Kaylene’s Mommy Thoughts

I originally bought this fabric for the backing.  On facebook I started talking about that I’m trying to learn to quilt, and a friend recommended this website. Oh, Fransson!

On that blog she recommend using a thread that matches the border fabric, so I decided to go with Cornflower blue thread, and then decided to go back and just get more of the border fabric for the backing, on this trip to Wal-Mart I also picked up my batting.

I don’t remember what it is, I think it was a poly/cotton blend, and it’s very thin, which I think is a good idea for my first real try at machine free-motion quilting.

This pic is the patchwork fabric I was talking about two blogs ago, I was using 6 inch squares, and the obvious squares are just less than than, so with seam allowance, they turned out perfectly.  I wanted so badly to use the green daisy part as the center, so a corner would be cut off from this scrap, but couldn’t see how.  I had enough fabric for 8 squares with the white part, or only 3 if I made the green the center.  I wanted 10 patchwork squares, so I didn’t have enough either way.

I went back to the fabric shop (Wal-mart) to see if they had any more of it, cause remember I found it in the odds and ends, and looked and looked and nothing…  I was walking away, but turned to show Kevin the fabric I’d chosen for the backing, and saw it!  And there next to it was this!

Same size squares, smaller pattern, AND the green part I LOVE is in the center of every block!  Whopee!!!  I got enough to use in the next project too!  So that was fun.

Here’s the first fabric sewn in.

Here’s the second fabric in the quilt.

And here’s the third main fabric.  I just love these colors together!

They aren’t perfect, because somehow my rotary wheel cutter got dull and so cutting them out became a big problem with lots of double and triple passes, and pleanty of frustration.  Next time….

So here it is coming together!

I haven’t ironed anything since I sewed it together, but once I’m done with that I’m ready to sew it together and start actually quilting!  Yay, that’ll be fun!

I’ve finished the top, it’s rather simple, but I like it.  I decided to go get more of that patchwork fabric, and discovered they had it in two patterns!  Fun!  There’s the one I had, with the squares without much green, and one with the green part as the center of the squares!  I got a yard and a half of the new fabric, and a yard of the old fabric, so after using 5 patches of each fabric, I now have more than a yard of each for a future quilt.  I think it’s adorable!  I’m off to a busy morning, hopefully I’ll manage pitures soon.  I kinda wanted some of the putting it together stages, but I’ve missed all the steps so far…  See you!  Maybe I’ll be back with pictures later.

OK, what Kevin officially being hired means is that we can start the house buying process, more than my dreaming and drooling as I troll MLS sites and just research.

It also means that we’ll have full insurance again, including dental and even chiropractic care!!!  Yippee!  So I need to get to work finding Michael’s old pediatrician that he had at birth, (apparently that part of the files in my brain got deleted somewhere along the way), and hoping they’re on our plan, and then making appointments for the boys and getting them all caught up, I took them in for overall check-ups in our last days in Houston, so they’re fine, and thankfully we haven’t had any emergencies, knock on wood, so we’ve been very blessed to have that part of our lives run smoothly.

As for life right now, I’m struggling with depression.  I was doing pretty well until Kevin got the job offer, I guess I was expecting some sort of energy to come and save me from life’s stress, and it didn’t and it’s kinda a let down for me.  I’m just struggling, I wish I wasn’t, I’m REALLY trying.

My lap quilt is coming along, I’ve got the fabric all cut out in 4 of the 5 fabrics I’m using, the backing, batting and borders are ready to go, but there’s this one last piece of fabric.  I bought some pretty remnants to throw together for this quilt (remnants are the end bits from the bolts) and I need to get 10 squares out of this one piece , but since it’s got a pretty strong pattern, they kinda need to be cut out from different areas, and even though there’s enough fabric for probably 20 squares, there’s not enough for them to look planned out and put together.  So I’m stumped.  I think I’ll go back and see if they have another bolt, and get another yard or two.  Or save the fabric for another project and use more of the scraps of the other 4 fabrics.  But there’s more green in this odd piece, and I really wanted more green than it would have without it.  This quilt is costing more than double what it started out as, oh well, it’s a good hobby and something I’ve been really wanting to learn to do.

Let’s see what else is going on.  The kids are full of funny stuff lately.

Aiden was told not to say bad words when he gets mad, so the new thing is to yell “BAD WORDS” whenever he’s upset, it was hilarious the first time, but is getting old fast.

Joey’s learning new words and that’s fun to hear.  He’s really growing attached to my Mom and my brother Jared, it’ll be hard for him when they’re not around every day.

About a week ago I went out with the kids and slathered them all with sun screen, because Joey’s hair is so thin I had to put a bit in his hair making it a little greasy and funny, as we walked along I noticed Joey had a row of strands near his part just sticking right up in the wind, I said “Hey, Joey, you’re comb over’s blowing up!” snickering to myself, aren’t I funny?  Michael one upped me “Joey!  You have chickens in your hair!”  Me, “You mean rooster tails?”  Michael “Yeah!”  There have been a lot of that kind of jokes lately.

Kevin’s doing OK.  His gut seems happy and he’s not been having as many migraines, so that’s good.

I think that’s a pretty good synopsis of the current going on’s, so I’ll leave you with that.

AND HE’S HIRED!!!!  Yahoo!  Go Kevin!  Love you Honey!

Kevin was offered the job officially today.  And well he took it! 

Things aren’t that interesting right now, mostly stressful.

Kevin still hasn’t got a job offer (he’s got a good job, he’s just still a contractor, so a temp essentially), so we’re stuck waiting, I feel like I’m in limbo.  His Crohn’s is out of control too, so that’s hard to deal with.

School’s out and we’re going through summer at break neck speed.  We’re already almost 20% through this!  That makes all the other things we’re supposed to achieve this summer seem that much more pressing.

I’m on a project rampage.  I’m in the works of making two more rice heat bags, I just finished, with a lot of help from my Mom and her staple gun, re-upholstering a little half barrel ottoman I picked up at the DI, and have several other sewing and upholstering jobs in the works.

I got a hand quilting foot for my sewing machine, and am SO excited to put that to work and figure it out.  So yeah.

Recently, Kevin’s little sister, Shelly came out of the closet, not really wanting to focus too much on that, but it’s a notable thing in our lives.

Dad’s still out of work, but working hard to get some projects done and looking pretty hard.  Call us if you hear of a good job, k?

Jason moved out.

Jared had a health scare, but hopefully that’s been worked out.

Joey popped out 3 more teeth, 2 of which are molars.  For a total of 10.

I’m still looking for a sturdy bunk bed for the boys, oh and what else?  A twin mattress, and a vacuum.  Sturdy book shelves and toy storage would be a huge find, but we don’t need them yet.  Oh, and if you know of any second hand power tools, I’m looking for a circular saw, a miter saw and a router and accessories, but when I need them I can rent them for a while.  If anyone finds any of this stuff let me know!  Please don’t go on a treasure hunt for me, I’m just putting it out there.  Thanks!

Happy summer to all!

My baby doesn’t look nearly as much like a baby as before…  He got his first haircut.

Joey’s First Haircut

Before~

First snip~

How do you think HE feels about this?  About like his Mommy…  Accept I was almost crying.

After~

His Daddy cried when he saw this which I took with my cell phone and emailed to him…

And a couple more from later that day~

And the first pic of me with the kids probably since our family portraits last September, and the blues shirts were totally a coincidence, LOL!

I’m 27!  Which is awesome since 27 has been my favorite number ever since I can remember!

I hoped for a house for my birthday, but that’s not happening, so I’ll just take it easy.  I’ll give myself a pedicure, reading some, some sunshine and maybe a little shopping, and then a date with my hubby tonight!

Any great date ideas?  There are a few movies I’d like to see in the theater, we don’t do that a lot…  Maybe a couple hours at the book store, or what else? I can’t even think what kind of food I’d like for dinner…

Oh I know, one more thing I’d love to do today, I’ll spend some time processing photos, almost always love that!  There’s a few exciting ones, coming to the blog soon!

Please keep voting!  I love the feedback!

The photo is just under three feet by three feet.  Don’t mind the old picture, it was VERY faded, and I’ll probably end up mounting the newly printed photo straight to it.

Here’s a corner for detail, it’s a pretty hefty frame, it’s about 3 1/2 inches wide.

And some letters I got to put our name somewhere.

I got this at the dollar store, too cute huh?  The boys got to work painting the “STEELE” and “Country” while I was painting the frame.

I’m so excited about this frame, it should really ground whichever room it winds up in.  I LOVE thrift store finds!

So, I’m trying to figure out which one…  This will be for my living room, family room, or my dining room.  It will be big.  Vote for up to three.  Unlike my usual 1 month polls this one will be over soon.

The frame is square, and may be Caribbean Blue, or Turquoise, or Sunburst Yellow, or all three…  OR not…  Currently it’s just Caribbean Blue.

One more thing.  I hate red, and orange can be too close.  I know orange is REALLY big this year, but I think it’s a trend, and I prefer to stay away from “trendy,” but I love the tulip pic.  Orange is not a color I’d go seeking to put in my home, but it just may be the unexpected twist that finishes a room.

Oh, and I removed the dust spot on “I” that may have been bugging people.

A

Tulips at Thanksgiving Point; Lehi, Utah

B

Hyacinth I gave my Mom, in our front yard

C

Tulip I gave my Mom, front yard

D

View across valley on hike between Wakkenah Falls and Multnomah Falls, Oregon

E

Radom falls between Wakkenah Falls and Multnomah Falls, Oregon

F

Multnomah Falls bridge between to moss covered trees, Oregon

G

Curly fern top between Wakkenah Falls and Multnomah Falls, Oregon

H

Hug Point, just south of Cannon Beach Oregon

I

Haystach Rock and the Needles with reflection,

Cannon Beach Oregon, we could see the rock from our Hotel window

J

Haystach Rock and the Needles without reflection,

Cannon Beach Oregon, we could see the rock from our Hotel window