Enjoying family time...

Isn't he pretty? We got close to him before he waddled away. He's a wood duck, by the way.

I was grading state tests for three days this week, and we got done a little early today, so I got to leave work an hour sooner than usual. I called my husband, and we met at the local wildlife refuge and took a nice long walk there together. He was in the neighborhood estimating a job, so it was perfect timing. For the past few weeks, we have hardly had dinner together, much less time to relax and unwind together, so this weekend it will be nice to be home (my emboidery machine is humming away right now), eating together and doing work around the house.

Sometimes the busy times are good for you too, though. All of this time away from home has made it even more precious and appreciated when I am here. Pretty soon, when all of my big school obligations are done, I will be able to come home earlier, but for now, things are hectic. Having a whole evening home is a time to treasure.

My friend, Michelle, is probably coming back to work the week of April 14. The 8th grade will be away on the trip to Washington, DC, so she will not be bombarded with all of the kids at once. How hard will it be for her to leave home and return to the "real" world, when hers is not real to her anymore?

Happy Easter!!!

I am in an emboidery (machine) block of the month club at my quilting shop. These are the two we did this month!! I am doing all of the fabrics in red and white, with the flowers as the only additional color. I love it! The lines around the design are just the basting, which I will take out once the blocks are done.

So far, my friend is doing ok. She is in such a state of shock that she keeps wanting to believe that he is on vacation in Cancun. I have seen her quite a bit and I am really just there to listen and talk when she wants to. Keep her in your prayers.

Life is precious

Today my friend buried her oldest son. How does a mother recover and move on from such a tragedy? At work, three of us have lunch every day and talk about our kids and what is going on in their lives. Our three oldest boys are all about the same age and we have laughed and cried together as they went through life's challenges and made us proud and blessed by them (in addition to the worry lines and gray hair we got as gifts from them as well). Now one of those boys is gone forever, leaving a mother who will probably cry herself to sleep for many months and years to come. My own son has been doing sweet things for me these past few days (my daughter and husband are both away for a few days) like making dinner and helping me with chores around the house. My heart is with my dear friend as she finds her way out of the darkness back into life again...

Yes, I am Irish...

I made this variation of the Irish Chain quilt this weekend. There was a mystery quilt class on Thursday, and this is the quilt we were making. I finished it this weekend (really easy) and will try to quilt it this month. At least it was done for St. Paticks Day! The entire quilt is green and white, with the bottom fabric the larger border (I love the shamrocks!) This weekend was a tragic one for my friend (her 25 year old son died in a car crash on Saturday morning) and I used my sewing time to say my prayers for her and for those of us who are her friends. I cannot imagine how we can help her, except to be there. I spent a lot of time thinking about how fragile life is and thinking about how much we had better all make that time memorable and how we had better act on all those dreams we have instead of waiting for the "right" time. Hope you enjoy your corned beef and cabbage tonight. My daughter is making ziti!! What kind of Irish chick is she? I get a night off from the kitchen, so I am not complaining!!:)

Churn dash top done!!

It is hard to see the colors in this picture, but here it is!
Close up of lower part of the top!


Here are two blocks! All Kaffe Fasset fabrics except for a few small pieces. I like this one quite a bit even though it does not match anything! I have been sick lately and then working at school till all hours working on the play with drama club, but after this weekend, that is done! It is coming out so cute and I know the community will love it. The kids did most of the work, so it is a very happy time for them. They are proud of their efforts!

Starting my slipcovers

I usually like to break my projects into small chunks so that I do not get overwhelmed with them. So, I got the fabric for the slipcovers while I was in Florida at my parents' house. I have been reading directions for making slipcovers for a week or so (this way I am not winging it--and it does take me some time to make sense of the directions) and today, I actually did all of the measurements. I drew my pictures and have the fabric ready for cutting. This week, I will cut the fabric and next week I will start sewing the slipcovers!! I got a plain rust colored fabric for them, and a nice coordinating one for pillows and accessories. As I go along, I will post my progress.

Fun stuff from the decoy show

Kenny and I went to the Decoy Show yesterday. It's only held once a year, so we never miss it. I was feeling a little sick with a cold on Friday (and again today) but I wanted to go to the show anyway. While we were there, I spotted these two cute decoys and Kenny got them for me. The turtle's head moves from side to side!! It is so adorable. The artist is a guy named Mike Yanelli and I always stop by his table first to see what he has new. Of course, every year I get a few things from him.