Friday, April 24, 2015

Cold again….

I should learn to shut my mouth!!!  Just as soon as I was bragging about our nice weather, it went and turned cold again.  Ugh!  30 degrees when I woke up this morning and snow yesterday (if you can believe)?  Thankfully, it didn't stick to the ground!!  Whew!

Anyhow, I've not been doing much except reading and ordering stuff from Amazon.  Bad me!  I did send envelopes to my girls though with new books inside:





Then, my online friend, Sue, asked if I would make an envelope for her son who was recently deployed to Afghanistan.  I hope he gets a kick out of it!


Naturally, I read a few books.  The first one was a thriller and I really (I mean really) liked it.  The 2nd was historical fiction which was just okay.  I also liked #3, but I love this author anyway and usually can consume his books in record time.  Besides, I love that he has very short chapters.  lol  #4 is a book for mid-grade kids (ages 8-12…grades 3-7).  I think I originally bought it for my great niece for the future, but it was in my bookcase containing my "to-reads", so I decided to read it beford giving it to her.  I must say that it was a real delight.  I gave it 5 stars (the highest goodreads.com rating!)

THE LIFE I LEFT BEHIND                            by                Colette McBeth
A SPARROW IN TEREZIN                            by                Kristy Cambron
BURIED SECRETS                                      by                Joseph Finder
A SNICKER OF MAGIC (DEBUT)                  by                Natalie Lloyd

So that's it!  I'm off to the store to buy almond flour.  I just discovered (I must be living under a rock) that mostly you can substitute almond flour for regular flour in recipes which will lower the carb count by a ton.  I'm going to try it!  Have a fun week!

Friday, April 17, 2015

70's and sun……yippee

Did you read that?  70's and sun predicted for today.  Yeah!!!  I have so many plans!  First though, I want to clean my house and do my many errands for today.  By the time I'm done, I should be able to open the windows and let the fresh air in this house.  Yeah!!!  Then, I will sit and read and pretend that summer has arrived.  (Probably in my jeans and long sleeved t-shirt.  My body is not ready for summer yet.  lol)

If you can believe, I actually sewed this week.  Yes, Lady #78 and #79 are on their way home so soon I will be able to show you my lovely new additions to the series.  In the meantime, here are the envelopes I sent out his week to my sweet girls:





As usual, I read this week too and surprisingly enough got 3 finished even though I sewed for most of the week.  (Probably because I'm on a diet and am getting foot/leg cramps which get me up at least 4 times every night and every time, I read a chapter or two.  lol)  Ugh for the pain, but yeah for the reading.  lol

MIST OF MIDNIGHT                                 by                  Sandra Byrd
A SPOOL OF BLUE THREAD                    by                  Anne Tyler
VANISHED                                               by                  Joseph Finder

The first one was an English gothic romance (totally unlike stuff I usually read), but I really enjoyed it and would highly recommend it.  The 2nd has a lot of hype, but UGH!  I felt as though I was reading about anyones dysfunctional family and who needs that?  We all have our own in some way or another.  Right??  Then, the last, VANISHED, was good and went really fast.  Joseph Finder writes thrillers, but what I really like are his real short chapters so it seems like you're reading faster than you really are.  All of these were taken out of my local library (can you believe?)  I think it's been weeks since I've bought a book.  Amazon is going to think I died!

So, friends, you have a good week and enjoy your weather too.  I'm sure it must be nice where you live too!  Until next week……...

Friday, April 10, 2015

Chilly, rainy week….UGH!

I'm sure glad my kids are all raised and gone.  I can't imagine having them home for a spring break week with the weather we've been having.  I probably would have jumped out of a window….('course in those days, I think I had a bit more patience.)  lol  It was a great week though to catch up on envelope drawing, coloring, addressing and stamping.  I came to realize that I have all these books that I've collected to send and was running out of envelopes.  Needless to say, I got to work.  I think I'm set now for a at least a few weeks.  Here are the ones I sent to my girlies this week:




And, of course, I read a few books.  Not as many as usual because I was so busy having fun with the envelopes.

THE NIGHTINGALE                                by                   Kristin Hannah
I'LL MEET YOU THERE                          by                   Heather Demetrios

The best (by far) was The Nightingale.  It's another story of WWII but told from the French side of things with women being a main force in the saving of lives.  I loved it and it seemed true.  It's only in hardcover right now, so mark it down for when it's released in softcover or borrow it from your local library.

So that's it for this week.  Gee, I write this and it seems as though I don't do a thing.  How come then does it seem as though I'm busy all the time to me??  Life is crazy like that, huh?  Enjoy your week…and have fun!

Friday, April 3, 2015

Pink polka dot pot plus more…..

It's really sad that the place you used to go for sewing inspiration only sews once every two months now, huh?  Eikes, I'm really sorry about that, really I am!!  Good thing you peeked today though because I sewed!!  Yes, here is the mini quilt I made for my partner in the QT Mini quilt swap.  The theme was "Folk Art".  There was a tiny button in the middle of each flower.


And here is the one she sent to me:


Then, naturally, I sent off some cute envelopes to my girls and they mostly all had an Easter theme.





And then, of course, I read a few books:

ONE STEP TOO FAR (debut)                           by                         Tina Seskis
THE STRANGER                                             by                         Harlan Coben
THE HOUSE AT THE END OF HOPE STREET (debut)  by         Menna VanPraag

Believe it or not, I don't even remember anything about the 1st book anymore.  Duh!  Obviously it wasn't memorable so don't bother.  I was excited to read, "The Stranger" because I usually love anything by Harlan Coben, but this one didn't impress me.  "Missing You" was much better by him.  BUT, "The House at the End of Hope Street" was really neat.  It was a book unlike anything I've ever read before with a mystical, magical quality which brought me back to the joy I had as a child reading something new.  It's an older book so I'm sure your library would have it.  At 280 pages, it was a real delight that you might like too.

So, that's the news!  I hope you all have a blessed Easter weekend and enjoy the love and companionship of many friends and relatives.  Until next week………….