Sweltering in New England!

It is CRAZY hot here in NE this week.  We have not yet put in our air conditioners and I am in a foul mood.  See heat and I are NOT friends!

It makes me cranky, sick and more tired then I normally am...

which is pretty tired.

Other then that things have been pretty good.  I was entered into a radio contest to try and win a pool by a friend of mine.  I won tickets to a local water park for qualifying, which the kids

think is just great!

At the event I had Jack and Em with me....we didn't win the pool

and MAN was Emma MAD!  LOL  What!  she yelled, we didn't win the pool!

However we did come away with some prizes....Jack won a family pack of tickets to a local AAA

baseball game by winning at Simon Says.  I also got free Vitamin Water,

beach balls for the kids, and a Glee Madonna CD...so I was pretty happy.

After we left the radio event we decided to stop at some yard sales and such.

Got some great things for a Strawberry Swap I am doing.

And I also scored 2 books on smocking...which

I plan to gift to a woman who has inspired me by her blog....

and 4 patterns to make Emma some vintage dresses for preschool in the fall....

Now.......all I need to do is learn to sew better!  LOL

I have been paired for the swap with a lovely woman from the states who is a quilter....

I so want her to like what I make so I must truly take loads of time with this!  Knowing she is

great at sewing I am sure whatever she makes will be lovely....as lovely as my last swap gifts...

which I PROMISE to post pics of soon.

The boys birthdays are coming up soon and I am in full on party planning

mode.  Jack only wants a few little friends to come, so

we are doing a Double Digit Sports Spectatular with a water slide too.  Since it

is so hot lately I am sure it will be a big hit.  James is having a Wacky Water War

party.  We plan to have all the kids bring water guns, buckets of

water balloons and of course the water slide, which I scored super

cheap at a sale at Kohls....we were going to rent one and this cost the same to buy it!  I was SO

excited.

I am trying to branch out and make more crafts but then the weather got so hot

and I was not feeling well and I fell off the wagon.  Now

that the a/c is being put in I hope that this

week I will get back to it!

And finally I have said it before and I will say it again....I really should have been

born in the UK.....I have found so many wonderful things

from there....recently I purchased a few little tidbits from the Cath Kidston....I have

not yet opened it as I was much too hot and irritable and I want to truly

enjoy seeing my new lovelies...one of which is a new

mug for my coffee.....I will think of my new UK friend Louisa when I

sip from it!  Hope you all have a lovely week

Spring Fling!

Well here we are! 

 I am so bad about posting on this blog but I am conflicted on exactly what it should be about???  I don't do enough crafts to make it a craft blog.....so I have decided that I will just post every Sunday or more often if the inspiration strikes!  I have met so many wonderful woman on blogs and learned so many new and wonderful things....so I will be sharing that as well....

So things here have been good but super busy.

  The hubby started a new job about 7 weeks ago and while he loves it, it's taking getting used to the new hours for all of us!  My oldest son James got braces!  The first few days were miserable and he cried at night time with the pain but I am happy to report he is over the hump and feeling well.  I will post a pic of that soon....no pics on this laptop!   We celebrated Em's 3rd birthday twice!  One with a Perfectly Purple-tastic Party and then again with 3 of her little friends at Chuckie Cheese ( for those who don't know what that it is....it is a place with a giant mouse, pizza and arcade games and rides....parents hate it....kids love it!).  We are now in the planning stages for the boys parties...more on that later! 

I am trying to gather things to start crafting.....since having the boys and then Em, I have fallen off the crafty wagon and would dearly love to get back on.  I recently participated in a lovely swap with some ladies from the UK and it got me super motivated to do this again.  I am planning to join another of Pixiedust's swaps...this time all things strawberry!  NO idea what I am going to make yet but am going to start looking into things this week.  If you are interested in receiving some strawberry lovelies click HERE to learn more!

I also read another lovely blog called Lolly Chops....she had a whole week where she showed tutorials on how to make different colored and different material flowers......SO inspiring!  My favorite flower required that I get a die cut machine.....after buying/opening and not being about to return the first cutter because it was too small for the dies I needed........I finally bought the Sizzix Big Shot on ebay and the die at Michael's and made these lovelies!

Isn't that flower just so wonderful!  If you are interested in learning how to make these.....and many others for yourself or as gifts.....click HERE

Lastly I would love some ideas on my sons upcoming parties.  Jack is turning 10 so we are having a:

Double Digit Sports Spectacular

I found this amazing candy table HERE  and I MUST have this for the party!  I will be doing it the same rainbow colors.....other then that I have no ideas....we are planning to have things set up for soccer.....basketball......flag football....and street hockey.....I need idea on decorations other then this table and what food to serve????

Then we will be have James 12th Birthday in July

Wacky Water Wars!

Where we will have the same candy table set up....there will be two teams of kids in matching colored bandannas, making a team flag that they must protect.  Each child will be asked to bring a water gun....we will have slip and slide, water balloons, box forts to hide in, a safe sprinkler zone and possibly a giant inflatable water slide if I can locate one!  So I need again decoration ideas, a cake theme? and snacks to eat for real!  Forgot to add that I am also looking for ideas for both parties for good, inexpensive favor bags!

Well I guess that is all for this week.  I will try and post this week to show you the lovelies I got in pixie's swap....lucky me SHE was my partner and she made me the most beautiful doll!  Totally spoiled me!  We have decided to become across the pond pen pals.....Have a lovely Monday all!

Crafting weekend.....

        So this past weekend was the first of Spring and WOW was it really here!  It was almost 70 degrees and sunny....we threw open the windows, wore short sleeves and well quite frankly I felt wonderful.  I truly think I must have not enough Vitamin D and that is why I am always so tired!  This weekend I was a whirling dervish!  I cleaned, I sewed, I played.....hardly any time on the computer, which made hubby happy! :)

          So the boys and I had a lovely weekend making projects.....I made up my things for the Tilda swap as I HAD to get it in the mail Monday....happy to say I did it! I haven't sewn in years and maybe it wasn't the best idea to start on a project for someone else???  However I think what I made was very sweet and cute, and I have already started on the same set for myself/daughter..... I also made up some sweet boxes for a Handmade Pass it on from FaceBook, first time making jewlery,earrings to be exact.....sent those off Monday as well and everyone recieved them today and like them very much, much to my delight!  My little one decided that she too wanted a "project" so she took out a whole ton of batteries, screwdrivers and tried to take apart her little piano.  When asked what she was doing she replied...." It's my project, I TOLD you"  Okey dokey then!

        James was working on his Egypt project for school.  He made two different pyramids, one from foam blocks and one from clay.  He also made a tool of wood, twine and metal.  He worked in the garage with my hubby banging away having a grand old time for himself.  I will add pictures of that tomorrow.   He did such a wonderful job on the crafting part and his 4 page paper ( tpyed but still)......we are so very proud of him....6th grade has been very difficult and challenging for him and his ADD does not help.  He has worked very hard despite his challenges. 

    Jack was bent low over James all weekend trying to be of some help in the projects.....I went out and got them more foam blocks so when they don't have school they can make something together.....it is so nice to see them hunched up together, making a plan.....


So what did you do this weekend?

Obsessions......

I have many obsessions, but the current one is Tilda by Tone Finnanger.....I stumbled upon these wonderful books and projects on my new favorite blog, Faeire Nuff......I am hooked!  I have ordered 3 of her books and wish more then anything that I lived in England so I could buy her fabrics and other things!  I want to run out to Lowes and get paint enough for all the rooms in my house to have white walls.  I want my books NOW!!!!  I did my little Em's hair as I imagine Tilda would....

My other obsession is my little girls hair and all the lovely things that I can put in it!  Currently Pleated Poppies by Lindsey Cheney are a favorite!  I wish I could afford to have one in every color!  My very crafty sister in law just sent this adorable headband with our favorite, the ladybug!

We have requested a purple butterfly and a bumble bee to complete her collection!  Thank you Jaime!

I guess my biggest issue with both these obsessions is my lack of energy.  I recently started taking iron and vitamin D supplements and that is really helping.  I just need to get up and do it.  I used to do crafts of all sorts before the babies came and I truly want to get back into doing that.  I have weaned myself off television and now I have to get off the FaceCrack....aka FaceBook!   I am going to get on with it all tomorrow!

I joined a quilt along on another blog and have only gotten to the part where you cut your material...the others are on the step where you machine quilt the top.  Thankfully it is all there on her blog and you can take your time but that fabric is just staring me in the face....mocking me!  LOL  I have saved all of Emma's baby dresses and want to make a quilt out of them but until I have some practice under my belt I don't dare cut them up!

So what are your obsessions of the moment?