Happy Birthday, Maile!

Yea! I just finished Maile's kitchen curtains. They are her 28th birthday present. They were so much fun to create!! And the room looks so nice!

My first quilling project!

I just took a "quilling" class at the Senior Center.

This is my first creation! I love it! I've always admired quilling, but I've never tried to do it. It looks really difficult.

IT'S NOT HARD AT ALL! And it's so rewarding! I can hardly wait to make something else!

Oops!

"Maile, do you ever use Olay Body lotion? I tried it

and don't like it. It stays sticky!" "Sure, Mom, I've

used it before. It was fine." "Okay, I'll give it to you."

As I'm handing it to her a few hours later, she says,

"Mom, this is body wash!" Oops!

Although I love being retired, I decided to get a part-time job to earn enough money to buy a new embroidery machine.

I found a little Baptist church that needed someone to create their bulletin and PowerPt for their services each week. Yea! I love doing both of those jobs! I met with the office manager briefly and a few days later was called in to meet with the pastor. We had a great visit. He was very excited and told me he would have the office manager call me the next day to set up my start date, etc. Whooppee!! Unfortunately, my phone never rang!?!? I waited almost a week and called them, but there was no answer. I left a message on the pastor's voicemail stating that I was disappointed that the promised phone call never came and that I hoped the office manager wasn't still sick. I never heard a word from them! I guess I'm not supposed to have the job!?!?

Next option: Sell my car. Maxey's 2006 Matrix just like mine is parked in the garage. There's no reason to keep an extra car...especially since we need some money. So, we decided to sell my Matrix with 32,000 miles and keep the one with 8,000 miles. So, late last night we put a For Sale sign on the car. This morning I drove it to church for Bible Study and Livewire Choir. Of course, I parked strategically where the car and FOR SALE sign could be seen from the busy street next to the church. When I came out of choir practice, a man was waiting for me. We went for a test drive; and he bought my car! Wow!!

So...Good Bye Matrix


Hello Embroidery Machine!

Goodbye Dear Friend

My dear embroidery machine died! I miss it terribly!! We had so many good times together in the past 12 years...and, as with true friendships, a "few" frustrating moments through the years.

Tears come to my eyes just typing this...

Just another part of the "journey".

Crafty Fun!

My friend, Diane Venegoni, came to spend a couple of days with me. We had a wonderful, wonderful time. When we get together, we usually "create" something. This time we decided to make matching tote bags in the style of Vera Bradley. (Of course, ours are better than anything Vera Bradley ever created!!)

Thanks for visiting, Diane. I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with you!!!!!

Learning to Love

Life is full of imperfect things...and imperfect people. That's just how it is!

My prayer this year has been that God would help me learn to love people. I'm not as mature and Christ-like as I want to be, but what I'm finally understanding (with God's guidance) is that learning to accept each other's faults -- and choosing to celebrate each other's differences -- is one of the most important keys to creating healthy, growing, and lasting relationships.

I thank God constantly for my wonderful husband, my fantastic children and their amazing families, and my many, many friends! Each and everyone of you is a blessing in my life!!