is one talented lady! You have to go check out her blog! So I found this top on the clearance rack at Target for $4.98. And at first sight I knew it would be perfect!

I cut the sides and removed the back. The back of the neck had the cute little ties already so I left those in place.

And then I added the apron that I had made about a year ago.

Then I found this t shirt at Target for $4.98 as well. Go here to see my inspiration for this tshirt makeover. She has so many makeovers that are just too cute!

I started cutting before I took the picture, woops!

I shortened the waste line and made the neck opening a little bit bigger.

Then I took some of the left over fabric from the neck and made a rosette. I also had some green jersey left over from another project a long time ago, so I added a rosette with that.

And I bunched some up in a line and sewed it across the bottom of the left side.

I have a few more tshirts that are going to be madeover this week too!

Where have I been?

2009-09-23T13:38:00.003-04:00

This last month has been a busy one! We spent labor day at Callaway Gardens for the hot air balloon festival and Mr F competed in a triathlon. We had a great time! I've spent quite a bit of time in VA with my family. This past weekend we were in Massanutten VA for a get together with Mr F's friends from high school. So much fun!

But then we came home to some sadness. Of course late Monday night while driving home we had no idea what had been going on here. We were rerouted a few times for roads being washed out and when we finally made it home there was no power. We were very fortunate, so much more than so many other families. Atlanta, GA was hit by some major flooding. There were so many homes lost, roads washed out, and several families lost some loved ones. Like I said we were so fortunate, I have to boil my water before I use it, but I do have a dry home with power and water and all of my belongings.

New items in Etsy!

2009-09-23T13:33:00.002-04:00

I have been working hard on getting some things made for my etsy site. I've let it go empty for far too long! Go here and check out my listings!

A few more finished projects!

2009-08-25T20:20:00.005-04:00

I've been very busy the last couple of weeks doing some painting! I started out with these beauties.....

They were purchased at The Goodwill for under $5 for all of them! A can of white spray paint and a can of black spray paint and this is what they became.....

Then I started on this cabinet. It was fine white, but I wanted something different. So I painted it with a high gloss black on the outside and a light blue satin on the inside, it was called Comes the Dawn. I think it turned out perfect!
Since that cabinet turned out so well, I decided to go on and tackle the china cabinet. I'm so glad that I did! I bought this at an antique store in Floyd about 3 years ago for $150. It was old and it smelled. But only on the inside, so everything had to be washed as soon as you got it out. So this is how it turned out....Definitely needs some help, don't ya think?

I did run into some trouble on this one though. The black paint ran and ran! I ended up having to get a sander and sand it off and repaint. What a pain! But it turned out great after that!

Now I've just gotta clean the glass and get all of my dishes back in there! I'm done with painting for a few weeks! I'm going to VA for a few days and then when I get back, I'm painting the kitchen cabinets!

And at some point I'll have to start looking for a job, I'm officially a GA state licensed RN, as of today!

Now that's a dresser!

2009-08-20T16:48:00.003-04:00

On our way back from Emerald Isle, well not exactly on the way, but we made it on our way, me and Mr F stopped by Furnitureland South in High Point. Over 1,000,000 sq feet of furniture! Wow! When I say they had everything I mean they had everything! Mr F has been looking for a desk for 3 years now. He's an engineer, need I say more? He could not find the right color, right wood, right dimensions, right layout, just picky picky picky! But what do you know, they had they exact one he wanted here! The first one we saw! Actually I saw it first and pointed it out:)
But on the way in when we first pulled into the parking lot, this is what I saw.....

Now I think I might even have a hard time filling that one! Mr F said he didn't think I would! That thing is like bigger than my house! So cool!

Giveaway! At Green Fairy Quilts!

2009-08-20T00:10:00.002-04:00

There is another giveaway at Green Fairy Quilts, she's giving away a layer cake! How much fun! http://greenfairyquilts.blogspot.com/

Blog names

2009-08-19T23:52:00.002-04:00

So tonight I was thinking about how other bloggers have these cool names for their family's. I tried coming up with a blog name for my husband, but nothing seemed to fit. I told him that I needed some help, and he just laughed at me. He then said that I could call him Mr Brickwall, since usually my conversations with him leave me feeling as if I've talked to a brick wall. I said no, although that fits completely, I just don't like that. So then I thought about Mr Wife. My daughter, Miss M, told me one day that I married the perfect wife. He doesn't mind cooking, cleaning, doing laundry and he's very organized. He's not the typical husband that sits on the sofa, watching tv and holding the remote until dinner is called. But then I decided on calling him Mr F. So Mr F is my hubby's blog name.

Flower arranging

2009-08-13T14:57:00.003-04:00

I'm not much on silk flowers, never have been and I don't even have any in my home. Or at least I didn't before this week. I went to my new FAVORITE place, Hobby Lobby! They were having a sale and had the silk flowers 50% off. I saw some that I really liked and I couldn't resist! I had this basket sitting in the closet, it was painted gold, ugh! So with some white spray paint (forgot to take the before pictures) and my new flowers this is what I ended up with. I just love the colors! Hydrangeas are one of my favorite flowers!

My new love!

2009-07-25T12:22:00.004-04:00

Photoshop Elements 7! That's right, this is my new love! It's taking me some time to learn how to use it, I think I need to get a book! I have a great camera that takes some very good pictures, when the operator knows what she's doing, but with my new photoshop I can make my pictures look even better!

Don't you just love them? I do! Now I can't wait to get some great shots at the beach in a few weeks!

Another Cool Giveaway!

2009-07-24T23:15:00.001-04:00

Check out Bushelandapeck for the cool giveaway she has going on!

Farm Chicks Giveaway!

2009-07-24T22:59:00.003-04:00

Go to the FarmChicks and check out the giveaway they are hosting! Too Cute!
Happy Birthday Leslie!

Outdoor Wednesday

2009-07-15T13:07:00.003-04:00

I found a blog that hosts an Outdoor Wednesday. So I thought I would try it myself! I'm back in VA to work the next couple of weeks and while I'm here I stay at my mom and dad's house. Her dairy goats have just had babies and I thought I would share some pictures of her precious babies!
This is the little girl, she's so prim and proper and kind of shy.

This is her brother, he's all boy and anything but prim and proper and shy!

Daisies are his favorite flower too!

And he's so full of energy! I wonder what's in his milk? He spends quite a bit of time in the air doing flips!

They are too cute! And such entertainment! I hope you enjoyed the few outdoor pictures! Go over to http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/ and check out some of the other Outdoor Wednesday posts!

More projects from last week!

2009-07-13T12:37:00.003-04:00

Well, The Man went back to work today, or rather to the job that pays him:) He worked hard for me last week! And I enjoyed every second with him, but I was almost happy to see him go back to work today. My routine just gets all messed up with him here all day. He wants me to eat when he does, sit down when he does, go outside when he does, and then when I'm off somewhere doing something in another part of the house he's just like a child coming to see where I'm at and what I'm doing. I guess he's just checking to make sure that I'm still in the house! That's all nice and good, but after a while it gets a little irritating. I love spending time with him! We did have a really good time together though! The house is completely unpacked, put away and organized! I don't think we did too badly to get all of that done in 3 weeks, considering that I was out of town about half of that time and he was out of town a few days as well! So today I'm just relaxing a bit and getting ready to leave tomorrow to go back to work for the next two weeks, then I come back for a day and leave for the beach for a week! I will be away from my house for almost a month, I'm gonna miss it!

So here are a few more pictures of things that were done last week and I think that completes the show and tell for now, at least until I get some more done!

We hung the mirror over the fireplace mantle. I remember hanging it in the farm house, I think we got into an argument. This is a big, very heavy mirror! He just doesn't understand why I like it! I love mirrors! I love mirrors every where! Big ones with big fancy frames!

Notice anything about this mirror, or the way its hung? Now I'm married to an engineer and whenever we hang anything the level comes out and the ruler and everything is measured and calculated and done properly. Now when it's just me hanging something it goes where ever it looks right at and if I don't hit a stud then I add a few more nails and it holds it! I've never had any problems! But if you notice the mirror is a little off center, by a few inches! But do you think I'm stupid enough to say anything? Nope! Not me! I'm waiting for him to notice! And when he does, he'll have to fix it, but not because I asked him to, because he'll just have too!

This was bought at Joanne Fabrics a few years ago for like $0.50. I got two! That's all that was left! I've used them filled with ice for drinks at cookouts and parties. But I wasn't digging the yellow anymore, so with a little bit of spray paint, this went from this to........

This!

I still have to paint the other one, it was in the garden shed and needed to be cleaned up before painting.

Hope you all have a great day!

Sewing Room

2009-07-12T08:54:00.004-04:00

I thought I would give you a quick peek at my sewing room this morning! Its much bigger than my last one and more organized:) I just need to get me a cutting table and a rolling chair and it will all be done!

Under the peg board where the shelves are is where my cutting table will go!

Notice the curtains? They are not mine and are coming down!

I hope you all have a wonderful relaxing Sunday! The Man and I are off to church!

See what I did today!

2009-07-11T17:24:00.004-04:00

I am so happy to have my sewing room done and organized! So today while The Man was out riding his bike, I did some sewing:) I had a little sampler that I finished some time ago and it needed to be quilted, so I did my first stippling project (first one that is, that I didn't rip out!) Then I had another piece that I had embroidered and put some beaded flowers on. The beads were left over from my wedding dress.

Now I'm off to host a cookout here at our house for our new friends here in Atlanta! I love having parties! Hope you all have a great Saturday!

Give aways

2009-07-10T21:58:00.002-04:00

Ok, so I love free stuff! There is a give away over at http://greenfairyquilts.blogspot.com/ . Wow she has a cool blog and is giving away quite a few wonderful things for her 99th post! Go check it out!
There's another really cool give away here at http://katicupcakequiltingco.blogspot.com/ .
Go over and check them out and good luck! But I hope I win!

Dining Room Table

2009-07-10T17:09:00.008-04:00

In our new house we have a dining room, we didn't in the farm house. So, of course we didn't have a dining room table. My mom gave me her old oak table that we've had for more than twenty plus years. She had gotten a new Amish style table that seats twelve and this one had been sitting on her porch for a while. It needed some help, so after a gallon of high gloss white paint it went from this......

to this.......

Now I just need to find some chairs to go with it and I'll be all set! (She wouldn't let me have her chairs)

I also found out that my husband really does love me! He really, really does! Cause if he didn't he wouldn't have climbed on a chair and risked getting shocked twice to take this light down

so that I could make it look like this

I did not like the gold light at all! But I'm really lovin my black one! It looks like the expensive wrought iron ones, at least I think so!

Then I painted my pretty little colorful chickens just plain old white! I'm liking the whole black and white color scheme, with a touch of red, of course!

I'll be back tomorrow for more updates and pictures of what we've been doing around the house this week.

I just noticed that I posted two of the same pictures of the table, and I can't figure out how to get one of them off. Ooops!

Closet

2009-07-09T22:04:00.004-04:00

One of the most important rooms in the house other than the kitchen and the master bathroom, is of course the closet. I had the daddy of all closets in our farmhouse. It was just dreamy! Now in our new house, its about a third of the size of my old one. I've even tried to thin out my wardrobe, but it just hasn't helped!

See how nice and roomy it was, now here is the new one. It could fit in the old one like 5 times! It would be ok if I didn't have to share it with The Man! He has a lot of clothes for a man!

Hudson Jude

2009-07-09T21:48:00.004-04:00

I've been so busy that I haven't posted about my new nephew. Precious little Hudson Jude Bell, well not so little, he weighed in at 10 lbs 6 oz.

Look at smile!

Notice the blanket in the crib with Hudson, it was made by his Auntie Robin, me :)

I just love the little sock monkeys!

Unpacking

2009-06-28T15:54:00.004-04:00

I am finally down to three boxes left to unpack! I don't think I've done too bad, considering we've only been here one week and I was gone for five days. I can say that I will never again move without a moving company! I've never used one before, and wasn't too thrilled about strangers coming in and packing up all of my stuff and then unpacking it. But I quickly got over it! I'm so glad that we had them, considering that we filled up a tractor trailer! We had 172 boxes plus the furniture and big items that was not boxed! It took 9 hours on Monday to box up everything, 9 hours on Tuesday to load everything, and 6 hours on Saturday to unload everything and unpack almost everything! I have way too much stuff! Look at all those boxes!

Yes! Those are legs that you see underneath the desk! It was amazing to watch these guys load the truck! They would strap everything to their back and even carry things in their hands, I stood there with my mouth wide open watching them for hours! It was like a bunch of pack mules!

And I can't leave out the Jettas! I think my husband has to hold the title for the most things hauled in a Jetta! We've hauled lumber, water pipe, furniture, you name it, and now plants and cleaners that the movers couldn't take. And by adding a trailer, we were able to move a sleeper sofa that he bought from someone in his apartment complex in Atlanta! (He's also moved his motorcycle with that little trailer behind his Jetta!)

This is what the house looked like Saturday after the movers left. It was awful! It looks so much better right now! I just haven't had time to take pictures of the cleaned up organized house yet!

And Saying Hello!

2009-06-28T15:35:00.003-04:00

When you say goodbye to one home, you say hello to another!

I'm really liking my new house and can't wait to make it our home! It's so completely different from our old farmhouse. Even with all the same furniture inside, nothing feels the same.

But its a new adventure for me, and us. This is the first time that I've ever lived outside of VA. Its scary and exciting! The biggest thing for me is getting to decorate the new house! I actually started before the tractor trailer load of belongings arrived! Here's a few before and after shots of the fireplace and stairway.

It's amazing what a little bit of white paint can do to a room!

Saying Goodbye

2009-06-28T15:28:00.003-04:00

A few weeks ago I had to say goodbye to one of the loves of my life, my beautiful old farm house.

I am really going to miss that house. It had so much character and charm. It was the perfect place to have those southern living cookouts and parties. And we had many! We ate outside on the front porch as often as we could, it was wonderful! I will miss you! I hope that whomever buys it loves it as much as I did!

A LITTLE BIT OF CATCHING UP

2009-06-10T22:37:00.004-04:00

Ok, so today is my mom's birthday! Happy Birthday Mom! (I won't tell her age, cause she knows mine, hehe) Last week she and I went antiquing! We had a blast! We went to her favorite store and then found a cute fabric store, and of course I was a good girl and didn't spend too much:) But while we were out I took lots of pictures with my new camera that I got back several months ago. It is so complex and I'm just starting to teach myself how to use it. I wanted to take a class, but couldn't find something that would work with my crazy schedule! So enjoy all the crazy pictures, I have a little bit of everything!

Can anyone say Derby hat? Wouldn't it be just perfect?

RAIN RAIN GO AWAY!

2009-06-10T22:05:00.007-04:00

It has been raining almost everyday for the last 2-3 weeks! I'm so thankful for the rain, but I'm so tired of it too! It just makes me want to sleep all the time, which comes in handy on those days that I have to sleep cause I work at night. But the days off, I want to be awake and active! And doing something more than sweeping water out of the flooded garage and vacuuming water from the floorboard of the flooded car! Ugh! But I must say that it has really helped my flowers:)

2009-05-28T10:28:00.002-04:00

Ok, so I know I've been MIA for quite some time. But you have no idea what has been going on in my life, sooooooo busy. I'll get to all of that in another post. But there are many changes getting ready to take place over the next few months. I promise I'll keep you posted!
But for the really good stuff, and I mean good stuff! I have found a few blogs that I dearly love! And there is going to be a give away! Kimba at http://asoftplacetoland-kimba.blogspot.com/ is hosting a give away. She is giving away a fabulous vinyl wall decal and all you have to do is leave a comment and blog about it if you want. Lewa's Designs, http://blog.lewasdesigns.com/, is giving away, to everyone, a really cool vinyl wall decal as well! You just have to go check these out!
I can see my house filled with these wall decals, and one or two on my car. I love the little swirley bird, in turquoise and red! Have fun and good luck!

2009-01-04T09:43:00.002-05:00

Wow, Christmas is over already and we're in to 2009. Last year flew by. I am praying that this year will be a happier and healthier year for all of my family and friends. We have so much to look forward too already. I have a big move to Atlanta and we've been looking at lots of houses trying to find the right one. We're also hoping that our house will sell soon. I'm looking forward to all the new challenges that are coming our way. My dear daughter will be ready to get her learners permit by the very end of this year. Everyone on the road in December, please watch out! We will be getting a new addition to my husbands side of the family, a new little baby boy! I'm so excited! I've got to get started on the gifts! I've also joined a gym in hopes of being able to get a bit healthier before our move to Atlanta, and in the process lose some much needed weight! I am also planning on thinning out my closet, by putting things on ebay. My sister has been doing this and its working great for her. I have so many purses and shoes, that I have decided I can not purchase any more until I sell some. I have also decided that I am going to try to make all of my clothes this year. Notice I said "try". I would like to get a small business of sewing on the side and maybe turn that into a full time business. I love to sew. I want to design my own line. The movie "The Women" is so inspiring. I just love the line that Mary designs in that movie. I know that I can do it, its just setting my goals and getting my priorities in line to make it happen.
I hope that everyone has a great 2009 and I hope you all reach everyone of your goals!

2008-12-15T20:02:00.004-05:00

My baby turned 14 last week. She is growing up so fast. She is doing such a great job with her guitar lessons and she has a beautiful voice, when she will sing for me. She's turning in to quite the young lady. She has been doing some modeling for her cousin who is an aspiring photographer. These pictures that I am about to post are of my 14 year old daughter and they were taken by her 16 year old cousin.

2008-12-04T06:38:00.005-05:00

Wow, has really been since September since I've posted anything? I've been really busy and on the road alot and getting ready to get back on the road today. My husband was transferred to Atlanta back in October, so he's there and I'm still here. Our house is still for sale so at least I do still have a place to stay, not that I couldn't stay at my parents. I'm still waiting to be able to apply for a GA nursing license, it feels like it is taking forever. I will definatley be here for a few months longer. Which it has been really good that I've had to wait that long because Morgan's grandmother died the same week that my husband was transferred. She had pancreatic cancer that had spread to her brain and liver. She was so sick and its really a blessing that she is no longer suffering, although we all miss her terribly.

It's going to be a very hard transition for me when I'm finally there. Morgan is choosing to stay here with her dad. That is going to be the hardest thing that I've ever done is leaving her here and only seeing her for short visits here and there. Everyone asks me what I want for Christmas, the only thing I want is what I can't have, and that's for Morgan to go with me. It would make for a much easier transition to have here there with me. But I'll take what I can get.

On happier notes, I am finished decorating for Christmas. No Griswald Christmas tree this year. I went out and picked out the real tree with Morgan and got it home, but couldn't get it in the stand. So my daddy came over and helped me and I treated him with dinner. I really downsized this year since there is only me and Morgan, Eric will be coming home at Christmas but not before. After I was done decorating, it almost looked like I hadn't even touched the ornament boxes. I have so many ornaments, but not a single one that I could part with and I buy more every year. That is a tradition of ours, we purchase an ornament on every trip we take. It has to be something that is special to the location. I have enough to do one whole tree in nothing but our vacation ornaments. I love getting them out each year, I find ones that I did not remember having, and I look at the ones that Morgan made in school and then I remember when she was that little and it almost makes me cry. I guess I should say does make me cry. She's not a baby anymore, she will be 14 next week. I'll save all of that for another post.

I was also the winner of the new pattern give away over at Cinderberry Stitches. She is so talented. If you haven't been to her blog you have to go. http://cinderberrystitches.typepad.com/cinderberrystitches/

We've also had a little snow this year. Not much just enough to cause a few accidents and some school delays. But it was so pretty and made everything feel like Christmas.

Well, I hope I haven't bored you all with everything that is going on around here. I guess I should say, that I am going to Atlanta this weekend and have been going there some and my husband has been coming here some as well. And that will be our life for a few more months. But I do hope to do better at keeping you all posted to everything that I have going on. Next time I will post about my projects that I've been working on.

2008-09-26T09:27:00.004-04:00

I just noticed this while looking back at my posts. I'm telling you all what a shoe freak I am and the whole time I'm drinking hot chocolate out of my "Shoe Girl" coffee cup(hot chocolate mug) that my sister gave me for Christmas about 3 years ago. I love that mug, its so cool and totally fits me!

2008-09-25T19:40:00.002-04:00

Shoes are my weakness. I love all shoes. The higher the heel the better. I have an obsession with shoes. If I had the money I would own a pair on Manolo Blahniks. But I don't forsee me ever owning a pair, so I will just drool over them on my computer screen. I have ordered a book on how to make your own shoes, this includes how to make high heels. I can't wait! I can justify my shoe fettish then. "But honey, I made them myself, they barley cost me anything!"

Speaking of shoes and Manolo Blahniks, I bought the Sex and the City movie today. I've already seen it. My wonderful husband took me to see it, he was one of two men in the theater of about 150 women.