today I am grateful for....

Today I am grateful for....

My bright yellow rain slicker with a hood! Nothing makes me feel the wonder of rain and childhood more... tis like Paddington Bear's... *huge grin*

A happy flowerpot garden without having to lug jugs of water!

Watching the doglet shake and shake, and seeing that dementedly happy grin in her eye. *I'm wet, I've got to plaaaayyyy!!!*

Being met at the door by Gryph with a big towel, and watching the doglet do her (involuntary, lol) Yoda impression.

Watching her love Gryph and be loved in return--one of the sweetest satisfactions in life, since I was truly worried that she wouldn't accept another adult around me.

Hooks on the back of the front door, to hold coats and such.

The teensy lil clothes-drying umbrella that hangs on the shower curtain rod, and is jusssst big enough to take one drippy wet bright yellow rain slicker with a hood while it dries.

Seeing that Gryph made it safely across the street to the bus stop.

The gray morning light coming in the windows.

Having enough Mexican bean stew left over to send it to work for Gryph's lunch.

Being with it enough this morning to make some tortillas to go with her lunch.

The banana cupcakes I made last night as a midnight snack.

LIBRARY BOOKS!!! ohhhhhhh I have found some good ones!

Reading a book for beginners in papercraft--not that I think of myself as a beginner, but it had cool projects--and discovering a very good reason to get a bone folder for greeting cards, rather than a plastic folder. I always wondered....

A cat wandering through the apartment, yowing because he has his "mouse" in his mouth and all is right with his world.

The doglet warm and softly sleeping at my feet.

You.

What are you grateful for today?

Bright Blessings!
Cath

Book Review

One of the things that I have always done is read craft books, and while I have recently been sidelined with illness, I indulged. *grin* We had gone to the library earlier, and I had wandered the stacks of older books this time (not the new purchases). This is how I originally found Lisa at Dorky Homemade Quilts, by reading her quilt books from the library; she's the one who inspired me to start this blog. I meant to document my quiltmaking here, but I stalled out after I learned strip-piecing.

Then I found this book.
Well! *I* have a sewing machine! I should be all set to go, right? Really cool, eh? I was alllll intrigued... until I started reading. Oh my! *dismayed look* This is quilting by the numbers, V-E-R-Y precise, methodical and mathematical.

I am sooooo not that way. Do I have a perfectionist streak? Yes, indeed I do... but am I that fussy to be so precise when I am cutting up OLD SHIRTS and such? Oh heck no! It was sooo discouraging!!

The sad thing is that I am certain the author meant to be ENcouraging, and more than likely IS encouraging to scads of quilters... but my heart just fell as I read the book and by the end I thought to myself, "forget it; I'll just never be a quilter."

So I turned to something else.

Who can't use more potholders, right? And I was hoping to pick up a lil technical detail--whatever the heck the NAME is for that stuff I've been using to pad my crafts, cuz it's the stuff that you put in the middle of a potholder--but no such luck. Still, the book was SO CUTE and this time so totally encouraging that I really enjoyed it.

One of the things that intrigued me was the history she included with potholder examples from museums. Now doesn't that make you want to giggle, everyday ordinary POTHOLDERS in a MUSEUM?

The other most intriguing thing was a crazy-quilted potholder. Hmmm!! Maybe there might be a way for me to be a quilter after all? At least on a potholder scale.

Ohhhhhhhh but then I read THIS book.....

Oh MY MY MY!!!! Here is a book which is not "cute" but absolutely fabulous, elegant, inspiring, beautiful.... And the pincushions! lol, my favorite was made on an empty salt container! It was called a sweet roll, with the tube part of the salt container supporting two pincushions at the ends.

There were more variations on pincushions than I had ever imagined, with all kinds of embroidery and beading patterns to embellish them... this book even includes that most amazing thing, patterns for fabric-covered boxes (with pincushions built in) of various shapes and sizes. The boxes were not premade, like starting with a section of the salt container, but were completely from scratch!

The whole book just made me sigh and say to Gryph, "I *want* this one!!" It belongs in my craft library. Someday I will buy it.

THENNNN, oh then.... this book is another one like the other one! Talk about inspiring! Beautiful! Exquisite! Victorian inspired sewing to make all sorts of things! And yet again, some crazy-quilting... hmmmmm...

So I went to the grocery store, and guess what I found on super close-out for $2?

Do ya think it's a message? I read this book with growing delight... I SOOO want to try this! The author separated the projects by theme--I loved the Western section, all kitschy cowboy-design looking--and she included several techniques for crazy-quilting. I loved the way she embellished her projects with snippets of lace, and I loved the patches with the seams showing--especially the denim--and her projects were sometimes elegant and sometimes too cute for words, but all of them seemed do-able to me.

See that basket on the cover of the book? It's made from a 12 yard strip of crazy-quilting. The flower embellishments are made from ribbons. The basket caught my eye at first and is the reason I opened the book, but the sheer wealth of projects and techniques is why I bought it.

And then, yanno, this author was encouraging but did not call for math and methodical precision, so I was hooked, lol...

I think I can do this!

Now to unbury the sewing machine. That might take a while; we're still finishing up on rearranging things, and of course... I want to re-rearrange the living room to make it work better. *wry grin* But in the meantime, oh have I ever got happy things to look forward to!

And, um... I got more books at the library yesterday, from the "new" section... I'll let you know if anything sparks this kind of encouragement this time. *eyebrow-waggling grin*

small world, eh?

{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{Pixie}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}} Welcome, welcome to my blog!! I know Arwen from the same website where I met Gryph.

{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{Arwen}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}} Good morning, hon! I know Pixie from Gryph's favorite mailing list.

*grins* I remember reading Arwen's livejournal one day, seeing a comment, and saying to Gryph, "Pixie?! Is that OUR Pixie?!" LOL, I guess it was! *wink*

{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{Cindy, Dawn, Arwen, Katt}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}

Thank you for the comments!

Arwen, you come to Wichita and I will certainly teach you to make doilies.... if we ever stop talking, that is! lol!

Dawn, this is me, the real me. I've been sick a while, and dealing with grief for a while, so I haven't had a lot of energy to put into writing--but these gratitude posts are how I really feel. Thank you for appreciating them!! *smiling*

I have to get with it and take those pics of the library books so I can return them this afternoon--they're due now--so I'll be offline for a while... but really truly there will be a review of a couple craft books coming! And while I have the camera out, I'll get pics of the latest crochet, too.

Love y'all!!

Cath

Today I am grateful for....

A street I haven't explored before.

Another heartpod tree--love those!

What look like crabapple trees, loaded with little berry-like deep bright red... crabapples?

Finding a pear tree in our neighborhood park.

Having a neighborhood park only four blocks from the apartment.

Hazy "twilight" Autumn mornings, all soft and grey-skied.

Finding a pair of gloves in my jacket pocket! *brrrrr, really grateful for those!*

Talking to my friend down the street.

Schoolbus yellow.

.........not ever having to get on a schoolbus again! lol!

Long slow ambles through the neighborhood.

Feeling like I belong here, if only for a time: this is MY neighborhood now.

Living in such a woodsy place; the urban forest is alive and well in my neighborhood.

Lichens on a wooden fence.

Big houses on double lots.

The neighborhood creek, and the parklike landscaping alongside it.

Adorable little houses.

Crepe myrtles in full Autumn bloom.

The silver undersides of maple leaves.

White-flowered monkey grass.

Salmon-n-coral hibiscus, the tropical kind... so beautiful.

Getting home before I was desperate to.... getting older is not for sissies.... *wry laugh*

The peaceful silence of an apartment without an air conditioner running (at least for this morning--this afternoon I will be grateful for the air conditioner! *grin*).

Realizing that gratitude doesn't depend on happiness, that I can recognize the good in my life and be grateful for it whether I feel happy or not.

The internet.

A good computer.

And of course... YOU! *grin*

Are there things you're grateful for?

She was just an excuse, yanno?

She didn't have to be walked that far.... I just didn't want to go back inside. It was 57 degrees (14 Celsius), cloudy and breezy--a perfect Autumn night. I even had to wear my jacket!!

Autumn Dog, optional camera flash eye-enhancement feature included at no extra charge

This has been the VERY best Autumn since last year!! *dances away with a cheeky grin* In case you might not have known, I really truly love Autumn. *wink*

Gratitudes

Today I am grateful for....

Coffee and peanut butter, stashed away to get me through Summer and into Autumn--and for the foresight to stash them, back last Spring!

Cool Autumn breezes that make me want to dance down the street, and sent me dashing back inside to get Gryph for a loverly walk.

Deep orange and maroon marigolds.

My home, which is becoming ever more homelike to me.

The pictures we hung on the wall this weekend.

Four loads of clean laundry, dried, folded, put away.

An empty sink. (Well, it was empty till we finished breakfast, anyhow. *grin*)

Fresh strawberries.

Good sales at the grocery store.

Soft rain and hazy mornings.

Umbrollies! *grin*

Daydreams... we saw a triplex for sale yesterday when we were out walking in that gorgeous Autumn breeze, and we daydreamed a little.

Having the water and heat included in our rent. (lol, that put the daydream in its place pretty quickly...)

Cats and dogs... their fur feels so wonderful under my fingers, but their love feels even better. Making the dog grin, seeing her loving eyes, watching the cat's eyes close in ecstasy when I rub his head... oh my *heartmelt*

Cell phones.

Doilies.

Orange chairs.

Being able to sit partially cross-legged again finally! That knee was nine months healing.

Old friends.

Being able to crochet.

Being able to figure out crochet patterns, especially when they've made a mistake in the instructions.

Being old enough now to "not worry about it"--perspective is beautiful.

You. I am ever so grateful for you!!

GRYPH! *huge happy grin*