My Happy

 I'm pausing my usual craft post for a little personal 'stuff.'  I need to remember amidst the cooking and craft, these other things that keep me chugging along.  My inspiration.  My happy place.  One of many happy places I get to visit-family.  A much needed stop this weekend after a very busy, very tumultuous last few weeks...months...years.  I am blessed.  I remember this even amidst the bumps, but I'm never going to complain about an abundance of blessings I can't overlook-family time-a huge hug from God.
This weekend the 'rest' of my family is in town.  I grew up with my extended (very tiny) family not extended more than a few miles down the road.  When my cousin married and moved away to MO, and moved again to CA, and then added a baby turned toddler, turned older toddler, turned princess to that mix, it makes the family moments much more personal and so much more precious.  I'm grateful for every get together, and every memory we get to make.  This weekend, Jimmy and his wife, Lydia flew into town with Blythe, and their baby-in-waiting (due to a nursery not nearly near enough to me January 2012).  A boy.  We had dinner together last night.  The girls did the usual pedicure buzzz-ness Saturday afternoon, and then we did another family dinner at my house Saturday evening.  Sunday afternoon I'm headed out again for another family lunch.  I'm sure I'll have more pictures to add, but.....it'll be my last bout until Spring when I fly up to visit the family of four.  I have to drag these pictures and post out, so I'll save those pics.  When Blythe was an ity bity, we got to spend her first Christmas with her.  I had her make an ornament via a hand print.  We did it again last year with a dough thumb print, and finally, this year, she was able to paint her own.  I guess you could say it's a tradition.

 I baked up some dough ornaments this year, and she very carefully, and creatively mixed every single color in the offering and painted up some very lovely ornaments. 

 ....and a little bit of her face.  That is definitely from my DNA strand. 

 She was really proud. 
I must also say, homegirl has a bundle of personality (not that I'm biased).  She arrived at my house dragging her rolling, princess suitcase filled with Spongebob dominoes, a smaller pink back pack, and now....a pink wand, which she used to cast spells all evening.  It's probably best I can't totally understand everything she is saying b/c I can't say all the wishes she proclaimed where positive.  I am impressed by her forethought in packing the necessities, and I think I could learn a thing or two before I venture out to a friend's house in the future. 

 And speaking of quilts....oh wait, we weren't?  We are now.  I started this quilt three years ago (pre  Blythe), and I finally finished it, got tired of looking at it, had it quilted, bound it, and called it a day.  After an intense inspection by the border patrol...

 ...it'll be added to a pile at the end of my bed.  The fabric is from a line called Flutterby with all sorts of bugs-ladybugs, butterflies, dragonflies, snails etc on this 1960's colored fabrics. 

 I had the quilter add a butterfly/swirley (dare I say, snail-ee) design.  The back is blue, like my room. 

 I created a border on the back as well, basically b/c they didn't have enough of the center fabric, but it gives it a little different dimension. 

In three more years I'll post pictures of the next quilt I'm working on that will HOPEFULLY be finished by then.  On the other hand, by March I'll be posting more Blythe pictures on her home turf.  It'll probably include a craft, and hopefully some more exciting accessories.