Monarch Post

blessed day

Today was the best day.

It was wonderful to have a day at home ALL day in my studio.

But last weekend was not so wonderful.

Sophey had the stomach flu all Friday night, so major sleep deprivation on my end.

Oh, and a giant snowstorm with Corbyn driving home in it from the other end of Utah.

(Just to throw in a little extra excitement for me.)

And Mike has been in Europe the last two weeks...

so it's been me pulling all the shifts around here for quite awhile.

But today... no sick kids... no Dr appts... no drama...

until homework time, but that's another story.

AND I slept nine hours straight last night!

Hoorah!

 

I had  TIME

a fresh mind

and fabric

and candles

and quiet

and new scissors,

cutting crisply.

Happy heart day.

I've almost finished seven hanging hearts for Valentine's sales.

When I found this paisley at Hobby Lobby last week I was so excited to use it.

LOVE IT!

So far I've made hearts, a sock monkey skirt, and dress with it.

And then I made another dress.

They are looking very cute (if I do say so myself :)

I looked at the quote I have glued on my sewing machine today,

and I thought ya... I am so there today.

I sewed a lot of seams

but the day felt seamless

and lovely

and can I dare say holy?

It really was somehow...

It really was.

XOK.

uh...stuff

Hey! I'm here... with yarn...

and uh... January excitement :)

The last two weeks I've been cleaning and organizing the house

and dropping off loads of stuff to the thrift store...

and... then going into the thrift store to see what "needs"  to be taken home...

'cause that's what I do :)

 

The yarn is for an afghan I AM going to make this year for THIS HOUSE.

I never finished the last one I started, didn't like it.

I decided a good way to stay organized would be to tape a piece

of  yarn to the labels so that I would know the brand if I need more

since I'm making up my own pattern.

I'm thinking of something like this one here.

 

I spent one nine hour day cleaning my craft room.

It was  scary in there...

I should have taken a picture of the before,

but I was too embarrassed,

and I didn't want to scare you. ha ha.

It's nothing fancy and I won't be in the pages of Where Women Create anytime soon...

but this is a happy place for me.

and it feels SO GOOD to be in here when it's really clean.

Not perfect, but much better.

Cute new red wicker baskets courtesy of  Michaels after Christmas sale.

(What is that fabric doing hanging down the back...hmmm.)

And cute new fabrics to round out my stash... heaven.

I've started making complete sock monkey outfits.

This is one basket of materials gathered to make a monkey and designer outfit. :)

(I'll show you the finished outfits pretty soon... getting there.)

tabletop inspiration.

shelf top inspiration.

I started prayer art journaling in the mornings too...

I'll tell you more about that later.

Clarity.

I like that.

In other news,

our warm, snowless winter finally ended.

It is FREEZING COLD today!

Soup has been on the menu around here lately.

White chicken chili from a mix last week.

I've never made white chicken chili, so I played it safe with the mix.

It was good.

Too spicy for the kids, but not me.

I like it hot.

And I've been stopping for lunch lately at my favorite fast-food Mexican place.

Heat right now in any form is good.

Lizard art, hot pink cacti, and purple booths:

It is the tackiest, craziest looking place you've ever seen-

and exactly why I like it...

 that, and the great add-on bar full of jalapenos, salsas, and killer chipotle salad dressing.

I picked Winston and Greta up from the groomers one day after lunch at the crazy Mexican diner.

And no, he did not have Mexican leftovers- this is his normal,"whoo-hoo I'm going for a ride!" look.

I was so happy when I saw their fur/color coordinatedpolka dot bandanas...

Probably weirdly happy over that.

I hope that's just the designer in me...

Or it's just the weird in me :) 

And while were on the subject of weird.

My feet win.

They are homely.

But I would be fine with homely now, if they were just working...

The left one is the normal one-

ya, the one with the big gap and the second toe heading west.

It's inherited

from my Mom's side...

the Warner toe.

(You'll see it everywhere at family reunions- serious :)

Three of our four kids have it too...

Definately a dominant gene.

(Leftover from my monkey ancestors tree-climbing days, I guess ;)

 

I have been to SIX  Dr. appointments (two podiatrists and one chiropractor) in two weeks.

Apparently, I have a predislocated second toe (the bruised one).

I woke up with it like that one day,

without injuring it.

(The bruise is from acupuncture.)

The podiatrists are telling me I will have to have surgery to correct it...

But I'm giving the chiropractor a shot at it for awhile.

If it's not better by March, I'll have the surgery.

It's slowing me down right now,

by evening I am just done

and I've got my feet up.

YUCK.

And that was probably just TMI, but it's life- right?

 

Except for the bad feet scenario,

I have the best feeling about this year...

I'm not sure why,

But I think it's going to be really great...?!

Mike woke up the other morning  feeling just the same

and I'm hearing other people say it too.

Bring on 2012!

I'm excited to grow my business and to grow as a creative person...

I think the vision thing is finally in place for me.

It's about children, gardens, life, creating, spirit,  joy...

why did it take so long for me to get it?

S.L.O.W. learner...

 

How about you?

What are you thinking/ feeling about 2012?

 

**********************************

Okay, I'm stopping here for now...

It's taking me forever to load photos for some reason,

and I need to get to work.

No Dr. appointments today-

I have the day to spend in my craft room.

(YAY!)

HAve A HappY FRIDAY,

XO!

 

(P.S. the blog is under construction... I'll have a new one in awhile, but the zinnias are kinda cute for now, aren't they?)

 

 

 

 

a wish for you

Sophey made our New Year's wish cake again this year...

Vanilla cake, cream cheese frosting,

and fancy fondant snowflakes...

she's getting good!

And if you've read this blog for at least a year (bless your heart.)

you'll know we always make a New Year's wish cake every year.

At midnight we all make our own secret wish

and blow out the candles together

for the coming new year.

I could ramble on about my last year...

a year filled with big highs and big lows.

I've been hoping that 2012 will be a more even-keeled year.

But this arrived Monday in an email,

and I thought it was wise in it's perspective

of embracing it all...

so I wanted to share it with you

as I

WISH You a HApPY NEw YEaR !

 

***************

Time for New Beginnings...... Taylor Adison, Blue Mountain Arts, 1989.

"This is a time for reflection as well as celebration.

As you look back on the past year and all that has taken place in your life,

Remember each experience for the good that has come of it and for the knowledge you have gained.

Remember the efforts you have made and the goals you have reached.

Remember the love you have shared and the happiness you have brought.

Remember the laughter, the joy, the hard work, and the tears.

And as you reflect on the past year, also be thinking of the new one to come.

Because most importantly, this is a time of new beginnings and a celebration of life."

 

XOXOXOXOXOX!

christmas

This was our Christmas eve day skiing/snowboarding trip to Snowbasin.

It's only about twenty minutes away from our house.

It was completely rebuilt for the 2002 Utah Olympics.

It's gorgeous.

All the kids skiied and snowboarded...

Mike and I hung out.

And we had the place almost to ourselves this year...

because there is hardly any snow in Utah.

It's mostly man-made snow at Snowbasin right now.

 

I made it this far taking photos...

and then Mike said, "Hey the couches are free by the fireplace...

wanna sit there!?"

I did for two minutes...

and then I layed down

and snoozed the afternoon away.

I was a tired Christmas mama.

 

No more ski photos...

 

until I took this one when I woke up...

before I really realized what was up.

Jesse fell on the last run.

We thought he might have broken his wrist...

Luckily, we brought two vehicles.

So Mike and Jess went to the all-hours kid clinic

for Xrays.

Merry Christmas :(

Poor guy.

But fortunately (I guess?) it was just a bad sprain.

He came home bandaged up tight.

And we had Christmas Eve dinner without any further drama.

 

I made my first ever very moist ham.

I left it cooking while we went skiing.

In a crockpot... this is the easiest ever recipe... and it's great!

And good old Utah funeral potatoes.

One of my very, very favorite recipes.

(But I only use one can of soup.)

(You do not need to be a Mormon to eat these, btw.

I'm not, and I don't get indigestion when I eat them ;)

I forgot to buy cornflakes,

so the potatoes went topless this year :)

I didn't take photos of much of Christmas this year,

I don't really know why.

Other than I just wanted to enjoy the day,

without people telling me not to take their photo...

I guess that was it.

 

But Winston never cares if I take his photo.

He was looking for his present.

He was a dog on a mission.

He found it.

A sock monkey I bought with a squeaker in it.

He loves it.

We cut back some and had a smaller Christmas this year.

It was still nice, but not quite so over the top...

it's a problem of mine...

I want to give everyone everything at Christmas.

But I didn't freak out about it,

and I think it turned out just right.

I made one handmade gift for everyone this year,

minky fabric bean bags to heat in the microwave.

They are great for little aches and bumps.

 

We goofed off- eating and playing most of the day

and visited my Dad in the evening.

And that was our Christmas...

pretty laid back this year.

 

And I'm slow getting back here to blogland,

but it was good to unplug for awhile.

I need to do that every so often...

 

HOW WAS YOUR CHRISTMAS?

(If you can remember that far back ;)