sad day

We are going to Dayton, Ohio in another couple hours for my Grandma's funeral. She passed away on Thanksgiving evening. I and many of my cousins and aunts and uncles were able to be at her bedside and tell her we love her. She was going to be 95 this February and she missed my Grandpa a lot. So in a way I was happy that she's with my Grandpa in heaven now. This must be the biggest reason for my faith. She was always my example of faith, love, mothering, and being a committed wife. She also was the best cookie baker and I think I inherited that from her! She was an artist though she never pursued that in any way and that made me want to try myself-- to see how much I could do with my art.

Just about an hour ago my Dad and Stepmom received a call that their best friend had a stroke. She isn't that old so it's a complete shock. We are all trying to keep it together here. They ran off to the hospital to be with her husband and to find out what is going on.

We will definitely be praying today. God is only good and love so I know He has something good to come out of all this grief.
Talk to you soon,
Bethany

Turkey Day

Hope you all have a Happy Thanksgiving and a good weekend! (I'm sorry Tom, but I'll be enjoying turkey, stuffing, green bean casserole and pumpkin pie!)
Thanks for all your notes last night and today!

xoxo ~ Bethany

finally

we saw the whole Twilight movie! It was good-- a little scary during the scene with James, especially for my kids-- but it ended well... and wide open for New Moon! On Sunday they announced that Twilight did well enough to go forward with New Moon. Duh. We knew that would happen!!!

I just got some sad news tonight. My brother-in-law's Grandma passed away today. My Grandma hasn't been doing well either. She lost her eyesight and I'm planning on seeing her when we're there for Thanksgiving. This is not particularly a good time of year in that regard. Any prayers for Todd's family would be appreciated.

Talk to you tomorrow,
Bethany

one more...

The Black Ghosts' song "Full Moon". In a way it reminds me of something from the 60's but brought into this time period. Do you know what I mean?

Some art to come, hopefully tomorrow... I'm packing for Thanksgiving!

obsessed with this song

muse's "supermassive black hole"

Weird video but supercool song... you know you love it too! If you saw the movie, it is one of those songs that gives you goosebumps!! Ha!

"I thought I was a fool for no one, but I was a fool for you..." (Willow has no idea how she got to know me now!!!  Truly, I'm quite normal!)

sara bareilles & ingrid michaelson

you can get ingrid michaelson's "snowfall kind of love" on itunes right now... it's perfect!

a winner!!!

We have a winner for the Twilight movie give-away!!!:

Chosen randomly from those who left comments was Nathalie at kennedy & friends! (a big round of applause!!!!).

Yes, it seems a little fixed, doesn't it?! But truly, I assigned a number to every comment in the order that they were received and then the kids picked a random number which turned out to be "2"! So Nathalie is the lucky girl who gets to stare at Edward on the bookmark and drool!! (she keeps claiming that he belongs to her anyways...ahem!!!) ;)

Well, if you didn't win this one, go over to her blog because she's doing a give-away of a pretty clutch she made just for the movie! And remember this: You ALL dazzle me!! ;)

Have a wonderful weekend!

snow days

Isn't it funny when snow takes you by surprise in December? I remembered being a child and seeing snow during November and December. No one knew yesterday when they woke up, the trees would all be dressed in winter white and our winding street would look like a winter wonderland! It brought with it the excitement of the holidays and some playing in the snow with happy children and a dog! I love the first snow and the crispness of the air, the light that bounces off the white and makes everything brighter. I love the hush of the low lying clouds, big and full, which muffle noise and feel like a down comforter. 

I have been more industrious lately, starting to actually sew my curtains-- cutting into the gorgeous fabric and measuring twice always! It is nerve racking but exciting at the same time. I was a guest teacher in my son's fifth grade class and taught the students an introduction course to calligraphy for their colonial journals. I always think of hundreds of ways to do it better after I've done it. But then I had students come to me, loving it and wanting to know where to buy their own supplies! I even had a mom tell me today that her son came home and asked her to get him calligraphy supplies! That is all I need for a thank you! But Nathaniel's sweet teacher gave me a beautiful hand bound journal as a thank you too. I had just told Craig earlier in the day that what goes around, comes around and I see that all the time in my life.

Here's a bit of good news I'd love to share with you too! My drawing that was in the Art In Alternative Spaces Show was voted Best of Show! I went to the CHL meeting on Thurs. evening for the first time. Lots of creative people in one building was pretty exciting! I tend to be a hermit so it was good to get out and meet people. I found out that Anne wanted to buy my drawing also but it sold before she could buy it! :) I bought good paper with some birthday money and I plan to do more drawings now.

Lastly, soon we will do the drawing for the Twilight give-away!!!!!!!  I was gone all morning at a coaches' training for Odyssey of the Mind. You'll never believe what happened last night! We went to the 8:45pm Twilight showing and first the movie got started late, then there was technical difficulties about 3/4 of the way into the movie and they rewound it about 20 minutes, only to have it stop again at the scene where Bella is packing to flee from Forks and James!! We were given new ticket vouchers so we could come back and see it all over again and actually see the end!!!! Crazy!  So, I got to see the kiss scene twice and the baseball scene twice. The funniest part was that every time a character came on screen for the first time or a favorite excerpt of the book was shown, there were loud sighs and gasps and general ooohs and aaahs from the theater full of young women who were in love with the whole book! Now there were guys in there too and Craig did say that he thought the movie was entertaining (for those of you who might bring a male with them!) The acting won't earn an academy award but it was just what we wanted from the book. Robert Pattinson is breathtaking! I can say that because I think Craig would have to admit it and I am married to a breathtaking man myself. I can see how Robert was just catapulted to major stardom and definitely a sequel or two! Girls will not forget about him!! That was worth the ticket price alone! Anyways...  We all gave it a two thumbs up, except for the movie theater which is not making me very happy right now.

So stay tuned for the winner!....

I got tickets!

We're going tonight... in the snow! I would have posted pictures but I didn't want to take away from the excitement of the movie! Hopefully we can get to the theater! Now to make some steak and mashed potatoes for dinner...

Thanks for all your comments today!! We will do the drawing tomorrow afternoon! '

xoxo ~ Bethany

TWILIGHT PARTY!

It's time ~ the movie opens today!! So we are celebrating here! Leave a comment sharing what YOU'RE doing to celebrate and a link if you've blogged about it!!  We are planning on painting our nails a deep blood red, having a steak and potatoes dinner and then (hopefully) getting movie tickets to see it tonight (with the other million people!)

Here's the best part:  If you leave a comment and/or link about your Twilight celebration, you will be entered in a drawing to win this:

 
An Edward bookmark, a $10.00 gift certificate to Barnes & Noble (can be used online too), two Godiva Chocolate Bars, and the crocheted Twilight apple (by me!). The book is not included because I figured you already had it!  So let me know what you're doing today! :)

More pics, movie trailer, and spoof to enjoy...

 

If the movie is as intense as this look, it will be incredible!!!

The Cullen Clan... whew... be still my heart

Kristin Stewart and Robert Pattinson are perfect

 

Movie Trailer:

Everyone's favorite spoof!:

Have a fun day and leave a comment! ;)

a peek

of what I'm giving away tomorrow... :)

If you missed the Today Show, you can go here to watch the interview.  The excitement is rising! I don't even know if we'll be able to get tickets tomorrow. Advanced sales through Fandango have gone through the roof!

change of date

It makes more sense to celebrate the opening on the day of the opening, doesn't it? So....

Get ready to party! On Friday add a comment about what you're doing and a link if you're posting about it! Check here too, to see what the give-away is... Twilight related and of course includes chocolate! 

Set your DVR for these things:

Catch the Twilight Stars on TV

Thursday, Nov. 20th:

-- The Today Show~ Rob Pattinson and Kristin Stewart

-- Late Show With David Letterman ~ Kristin Stewart

-- Spike TV "Weekend Pre-Game" ~ Rob Pattinson (the only time you'd catch me watching this!)

Friday, November 21:

-- CBS Early Show ~ Peter Facinelli

-- The Ellen DeGeneres Show ~ Rob Pattinson

Now get planning :)

felt love

I'm loving these felt creations by lusitania!

sweet things

Olivia led me to this magical blog: le fei un voeu.  She sells her beautiful things here. Think Sugar Plum fairies and winter wonderland!

what I would make if I had time

owl garland from anthropologie.  If you need inspiration for handmade ornaments, go here!

hedgie

**As Santa's workshop gets busy for the season, little creatures begin appearing at the studio...*

"Hedgie the Hedgehog" is what the rest of the family christened this fellow. He was supposed to be a bear, but since I wasn't following a pattern, he started out looking like a hedgehog before I put the ears and body on him. He may be sent off to the Land of Misfit Toys, but he received lots of hugs already!

 
*bye Hedgie!

photoshop love

I downloaded a trial of Photoshop tonight because my old version was for the pc, not Mac. I've been having fun playing with my photos! I am a terrible photographer and I apologize for the horrible pictures I post. Maybe there is hope?

free online music

Go to Pandora to create your own radio stations that play on your computer! They have great music and it's free! I've already created my Christmas station and one based on similar music to Ingrid Michaelson... too cool!!!!

eye candy

You were asking what I thought about Alicia Paulson's Stitched In Time: Memory-Keeping Projects to Sew and Share. If you love reading her blog, then you'll love the book. It's written just like it with explanations on how each project she presents is related to her life. The part I most appreciated was her observation that the ordinary day of our daily living is something to be celebrated and appreciated. During a hard time, it's those days that you long for! Sitting around the table with the family, eating meatloaf and potatoes, hanging out on the couch together... this is what makes us content and happy. I started to see my own life this way. She realized this by her photographs she took for her blog. There's beauty all around us every day!

 
I loved these little crocheted slippers... she doesn't include the pattern for them but I just loved this photo. Then I realized she posted it on her blog also! :)

 
Do you make heart shaped biscuits for dinner on a weeknight? I don't either, but it made me seriously think about it! Alicia's life is all about love and appreciating everything. She is so positive and real, and I think we all could benefit from following her example.

Here's some other things I got in the mail:

 

I saw this pattern and knew this is the style of top for me! The pattern is by fabric designer Lila Tueller, a mom of six children and she is one of those beautiful women who is ageless! (Like Anna Maria Horner!) The pattern is called "Funked Out Peasant Blouse"

 

Here's two books I found at Superbuzzy...

 

The first is full of beautiful smocking! I'm in love with all these designs... like that purse on the cover! And this skirt that has chicken scratch on it too!

I want to make curtains like this for our two kitchen windows... sweet!

 

The other book is full of crocheted amigurumi...

 

I bought a little folklore tape... I couldn't pass it up. Now what shall I do with it?

Finally, a little peek at something I've been doing at night while watching tv...

stab stitch binding

Next week I'm going to be showing Nathaniel's fifth grade class how to make a stab stitched booklet for their colonial journals. Keeping in mind the skill level, we are going to do a simple stitch and I thought I'd show you because it's a lot of fun!

I got my instructions from How to Make Books which has so many great and easy ideas in it!

For this booklet you need: sheets of 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" white paper (I cut 8 letter sized pieces in half); 2 sheets of 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" card stock paper in a color (I only had off white at home but the kids will get to choose from green, burgundy, tan or gold); embroidery thread, book binding needles or long sewing needles; beeswax (optional); scissors, ruler, bone scorer (or substitute a closed ballpoint pen); a heavy-duty paper awl; binder clips; label stickers (optional); calligraphy pens (optional).

1. First stack the papers between the cover papers and clip together with the binder clips. 

2. Decide if you want a horizontal format or a vertical format. Nathaniel's teacher wanted a vertical format for reasons I'll show you in a minute.

3. Measure out how big a binding edge you want. For my book it was small (1/2"). If you want to try fancy stitching, you'll need a wider binding edge. Mark lightly with pencil the top measurement and bottom measurement and lay your ruler in line with this.

4. Using your bone scorer (or a closed ball point pen) follow the ruler with the point to make a scored line on the front cover only. This is how the book will open neatly, on the folded line.

5. With your pencil lightly mark 3 evenly spaced dots on the binding edge.

6. With your paper awl, stab those dots through to the back page so there's a hole to sew through. Make sure to put something under your project so you don't damage the table.

You can see the paper awl and the clips on my booklet.

Here is my needle book, beeswax block, paper awl, bone scorer and metal ruler.

This beautiful needle book was made by jenn maruska.

7. This is the fun part for me: Choose the color of embroidery thread that you'd like!

 

I've had these threads since a fiber arts class in college!

There are lots of fancy binding stitches to do... the choices seem almost endless!

8. We're doing a simple binding stitch: 

a. Rub the thread across the beeswax block so it is easier to work with. 

b. Thread your needle and pinch the thread together under the eye of the needle. Don't knot!

c. Starting from the back center, sew through the middle hole to the front, leaving about a three inch tail in back to tie off later.

d. Wrap thread around binding and sew through the same hole, the same direction again, from back to front.

e. Go to the top hole and sew through it from front to back.

f. Wrap thread around binding and sew the same hole again from front to back.

g. Now going across the back of the binding, sew the bottom hole from back to front.

h. Wrap the thread around the binding and sew the same hole again from back to front.

i. Go to middle hole and sew from front to back. Now tie off with a knot. You're done!

 

front

back (I tied a bow)

9. With your calligraphy markers you can write a title on the address label before adhering to the book, that way if you mess up, you can do another without ruining the book! You could do stamping or drawing too, to add more decoration. Be creative!

10. Here's an option the kids in class are doing: Some of their pages will open out to show a map, so I put in a folded 8 1/2" x 11" piece of paper but cut off the edge of one of shorter sides to allow for the binding and so that you could grab it and open it...

 

11. Another option is to make a pocket. You make this the same way as above but just cut the top part off of the thinner side of the paper and then tape together the bottom and the edge to make the pocket. Now little things can be included in here!...

12. Share it with friends!

This would make a great trip journal for the kids! You could bind photographs this way also. Or use good art paper inside, vary it, and use a heavier chip board on the outside. Now you know how to do stab stitch binding!

oh happy day!

Alicia's book went on sale today and I had preordered through amazon so it arrived on my doorstep this afternoon! You know what I will be doing this evening! It looks amazing!!