So, I'm in another pillow swap. Here's my mosaic of ideas for my partner this round.



It's been a fun swap to be in each time. I always get my partner and then think, "Oh, crap! I don't know what to make THAT person!" Then of course, I always do. But not without much self doubt. So far, though, I've always been pleased with them in the end, and I've even wanted to keep one or two for myself!

So, partner, have fun! The living room looks basically like this..... (minus the brown wall. It's just too dark in there now that we have the brown sofa. It'll soon become chartreuse or aqua....)

So have fun! Pick whichever room you want to spice up, and go for it! Think texture, gemoetric, IKEA, modern, bold, etc! Save folksy, crafty, and patchworky for another time and have fun with it!



The bedroom has light aqua bedding on this IKEA bed...



Lighter aqua walls, red curtains, and soon to have the two fabric panels seen above in the living room. As soon as I have something else to put up in the living room, the others'll move.

What the heck? It was in FEBRUARY when I last posted? Really??? Good grief! Okay, here's to another (how many times have I said this??) "restart" of sorts. I pseudo-fixed the looks of the blog and will keep working on it while Brad designs the one I really want. Once he's finished with his clients who actually pay him something.... Yeah, you wives of geeks know what I mean.

Our lives have been HECTIC the last month or so, filled with school activities (am I just tired at this point, or are there always more things crammed in at the end of the school year???), hockey, work and "side jobs," raised garden building, big-ol'-dirt-pile-hauling from driveway to back yard, a surprise trip to Orlando (surprised the boys at the airport!), a craft show and all that is involved with preparing for one.... So needless to say, while I've got pics out the wazoo, I've also got a house that currently resembles those on Hoarders. So I leave you with a picture while I go dig us out this morning. And afternoon. And, aw, heck. Probably all week! But I'll add pics of all our recent adventures periodically. One can't clean all week straight, right???

Until then... a Florida pic of all the cousins....

I'm no web designer.
Note to self: when Brad's sick in bed with a fever for the weekend, don't try to change your own blog's appearance if you have to tweak half a dozen templates and search through code you don't understand.
So, prettiness will be back later. As soon as Brad's feeling better and is able to rescue his web-ignorant wife. :-)

It's been two weeks since I last made contact with civilization....

Okay, it's not that bad. And it's almost over. But even though I still LOVE snow and cold weather, I have decided that I do NOT like to be stranded at home for 4 days straight. It was fun for the first couple of days and was a total license to do nothing if I wanted to do nothing.

Then it started to get annoying to pick the same blanket up off of the living room floor for the 10th time that day or trip over the snow pants and boots that didn't have a mudroom in which to hang...

The weekend was a nice break, and then it hit us again. And again, it was fun. For about a day. Now the "I'm bored.... Mom, will you play with me?.... I don't WANT to read a stupid book... Why CAN'T we sleep in the living room tonight?... I don't want to go outside.... He won't leave me alone!" has worn on my nerves for one too many days. I'm ready for things to be "normal" again.

I know that the summer is 6 times this long and is a temperature I HATE, plus I'm a strong believer in a continuous learning (year round) schedule, so this should be easy for me to handle these last 2 weeks. BUT, even though I love the weather and all, I don't like that I can't get out in it very well in my current automotive situation, and I don't like the unexpected "have fun! Your kids are home for 2 weeks!" surprise that I didn't plan for. If I'd planned out the break like I do Spring Break or Summer Break, or at least mentally prepared myself for it, I'd be better off. Not so much this week. There's no schedule. There's no list of chores or limit on the TV. This mom has kicked into survival mode for a day or two and does NOT want to play Halo Reach again, thank you very much. Moms don't do well with first person war video games. Or apparently Mario Brothers 3, World 8. "Don't do that world, Aric. Mom's not ready for it yet." Thanks.

But I did read all of my book that I got Tuesday night in anticipation of that night's snow. The Pioneer Woman: Black Heels to Tractor Wheels(Why is the image so freaking huge? Don't know. Don't care to try to edit it a 4th... 5th?... time to figure it out. ) is an awesome book with a lot of insight. And comedy. And romance. And has me wishing all the more that we lived somewhere other than the middle of town. Ahh, acre or so in the "country" with a Starbucks and a Target still within 15 or 20 minutes, where are you? And nest egg that will get us that acre? Where are YOU?

This morning, I'm tidying up the not-so-tidy house (and blogging...), then we're going to see Gnomeo and Juliet before we pick Brad up from work and go order a sofa for our living room. We waited for a check from one of Brad's side web jobs, and now we're getting a sectional so that we're not all fighting for the only seats in the room. Aaah! Nice! Too bad that it'll take 2 or 3 weeks to arrive. Bummer. But the end is in sight, right? And the boys will be back in school in the meantime, so all is well. :-)

Lest anyone criticize the city for their efforts to remove the immense snow we've had lately, this Yankee transport is actually proud of their accomplishments this year. That's a first. Seriously, our average snowfall for a YEAR is 9.1 inches. We've gotten approximately 25 inches in the last month! In the past, I've gone off on the city for their usual "do very little about it and wait for it to melt" approach. This year, I think they've done as good a job as a semi-southern state can do at removing two friggin' feet of snow from an entire city.

The whiny butts who are crying that they still can't get out of their driveways need to stop and think for a minute. Forty-seventh largest city in the United States plus 30-some-odd snowplows (I've also heard 50ish. Either way...) .... really? You expect them to plow out your neighborhood streets?? Come on. Think that one through. While their idea of priority areas in an entire city and your idea of them may differ, your little cul-de-sac does NOT belong on either list. Be reasonable. That's a LOT of mileage if they drove down every neighborhood street in the city... twice if we wanted both lanes/directions cleared... Give me a break.

Okay. Venting over. Now then. Some cool pictures....

Brad works at the Port of Catoosa, and we took him to work yesterday and got to see the trucks load up on salt while we were there. I've always seen the big mountains of salt before, I've known what they were, etc.. But I'd never really paid attention to their massive size, the sheer amount required to salt an entire city, the small dent a whole semi truck's load would make in the pile... no wonder we still use barges and the like to transport things!

I mean, look at that truck!!! How many truckloads of that stuff makes a mountain that size???

Check out all the trucks waiting in line for salt. Brad says that they were lined up by the dozens the other day, early one morning, probably sleeping in their cabs (I always wanted to do that. How is it that I have a trucker for an uncle and I've never ridden along with him and slept in the little bed in the cab??) while they waited for their turns.

Then it's hauled away to wherever we keep our salt in each city or town, and later it's used on the streets.

Thank you, city, county, and state workers, who have worked 12 hour shifts for two weeks now to make our streets safer. And don't forget that this Ohio girl is actually impressed this time around. Keep up the good work!

How cool is this stuff??? It does all the work for you, and you look like a chenille pro! I'm picturing little snails and such on baby bibs and shirts.... Hmm.... The possibilities are endless!

QUILTING COUTURE: Vintage sheet Asterisk Chenille Quilt: "Vintage Sheet Asterisk Chenille Quilt Turorial and Giveaway! A tutorial and a Giveaway! Learn how to make this fun Chenille A..."

Well, I got my wish! It's SNOWY here! Officially 14 inches in Tulsa, breaking a record of 12.9 inches before. I'm loving it!

We got all the usual things over the weekend: milk, bread, chili ingredients, water..... gas cans for the generator, ice scrapers, space heaters, hotel reservations... thankfully, the power stayed on because 1) the generator carburetor is currently "shellacked" inside because we didn't start it often enough in the last 3 years of its life and we're not mechanically inclined enough to figure it out in the midst of the emergency, and 2) the hotel is on the other side of town and we currently own a Honda Civic and a 4-door Volvo. Yeah. MAYBE 6 inches of ground clearance. But hey, it's a Hybrid! Meh. (Don't get me started.)

So, with the power on, Dish uninterrupted (Sorry, Cox. Even in the worst of storms, we've seldom had a problem. Don't miss ya a bit.), and plenty of video games for the boys, we're enjoying our snow days. They got 20+ inches out at the Port, so Brad's working from home with his laptop on his lap, his bright green headphones on (did I mention the boys were playing video games?), and a cup of freshly brewed coffee at his side.

Now, the only issue is that in all the purchasing that I did all weekend long (how many times can one go back to Walmart or Target in a weekend? And does going to a different location exempt you from feeling like you went "back" again for the 4th time?) is that I overprepared for some situations and underprepared for others. For instance, we could have fed hot chocolate to the entire neighborhood in a really warm room with two space heaters (assuming someone else had had a generator to power said space heaters) while also feeding chili and coffee to the same number of people.

BUT.... if you need real chocolate or toilet paper, time's running out. We have one bag of Aldi semisweet chocolate chips and a bottle of Hershey's syrup. That's it. The box of "family size" brownies are for some family of 2, maybe 3. They lasted all of 2 hours yesterday. Maybe.

I remember thinking, "Oh, chocolate! .... Ah, it's on the other side of the store. I'll get it at the next place." Yeah. Mm hm.

"What's this coupon? Oh, yeah. The toilet paper. Eh, we have half a package left. We'll be good. Not worth getting out of line a second time." Four rolls and counting. Glad we have boys.

So I'm off to clean up the kitchen, fold some clothes, then sit down with some sewing or knitting and enjoy our second of several snow days this week. Cuz there's NO WAY they're going back to school this week based on Tulsa's ability to deal with this much (let alone any) winter weather. But at some point, Brad'll go back to work and take the "good car" with him, so I'm going to enjoy my time now before I get back into the housework routine later this week. Moms deserve a break. Especially when they forgot to get chocolate!

cool blue02
Originally uploaded by binkwaffle - Holly

How long has this poor guy been sitting in my office, just waiting to be bound? FAAAR too long! A month, maybe two? Oy. But no longer. Here it is in its simple, calm, nicely cohesive glory. I think I need one in a larger size!

It's for sale in my Etsy shop... Know any little boys or babies on the way?

Oh. My. Gosh. I'm. In. HEAVEN.

I met up with Annie of RoseKnits and we made a little trade yesterday. She's starting to collect handmade items for a future baby's nursery; and I had the honors of providing this as-yet-unknown little one with his or her first piece: my green and brown zig zag baby quilt. (No, mutual friends; this is just a "someday when Baby comes" nursery. I'm not insinuating or announcing a thing. I promise.)

In return, Annie unloaded all her bag-making scraps onto me. Can I just say WOW?? Times a hundred!! I think I got the better end of the deal, in my ever-so-humble opinion! Check out what I found in those two unassuming looking little bags (Oh, whoops. Only got a shot of the first bag. The second was an XL Ziploc storage bag)...

Check out all these strips... most are 2.5" or wider... Great for strip quilts, quick piecing, key fobs...

And then there's the Amy Butler/Joel Dewberry/and friends collection (including several out-of-print babies!!):

And my VERY favorite, my very own collection of Anna Maria! (And a few that just looked Anna-ish enough to go together) The boys kept yelling in their best Greek accents "Anna Maria!!" when I'd find another piece. They're quick learners... :-) :

And last but not least, a little Munki Munki, even! Annie and I have a friend who used to own a quilt shop here in Tulsa. This friend apparently was one of Heather Ross's first retailers, so I'm wondering if Annie got this sushi yardage from her. And then there are the beloved and highly sought after Mendocino prints... :

And isn't that Japanese print at the bottom so cute? I saw one of Annie's bags made out of it at her house yesterday, so I was very excited when I realized I had a piece of the fabric, too! I'm easily pleased when it comes to crafty things... :-)

So, I'm going to be BUSY, getting that Etsy shop updated with awesome new things from my new treasures! Between the crafting and the swap leverage, I'm excited! Thanks, Annie!!

Well, I've been working a lot more at Loops, so that's the biggest chunk of it. And you know how life gets in the way of the living you'd rather be doing... Oh, well...

In the few free times hidden away, I've accomplished quite a few things, such as...

This blanket for a friend's baby. She had a boy after 3 girls... and after thinking the whole pregnancy that this was a girl, too... Needless to say, they needed a boyish quilt in their house!

And then I made this for a friend/coworker to give to one of her friends whose baby is due soon. The nursery theme is outdoors, hunting, etc., and my friend said this one was the coolest one at the shower. Yay!

I'm quite addicted to swaps, too...

The Scrappy {Strip} Swap on Flickr was fun. I traded these strips and sent them to an international point as yet unknown. (I have to remember next time that international things take longer, so I shouldn't wait for the due date to send. Sorry, partner!)

And then there was the Savvy {Seasons} Swap. Mine's just going out today, after a hectic week and a few design setbacks... For instance. When you use Elmer's glue, it doesn't really work well at all. There's a reason only school kids use it and not very successfully, I might add. Too runny, not tacky enough, and long in drying at the end. Sigh. Lesson learned. You can't always use just whatever's already on hand. But partner, it'll be winging (wheeling?) its way to you today!

A few sneak peeks...

Then there was the [3 x 6] Sampler Quilt Mini Bee. I was a glutton for punishment and did an entirely too time-consuming square to send to my 6 partners in my "beehive." They turned out really cool, but this round of the bee will use a MUCH simpler square than all that cutting, gluing (yes, gluing), handsewing, ripping out, machine appliqueing... But my partners got pretty rockin' squares, if I do say so myself. :-)

And that's what I've been up to! Well, among other things. And over a period of time. The squares I started months ago. The lights I made this week. All the rest was somewhere in between. Not nearly enough creativity time for my liking, but now that my window's open, the a/c isn't running, and the clouds are in the sky, this is my time of year! I'm ready to do more with my Etsy shop, to hole up at home as much as possible, and to enjoy the fall and winter!

Let the creativity begin! (continue?)

Hear that? It's an attic fan, breeze, and light rain. MY WINDOWS ARE OPEN!!! Here in Tulsa, that's been a big no-no for the last few months! A "cold front" is moving in right now, and we've gone from 100+ yesterday to 70-something right now!!! Will it last? Of course not. But it sure feels good right now!!! This past month, we've hit 80 to 85 in the house by afternoon, thanks to our lovely 1950s original windows and 30ish year old a/c unit. It runs its little heart out all day long, but it never cools the house completely down when it's 100+ outside. So this rocks.

Ooh, here comes the big rain now. Ahhh... I can smell the wet dirt and pavement, too. What a way to begin the first week of school!!!! Now granted, I'm sure the teachers aren't loving the inside day b/c of the rain, but I suppose they'd be inside most of the day, anyhow, because of the heat. So it's all good.

The boys started school yesterday. It was more of a bittersweet thing for me than I thought it'd be. Was I ready for the monotony and the sheer boredom of the summer to be over? Absolutely. Am I excited about the year, the cooler weather, fall and Christmas, etc.? You bet! But for some reason, I was nervous for the boys yesterday. Maybe it was because they moved up into new areas at school this year?

Their school (an AWESOME magnet school) groups grades into different "instructional areas" so that there's a multi-age environment and a sharing of teachers, resources, etc. Both boys moved out of last year's instructional areas into new ones this year, so I guess I was apprehensive about the move. Of course, they did fine and had no problems at all. Not that I logically should have thought that they would, as it's an awesome school where we know everyone, love all the teachers, etc. And Aric left the group that Aidan entered this year, so it's not like I don't know what to expect there.

Aric's doing an accelerated math program this year, too, though, which makes me VERY excited and antsy at the same time. I LOVE math and can't wait to do his homework with him. But I have to be on top of things and make sure he's not getting in over his head or getting too frustrated. A 3rd grader doing 6th grade math could get bogged down if we're not careful.

Brad says he gets his math abilities from me. :-) Actually, his words were more like, "Wow, that's totally you. He didn't get it from me." :-) I still get flak over not becoming an electrical engineer, the profession those high school aptitude tests always said I should do. Yeah, that's where the left and right brains digressed. I wanted to sing, not engineer. I wanted to create and make art, not wire things together. "Yeah, but it would have paid off our school loans so you could do the art later." Hindsight's 20/20. Oh well. Life is still good. Sorry, babe.

Okay, Mommy has a whole hour before she has to go to work, so she's going to go play at the sewing machine for a few. And listen to the rain. And the lack of "Rescue Heroes," fighting, and "Mom, I'm hungry!" For a few hours, anyway.

So a boy's quilt wasn't up someone's alley? How about a girl's? This is a fun colorful one that was surprisingly hard to photograph. Well, I guess I shouldn't have been THAT surprised since it was in the office on a cloudy day since the back deck was all rain-soaked. This and the Shades of Blue quilt were two experiments at making an affordable standard quilt for my Etsy shop. Still working on that. Turns out a boatload of scraps still takes a long time to sew together and then to quilt. Who knew? Quilting takes time! Huh.

This one is a little larger at 42" square. I think I'll be shooting for somewhere between that and the 33" square blue one for the "Etsy standard," but both are awesomely soft, squishy, and adorable. Can a fun, squishily soft baby quilt ever be the wrong size, really?

When I uploaded pictures to Flickr, I put "Pretty in Pink" as the quilt title, which led to a discussion over whether that phrase still conjures up memories of a movie not fit for a baby girl, or if it's back to simply being a phrase. So I went with "The Bee's Knees" instead because of the bees on the fabric. Not that I ever really got that phrase. Anybody know how it originated?

shades of blue01
Originally uploaded by binkwaffle - Holly

No, Mom, I'm not pregnant. Just getting that out of the way.

But if anyone knows someone who IS, wouldn't this make the perfect baby quilt? It's 33" square and has a double layer of 100% cotton batting for extra squishiness and warmth. It uses lots of popular modern fabrics and has a hand-finished binding. So fun to make and to watch it materialize!

It's at my Etsy shop, so come on over and take a gander at this or my other things!