Paradise

I have been enjoying sunrises like these each morning.

I have been sewing and quilting the grand babes Christmas stockings - finished quilting two of them.

But, the most important thing is I have been spending time with my mother in law and hubby.  We have been walking most mornings and just hanging out together.  It will be hard to leave him next week.

Morning Coffee

I get up at 3:30, most mornings - a habit that I can't break.  My hubby would go to work at 4:15, so I would get up before he did - to make his coffee, get his breakfast/lunch together and kiss him goodbye.  Then, I would study for school while the boys were still asleep.  Now, he is retired - living in another state, boys are grown up and I still teach. 

But, I still get up early...

My time for a cup of coffee, time to do school work or just be creative.

I gave up coffee for three months and morning just weren't the same.  So I am back to drinking a cup each morning when the house is quiet.

Sometimes, working on a new scarf in a yummy color.

Summer Love

I am a knitter, quilter, photographer and crafter.  I need to do something creative to fill my soul.  Every summer, my favorite yarn dyer Dani has a Summer Love Photo Contest.  We post some of our favorite pictures of summer, she picks about 5 pictures and dyes yarn to match the colors of the picture.

A couple of years ago, she picked one of my pictures - I was super excited.  A couple of days ago, she sent out a email blast, that she was doing it again this year.  My picture from a couple of years ago was featured in the post. 

It made my day to see my picture, all over again. The excitement level was definitely high on Monday.  I took the picture of the orchid when I was in Hawaii.  Of course, I bought a few skeins of the yummy yarn. I knitted a shawl with the yarn, I probably should take a picture.  Plus, I made a scarf for my mom for Christmas that year.  I posted a few pictures, this year and I should know by next Tuesday, if she picked another one of my pictures for inspiration.  If she did, I know which yarn I will be taking with me to Hawaii for a project.

Howling at the Moon

I want to remember this amazing moon shot that I took last night.  It brings me comfort that my hubby was looking at the same moon in Hawaii.

Hawaiian Stockings

I was so excited to see the Hawaiian quilts on Polka Dot Chair from her vacation that I decided to pull out my stockings that I started last November.  I haven't worked on them at all.  I am making them for my grand babies and now, I need to add two more.  One for a great niece and another grand daughter coming in November. 

I bought a huge fat quarter pack, so they all coordinate.  I only need to use half of a fat quarter to make the actual design.  Each pattern was picked for each child's name or birth order.  I, now, have the problem of having two babies with the same middle name and two with the same middle and first name.  Of course, those two were the two hardest patterns to find.  Lucky for me, my friends in Hawaii are searching for double patterns and I will be there in a couple of weeks.

The stocking order (also birth order) from left to right is:

Siouxsie, Kayleigh, Morrigan, Caleb, Keahi,

Remie, Bowie, Elizabeth and Lily

Pattern is Lily - picked this pattern because that is her middle name.

Pattern is Plumeria - picked because this is my favorite Hawaiian flower and this grand child is named after me.

Pattern is Hibiscus - this grand child loves to pull the flowers off my plant every time she comes over.

Pattern is Kahili - picked this pattern because there is a joke about his dad being the Japanese prince, so that would make him one too.

Pattern is Maile - maile is a vine that grows in Hawaii that smells wonderful.  This grand child's middle name is Ivy.

The other patterns I picked and need to applique are:

Breadfruit - for my first born grand son, it is a traditional pattern

Rose - for the grandchild and great niece with the middle name of Rose

Lily - for my last born grandchild coming in November, it will be her first name

I can't wait to get them finished, so excited.  I was able to work on quilting the Kahili, a little today.

Finally...

I, finally, got internet back so I am able to blog the right way, woo hoo.  The last 6 weeks have been so busy, especially since I started teaching my new grade level.  The hardest part was not having a month off in July, like I normally do - but September is 3 weeks a way.  The thought of not seeing my hubby for 5 months was killing me, but he came to me for 4 weeks.  Insert happy dance.  The grandbabies were really excited to see him.

We flew to Colorado for a quick weekend trip to meet our new great niece. 

 She has the biggest eyes and round face, just like her mommy did.  I don't like being so far away from her.  I need to get some bows made for her.

This has been a very busy year for us.  It started with a new grandson in October, twin grand daughters in April, grand niece in July and a new grand daughter due in November.  Every baby was due on my old school schedule, meaning I had those months off - it was crazy.  I wonder if they planned it that way.  Haha, I have enjoyed every minute of it. 

This is a picture of the twins at two weeks old - they are now 4 months.  I, really, should start their photo albums, giggle.  I took some pictures this weekend, hope to get them finished up soon.

I need to get some serious crafting done, but with the new position - I am putting in a lot of hours making curriculum.  I did make this cute composition cover, which holds every to do item and things I need to check out.  I call it my brain.

I have made three other covers this weekend, because I think I am going to break down the books for different things.  One for my school, one for my to do list, one for blogging and one for craft ideas.  I have 5 books with notes and they are all jumbled, then I can't find what I am looking for.

Three more weeks, then I will be in Hawaii with my hubby - spending the day quilting and doing feathers with some amazing friends.  I need to finish the babes' Christmas stockings.  It is a good thing that I bought enough material to make extra ones - didn't plan on the great niece or the baby due in November.

Changes

It has been a long time since I have blogged - life has been busy. I still can't access the Internet from my laptop, making it hard to blog   So I decided to try it with my iPad. I am hoping that it works out

There are a lot of changes in my life right now that involve my job and me personally. At the beginning of May, I decided to get healthy - for me. I have a low self-esteem and needed to do something for me. I felt very selfish but I needed to take care of me. I suffer from fibromyalgia and this time of the year I crash. But, right now I am doing pretty good. 

I started walking every morning, early. I just walked around the block.  Now, I am up to a mile or two every morning, depending  on time. 

This is a picture I took from my walk a couple of days ago.

I started eating healthier giving up red meat and eating more fruits and veggies. I gave up Starbucks except for once a week -it was easier than I thought. In the process of this. I have lost 16 pounds and one dress size. I feel so much better and have tons of energy. This week has been tough since I am winding down my school year. But, with these changes I will make it and it is for me.