STUFF!!!

I'm back!! Betcha missed me, huh? This is a picture of my new sandals...and my old toes! They are very comfortable! I have been gathering all my finished embroidery pieces, trying to figure out what to do with them. Make wall hangings, pillows, what!? Anyway, here are some pictures of them. Most of them are "redwork", which I love. The picture of the crow is one I painted a while ago. I haven't painted for some time, but I plan on starting on some Christmas ornaments as soon as I finish a couple of cotton knit shirts I'm sewing for my summer wardrobe. I want to decorate my tree a little different this year.

I sent Harv to get some gas in the car for me...I want to go to the antique mall to look for an old birdcage. I have an idea for a display.

Harv has been painting the inside of my closet, & is going to lay the rest of the hardwood floor inside my closet. Yay! Gotta keep that old man busy & out of my hair (Oh no, not hair again), otherwise, he wanders around mumbling and at loose ends! Bye for now!

Ok, I am back on my hair again! Yes, I know, I am obsessed with my hair! If you think this picture is a joke, think again. This is really how my hair looks. I got a haircut yesterday--looking for something different. I sure got it! Note to all hairdressers: If a person my age (old) tells you something about their hair--believe them! I have told my WHD (wonderful hairdresser, because, all told I love her, and she does cut hair well) that when my hair is cut short, and believe me, it is SHORT, you can't blow it dry going back and expect it to go forward when it's done. NO!!!! My hair will stand straight on end, hence the picture, and nothing will make it lay down until it is washed again. Soooo, of course, she blew it dry, going back. And, of course, when it was finished, it stood straight up. She kind of freaked out, and grabbed the hair paste--then it stood straight up, and was greasy. She got that deer in the headlights look, and I started to laugh. Twenty years ago I would have jumped up from the seat & threatened to do her bodily harm, but, now I know that I can fix it. Over the years, I have learned that even if I get a haircut that is 1 inch in length, I can fix it.



So, this morning, I took a shower & washed my hair. It was straight up!! After much hair product, & patience, it now looks rather cute. Kind of a pixie look. Even Harv likes it. The moral of this story is: If someone cuts you hair all off & you feel panic set in, just remember, it is HAIR! It will GROW Back. Learn to laugh at yourself! Oh, and give your WHD a hug when you leave, and tell her it will be alright.



Footnote that has nothing to do with hair---my daughter, Toni, makes the best bread on earth & I just finished eating a slice---MMMMM good! Thanks, little girl.

This is me today! I am finally feeling like I might live. But, I am ready to release all the flying monkeys on my neighbors. What are people thinking!!?? My neighbors seem to all know I sew. They must have been having coffee klatches so they could share that information. What they don't know is that I am a selfish sewer. I DOUBLE do not like to sew for other people--grandkids & kids excluded--I love to sew for them--I only want to sew for myself. Otherwise I would advertise or tell people that I sew for all people. And I don't! I don't want to teach people to sew, either! I am not a professional seamstress--I am mostly self taught. Soooooo, teach yourself!! I have no patience to teach people to sew---especially if you have never, EVER, touched a sewing machine in your life! Do NOT even think of touching my sewing machine---not NOW, not EVER! Also, I am not a tailor. I buy patterns, fabric, notions, yada, yada, and I follow the pattern & sew. I don't want to hem your pants, sew up your seams that came apart, take in or let out any of your clothes---buy the damn things in the right size. This is how I feel, sorry neighbors. I would rather you know from the start that I don't like to S.W.A.G (sew with a grudge). If you see something I have sewn--a T shirt, a table runner, a cover for a down comforter, a robe, an apron, custom pillow cases for all seasons, whatever---NO, I don't want to make one for you. Look in the newspaper adds, on Craigslist, places people advertise who want to do this---lose my phone number----please. Whew, now I really feel better!

These are the beautiful roses that my Valentine of 48 years, surprised me with for Valentine's Day. They smell good, too.

We are getting ready for our Utah trip to see friends & family. I can't wait to see my new great-grandson, Stryker, and my new grand-nephew, Gamble. Names are quite different, huh? Oh well--the new generation. I am also excited to see my sweet grandson, Christian, and my three youngest kids (who aren't really kids, but I still think of them that way). But most of all, I can't wait to be "home" for a while. I miss my beautiful Wasatch Mountains, and my familiar stomping grounds. I kind of have a little problem, though. I don't have any winter clothes! That sucks, huh. I hope I don't freeze my buns off! I do have a tartan plaid wool poncho that Toni brought me from Scotland, so I guess that will keep me warm enough---I don't think I will be doing any hiking or skiing---so not to worry. I didn't do any of that while I lived there. We all know that!

I will, of course, be buying fabric from all the wonderful fabric shops that are in Salt Lake City. I'm hoping Elizabeth and I will be able to go "junking" a little while I'm there. Fun time!

I want my Mommy! I have been sick for about 5 days now, & I could sure use my mother. Even though Harv has been really attentive, he is not my mother. I need to feel her soft hands on my forehead, have her bring me 7-up in a glass with ice & a straw. I want her to buy me movie magazines to read & fix me something to eat. I want to hear her hustling & bustling around our old house, cleaning up or folding laundry. She always turned the radio on & harmonized with Frank Sinatra or Tony Bennett in her soft voice. Then she would peek in my room to see if I needed anything else, how I was feeling, & plump up my pillows, & fix my covers. "I'm sorry you're sick, honey, do you need anything else?", she would say. It was so comforting. I don't care how many grandkids or great-grandkids I have, or if I'm 70, 80, 90, or even 100 years old---when I get sick, I STILL WANT MY MOMMY!!!!!

This is me at the "Phoenix Quilt, Craft & Sewing Festival", on Saturday. Toni took my picture at the art doll booth. I love these weird looking dolls. They are sculpted with a needle and then dressed in strange looking outfits. There is even a mermaid doll that I would love to make. I have looked at the directions on the patterns for these dolls, and believe me, they are hard to make. Maybe some day I will venture to make one. Toni thinks these dolls are beyond strange & they give her the "whim whams". They bring out my inner freak, while they scare her. We had such a good time. My poor knee was killing me, so I brought my cane & then I tripped over it about 3 times. I am so graceful! I could have spent lots of money there, but I was a good little girl & only spent a little. I bought a couple of redwork embroidery patterns. One is of guardian angels to hang on a tree or on a wreath, & the other is for a quilt with Victorian ladies heads. I think I'm going to do the Victorian heads separately & hang them on my wall. There was some beautiful quilts & quilt kits, but they looked like they would take a long time to make, & ya know, I'm pushing 70 & don't want to spend the rest of my life on a quilt! I want fast & easy projects. HaHa. I will take pictures of my patterns & post them later. Anyway, we had a nice lunch after the festival. We laughed at our own funny remarks & picked on everybody at the restaurant--it was fun. By the way, the shirt I have on is the same one I have on in my facebook picture---I swear I do have other shirts. I'm a Leo, & we like to find an outfit we like & wear it to death! We hate change!

This morning, as I was blowing my hair dry after my shower, the thought came to me--what the hell is going on with my hair. I don't know whose hair this is I'm trying to style, but it is NOT mine. I seem to remember having this thick, shiny, dark hair, that was easy for me to style. Now it seems that I'm fighting with someone else's hair! This new hair is not so thick anymore, exposing tons of cowlicks & a weird curly patch behind my left ear. It's darkness has been dusted with platinum streaks (ok, grey) and it doesn't shine much lately. Did I anger the hair witch? Along with all the other witches I've angered lately. OK, I'm trying to grow old gracefully, but, come on, this is not what I bargained for!! Has the hair witch put a curse on me? I'm sure of it. I'm heading out to the library as soon as I finish wrestling with whoever's hair this is (or is it whomever's?). I'm going to find a book on how to break spells put on me by any of the old age witches I must have messed with, unintentionally. Hopefully, I have a few things around here to help with whatever potion I must mix up to break this spell---I have hairspray, volumizing lotion, curling irons, you name it. I may be able to scrounge up some eye of the newt, & I'm sure I can get a hair from an old man (one lives here, after all), that along with plenty of garlic. All I need is a good recipe, and I'm good to go!