Getting Out the Vote!

Meet Gingerbean! Her pageant mother is entering her into one of those pageants where poor unsuspecting little girls must live out the fantasy that their mothers wished they had lived when they were younger and much more lithe. Overbearing, bossy, and just plain miserable mothers who subject their female offspring to prance around the stage to please "the man." I mean, I thought that we were past all that nonsense. What happened to Women's Rights? What would Susan B. Anthony say, or worse yet, Mrs. Banks? You know, Mary Poppins' employer...the wife of Mr. Banks, the banker? She marched around her parlour, singing, "Our daughter's daughters will adore us, and they'll sing in grateful chorus, well done...well done...well done, Sister Suffragette!" Look at poor Gingerbean up there in the Plaid Coat Competition, being made to strut her stuff in front of the judges...shameful! Mindy, you've set the Women's Movement back hundreds of years! Well done, Mommie Dearest!

Oh, well...just go and vote, please. If she loses, poor Gingerbean is going to have a lunatic mother on her hands. Thank you.

everything old is new again.

I'd say this is a nice picture, everyone looks fresh and happy. Lovely complexions, ladies and dude...

What's this? How did that nice digital picture turn so old looking? So scratched and craggy? It's very easyto do and no Photoshop is required! Just go here and spend countless hours turning beautiful modern photos into old, worn-out looking pieces of history. Not you, Grandma and Granny...good thing they don't read this! Shhhhh.! Be sure to choose "English" in the upper-right hand corner, or you'll end up with Asian photos.

Have fun and don't spend too much time playing...there's laundry to be done!

Birthday Love.

This is my brother, Tom. Not only is he my brother; he's a husband, father, friend, lawyer, editor and a Civil War re-enactor. And he's my real-life hero! I could tell you the background of why Tom is so special to the family, but for reasons known to family, his friends and colleagues, we'll just leave it at "he lives each day with grace, determination, gentleness, humor, and love." A true artist, Tom is creative. He can paint, draw and sculpt; not only with charcoal, acrylic, or clay... he also paints with words. Tom is the recipient of a God-given gift that has not been squandered, cast to the wind. Tom's knowledge of music, the arts, history, language, politics never ceases to amaze us, he's the curator of all that is beautiful and historic. And he married the sweetest woman and together, they created an amazingly talented and loving family.

So Tom, please know how much we all love and admire you. Your gentle nature is greatly loved by all of "us" and you, Steve and Mike are the best brothers a girl could ever hope to have!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

sunshine on my shoulders.

For those of you who are facing a few more months of winter, I bring you a green tree. It was a beautiful day here in Northeast Florida, sunny and bright with a cool breeze blowing in from...hmmm, from where, I'm not sure. But it was lovely! This past weekend, we raked and bagged oodles of little brown leaves. And we've barely scraped the surface of the yard. Many of the trees that had once graced the yard are gone, due to either rotting, hurricanes and/or the installation of the pool. At the time, I thought that I would miss the tree canopy that shaded the yard. Once the trees were cut down, however, the blueness of the afternoon sky and the twinkling stars at night were now visible to us. Now the sun could reach the grass that was longing for photosynthesis and we could actually look at planes in the sky and the moon at night. So how could we still have all these leaves on our yard? The neighbors. They've trained their trees to shed in our yard. Darn neighbors!

and the card holder goes to...

Randi! How 'bout that?! I'll be popping it in the mail this week.

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On another note, I'm pooped! I volunteered at the local Women's Health Center today...it's so amazing. I always take out more from the center than what I bring in. Some days, I receive such good vibes from the clients and on other days, it's my fellow volunteers who pour great joy into my cup. I'm tired, but I'm a happy, contented tired. So if any of you readers are from the Help Center, "thank you." And God bless.

day of liberation!

It's official: we no longer have to pay taxes to the Federal Government!
Harry Reid said so!

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Up for grabs this week is this business card/credit card holder.

Just click here for more details.

FREE-ky Friday business GIVEAWAY!

Today's theme is business. I have much business to get done today. Sometimes, I put my nose in business it does not belong. If I don't get my business papers in order, I'm gonna get the business from MacGyver. And horror of horrors, my eyeliner pencil is kaput, fine', done for. So I must go to a business and buy some, fast!

Need a business card? Here, take one of mine. And while you're at it, put it in this nifty business card holder. It's yours. And it's not perfect. In my wild abandon to get it finished, I ignored trimming the interlining to reduce bulk in the corners and I didn't use the proper colored thread. This happens the first time I make something...I'm in a hurry to see how it's going to sew up and look. The next time I make the same item, I refine it to make it look nicer. The holder's OK, but it's not up to snuff. So if you're lucky, it can be yours.

In the comments section, tell me what business is about in your life this weekend. See, there I go again, putting my nose in other peoples' business! My friend, Mr. Random, will close his eyes and pick a lucky number, sometime early next week. Same rules apply, one entry per person, yada, yada, yada...(name that TV show!).

Oh, and the little miniscule drop of DNA I left on the card holder is barely noticeable. I think it'll come out...just kidding!

we have a winner!

And the winner is...RED BEAR! Congratulations, RED BEAR! In the interest of all that is honest and just, I must disclose that RED BEAR is my sister-in-law, who lives in the beautiful state of Pennsylvania! Now if RED BEAR lived close by and I saw her all the time, I'd say, "Scram, Ya varmit! You're always hanging around and quite frankly, I'm gettin' mighty tired of ya! Ya'll go gitcha own dang potholders!" But I'm not going to say that, 'cause that would be just plain rude. And I miss her. So RED BEAR, you can thank Melany for this pattern, she's responsible for my newest addiction, heart potholders!

**Thanks to all who left MacGyver those wonderful birthday wishes...he really enjoyed them! You guys are the best!

speech...amen, little sister!

Factual and very eloquent, this little 12-year old girl from Canada has stirred the thoughts and hearts of the world. While Nancy Pelosi and Joe Biden continue to misinform the public of the Catholic Church's stance on when life begins, this little girl raises her voice above the politically powerful to deliver a speech with passion and unbelievable impact. I don't know who could have presented this speech any better than the little author. I am moved and marvel at the power of the Holy Spirit working in this girl. Whether she is aware of it or not, she has become an advocate, an angel, to these most precious of little lives. May the Lord bless this young lady and keep her safe and inspired. Amen.

day for new discoveries!

I came home from a crazy Patti-day and found an envelope in my mailbox, addressed to me.

I ripped open the very official-looking envelope and found this magic inside!

It's good to know that there's royalty in my lineage! If only I could find a pumpkin to set outside tonight and in the morning, I'd have a pimpin' ride to drive around the city. Thanks, Mindy! I love my wand-magnet. And I love you!

*pssssssst...enter here for a FREE-ky giveaway!

Spring-ish days.

Leaves. Brown. Not pretty. Lots and lots and lots of leaves. In Florida, leaves signify the end of winter and the start of weekends spent bagging them.

And these. Azalia flowers, blooming all over Northeast Florida! Signs of Spring are everywhere! Spring is short-lived in Florida...soon hot, humid days will be upon us and my hair will be a mass of unruly curls. Many bad hair-days are in my future.

**To enter the pot-holder giveaway, visit here. I'll be randomly selecting a winner in a few days.

Valentine's Day!

Jason & Jonathan

Grandma & Pa

Granny & Papa

Tom, Mel, & Colin

Steve & Linda

Mike, Laurie, Connor & Aaron

Kitty & Jim

Sam & Lena

Donna & Jonathan

Rob & Sheila

Aunt Bobbye Sue

Aunt Cheryl & Uncle Don

Uncle Bill & Uncle Tom & Families

B.B. & Frank

To my blogging friends, whom I affectionately refer to as my "Bleople."

*In memory of Grandma Moran, who was united with Jesus and the Blessed Mother on this day.

Her love and goodness was an inspiration to us all.

I know that her bonnie-blue eyes are lovingly looking upon us,

encouraging us to be good, loving & faithful to the Lord.

"FREE-ky" Friday Giveaway.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, POPPY!

Welcome to my new category, "FREE-ky Friday." I can't guarantee that every Friday will be FREE-ky, but I'll try. My dear sister-in-law Melany, sent me the pattern to make these delicious little potholders and I couldn't resist whipping up a set. I used what fabric I had in my stash and this Amy Butler combination was the first to fly into my twitching fingers. This set is my first attempt at these darlings... they're not perfect, but they're for you!

**To enter: go to the "comments" section at the bottom of this post and leave my dear husband, MacGyver, a birthday wish. YES, it's his birthday! I'll randomly select a winner sometime next week. Please leave only ONE comment, to make it easy on me when I use the Random.org thing-ama-jig. For those of you who do not have a blogging account, please leave your email address so that I can contact you should you win. Shipping in the U.S. is on me, but if you reside elsewhere, we just may have to split the cost of shipping...'cause with my luck, the winner will live on some remote volcano island and only the military can deliver on a tricked-out helicopter...you get my drift.

GOOD LUCK!

blessed day!

Happy Anniversary, Mom & Dad!

come to mama!

I participated in my first-ever successful swap. And boy, am I ever glad I did!

Here's the loot, still nestled in it's own, pretty red paper-lined box. Love the card, how clever! I was instantly smitten!

And this. Oh my. I saw this posted on Lola's blog and secretly hoped that this was going to be in the package that Lola, my Valentine's swap partner, would be sending. Imagine how my heart leapt when I opened the pretty package and saw it. Lola had sent my heart's desire!

This is the heart that was on the front of the card...isn't it perfect? Also in my swap box were four perfect glass heart-shaped candles, along with a heart-shaped tin with yummy truffles nestled in the red and pink tissue paper.

I heart you, Lola! Thank you ever so much!

trove of treasure.

We'll be getting back to "normal" posts soon...you know, the posts where I ramble on and on about fabric and trims and patterns. Boring. I've wasted today by cleaning, washing the dog, and laundry. I'll be over that very soon. On to other stuff...
Hello, Mr. Snowman! Aren't you adorable? This is a very cute dish my homey Suzy gave me for a certain occassion that I let pass by without notifying you. Sorry. But isn't he the cat's meow?

Wanda, one of my Peeps, gave me this very cool flip book, I love it! If I knew how to Youtube, I'd be tempted to post it for you. And the Nonni's? It seems that Wanda has developed a habit of giving me edible gifts that my husband loves. What's with that?! Hmmmm....

And last, but certainly not least, is this combo that my muchacha, Kathy, presented me with. You've seen the awesome cup, but look at that handy-dandy curling/flat iron pouch. Kathy has so much faith in me that she thought it might make a great pattern. Shhhhh, don't tell on her!

Kathy treated me to lunch at a new restaurant in town (delicious!) and the Dynamic Duo, Suzy and Wanda, treated me to dinner. I celebrated for a whole week! It was like a national holiday! Thanks, girls. You know how much I love you!

day for new panties.

Oh, come on, admit it...you're intrigued with "Pantipalooza!" Honestly, who wouldn't be curious to know what it's all about? And the panty image just grabs you, doesn't it? Leave it to our friend Mindy to come up with this genius idea. So incredibly genius, in fact, that I've chosen to copy my friend Randi and blog about "Pantipalooza" today. I'm a follower, what can I say? You know the feeling you get when you go to grab your unmentionables out of the drawer, you're rushing around getting ready for work (or an incredibly hot date) and horrors, no clean panties?! Imagine what it must feel like when you don't have the money for panties, or you're in a shelter, having had to leave your possessions behind. Wouldn't it be comforting to have a clean pair to put on, to be able to have some dignity in your day? Think about what it would mean for a woman in crisis to have that little bit of comfort, of solace knowing that another woman had thought about her basic need. Please head over to Mindy's for more information and ideas...you'll be glad to help. It's a panti-riffic opportunity to help a friend in need.

day to hang on the fence.

I look at this fabric and I think, "Grandma's linens." To me, the fabric has a vintage appeal to it.

This is the opposite side of the bag. It really has a clean, fresh look to it. I just want to lay my head down on it and take a nap. But I won't. My head would smush (smoosh?) the bag.

This is a smaller purse...I think the next purse I make, will be a bit larger. But I think it's still cute. These two bags will be in my store or on Etsy (once I figure out a name and list them).

What to do now? Maybe I'll just start another purse. I do need placemats. A belt would be good...I just don't know!

baby, it's cold outside.

This is the majestic Niagara Falls. Frozen. And I used to live not too far from, as locals commonly referred to it, "The Falls." I imagine we took the whole, beautiful spectacle for granted, as The Falls was the primary destination of any out-of-town visitors who came our way. Or a meandering ride on a Sunday afternoon. In the Summer, a family picnic, just to get out of the house. Sometimes in the Fall, a hike in the Niagara Gorge. Perhaps a little jaunt to one of the Sister Islands, to climb on the rocks just inches from the Rapids. To watch the tourists taking pictures of this lovely treasure that we had so taken for granted. No matter the season, there's always a perfect reason to visit this God-given wonder, an immense and perfect jewel in the crown of Mother Nature.

day to resurface.

Here's a secret: I am a huge fan of The Biggest Loser. Only around here, we fondly call it, "The Biggest Fat-Ass." We can rename it that, 'cause those in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. And we certainly do not live in a glass house, believe-you-me! The show is on tonight and I'll have my jammies on, wrapped up in a blanket, 'cause I don't believe in heat. It makes my skin itch and encourages unwanted hot flashes. Am I giving you too much information? Anyway, I find the people on this show to be remarkably inspiring, as I sit with a bowl of popcorn on my lap. I almost want to get up and work-out on the treadmill, but I don't know, I never seem to make it past the kitchen and my second bowl of popcorn!

I've been working on my website and sewing, volunteering and shopping, laundry and daydreaming. The website is almost ready to launch...boy, it's a lot of work! I'd like to edit my photos more, but that takes soooo much time. Anyway, I'm considering opening an Etsy store as well. I just don't know what to call it. Mindy seems to think "Knick-Knack, Patti's Whacked" is a viable option. What do you think?