Hello Again...is it March already...thank goodness!!

First I just want to say thank you for all the wonderful comments I got from last week's post. It was a bad week for me and you all made me feel not so alone at all...husbands are great support but there is nothing like a whole community, virtual and real life, out there being so wonderful!

I'm feeling much better, my taste buds seem to be coming back without the use of antibiotics I was threatening to get! Friends still listen to me and tell me I sound horrible, but I'm feeling better so that is okay!  It has just been one of those months where we are all reinfecting each other with ick, and I don't think the airplane rides ever help for colds either!!

I am still slightly panicked about next Tuesday's driving test, lots of things to memorize this weekend (rules of the road, location of various engine bits we need to know, geesh) but apparently it is a rare person that passes their first driving test here in Ireland. I took one when I first arrived with no lessons and only days using a stick shift car, I don't count that one, lol!!

Anyway, as I become a golf widow today, I am going to relish in the fact that the kids don't have to go anywhere today, and I can stay in my jammies all day! So little crafting has been done, and I don't get as exciting mail as my friend Katy does, nothing squishy in the mail this week...but I do have some pictures of shopping and gifting from my weekend in London!!

Look at this beautiful sampler Katy gave me as an early birthday pressie. I want to get back into cross stitching and stitcheries, but right now my life is mainly blowing noses, watching kids and sleeping early, not a lot of extra energy.


My goal of finishing the borders on the DJ was not met in February, but that is okay, it was a bit of a hard month for me. I have five of 13 triangles done, none of the plain tris marked for quilting yet... I did however buy the fabric for the binding and made all the bias binding strips for the scalloped border for the quilt. I am hoping to finish the border this month and start on the border. Katy gave me the great idea of working on sewing the binding on and then turning it over as I go along, so that I am actually finishing both sides at the same time, I hope it works! Here is a photo of the binding fabric I bought (the blue swirls on the left) and some other nice things I couldn't help myself picking out for a repro swap I am doing. The moda cross stitch fabric I just love...will use it as background for something in the future.


Katy also gave me some pieces of her pink and purple fabrics for a few baby quilts I am behind on doing...figure a few quick 6 inch square pieced quilts will work.


Will let you know about the Tuesday results, and hopefully show the 2 funny hats I've made for mom when she starts chemo. She is still sore, but she is in good spirits. We try to talk everyday and I have the web cam set up on Skype so that she can chat with the kids and just watch them play sometimes....she loves that, feels like she is in the room with them. Often there is not much new to talk about, but it is just nice to have her as part of our day! Makes me feel a little less far away.

Have a great weekend, I plan to spend most of mine in jammies, cleaning, studying and hopefully sewing! Of course, mothers day is tomorrow here in Ireland, so I plan on reading in bed for a long time while dad and the kids make breakfast for me! My mobile phone is dead, so I am thinking a cool new phone is a great mother's day pressie as well, gonna go order one online now!! Later!!

Going to London to Visit...Katy!!!

It has been a very bad week here for me. I'm letting all the pressures of life around me get to me, and this trip away from home is just what the doctor ordered!!

I am going to do an Irish driving exam on March 4, after 20 years of bad habits on a US license I am back to making sure to check all three mirrors every 8 seconds in a pronounced way for the tester, checking mirrors before signalling (I always signal first and then check mirrors, so hard to break that habit!) and then just trying to remember all the little things and not getting flustered while doing them...eek!! I am a good driver, haven't claimed on insurance so far in my 20 years of driving (knocking on wood very loudly right now!!) but man, I am fairly sure I will be failing this driving test with sheer nervousness and inability to teach an old momma new tricks... I went for a driving lesson on Tuesday, the day mom went in for her mastectomy...we had dense fog with low visibility... I was a nervous wreck and had to pull over... Was explaining the day to my instructor and started crying, then he started crying as his dad is unwell at the moment...what a sight we must have been on the side of the road, LOL. DH's work was nearby and he came out right away and gave me a cuddle and calmed me down... I was really letting this test get to me, maybe to keep my mind off of being so far from home when mom is fighting a pretty scary and lonely battle, good prognosis or not, I hate being so far away!! But...she made it through her operation just fine and though she is in pain still, is getting better.

So...I cried again that same day when so many of the local momma's offered to take my girls home after school times so I could go to visit my parents during mom's chemo treatments...I may just be taking them up on it all! Dave would not have to take any time off, just miss a few hours in the morning...

I had a really monster cold up till yesterday which makes everything look worse and colors it all, so I am happy to say that is going away, and a friend of mine is driving me to the airport today, such luxury!! I'm even treating myself to a taxi ride home from the airport late Sunday, relaxing all the way!

I should have some goodies to show on Monday, hope to buy the binding for my Dear Jane and some more repros for a few swaps, plus we'll hit the charity shops tomorrow, always a fun hunt!

Last weekend at Waterford was great, aside from bringing home a hideous cold, lol. Got to visit 3 very good friends and their families and the kids had great plays with their friends. Aine got chased and kissed by her friend Conor, lol, it really freaked her out, but she looks pretty happy in this photo...or maybe that is fear!



I'll end this post with an extremely generous gift I've received from Karol Ann from South Africa. Look at the beautiful indigos I've received. No excuses now, I have a wonderful collection of SA indigo fabrics, it is time to make a quilt this year!!

Minutiae of Life

Over the last few days I've done no knitting and just a bit of quilting, but have enjoyed the days with the girls and evenings with DH, and I've taken a few photos of our life which I hope you won't find too boring!!

We had Valentine's Day and today with the kids off from school. Got a nice card from DH but he is pretty atrocious with the gifts and being romantic, but he did forewarn me before marriage, so I guess I should know it is impossible to train someone as stubborn as him!! But he still likes just talking and hanging out with me, so there is something romantic about that after 13 years of marriage I guess!!

I planned an activity for the girls in the morning: making pink heart valentine's cookies! You see, we are going back to my old neighborhood in Waterford where we lived until Autumn 2006. We will visit friends, and Aine will see her best buddy Conor. Those that have followed my blog from its start as Crazed Quilter on blogspot will probably recall him as an weekly visitor to our house and often in our daily life photos! Aine is crazy with excitement about the trip and I must be too, as I couldn't go back to sleep after 5:30am wakeup!! Aine decorated some cookies to bring to her best buddy and his family! Aisling and I helped make them :)



I also managed to finish the third border on my Dear Jane.


We had a lovely sunny day yesterday, so I managed to put out some washing and get it dried outside for the first time all winter! Here is that Aine she is everywhere, behind her is the washing line and the cute daffodil Aisling grew at playschool!


Because I arranged an activity for the morning, Aine decided we needed an afternoon activity and layed out dozens of sheets of paper with some post it note hearts I'd given the girls as a pressie in the morning and layed pencils or crayons beside each sheet!


Our neighbors are cutting down all their lovely trees, which is a shame, but we get a benefit for a while before new houses are built on the land: a lovely view from our back garden of the Clare hills across the River Shannon! No river view from our house, but had to capture this sunset photo. Looks better in real life though!


Well, time to get moving: have to pack some clothes and get some food organized. I have my applique work for a handbag and one of mom's chemo caps in my project bag to bring along, can't go without some handwork if I get the chance, but I have a feeling there will be lots of chatting with my 2 good friends tonight in Waterford, and just a little bit of drink??

Have a great weekend! We are starting ours early today!!

Keep on keeping on...

I don't feel as if I have a lot to show these weeks, as I continue along quilting my dear jane and a few inches of knitting on a cap...but I did manage to make this nice pincushion/thread holder this weekend with Barbara's help. I am finding it great getting a few small projects done while continuing on with the big job of hand quilting the DJ. I love having the quilting threads on the pincushion, it will be great for my handwork.


I also finished mom's first chemo cap, Aine is sporting a serious look here and has the floppy brim flipped up, but I love the colors of this yarn. Hope mom likes it!! She is still waiting for her second operation. The mastectomy is scheduled for next week, then recovery, then chemo starts. Still wish I could be there for hugs.

Had my first parent teacher meeting last week and Aine seems to be in the popular clique in school, but is too "soft" as the teacher says, she gets upset if she can't be the one to be next to her two favorite girls in the clique. How do you explain to a happy affectionate girl that she has to tone down her clingyness or risk losing her favorite friends. I can already see how one of her friends stiffens when she hugs her all the time. Luckily this little girl is very kind and still loves Aine, but I can see her patience running out, girls can be unkind sometimes and Aine wears her heart on her sleeve.  Teacher says she is doing great with school work and sometimes wonders how she knows some of the facts she knows for such a young girl... her speech is improving as well (had her assessed for therapy and didn't need weekly meetings, but just to work on certain sounds together).

Life with 2 small kids is constantly busy, but often not hugely "blogworthy". I sometimes feel like I shouldn't post till I have a few projects to show, so I hope you'll forgive me if a weekly post is the most I manage for a while? I am nearly done my 3rd border on the DJ and just realized I have to go searching soon online for fabric for the blue fabric for the binding!! How the heck will I make such a huge amound of bias binding?

Oh...I do have some fun news to share! I am going to visit Katy for the weekend next week. Love the cheap airfares in Europe!! I will be seeing the Tutankhamun and Terra Cotta Warrior exhibits in London next Friday and then a day of quilt and thrift shopping Saturday, then home late to Ireland on Sunday, after a bit of a sewing bee!

Snowstorm of Activities

We had some more snow here yesterday in Ireland, must be a record, two snow queens in one season! No climate change around here, no siree! Dave was sick with a stomach bug all yesterday, slept for about 30 hours straight . Aisling woke up this morning having thrown up at around 5am. I've had 6 hours sleep and had an insane schedule for today which will all have to change. I'm feeling shivery now, like Dave yesterday and mommy's just aren't allowed to do that!! I am willing myself to be fine and escape the tummy bug by doing this post I didn't manage to finish yesterday.

Plans for today involved my 60 length swim I worked up to in January, a driving lesson to pass the Irish driving license exam and unlearn all my bad habits, watching my friends kids while she had her parent teacher meeting, Aisling going home with a friend, Aine going home with a friend, picking up Aine and taking her to ballet, taking my friends daughter home to play with Aisling during ballet class...oh yeah...and then dinner. LOL.  Now I'll be keeping Aisling home in case the bug travels to more schoolmates, seeing if neighbor can walk Aine down to school, no swimming, no lesson, seeing if Aine's friend's mom can bring her back to me in time for ballet...and another friend will be taking Aine to ballet...that is if she doesn't fall victim to the dreaded bug!!

Anyway, I have been doing a bit of crafting over the last week...

I had a voucher for our local yarn shop since Christmas and couldn't figure out what I'd do with it. Until I realized mom will be going through chemo soon. Chemo caps. Mom says she wants some fun ones, but I am also going to do half of them as hats she can wear again if she wants. Here are the hats I plan to do and the yarns I bought for them:

Noro Silk Garden for the Roll Brimmed Chemo Cap

Rowan Scottish Aran Tweed for a Floppy Brim Hat

 Stylecraft Gypsy colors for the The 'No-Hair-Day' Hairy Chemo Cap

All these patterns are from Head Huggers, a great organization.

Mom got bad news last week, the cancer wasn't all removed with the lumpectomy, so she will have to have the full mastectomy and they can't schedule it for a few weeks. She is holding up well though, there is still a good prognosis as it hasn't spread to bones or any other areas as confirmed by MRI and bone scans. Please keep those thoughts and prayers coming though!!

I have been keeping very busy with the girls which is good, but also exhausting. Their social lives are getting complicated, I can't keep up with who is coming and who is going, lol! We have kept up the swimming once a week together which the girls love, and a movie night on a Friday which means simple cooking or no cooking for me and a sweet treat for the girls and a movie or two...they love the traditions.  We cut out paper dolls last weekend, and I'll always encourage craftyness with my girls!!

I did some crafting myself on Saturday before the bug descended on us! Barbara is a bag maker extraordinaire and walked me through making my first handbag, using some of the Japanese taupes I got in Birmingham, they are the Matsuda woven ones with textures and they are lovely!! I attempted to start a second bag on Sunday, but didn't really manage with Dave out for the count and the girls making whirlwind messes behind them all day, and of course we were out for most of the morning in our short lived winter wonderland building snowmen and having snowball fights with the neighbors. After a rainstorm overnight, the queen is no longer with us! Our snow is always short lived here.

Here are some photos of the handbag I finished. It is a pattern Barbara designed herself. She has set up a new blog and is going to be selling some of her handbags, go over and have a look and tell her I sent ya, lol!

I even made a pocket with a slot for mobile, my shopping bag and a pen...lots of room in the main compartment too.

I am going to start on this gorgeous bag that Barbara adapted from a Japanese craft book.
These are the fabrics I chose for mine.


Hopefully the tummy bug will sneak past me, if I can shake the chills this morning. Maybe I can sleep sometime next year...or when they are 20?

Here are a few gratuitous girl photos for nanas and other interested parties: Aine's new party dress, Aisling in trousers, a rare sight, and another photo of the snow queen being built...

Unexpected Blog Break, But I'm OK

Thank you everyone who has checked in on me after my blog break was heading for the two week mark. I am doing okay... a bit emotional about being 6000 miles away from my parents during a hard time (dad has since all this started had kidney stones and other issues that need to be checked into himself this week, when it rains it pours). I have not been doing well with eating (food is always my crutch under stress), but have thrown myself into swimming, and activities for the girls and kept busy.

I can't really concentrate on a lot of crafting stuff right now, but have been obsessed with my DJ quilting which I can do without thinking, just sitting down and stitching away, so I have done that often...late at night or early in the morning, in between crazy hectic days! Here is a photo of a kite and a few triangles quilted in one of the borders.


I also have been the lucky recipient of a few packages! I did a trade with Jennifer at Moving Hands, I sent a bunch of civil war repro scraps for her Dear Jane blocks and she sent back all these lovely Quiltgate Japanese taupe fabrics, and some other lovely repros for my collection! I love all those muted colors on the taupe fabrics. Thank you so much!


A lady in my Wednesday morning quilting group was clearing out her 1980/90s knitting stash last week and I scored some real Irish pure wool (called bainin...think it still has lanolin in it for Aran waterproof knitting) and some lovely linen cotton yarn. It is a real shame that Irish yarn makers don't seem to make pure wool yarns anymore...I only see acrylic out there with maybe a bit of wool in it...


Yesterday I got a very special package from my dear friend Barbara. We chat often on messenger and skype since meeting in blogland nearly 2 years ago and have visited each other, I can truly say she is a very close friend of mine in real life now. She knew how helpless I was feeling so far away from my family at this time and look what she sent to me. A gorgeously packaged quilt kit using her signature shabby chic floral fabrics. I was crying like a baby in the middle of our village after opening the package. Quilters are such generous people. Thank you so much Barbara from the bottom of my heart. I am glad to call you my friend.

You All Make My Day!

32 comments last week, you are all wonderful with your support and encouragement and prayers for mom and our family. She is still getting all the information gathered... Her MRI says that there is no cancer in any other part of her body, but that their might be one lymph node involved with the cancer, so they are looking into that before a definite course of action is decided. We are all getting used to the idea, and it looks like our trip to Australia might be cancelled so that grandma can get some grandkid therapy this summer. So...my plans for bringing my Dear Jane to Sisters this year, could be back on...we'll see in the next month or two before we make solid plans!

I have finished quilting one of the triangle borders this week, well all the pieced triangles anyway...I am starting to work on the plain tris with a simple quilting pattern. I figured anything complicated would be totally lost on this design intense quilt. What do you think?


I managed to swim 35 lengths or more 3 times this week, and got one walk in. I started Weight Watchers on Wednesday, very depressing amount on that scale, but hope to see it go down soon. Will try to organize a WW page here on the blog soon, along with catching up on my Finished projects, Book list...geesh I have a lot to do!

I finished Dave's slippers and felted them...they are a bit misshapen, but they fit him just fine. I knitted it double stranded so the slippers are more like fraternal twins rather than identical with their patterning...one is more striped and the other more mottled...eek!!


Ruth tagged me with a lovely award, the You Make My Day award. I have to say, it does make my day to receive these kinds of awards that go around blogland. I love to know that people out there enjoy reading my blog!! I've seen this award go around many of the blogs I read several times over, but there are a few out there that I enjoy reading that haven't received it yet, so I'll focus on those ones, but with 178 feeds on my Bloglines, I enjoy many many blogs out there and appreciate every comment that I get. Thank you so much everyone for being such a wonderfully supportive community!

Here are a few favorites of mine, hope you take the award and pass it around to other blog friends that make your day!

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  Beth Crafts.  A great blogging friend who does some wonderful quilting and knitting, and so many other crafts!!
  
  


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  Knit One Quilt Too. Another talented knitter and quilter who inspires me with her projects!
  
  


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  Verry Sherry.  A fellow American quilter in Ireland. A great and witty blogger, also raising 2 gorgeous girls while crafting here.
  
  


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  Cowgirl Quilter. A prolific quilter with lots of inspiring photos!!
  
  


• Sew much fabric, sew little time, sew true!  She's at home in South Africa at the moment, but she does lots of lovely projects and really inspires


• Alabama Fiber Dreams. A talented knitter who makes great projects and dyes yarn as well!


• Lucy Locket Recycled Her Pocket.  A multitalented mommy crafter who always has great projects going on!


• Musings from my Soul. An American in South Africa, with great stories and great crafting...