Wednesday, July 1, 2009

ANYONE UP FOR A {GIVEAWAY}?

I sure wish I could check in more often. Especially because there is usually so much to share when I finally get around to it, that I don't know where to begin. Okay, I'll just dive in and start rambling, if you don't mind. Just take a look at this first image before moving on.

First of all, a big, huge thank you for all the emails and posts filled with encouraging words about my new Summer Soiree fabrics for Michael Miller. I am so excited to say, word has it (actually a Twitter from Michael Miller Fabrics that I happened to see) that my SS fabrics are ready to ship. Do I hear a YEAH!? I desperately need some myself. I have had a photo shoot planned and am tapping my fingers and toes and watching for the UPS truck. Don't you know the project and colorway I planned for the shoot are the very fabrics I didn't have enough of?

So, in the meantime Jennifer and I have been practicing our very weak photography skills. We both would LOVE to take a class, but realize it would need to be between 2 and 4 a.m. I have been asked to provide a head shot of myself for a couple upcoming projects. Interestingly, EVERY photo of me has Jennifer in it and our heads are touching; almost attached. Seriously, we even have one we named Heads Together, but all of them should have the same title. This phenomenon apparently has gone on for many years. I used to say we were joined at the hip, but all along it was the head. Maybe when I'm bored and need something to do (yea, right), I'll show you what I mean.

So, here is our attempt at trying to take a photo of me alone. It was in the upper 90's and humidity was 107, so I heard. No one had to tell me, though. My hair and the sweat were screaming. We also tried hard to take one without the sun, but every time Jennifer went to shoot, the sun popped out from behind a cloud. I went inside twice to calm the frizz. We intended to have some pillows and fabrics squeezed in there, too, but this is my close-up. Guess I could have reclined with the pillows, but that wasn't happening. It cracks me up; this sexy pose. But I was over it. I was hungry and cranky (kinda like when we try to take pics of Amelia). Thanks to the miracles of Photoshop this is all anyone will get from me for awhile. Or is it? Any thoughts?




So, since I had makeup on and was dressed decent, I decided to reward the photographer by taking her to a new restaurant close by. It's called Petite Chou and it's my new favorite place to eat. We took a couple photos just to give you a feel. Oh, and believe it or not, our friend was there and took a picture of Jennifer and I. Imagine that. Our heads are attached! I think we might need counseling; I'm not sure.






It was mid afternoon on a very hot day, so it wasn't busy and the manager didn't mind these weird gals snapping shots. He said the maps are actually painted onto the wall by hand. Right now I'm really liking grays with black and white. Oh, and the food is wonderful! If you're in town you should try it.

I haven't mentioned this giveaway recently, but this is a good time to bring it to your attention again. A few months ago I donated fabric to Dana of Old Red Barn Co. for a quilt along. I went over there this morning to see how things are coming along. The quilt is complete and this is where, even if you weren't in this from the beginning, there is a Janome 6600 sewing machine at stake here! You should go over there and sign up for a chance at this huge prize. Her tutorial is invaluable, especially if you are new to quilting. I know Dana has been busy and I've fallen off her radar screen, so tell her I said hello. Here are some pics I found over there of the finished quilt out of my Flights of Fancy. It's an awesome website filled with eye candy.



Now remember that first picture at the top of this post? Hope so. In celebration of my Summer Soiree release, how about a
{GIVE AWAY}
PRIZE #1 3 half yard pieces of fabric from the Miami colorway (pinks and oranges) and a fabric belt mixed with fabrics from both Summer Soiree and Flights of Fancy.


PRIZE #2 1 yard each of my 2 new Laminate Cotton fabrics. (In the center is a trench coat made from this new laminate by Kay Whitt using her Sophia Trench Coat Pattern).


Now what must a person do to enter this Giveaway, you ask? I actually have thought about this long and hard. I'm thinking I want to hear some stories about Summer (Summer Soiree) and something about water (laminate). One of my favorite things when a group of us get together is to have us tell on ourselves. I usually have 5 hilariously embarrassing summer stories for everyone elses 1 or 2. These usually involve swimsuit malfunctions and swimming pools. When a group of us gals were hanging out in our hotel room, my Jennifer was more than willing to share some of those. Surely you all have at least one funny story involving summer or water, or geez, we'll listen to any funny story, won't we? As long as we tell it tastefully, I will promise to share one story of my own for every, hmmm, say 20 of yours. Then we will vote on 2 of the funniest in a week from now. That should give you enough time to slip and fall (is that ever really funny?) over the 4th of July weekend. Let's have some fun.
*NOTICE: This Giveaway is over. Winners are posted here. Thanks.

107 comments:

  1. I would love to win your giveaway!
    The fabric is so gorgeous.

    My story may not be ha-ha funny, but it is well, unique.

    We were at the pool and my contacts started bothering me so I figured I better take them out before I lost one. Since I didn't have a lens case with me I put them in a small Dixie cup and covered them with my saline solution.
    An hour or so later after getting out of the pool I looked everywhere for my Dixie cup of lens, but couldn't find it. I asked my friend if he had seen the cup and he said he drank it.

    Yep, true story!

    Thank you!
    Warmly,
    CP

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  2. Beautiful photos and I just LOVE the fabric!!!

    What a fab give-away!!

    If the story doesn't have to be a recent one, here's mine! It happened several years ago around this time of the year.

    After I got married I went about changing my name. Of course one of the things I needed to change was my driver's license.

    As I work at home I don't wear makeup and dress up but I couldn't go like that to get my picture taken, LOL, so I put on my makeup, washed and styled my hair and was all set to go.

    But first I had to take Hannah & Kodak out potty before I left as I was going to run some errands afterwards. Our doggies are in-door doggies in case you were wondering why I didn't leave them outside :)

    We had just had our pool built and we didn't have the solar heat yet so we had a pool cover . . . . are you getting where I'm going with this . . . ha ha ha ha

    I can laugh about this now but not at that particular moment . . . .

    Well something spooked Kodak and there he goes, scattering across the pool cover and he does NOT swim. He got across to the other side but was frantically trying to get out.

    Well, yep, I dove in, clothes, shoes, everything. Dumb thing to do as we both could have gotten trapped under the cover as Kodak was fighting me.

    Thankfully the pool has a half moon shaped seat right where he was and I was able to guide him to the seat.

    He gets out, shakes, potties and goes to the sliding glass door to go in the house.

    There I am SOAKING wet and no time to do anything but change my clothes otherwise I'd miss my appointment at the DMV!

    Well needless to say, my hair was wet and my makeup not so great, but I smiled when they took my picture, LOL, and I have a constant reminder of that day when I look at my DL!

    I hope everyone has a safe and fun 4th of July!

    Hugs, Marsha

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  3. Now this is what I'm talkin about people! Drinking contact lenses; dripping wet DMV photos (and dogs). I'm envisioning and tinkled pink. Oops, did I say tinkled? Oh yeah, thats water related, right?

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  4. My story isn't that funny but cute, let's say. I have 4 daughters, the youngest are twins. Well, trips to the pool with 18 month old twins, a 5 yo and 9 yo were an excursion. I was always worried about the twins getting into the pool without me watching. I purchased these one-piece floatation suits. It looked like a bathing suit with a ring at their waist. The girls only could go to the pool if they had these on and couldn't take them off until we left the pool. These things were great, kept them up, they could swim everywhere and best of all I could relax. Well, the cute part (you are waiting for that), they looked like little ducks. In fact, friends called them that. I would walk around the pool and they would follow me everywhere in their little yellow floaties. So it was mamma and her little ducklings at the pool.

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  5. This story gets retold so often I wonder if it has "grown" but I will tell it as I remember it. My Uncle was just 1 year older than me and we were about 11 yrs old. there was a bowl of jello at a family picnic and he had just learned about centrifical (sp) force. He picked up the bowl of jello to demonstrate. as he held the bowl in the palm of his hand and swung it around (trying to demonstrate that the jello would stay in the bowl, even upside down as long as it was still moving, get it ... centrifical force?) of course his hand slipped on the condensation on the bowl and the jello went flying, bowl and all. the yelling started almost as soon as he started swinging the bowl around but I'm here to tell you it was dead silence when the bowl of jello landed. followed by much more yelling and lots of laughing. he is often asked to demonstrate centrifical force at family gatherings even though he is 50something now.

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  6. I would LOVE to win your giveaway. Now for a funny story... one summer we were camping by the river (thats the water part lol!)and one night we were playing cards with friends and we all ganged up on my husband. He wasn't playing so well, but he told us if he won, he would buy us all lunch. At one point he went off to the toilet so we quickly rigged his cards. He won of course... but we didn't fess up till we had eaten the lovely lunch he brought us!!

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  7. My story is one that you've that has probably happened alot, not real exciting, but I got wet. I was babysitting my grandkids and was trying to coax the youngest one in to the pool, one of those hard plastic ones about 10 inches deep. So I put one foot in and it was slick and I went right on into the water. Of course I hadn't planned on that so I didn't have a swim suit on. The kids had a fun time laughing at grandma. But I finally got all three of them to get in and play.

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  8. A few years ago I was at the beach with my family. My son, then 3 yrs old, told me he needed to "tinkle". Since we were quite far from a bathroom I told him it was ok to "go" in the water.~ And so he did exactly as he was told. He ran towards the ocean and -in ankle deep water- he dropped his suit and "went". Mom learned to be a little more specific after that incident :-)

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  9. Gorgeous fabrics, I'd love a chance to win.

    One summer when I was about 5 years old I decided to brave the waterslide into my aunt & uncles pool. I slid bravely down with gusto, then flew right off, not into the pool, but onto the concrete patio. I landed flat on my face! I was so humiliated I denied having fallen off the slide at all. So there I was with a bloody nose and scraped knees saying "I didn't fall off!" over and over again. Did I go down again? You bet-and this time I ended up in the water!

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  10. Here's mine! I was about 10 years old (i.e., before I had "developed") and I was at a friend's house, swimming in their pond. I was with my dad and a few friends, and we were diving into the water from the small boat dock. During one of my dives into the water, I felt something funny as I hit the water, so I climbed back up the steps of the dock to see if I could figure out what was going on. To my dismay, I looked at my chest, and saw a big lump in the center. Now, remember, this was pre-puberty. :) I looked in my suit, and there was a big fish! YUCK! It had apparently been pushed into my bathing suit as I dove in. I was totally freaked out and screaming as I bent over and wiggled the fish out of my suit.

    To this day, I won't swim in ponds, lakes, oceans, or any body of water that has fish. That experience turned me into a pool-only girl. :)

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  11. when I was in my first year of college that summer home a friend of mine dad rented a house smack on the beach and mind you this beach is notorious for undertow. My friends and I were lounging on the beach and it was getting hot so my friend Paul and I decided to go into the water for a dip- I had on my beautiful purple ruffled bikini because well it was the 80's and purple was in, I wouldn't get caught dead in that color today.

    A lifeguard was standing right near the edge of the beach as they always do, so Paul and I walked in and we were only in about 2 feet of water before we were pulled under by the undertow- I thought I was going to drown because it kept on slamming me on the rocks below- but I got up and when I did my top was practically off!!

    We got out and screamed at the guard because he did nothing to help us.. now picture the friends back at the beach waiting for us to come back only to see the two of us walking back with blood dripping down our legs and when I got to their spot I then realized their was a crab claw sticking out of my top!

    They never laughed so hard as I pulled it out and heard our story! So many crazy times here on the beach in MA I cannot tell you but that is one of my favs!!

    Happy 4th and summer Paula!
    Ellen

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  12. I have so many FUNNY memories of water and summer...we were lucky enough to have a pool when growing up...but it starts long before THAT pool's existance.

    Funny story #1: I had to be about 8 years old and we had one of those plastic side pools with the rim that 'snaps' on...they still sell them - I saw one last week - anyway, my mom who is uber clean, was wiping the bottom of the pool with SOCKS and slipped (not so funny) - we all sat there with our mouths WIDE open until she started laughing...we laugh about it today remembering the goose-egg bruise on her elbow because of it.

    Funny story #2: Fourth of July when I was about 12...Grandpa and Dad drove to get a BIG above ground pool - a one-day sale thing - of course, it was about a million degrees out and we wanted them to put it up that day so we could all enjoy it. While they were putting the walls up with frames, our neighborhood friend (because ALL the neighborhood kiddies were there watching), leaned over the side and asked my grandpa what he was doing...only to collapse ALL of the walls of the pool. My grandpa spoke Bohemian and I knew THOSE words that we weren't supposed to hear - boy did we run! The pool was put up 4 hours later...

    Funny story #3: Same pool and whirlpools with 4 teenagers = ripped out filter and inabilities to get out...

    My funny story #4 with 2 year old daughter: Hose and a hot day - I spray the hose directly up in the air and let it fall down on darling daughter who gasps and exclaims to me Momma, it raining! Do again, Momma - make rain! She was on to me and boy was it cute!

    Thanks for the opp to win - could go on and on - love this question and your great posts - enjoy the summer!

    catherine s.

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  13. What a fun give away! This one happened to me just last weekend. I should tell you first that I am 34 weeks pregnant. Ok, my family and I were at the pool and I was holding my 2 yr old in the deeper water. He was looking at me and then said "I want to see the baby!" and grabbed in the lowest part of the neck (it was v-shaped) and pulled out! HELLO to the world! Luckly I was quick to stop him and there was not very many people around. At least my son is excited for the new baby!

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  14. Your fabric is beautiful! If I don't win I must go to my nearest supplier and get some.

    For my story it is at the very end of summer and has a little bit of water in it but it is funny and embarrassing. It was the first week of college and as a freshman you want to very much fit in and feel like you belong. Well during the first few days we had some fun and games to get everyone settled and during a meeting that the whole college was at they picked out some freshman from the crowd to do some participation and I was one of the 2 they picked. They played a nice little trick. I had to copy "Ooga Booga" and do whatever he did. The first copy was not so great and there were some boos from the crowd so I decided to throw myself into it. They had me up and down waving my arms and shouting "ooga booga" until the one time I stood up and they placed a soaked rag on my chair. You guessed it, "SQUISH"! My backside was wet the rest of the night but it was pretty funny. =) My friends (who lovingly got me selected) really thought the water shooting out the back from the force from which I sat was particularly hilarious.

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  15. Paula,
    I love your elationship with Jennifer. I have focused the last 18 years on my two girls and I hope that we can take as beautiful
    pictures together a you two. MY MIL was just diagnosed with terminal cancer. A funny story I remember about water and " Grunpy"
    is a reminder of my lack of swimming proess. My husband of 25 years went back for a visit to St/ Louis and the Lake of the Ozarks, his home, after a year of marriage. While out on the lake, My MIL told me if I was going to jump in the water and swim ( with a cocktail in hand) I must put on a lfe vest! Since thay were all in the lake with BUDS, I conplied.
    A very ong story to say I love your blog, Jen's blog, and your fabric line. Seeing signd of joy in your life reminds me now that there are ebbs and flows ane we much enjoy each day as a blessing.
    Thank you for being joy in my day today.
    Meaghan

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  16. Love, love , love your new fabrics and would love to win them!!!

    My hubby is a Youth Minister and does a mud bowl every spring or maybe I should say summer! At the end when it was over, my kids would come home and their underwear was never the same! If I would only have had some of your laminates back then, think of the wonderful underwear I could've made them. Just wipe clean!!! Ooooh!!

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  17. We are on our honeymoon. We arrived at our hotel in Cancun late. There was the fabulous jetted jacuzzi in our room and I was all excited to use it (I have a HUUUUUGE obsession with taking bubble baths). We fill the tub up and go to get in it and the jets don't work. So Tim calls the front desk and someone came to fix it. By the time my husband and the non-English speaking maintenance man fixed it we were no longer interested in the bathtub. It was late and we went nighty night. We forgot one crucial thing before we went to sleep:

    THE DO NOT DISTURB SIGN ON THE DOOR.

    At about 8 a.m. we hear a knock-knock on the door and someone coming to enter the room. In my half-asleep/half-awake state I think the best thing to do is run to the door and try to block the person from coming in. Did I mention we were on our honeymoon?!?! Can you imagine what I was wearing? Yes...good assumption...NOTHING! So then Tim is thinking in his half-asleep/half-awake state, "Knock on door, someone entering our room, naked wife...running to door." So he thinks he is going to save me or something so he started to run towards the door.

    HOT as heck outside + air conditioning cranked up inside our room + a marble floor = a slippery layer of condensation!

    So I take two running steps and fall flat on my stomach and slide across the room like I was on a slip and slide. I realized I wasn't going to make it to the door in time so I curled in a ball and hid behind a column. Then I look up and it was like a slow motion, "Noooooooo!" as I see Tim rolling out of bed to run to the door. He gets one good step in and falls flat on his back.

    So there we are in all our naked glory and we hear the door close. We have no idea what the cleaning lady saw. Can you even imagine!?!?!

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  18. I would LOVE to win your gorgeous fabrics!

    Last summer at the swimming pool, my then three-year-old daughter walked up to a....ahem...rather large man lying on a lounge chair, patted his belly and shouted "Are you having a baby?" in a voice loud enough that everyone there turned and looked. My then five-year-old daughter responded (again in full voice) "No, Madeleine. Men can't have babies. That's just fat in there."

    I think that was the biggest piece of humble pie I've ever had. :)

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  19. I love your new fabric line. Would love to win some. My summer story happened when I was in 8th grade. I had planned a summer party and had been practicing driving our boat so I could take my friends on the river in front of our home. I was so excited. The day before the party we woke up to a mud pit where the river had been in front of our home. The dam below our home had broken during the night and all the water was gone downstream. My Dad worked at the mill near the dam and I was so mad that we had no water for my party...so no driving the boat. My Dad pointed out that the problem with the dam was a lot bigger than my party.

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  20. Ok I can give you both some photography lessons from 2-4am anytime. I am usually at work around that time =) As for your head shot you look great!! I am always willing to come over a snap some photos for you anytime free of charge. Just because I love you guys. Also, I am going to start thinking of some funny water stories. -Loree

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  21. I have fond memories of shildhood summers spent at my grandparent's neighborhood pool. I think it is where most of the cousins learned to swim.

    Anyway, one hot Texas summer day, we were goofing off in the kiddie pool and a boy was chasing us and while I was trying to get away I shut my eyes momentarily and ran into the edge of the pool and chipped my front tooth.

    Now I look forward to spending time at the pool with my son.

    Thank for doing this giveaway. Your summer line is fab.

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  22. What beautiful fresh material. Many years ago my husband and I were swimming at a lake and he cut himself on a broken bottle. Rushed him back to the Doctors, then we were sent to the hospital. I ended up fainting when they stitched him up. It was a very hot day and I needed fresh air.Gosh those nurses didn't know what to do with me!!!

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  23. My husband and daughter went out for a swim last Saturday! We are in a condo and a woman in the pool announced that she had just rescued a mouse who had just went for a swim that morning. Okay the mouse thing is bad enough, but she told us she tossed it over the fence and it just happened to be right outside of our unit. That creepy thing better not find it's way in my place! EEEK!

    Yes and I love the pink and oranges and the #2 is VERY pretty too!!!

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  24. When I was in college my family got a boat and while I could not water ski, my dad would pull us on an intertube. He and I are of the preseverant (stubborn) nature and so the harder he would try to throw me, the harder I would fight to stay on. You should have seen how proud he was of himself when my normally very conservative father finally managed to throw me-- so hard that the top of my two piece suit came all the way off! (Thank goodness for that life jacket!)

    Love your fabrics-- thanks for the giveaway.

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  25. Okay, I said for every 20 comments I'd leave one of mine.

    One stifling hot and humid summer we went to a public pool with the kids. The pool was packed. Jennifer and I started some horseplay. I'm guessing she was 12. We wrestled, and both ended up under the water. As we surfaced, I was busy wiping the hair off my face. I didn't see that Jennifer had already opened her eyes, took one look at me and quickly went back under. She surfaced a second time and I was still rubbing my eyes and laughing. I finally opened my eyes to see her frantically swimming away. I thought "That stinker, I'll get her". That's when I felt a warm breeze. Looked down to find my top missing. Yup, instead of telling me, she pretended she didn't know me.

    Jennifer's version is even funnier and very animated. Loves to demonstrate how long it took me to wipe the hair away.

    20 more comments and I've got another!

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  26. I have only one story about summer and it's about this one-there is no summer in NH. We have had day after day of rain here-there's your water. In June there were no days in the 80's-NONE. And here we are in July and it has rained July 1st and July 2nd. I am not talking about showers here. I am talking about all day pouring rain so you can see that some summery colored fabric is right up my alley right about now. Thanks for letting me vent.

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  27. I don't have any great summer stories so far this year, but we have been spending a great deal of time at the pool and with a 1 year old, so it's never boring!

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  28. Hmm, so I don't know if this is funny or a little disturbing, but I'm going to tell it anyways! So a few months ago I had a nose job. Yes, I did. I had a big honker of an Italian nose so it had to go! Well, just a few weeks ago we were acting as if we were 5 in the pool and we were trying to see who could make the biggest splash! Well, it was my turn and I went in for the cannon ball of my life and well, high impact on the nose after a few months after surgery is not a good combo! Nose was throbbing and lets just say that was my first and last cannonball of the summer!

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  29. Summer water story...Ever since I moved to Las Vegas a year ago, we have been spending numerous hours at the pool (my kids and I). Last year we held playgroups at the pool at least once a week. I have to say, although we were always watching our kids, it was almost always guaranteed that at least once a week a mom would have to run and jump into the pool to pull out a "drowning" kid. Our husbands all teased us about how it must be such a rough life to lounge by the pool all day, but on the contrary it was stressful sometimes when there were 16 kids at the pool and you're constantly doing head counts. By the way, love your stuff. Are you going to design any patterns soon?

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  30. My neighbors have a son the same age as mine (both are 3). A few days ago we're sitting on the porch watching all of the kids swim, when we notice that the boys and a couple of the girls had wandered away. We look up and see a line of kids (not all boys, mind you) peeing on the fence. Of course my son doesn't realize that he can just pull his suit down a little...so {visualize} he's the only kiddo with his little white behind hanging out and pants around his ankles. We cracked up! My son promptly got a lesson on how to pee keeping most of his pants still on :)

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  31. Three years ago I took my boyfriend (now husband) tubing down a river 30 minutes from Austin for his birthday. We bought a really neat floating cooler to put drinks and snacks in, and since it had a lid, I decided it would be fine to put the keys to the car in the cooler. Near the beginning of the loop there was a fast part of the river that we went down, holding a rope attached to the cooler.... that flipped over. And opened. And there went the car keys to the bottom of the river. We spent a while trying to find them, but no luck. Everything was locked in the car, including our phones, so we had to get a ride back into town from a stranger (which is a whole story on its own... he was quite interesting!), get my landlord to open up my apartment, get the spare key, and then get a friend to drive us back to get the car. Not incredibly funny at the time, but now we laugh at it. And we've learned to always turn in your keys at the tube rental center. :)

    By the way, I think your picture looks great!

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  32. my story is from about 19 years ago but its still a funny/embarrassing moment.

    I was in brownies and out with a girl guide selling cookies. We had been going door to door for some time and I really had to go to the bathroom... I was a very shy kid and figured instead of asking to use the washroom or asking my dad to take me to a gas station I would just hold it. Finally we were at the door of a lady who went back inside to get some money, by this time there was no force on earth that could get me to hold it in any longer.
    Being the genius I was I noticed there was a sprinkler on the lawn and if I just let it go maybe no one would notice and think it was the sprinkler getting the step wet... except the sprinkler was nowhere near the steps!
    So I let it go. the step starts getting wet and the lady comes back, looks at me and asks if I'm okay and need to use the washroom. "no, I'm fine" as I pretend I'm doing nothing but waiting to give her the money.
    Anyways, she tells my Dad what happens takes me inside, cleans me up and puts on some of her 3 year old daughters underwear on me... how humiliating for a 7 year old!

    Lets just say I always smile when little girl guides come knocking on my door and I keep an eye out for 'the dance'!

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  33. When my neices were little I would take them for the weekend to stay with me. They were 3 little ladies from 2 to 8.

    One particular day after going to the pool and the park to swing on the swings we then went to have dinner at McDonalds. This particular McD's was a split level one with the tables for eating on a balcony over the main area where you ordered the food. It was a really busy day and I had the 8 year old get a table and sit with the other 2 girls while I ordered.

    The two year old was restless so I started playing a game that we always played at bathtime called "taking your picture." This was when she would turn her butt towards me and shout "click." This was working great UNTIL Allison remembered how she was normally dressed for this picture. I mentioned that we played it at bath time, right?

    I looked up to the laughter of the others in line to see her standing there with her pants to her ankles and her but shoved through the railing saying "Click....CLICK....CLICK Aunt Cindy! I SAID CLICK AUNT CINDY!"

    I ran out of line, up the steps and she started running from me between the tables with her pants at her ankles laughing and yelling "Click Aunt Cindy!"

    It took the 3 of us to corner her and get her pants back on. I then put them in the car and we hit the drive thru window!

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  34. Hmmmmm, a summer story: back in the day, when we were really young, we used to "relieve" people's yards of their flamingos, you know, those pink plastic kind. We would gather up all the ones we could find in a neighborhood then put them all in one yard in the neighborhood. We called it "going flamingo-ing." We would pile in to the back of Bart's old beat up blue pick-up truck, then all jump out and run to grab flamingos. One night we were in a trailer park, stealthily looking out for our booty, and we saw several on one block. We all jumped out; I ran into this front yard with lots of plastic woodland creatures, and to my dismay, a woman, clad in a cotton robe, pink plastic curlers in her hair and actually carrying a rolling pin, came barreling out of her house yelling at the top of her lungs. I ran back into the truck as fast as I could and yelled at Bart to gun it. Some of my friends weren't in the truck bed when Bart took off, and were chasing it down the street while the woman chased after them shaking her rolling pin. It was like a scene from a movie. Needless to say, it was our last time flamingo-ing.....

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  35. Your fabrics are to die for. I posted about them last week and linked to your site as well as about the Janome giveaway...gotta share you with the world.
    Anyway, last summer we were at a BBQ in July with about 30 friends, some close, others that I had met for the first time. The kids were all swimming and having a great time. The temps were skyhigh and we were all glowing. I decided to stand on the steps and put my tooties in the water as I was not wearing a swimsuit, but a sundress with leggings. The kids kept splashing me and I thought, wow, how refreshing, until suddenly, my son came up from behind me and gave me a little shove. That's right, in I went, all the way. Well, do you think I got out....no way. I was so happy that he had forced me to go for a swim that I stayed in the pool for the next hour. Needless to say, I did not have anything to change into and I had to borrow my husbands extra shorts and T-shirt. At least I was cool now. The guests that did not know me, well, let's just say, they think I am a bit of a nutter, but deep down I know that they were jealous and sweltering and wished that they had been pushed in as well.

    Thanks so much for this giveaway, I can think of tons of things to do with your gorgeous fabrics. A swimsuit maybe!!
    Enjoy the rest of your day!!
    Hugs, Nerina :)
    p.s. Your headshot is lovely!!

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  36. Love your fabrics and I wanted to relate a tale of what happened to me while white water rafting years ago.

    My sister who is 8 years younger found out I was going to do some white water rafting and pleadingly asked me if she could join and could I get a ticket for her. I of course said YES and did! How exciting that would be, anyway, while watching a video clip of past rafting excursions while we were in line to sign a release of liability waiver, we both looked at each other and simutaneously mentioned we'd sit in the middle of the 10 person raft. (We had just witnessed people being catapulted from the backend of rafts, and the people in the front end being rolled over during some rapids. Yes we wanted excitement, but we really did want to live to talk about it someday.

    Plan set, got our seats, #5 and #6 positions in the 10 person raft and we were off.

    First set of rapids, probably a class 4, heart beat accelerating, pupils dilated.......drumroll, the raft folded in the middle and you guessed it, we were both washed out of the raft in the middle of that set of rapids.

    Now at that time, whenever I was in water, I would sink like a stone, so, very sensibly (or so I thought) I very cautiously peeked out of one of my eyes (I wore contacts then) to see where daylight was so I could swim toward the light. Of course with so much water slooshing by, my contact slipped so my vision was messed up. Upon surfacing I saw my sister, so I swam towards her still while both body surfing down the rapids and very foolishly asked, "Beth, Can you see my contact?"

    She of course responded very Beth like and said, "sure Jane, with thousands of gallons of water rushing past, ohh wait, is that it there?"

    Both of us realized how silly the question was and just starting laughing almost hysterically. The kayaks that were there to retrieve any persons washed out just looked in amazement as we were laughing our way down the rapids!

    To this day we still kid each other about it and by the way, I actually didn't loose my contact either. It just slid into the corner edge of my eye, so I was able to retrive it so I could see what the rest of the day brought, AND we survived to tell about it too obviously!

    Thanks for the nice memories and also for hosting this great giveaway. I really love those Miami Colors and up here in the Adirondacks, they'll blend in beautifully with my Granddaughter's room. It's Pink but her favorite color is ORANGE. Regards, and happy reading,
    Jane

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  37. lovely giveaway!! sent an email inquiring where i could buy the laminate fabric online-hope to find it soon!

    water story....
    we were visiting my in-laws outside their house and my m-i-l (who could be quite intimidating) decided to water her garden. my son (about 4) watched for a while and then she offered him the hose. well, i knew when i looked at his face what he was thinking and before i could warn him he turned the hose on his mawsie and soaked her! we were all standing in shock for quite a few seconds before we all starting laughing. i hadn't thought of this story for such a long time and i wonder if my son remembers it. i'll certainly never forget!! thanks for reminding me about it!

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  38. My summer story..
    It wasn't funny at all (to me) at the time, but I guess it is now. Maybe :) It was the summer before my Senior year of high school. I was drum major in the band, and during the summer we had Monday night practices. I had spent the entire previous weekend laying on a float in the pool, and had gotten very, very sunburned. It was so bad that I couldn't wear anything but this little gauzy sundress. And I mean nothing else underneath or anything. So luckily, it was early in the summer, and the band was just doing alot of playing, and not so much marching yet. At one point we were outside for a break, and I made the huge mistake of telling my best guy friend that I was so sunburned that I could only wear the dress. I turned around to go back inside, and next thing I knew, he had lifted my whole dress over my head. Totally over my head. I was mortified.. and I still had to face all of those people for another hour, and then the rest of the school year :)

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  39. The fabric is incredible. Love it.

    I'll try to keep this short:

    Last summer I was VERY pregnant with twins (about 35 weeks). I took my barely two year old daughter swimming at the YMCA and as we were getting in the pool she exclaimed, "My mommy's going to have the babies in the pool!" I'm sure she just meant that I was getting into the pool with the babies (inside of me of course). Well, then the teenage lifeguard looking very concerned came over and told me that it was not the type of pool that you can give birth in... "uh, thanks, for the 411". I laugh every time I think of that day!!

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  40. o.k. i've been thinking... when i was pregnant with my first, i was going in for an ultrasound... they always tell you to drink a horrendously large amount of WATER... how are you suppose to know when it's your first that it's way to much water for a pregnant women to drink.

    anyway... my husband and i are driving to the appointment, i really gotta go... all i can think is i really need to hold it so they can see the baby, we're driving, i'm squeezing my legs together thinking that might help. i just couldn't hold it any longer...

    i yelled at my husband to pull over...

    yes ladies, large and pregnant i barred it in front of a large amount of oncoming traffic on the side of a freeway... what's a girl to do...

    thanks paula for the chance to win!

    xo sandra

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  41. My family has owned a cottage on a mountain lake in northern Vermont since the 1940's. I spent every summer there, swimming, fishing, canoeing and water skiing.
    When I was 13 I was skinny and shy.
    One day my Mom, Dad and older brother were out waterskiing. I was just being pulled up out of the water on the skis and the top of my bikini came undone and blew away!
    I was so embarassed. I let go and sunk into the lake. My brother was laughing so hard he was crying. He threw me his shirt.
    I was so mortified but looking back now I realize I had no boobs so had nothing to be moortified about. From a distance I probably looked like a boy!

    Sue Cahill (sbonetsue at yahoo dot com)

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  42. Here's mine. This happended many years ago. Picture this. It's summer vacation, I'm 12 or 13 years old and I have a HUGE crush on a boy in the neighborhood who, as it happens, doesn't know I'm alive. One stifling, humid day a girlfriend invites me over to spend the afternoon in her backyard pool along with some other girlfriends. I was gathering the necessary swimming items in preparation of walking the few blocks to her house, when I had the most awesome idea! My crush (who, remember doesn't know I'm alive) lived about halfway between my house and my girlfriend's house. I usually just took my bathing suit with me and changed at my friends house, but why not do it in reverse this time since I had to pass my crush's house. He might be outside and see my 12 year old body in my new bathing suit and fall madly in love with me! Yes! It had to work!! Brilliant, or so I thought. So I put on my new bathing suit, brushed my hair, applied some Love's Baby Soft perfume, and folded up some some dry clothes to change into after swimming and headed out, hoping with all my heart that crush would be outside when I walked by. My stomach was in knots and my heart beat faster as I got closer and closer to crush's house. And then . . it was all worth it! He was outside! I was certain he would finally notice me and come running after me professing his undying love and begging for mine in return. I held my head up high and strolled past him with my stomach sucked in and my chest (or what would eventually become my chest) stuck out. Nothing happened. Not even a wolf whistle. What? By now, I was almost to my girlfriend's house. I was feeling a little let down, but not ready to give up just yet. Maybe these things took time. yes, that had to be it. He just had to think about me in my bathing suit for a little while, probably dream about me that night in his sleep, and then it would hit him like a brick. As I got closer to my girlfriend's house, I could see that all of my friends were out front waiting for me and looking at me kind of strange. Then I heard it. Crush's voice calling my name. He was running behind me, calling my name, trying to catch up with me. Hoo-ray! That worked faster than I thought it would! He finally caught up to me, stuck out his hand and in a breathless voice, said "here, you dropped these". With as much dignity as I could muster, I reached out my hand and took my pink and white flowered cotton panties from him, which I had evidently dropped in the street somewhere around his house. Guess I should have put my change of clothes in a bag instead of just rolling them up and carring them duffle style in my arm. Guess what? He never did fall in love with me.

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  43. I have had plenty of water surrounding me the last couple of weeks. My husband and I spent last week in Alaska (without our 8 & 4 year old!), some activities including a glacier cruise in Prince William Sound and a float down the Kenai River. It was awesome! ... So yesterday at our neighborhood pool, my son (8 years old) returns from the bathroom to the pool steps where I sat with my friend and reaches into his swim trunks to "adjust himself" right at eye level in front of my friend. She was quite taken aback as she has 3 girls, and they are girly girls! Oh the joys of having a boy, and what a way to jump back into having the kids again, after a week without!!

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  44. LOVE YOUR FABRIC. Flights of fancy is to die for. i just keep thumbing over mine wondering what would be perfect for it.

    Every year we go to Lake Powell for a week. We spend the whole week in the sun. Swimming, boating, playing in the sand and having a blast! One of our favorite things to do is tubing behind the boat. We love to have wars and try to knock each other off the tube. I believe that at least once in every woman's life she has dove in to water or played an extreme sport in water and had the girls pop out. (You know what I mean by girls.) well this one time we were playing pretty rough trying to beat the crap out of each other on the tube. I had just gotten knocked off and had the trash knocked out of me. I was whooped so I got back in the boat. Much to my surprise the girls were hanging out as was a slight fraction of my other womanly part. I was mortified. You might wonder how I had missed this before climbing in. Well, a slam of the head to water and a gallon of lake water ingested, you sometimes miss these things. Everyone on the boat thought it was hilarious. I was like I said, MORTIFIED. I still haven't been able to live it down.

    Nakole

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  45. I live in Tampa, Fl, near Adventure Island a water park. My husband loves to do the Cliff Dive, where you, well dive off a cliff into a pool that is shared by the kiddie area. Well I wore my tankini to be modest and jumped in... and my tankini rose up and exposes my entire chest area! I was so nervous kiddies playing underwater could see that I refused to dive from the cliff again.

    By the way- fabrics are BEAUTIFUL!

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  46. I have a friend that always has embarrassing stories about herself too so I'll share one of hers (I'll just have to sew her something if I win).

    She tends to wear skirts to work in the summer to beat the heat and was at her desk working, trying to get off the phone because she had to go pee so badly. So she finally got her chance, runs up the flight of stairs to the washroom, and by the time she gets there it's almost too late so she whips up all the folds of her billowy skirt and goes - only to find out after that her skirt now has a big wet spot. She starts frantically trying to towel rub, blow on it, and use the blowdryer but it's still obvious. So she ends up turning the skirt backwards so the wet spots in the front, folds it over and holds it as she sneaks back to her desk, and remains in her chair for most of the day so it can dry. And she didn't learn her lesson with billowy skirts either because a few months later she was on a long flight and on the way back to her seat from the bathroom, another passenger pointed out to her that she'd tucked part of her skirt into her panties.

    Can't wait to hear some more of yours!

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  47. You have hardly fallen off my radar Ms. Paula!!! Far from it. I am anxiously awaiting the chance to buy some of your new line. It is gorgeous!!!

    Thanks for creating such beautiful things. And I know there is always something new in the wings. And I'll always be here anxiously awaiting those too.

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  48. Not so funny...but water related! I get pink just thinking about the time a friend and I were in the bathroom washing our feet (we'd been out in the mud) in the tub. We were sitting on the edge of the tub, she said something hysterical, we laughed so hard we both fall off the edge and wet our pants. We weren't too little either...maybe 15?

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  49. Well, my story is one that luckily didn't cause me any embarrassment, just massive giggles.

    Growing up, we always had an above ground pool. We had a big yard and my father was always obsessed with keeping it perfect. He used an old fashioned weed whacker (we called it the idiot stick) to cut down the weeds. One summer afternoon my dad was out whacking weeds around the pool. Our elderly neighbor was in his yard (across the stone wall), tending his garden. My father was whacking away when all of a sudden we heard a "thwack" followed by a blue streak of cursing and a whole bunch of water flooding our yard and heading through the stone wall. Yes, my dad had hacked a huge hole in the metal wall and liner of the pool. While not funny in a ha-ha way, it was funny to see my dad scrambling to figure out what to do about all of the water!

    The funniest part however, was when our neighbor (who was hard of hearing) kept yelling to my father, "Where's all the water coming from?" He kept hollering over to my father who, at the time, was running around like a chicken with his head cut off. My father kept telling him that he had cut the pool open, but our neighbor Bob just didn't hear him. Finally, after about the 20th time of Bob hollering over (and my mom, aunt, sister and me howling with laughter from the pool deck) my father finally lost the last bit of patience he had and yelled, "*****it Bob, I put a whole in my pool". Bob stood there, ankle deep in water and just shook his head.

    We don't know if Bob ever really heard what happened, although my dad felt so guilty about hollering at him he apologized every time he talked to Bob until the poor man passed away a couple years later.

    This was my funniest memory of both summer AND water. Thanks for the giveaway & good luck with Summer Soiree. It looks as beautiful as Flights of Fancy and the Miami colorway is my favorite combo of colors - pinks and oranges.

    Thanks again!

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  50. What a beautiful giveaway!!! Let's see -- funny summer story? How about sleeping out in a tent with my cousins and trying not to talk too loudly but having our Grandma come out every now and then to tell us we were "disturbing the peace" in the neighborhood. We thought it was hilarious!! It's been a joke ever since.

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  51. All your stories are so entertaining. I LOVE to laugh and make others laugh. So since I promised one of my stories for 20 of yours, here I am with my next.

    When Wyatt was a toddler, Jennifer invited Tim and I over one afternoon to their neighborhood pool. Since it was already afternoon and they don't live close by, I figured we'd head on over to their place and then get ready for the pool.

    When we arrived I asked Jennifer where she suggested I could change and also do some quick shaving. She said I could use their master bsth, but warned there was no lock. I adamantly said, "Make sure NO ONE comes in". "Yeah, sure", she says as she's preoccupied with changing Wyatt's diaper. I go into their bathroom and close the double doors. Yup, as I am changing I realize I could shave. I have my soapy leg up on the sink when all of a sudden my son-in-law opens the double doors. We take one startled look at each other and both let out blood curdling screams. I am stark naked so his scream was more blood curdling and horrified than mine. I am serious. Almost as in slow motion, as Joe was screaming both of his legs literally leaped off the ground. At the same time we both reached to close the double doors; me on one side and him on the other. We both tried to slam the doors so hard that they flew right back open. He turned quickly and I reclosed the doors. I could hear the commotion as he went back into the family room and had "words" with Jennifer for not warning him.

    I eventually had to make my grand entrance, clean shaven and clothed. We spent the rest of the day and eve together without a word about what happened. Upon leaving that eve, Jennifer declared that it was so nice that we could all spend time becoming closer, some of us more than others. Now to this day if I excuse myself to use the bathroom Joe asks, "To Shave?"

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  52. Many, many years ago, when I was 17 I went to Key West with two friends. We went to the beach every morning and on one particular morning I had undone the back of my bikini top to get an even tan. Something happened down the beach (don't remember what it was) but it was loud enough to get everyone's attention and I popped up before remembering that I didn't have my top fastened. I realized quickly & lay back done, relieved at the thought that everyone else was also looking down the beach & wouldn't have noticed, phew! Then a male voice from nearby said "If you're going to streak you're supposed to get up and run!". So of course I was mortified at the time, but now I can laugh about it.

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  53. I once had my brother-in-law push me belly first in the ocean while goofing around and my bikini top came off when I hit the ground....biggest problem was that the water was only about 12 inches high and I couldn't get my top back on in the water because it was so shallow!! I did it but it wasn't easy! ;)

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  54. I think my most embarrassing moment was the first time I got a swimsuit wet to find out....they should have lined it. Eeeeeek!!!

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  55. What a fun giveaway - I love the ne fabric line!

    I think my story is horrific and funny.

    It was the summer of 1991 (I think) during Hurricane Bob. I was about 15 years old. At the ocean {Cape Cod} with my neighbors. As you can imagine with a hurricane, the undertow was pretty scary. We weren't going in that deep - up to our waists. Well I got sucked under. I was terrified, and under water for what seemed like forever. I recall just flapping my arms around trying to reach up for anything or anyone to grab onto. FINALLY SUCCESS - I touched something, I grabbed on with all my might and pulled myself up.

    To my surprise I had latched on to a complete stranger, an older man, and while I was pulling myself up and ended up pulling his bathing suit down to his knees. He was completly exposed and I was completely traumatized 1. from almost drowning and 2. for seeing some old man's "business". Incase anyone was wondering - it's true what they say about shrinkage {wink wink}

    Ever since that day I no longer go into the ocean past my ankles and every time I do venture to the ocean I remember that day fondly. Now if I could only erase the image that is forever burned into my brain I might recover.

    Waiting for the sun,
    Karen
    venezie12 at gmail dot com

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  56. A funny summer water story from my husband's childhood (an oldie but a goodie).

    Jason, at age 10, was camping with his family, which included siblings Zack (8) and Michelle (6). Now, Michelle, being the youngest, and the only girl, of course wanted to do everything her big brothers did.

    The boys decided they were going to hop across the river on a series of rocks. Their dad was filming as Michelle followed. The last rock was a bigger jump. Michelle got herself ready, took a deep breath and jumped ... and landed ...

    ON THE ROCK! YAY! With pride and excitement she cried out "I made it! I made it!" then her face changed to panic as she called "I'm falling! I'm falling!" as lost her balance, falling right into the river!

    Poor little sister!

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  57. Love the stories! Mine is about when I was a child. The whole family would go for day trips in the summer, visiting parks we'd never been to and seeing neighboring towns. We went to one park that had a huge lake with lots of ducks and carp. We were feeding the ducks the duck-food that they sold, and right as a duck was going for a particularly large clump of the duckfood, it disappeared under water!!!! The carp were actually - GET THIS - grabbing the ducks by the feet and yanking them under water, to scare them away so the carp could get the duckfood! The carp were like monsters from my nightmares - they were HUGE. GINORMOUS. So of course we kept feeding the ducks in order to see this happen again and again. :) The ducks were obviously not harmed, as they came right back in to fight for food within seconds. That was about 40 years ago and we *still* all talk about it in the family gatherings!

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  58. I haven't read all of the entries and just happened upon your blog but thought I'd add my story to the bunch.

    I was about 13 years old and had become a "woman" during our family vacation. My mom was adamant that I would use those diaper thingies (aka santitary pad) instead of the tampons that were advertised in Teen magazine. Anywho, I was not about to let my period get in the way of swimming so in I jump with the pad securely stuck to my bathing suit.

    Half an hour later, some anonymous kid starts screaming and trying to swim away from this humongous white thing that was floating on the water towards him. Seeing as how kids always scream at the pool, I wasn't fazed until I realized that white "shark" was my pad.

    No one knew it was mine but I scurried away from the pool and ran back to the hotel room cursing "the curse".

    I had forgotten about that incident until you reminded me of that awful day. Ooohh, the things we do for a giveaway.

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  59. Alrighty...here's my funny/embarrassing summer story...

    I was still living in Texas serving at Teen Mania Ministries, when I was on my way back from my lunch break. Well, during the summer in Texas, it's known to get a few thunderstorms or two...and they aren't just little storms. It's more like torrential downpours with loud thunder and lighting. Well, one of these happened to hit as I was driving back to work. Once I parked the car, I got myself ready to sprint to the office door, so as not to get myself too wet. Before I could get to the door, I had to run up a slippery slope with a sidewalk made out of that recycled tire stuff. As I was running up (in slippery flip-flops mind you) I slipped and fell flat on my face, ripping a hole in my jeans and scraping my knee up pretty bad. When I stood up, I didn't think anyone saw me, so I walked in like nothing had happened - BUT as I walked into the door, I was greeted with applause and hooping and hollering at my graceful dive into the muddy Texas dirt. It was quite an experience and I still actually wear those jeans...hole and all! :)

    Hope this story makes me a winner!

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  60. I'm just hyperventilating waiting for this fabric to hit my favorite fabric shops! I do have a funny story about something that happened during the summer, but no water was involved...thank goodness!

    Quite a few years ago I worked at a small country store...one of those where everybody knows everybody else...we even still had store credit kept on white tally cards. On this blazing hot South Georgia summer day one of my sweetest customers, an elderly gentleman, came in looking around on the shelves. I asked if I could help him, and he told me he was needing a female plug. Thinking he was using one of the ol' timey words as a substitute for the real one (a tampon), I led him to the feminine product aisle! He started to laugh and told me that the female plug he needed was to go on the end of the fan cord he was replacing. I was horrified every time he came back in the store that summer!

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  61. Here goes...
    A couple years ago my husband and I moved into the worlds smallest condo with a couple features that we absolutely love. One being a nice patio, but fairly small, with a gate that opens up to a tandom parking space. Well seeing how we live in southern CA, I decided we needed a pool. My husband of course laughed at the idea, wondering where we would put a pool. Then one day he came home to me with my legs hanging out of a small plastic kiddie pool. Needless to say the neighbors were quite jealous, so the next year I bought a slightly larger kiddie pool and moved it to our parking space, complete with plastic beach ball, chairs, and a bamboo mat. It is the official summer meeting/ hanging out place. Now every summer the neighbors ask "when does the pool get here?" This year plans have expanded to an even bigger kiddie pool, complete with turf so we don't burn out feet. Of course everyone walking by on the street thinks were all crazy, but at least were keeping cool and having fun!

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  62. First of all, I think your picture turned out very cute! Second of all, I totally covet the purse in the picture with those awesome pillows!!

    My funny summer story is from many years ago. My family had taken our annual trip to a Wisconsin Dells waterpark. My mom doesn't swim, so she was a spectator, but my dad was all about the water slides. It was so much fun!! At one point he was in front of me on a slide. I came off of the slide just in time to see him getting out of the little pool at the bottom. Luckily I was smart enough not to inhale as I hit the water, because I was laughing so hard I couldn't breathe! My dad's bathing suit had split open in the back!! I was doubled over with laughter in the pool while trying to get his attention or my mom's to cover him up. The lifegaurd was trying valiantly not to laugh also and finally my mom noticed everyone laughing and pointing at my dad! He was mmm... slightly... embarrassed ;) but recovered quickly and was such a trooper. He changed back into dry shorts and we were able to stay and continue playing!! To this day (20 some years later) this story still comes up every year. What a great laugh we have!!

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  63. What a fun giveaway. I just love all of you things.

    So here is my story.

    Last summer I was at Bear Lake in Utah/Idaho with my family. I had just pretty much recovered from a nasty bout of pneumonia and was still a little congested from the entire affair. Imagine listening to me coughing and hacking all day and night long.

    Well, I was on the boat with my dad and sisters have a great ol time wake boarding. After a couple of hours of this, we decided to head back to land.

    From all the excitement of wakeboarding I was hit by a nasty little coughing spell. My dad was driving the boat pretty fast just having a great time.

    Now picture this, I was sitting in the front of the boat with my sisters while my dad was in the middle driving.

    I leaned to the left to well...relieve myself of some disgusting stuff that had built up in my lungs. I spit and sat back down.

    After about a second I turned around to see my dad vigoursly wiping his mouth and gagging. Immediately I thought he may have hit his face on the steering wheel of the boat and was hurt until he looked up at me and started screaming.

    Yep, my loogie took a figure eight turn around me and went straight into my dads MOUTH! I don't think we, my sisters and I, have ever laughed so hard in our lives. My dad on the other hand is still quite sensitive about the whole situation.

    Have a great summer!

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  64. Not all that funny I suppose. It happened years ago somewhere in California's Gold Country. I'd gone up there with bunch of girl friends from church. We decided to go "swimming" so got all suited up. Then we proceeded to stand around in the water, up to our waists or so, chatting. I was utterly freezing, so I stood there wearing a hat, with my arms crossed over my chest, turning blue. Somebody started taking pictures, and I was so cold I didn't care, just stood there hugging myself, all goosebumps.

    Later the photographer handed her pictures around, and there everybody was in their suits. And there I was, in my hat, with my arms crossed over myself, looking for all the world like I was the only one who'd gone topless!

    pamela

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  65. Hi, Paula.

    Thanks so much for posting a message on my blog! I just sent you an email, but I'm not sure if I had the right address....

    I'm so jealous of your lovely lunch with friends. I love your picture; you're beautiful!

    As for a water story... G'ah. My children are crazy, so I know I have one but I can't think of a really good one right now. For now I have a quote:

    "When you put your hand in a flowing stream, you touch the last that has gone before and the first of what is still to come."
    - Leonardo da Vinci

    I love that.

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  66. I don't really have a "story" but I love summer because my best friend can come over my house! to explain: she is very allergic to dogs and I have two so she has a tough time over here in the winter, which in New Hampshire is most of the time! so in the summer she comes over and I have set up two chairs and a little table and we sit together and read or eat ripe tomatoes and cucumbers and have sangria. it is just heavenly. this year we have been reading all of the sookie stackhouse books together and I am teaching her how to sew!

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  67. I don't really have a "story" but I love summer because my best friend can come over my house! to explain: she is very allergic to dogs and I have two so she has a tough time over here in the winter, which in New Hampshire is most of the time! so in the summer she comes over and I have set up two chairs and a little table and we sit together and read or eat ripe tomatoes and cucumbers and have sangria. it is just heavenly. this year we have been reading all of the sookie stackhouse books together and I am teaching her how to sew!

    poohza.typepad.com
    poohza@comcast.net

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  68. My turn again. My husband insists I tell the "boating incident" nezt.

    A few years ago we went on a church retreat with some of our closest friends and mant others we didn't know. The highlight was a chance to enjoy the beautiful lake. One of the gals was still recovering from a broken collarbone and when announced she wanted to go canoeing I said absolutely not. I offered to go on a much safer paddleboat ride with her.

    We waited for some teens to return their paddleboat and quickly traded places. T had a diet Coke that she popped in the drink holder and we set out from the dock. I offered to do the streneous paddling, but we were making very little progress. Working harder didn't seem to make much difference, in fact we seemed to only be going in circles. About that time we realize we were taking on water. T jumps up, and grabs her silly Coke, as to possibly save it and steps to my side, tipping the boat. In slow motion it flips and we were sceaming and holding on to the capsized boat. My husband said he could hear me from the other end of what used to be a calm lake. People started coming to our aid, but they were either in kayaks or canoes and couldn't help. T couldn't be pulled up because of her collarbone. Yup, the only gals that took the safe paddleboat had to be rescued. Turns out those adorable teens had removed the plug before handing the boat off to us.

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  69. Wow what a beautiful post!!!and a give away too?!

    Have a happy 4th! Stop by for a stroll around Balboa Island:)

    Hugs,
    Kay

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  70. First and foremost I love LOVE your fabrics, kudos to you and Michael Miller Studios (tell Kathy hi for me).

    In 1976 I was a Rotary Exchange Student heading to Darwin Australia for a year, going to the tropics from cold and wet Oregon YIKES! I lived with 3 different families while I was there and the 1st family were big yacht people you know the sailboat party cruisers. Anyway a large group was going to sail over to a small Island for the weekend, their were 4 teens (me included) that wanted to sail over in the little 2 man sailboats, no problem we headed out.
    I am terribly nearsighted and wore my prescription sunglasses as we were sailing and singing Rod Stewart's song we see a sea turtle, of course being fearless teenagers (I was 16 at the time)we headed towards it. Talk about swimming elegance, he moved in the water with such grace, well Michael the Captain of the little boat i was on decided it was time for me to learn some survival skills at sea near a Sea turtle (do they bite in the water?)

    He tipped the sailboat over, upside down to attempt to teach me how to right them and not drown, well the sail hit my glasses throwing them off my face, we righted the sailboat as we watched the glasses sink, do you think I was going to dive after them? Heavens NO, if there are sea turtles in this water what else is down there..... I guess the reality of National Geographic Shows became too real for me.... We continued on our journey had a wonderful weekend and i had to wait for almost a month for my mom to get me new glasses... Thank goodness I had contacts otherwise I would have been blind for weeks.... Maybe not so funny but so real and to think that was 33 years ago, memories are the dessert of life aren't they, well the good memories anyway.

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  71. Living in Arizona all I can say is it is hot here in the summer. We were waterskiing one weekend, my son did not have a hat of any kind to protect his head, so we found a pair of swim trunks that he wore on his head while he was on the water to protect his head. It looked funny but it worked.

    Kim

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  72. I've got a funny one for you. It's a summer story -- not really a water one unless someone has an accident while laughing at this story.

    We went camping 1 summer while I was in middle school at Lake Lure in NC, which is an area rich in Cherokee Indian history. It was 4 kids (all under 11) and 2 adults. We're all sitting around the campfire one evening and my stepfather decides to tell us kids the story of the "Cherokee Chopper." My mom gasps, and says "No, honey, don't tell them that story. It's right before bedtime."

    Now of course, all of us kids are going nuts dying to hear the story of this "Cherokee Chopper."

    "Oh come on, mom! We're old enough to hear it!" All of us were just begging to hear the story. And of course, my stepfather was not going to disappoint.

    In short, the infamous Cherokee Chopper is a ghost Cherokee Indian who wonders the area, capturing and then scalping those of us who stand in his way and on his land. We'll know we're seeing the Cherokee Chopper when we see 2 red eyes close to the ground and a big puff of smoke.

    My stepfather gave all of us kids stern warnings about staying close to the RV that night. The Cherokee Chopper always attacked when it was dark...

    It was bedtime now. But first, my mom decided to take all of us up to the showers at the campground before we went to sleep. All of us kids were looking around, spooked out by the Cherokee Chopper. But we're just walking and following good ol' protective, nuturing mom.

    And then... I see 2 red eyes close to the ground. I scream! My mom tries to calm me down.

    But then... a puff of white smoke quickly follows. Poof!

    All 4 of us kids are going nuts, screaming at the campground at like 9:30pm. We're all high-tailing it back to the RV, literally tripping over each other trying to get up the steps and inside.

    We hide by the little dining table inside the RV, all huddled together. Little ol' me is crouched under the table.

    And then...the RV starts rocking back and forth. The other kids are screaming at the top of their lungs; I'm crouched under the table saying my prayers as loud as I could.

    Once my mom heard that she started laughing uncontrollably at me for saying my prayers. And decided that was enough terror for the evening.

    We couldn't figure out why she was laughing at us. And then she tried to explain it was all a prank. And then my stepfather walked in to the RV laughing at us.

    We were all still pretty spooked. So much so that they had to take us out the next day to explain that the 2 red eyes were little red reflectors on the bottom of someone's stairs to an RV. And the puff of smoke was a little cherry bomb he set off.

    But the legend of the Cherokee Chopper still lives on with us!

    Hope you enjoy the story! And I hope I win that gorgeous fabric! Maybe that would erase the years of pain I've had since. LOL!

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  73. Hi and I am loving this fabric...here's my story...July before last, I was working in a re-purposed barn here on our farm and my husband came in and suggested we cut on the huge industrial fan to cool things off a bit. With the temperature above 95 and the humidity 100% it seemed like a good idea...but didn't feel all that cool after cutting it on. I set down my paintbrush and lifted my hand to see if the fan was blowing or sucking air...splat. Yes folks, I had put my hand THROUGH the fan (it was a barn fan and had no protective grate!) The very thing I had warned my boys NOT to do since they were 2 years old. ER visit, many many stitches, broken bones,and weeks of therapy but all digets still in tact! yea! The embarrassing part..? Having to wear a baseball glove-size bandage for several months and tell EVERYONE who asked what I had done...very sheepishly...true story.

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  74. I am not the best story teller, but I am in love with that fabric, so here goes...
    One sunny day, my girlfriends and I were sun bathing while our guys were in the waves surfing. When it was time to cool off, I grabbed a boogie board and ran to the water. I loved playing in the surf, but also loved to skim board... which is when you throw a board on the wet sand, you run as fast as you can, jump on the board standing or laying down, and slip and slide on the glassy slick sand. Well, it takes perfect timing. If you throw the board down too early, the board will just get taken away with the waves, and if you throw it down too late it will get stuck in the sand. Well, on this day I was a second too late.
    I threw the board down, just as I had many times before, I thought it was going to be a perfect fun ride... I ran at full speed, jumped on the board and it STOPPED. It got STUCK in the sand. I went sliding off the board at full speed. I slid down the sand on my belly. As my body came to a stop, my legs did not... they went flying over my body backwards, over my head. To top it off, I was not in a sporty bathing suit, I was in a strapless two piece! While sliding down the beach on the sand, on my belly, my bathing suit top slid down to my waist. I was topless for what felt like an eternity! So there I was, stuck in the wet sand, doing a type of back stand with my face planted in the sand and my legs over my body... and my naked chest out there for all to see! I was not able to get up right away... my body was so contorted, I was really stuck.
    It was a beautiful, crowded day at the beach.... I was so embarrassed... as my wonderful girlfriends sat up on the beach watching and laughing at me! This I will never, ever forget! :)
    Thanks for letting me share...

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  75. Oh, I love the fabric, the stories, and your 'head' shots:o)

    I'm not much of a story teller, but for a chance to win your gorgeous fabric...

    When I was younger, my parents, brother, sister, and I took the boat out to a nearby lake. As we arrived, we saw some guys advertising parasailing adventures. Somehow, we managed to talk my mom (who is terrified of water AND heights) to take a little ride.

    So they harnessed her up, reved up the boat, and sent her sailing into the air. As she (not so gracefully) takes flight, she starts to panic. She's flailing her arms and screaming, 'I'm going to die! You're dad did this on purpose. He's trying to kill me! Don't let him re-marry!'

    We were all laughing hysterically. Fortunately, she survived her little excursion and my parents are still happily married:o)

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  76. Oooh, I LOVE the fabric! And you look stunning in that pic.

    Ok, my story goes back to when I was 8 years old. My parents had left my brothers and I at my grandparents' century-old house in South Carolina for a few weeks during the summer.

    One of the weekends, they took us to a neighboring town, where we stayed at a hotel with a swimming pool and a small pond.

    My Granddad took us kids fishing one day at the pond. I was the oldest, so I was the only one with the possibility of catching anything. Of course I couldn't bait my own worm, so my Grandad did that for me.

    And then we sat on the dock and waited.

    Then the little bobber on my pole started going down below the surface of the water. Grandad told me I had a fish! "Reel it in," he said. Well I'd never done that on my own, but I'd seen him do it plenty, so I started reeling it in...pretty slowly, I might add.

    So I was reeling in my fish and I was so excited! It was probably only 5 inches long, but to me, it was HUGE!

    But when it was coming out of the water, reaching the tip of my pole, I completely freaked out and just threw the fish, along with the rod and reel, right back into the water! All that wiggling it did somehow scared me.

    Then poor Grandad had to get into the water under the dock to try to find the pole I'd thrown. Gran was sitting to the side and trying to lecture me while she laughed hysterically.

    Thankfully he found the pole, but to this day, my entire family loves to remind me of that first fish I caught...and how I was so happy to let it get away.

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  77. Just happened yesterday ... We are at our cottage at the lake for the week. The nearest town is about 20 minutes away. I left the kids and my husband to run into town to pick up some groceries. As I am leaving, I hear hubby telling kids they were going to head to the lake. I come back an hour later and meet them at the beach. From a distance, I know something is off, but I can't tell what. I had bought my husband a new swimsuit before heading to the cottage and as I am focusing on him in the distance, I can't believe that I bought such a short swimsuit. Now, picture if you will, a man with Julia Robert's legs. Legs that go on forever. And a very short swimsuit. Or so I think. I turn around to head home as the boys have decided to call it a day. We start walking and hubby catches up. I turn around. I realize that he is not in the swimsuit I bought him. Oh no. He is the new boxer shorts I bought him thinking that it is a new bathing suit. After I finally stop laughing, I ask him how he could have confused the two. He has no response except to say that he thought the fly part of the swimsuit was strange and that because they were so short, he put his underwear underneath just to be safe. Yep, legs and all walking around the beach, meeting new neighbours, buidling sand castles and going for a dip all in his underwear. That's my man.

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  78. I absolutely adore your fabrics!

    Here's my story:
    I went to a waterpark with my fiance and another couple several summers ago. We were lazily winding down a river in inner tubes when I decided to cool off a bit by diving into the pool.

    I went down into the water, then popped back up to sit in my inner tube again. Everyone was staring and smiling at me. I assumed they just admired my amazing skill of going under the water and popping back out so flawlessly while the river was still winding along.

    No! I realized that my tankini top was flipped up exposing my chest for all to see. No one even said a word. They just smiled and stared. That lifeguard boy had the biggest smile of all ;) Needless to say I was mortified!

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  79. Mine is more useful than comical...but quite a funny sight to our neighbors.
    I have 5 children and when I had just three (all under the age of 4) I was expecting number 4. I was sooo exhausted and I was always trying to figuring new was to multi-task. My children wanted to play in their pool, but it was scummy...it was also bath night...that;s when I had my light bulb moment. Fill the kids pool with water AND 1 cup of tearfree shampoo. The children got into their giant outdoor bubble-bath, the pool got clean, the kids got clean, the neighbors chuckled, and tired, worn-out preggo mom got to put her feet up! )

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  80. Okay,

    Thanks for writing me back. Not much time so instead of finding the funniest in the archives of my mind I will tell you a story that was a blessing, mentally touching and had laughter. So it may not be the funniest to someone else but I never laughed so hard in such a long time, nor since; and my friend would agree. So here is the story in which I had to give it a title. ;o)

    Summer Storee Pleasures

    Nothing like having time in the water and waves to wash a hurried life and mind into some mental peace. That day was like that. My good friend and I actually made a trip up into MI near the lake. Today was the day to go to Lake Michigan for some beach and water time. Me, my traveling friend, and a new friend and 3 children loaded up and headed to the water. flip flops, towels, and water floaties were all we needed.

    That day though, dreaming of being on the water (which I hadn't been in a long time) my heart was heavy. Just before my trip I had found a lump in my breast. Trying not to be anxious or stressed, which doesn't help the body to heal I kept trying to forget it, atleast for a few days.

    Well we arrived at the beach and no body around but our little group. That was nice. Sort of like a little island to enjoy the breezes and sound of the waves lapping on the sand without any other distractions. The children were a little nervous. Although they wanted to get into the water, they clung closely to the sand line. The breeze was creating some white water waves only about 10 feet out from the beach. Now us adults we grabbed the floaties and headed straight in....with a brief, "ooooooh that is chilleeeeee!" and kept going.

    The waves were pushers. You literally had to ride the waves. The water felt wonderful as it pushed against our tired traveling bodies and pure MI fresh breezes filling our lungs and caressing our faces. I exhale now just thinking of the physical delight of the day. As the waves approached we jumped with the waves hitting us. Splashed here and there and pushed quickly to the shoreline if we'd let them. We were smiling bobs floating and gently tossed upon the water. We couldn't help but giggle with delight as our cares slowly washed away with another wave and we each became involved in the moment.

    A line of larger waves approached. Each of us saw them and we prepared to jump the waves and "conquer" them in delight. They hit my good friend first. All I remember is the white water wave hitting her, the intertube jetting high into the air like a bullet, and all I could see of her is her body being turned and then....her bum in the air above the water....then she disappeared briefly. Then I saw feet waving, and they too disappeared. Right after that her face SHOT out of the water above the waves, water just gushing off of her and seeing a giant smile all across her face!

    We laughed so hard; mouths flying open. As the waves continued to roll in we inhaled big gulps of water. We didn't care! We just kept laughing! and laughing. We forgot about our tired bodies, the long trip, the stranded car....and God blessed me with time of forgetting about the lump in my breast. And just as important, after many minutes of hard laughter we charged into the waves with more pleasure than ever. After all, not only did we conquer the waves, we had conquered time. time that turned into joy as the waves and breezes washed the cares away into delight.
    --------------------------------------------------


    ** Writers note. After my laughs from remembering this event I turn to tears of joy. Joy of the fun that we all had together but also joys of thankfulness. Long story short. God blessed me with complete healing! There is no lump and there is no cancer. They say laughter is good medicine...I had a lot of it that day and I sure it had alot to do with my healing.

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  81. Patty here with an interesting summer themed story. Last October my husband and I went to Hawaii for our honeymoon. We were on the island of Maui and had gone to the same beach several days so we decided to venture out and explore a different beach. We came across this one beach that had lots of sand, sun and tons of waves. It was beautiful! Off to the side there was a mountainish cliff rock formation that appeared to have steps going up to the top because people were easily climbing over the top of this rock/maountain/cliff thing. So we walked over to it and there were no steps just a walkway. For the most part it was an easy climb although I did slip once and people had to wait for me to get my nerve up to continue because the path was only one person wide in spots. Once we reached the top the view was amazing and I was getting great photos of the beach we were just at, looking down. After I captured 4 or 5 pictures my husband syas "Ok lets go" I was thinking we just made it up here and then I got a glimps of the other side of the cliff/mountain/rock thing. And after a double take I realized the women walking along the beach wasn't wearing a top and the guy beside her wasn't wearing anything. We both laughed and carfully climbed down the rock/mountain/cliff thing with a very good story. almaelou(at)hotmail(dot)com

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  82. Paula!~ Beautiful new line! LOVELY~
    The colors are just delicious!!!!!!!

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  83. I think your pictures turned out great~you look very pretty and the heat/humidity/frizz/stress did not come through at all!

    Funny summer story w/ water? Well, a couple of weeks ago I was in my sewing studio working on some bags, both of my kids (Jordan 6 and Jack 4) were in/out of the house playing in the backyard.

    We have had a lot of construction around our neighborhood with the installation of the digital cable lines, so the "sound" I was hearing, I attributed to the outside construction.

    Half hour later, the sound was still tugging at my subconsious, something didn't sound quite right. So I went to the backyard to check on the kids, only to find both kids soaking wet, trying to give our poor beagle, tied by her leash to the BBQ, a bath on the patio (without any soap I might add.)

    The sound I had been hearing was the water faucet being turned off and on at full blast, the kids trying to fill up a bucket, for the last half hour.

    There was so much water draining, it was halfway down the alley, the backyard was swamped, and the beagle still smelled, only it was worse now because she was wet too.

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  84. Soon after moving to Laredo, Texas, I signed up for a cake decorating class at the local Michael's. I was adjusting to living on the Mexican border and the fact that many only spoke Spanish. It never occured to me that a course at Michael's would be in Spanish, but sure enough, I was the only English speaker. The instructor did her best, and I managed to learn anyway. It was often embarrassing to not understand anyone else's conversation. I thought I was still in America, but based on the culture, I was wrong.

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  85. Just home from a family visit. Reading this reminds me of a little story we re-lived about an aunt (1970s). Off to a Dodger baseball game...3 kids in the car and dangerous aunt driving. Arrived safely in an old ford maverick but she hit the parking post in the lot and her car sputtered and spewed from the engine dieseling (not shutting off). She fell in the parking lot on the way to the stadium because she doesn't look where she's going (very clutzy). Arrive in our seats only to have the guy behind her spill beer down her back. Footlong dogs, baseball, summer, and beer! It was truly one of those "you had to be there" stories. :o)

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  86. My story just happened last week! I was supposed to pick up something from my best friend's house ( who also happens to be the mother of my daughter in law). One of her daughters is living with her together with husband and child and i hear my friend complaining all the time about the lack of support and help. Well anyway, this very daughter was supposed to be home for me to come pick up a camera and said she would be in the pool. I went to their house, called ahead of time and no answer. I rang the bell, knocked, went out back to the pool, nothing. My husband suggested to just go in if it was open. I did. I yelled and nothing so i picked it up and left. Got in the car and told my husband with very colorful language, what a mess this house was in. I told him there was stuff ( not really the word I used) all over and how pathetic that this daughter did not help because I was sure the mess was hers. THEN.... I decided to check my iPhone. It was ON the entire length of my speech about what a slacker she was. Needless to say, I am persona non grata today to half of the family. Well. Not really a water story but it involves a pool and summer. Oh and laughter.

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  87. Well, I see you are going to squeeze one more story out of me in the final stages of this contest. I,m embarrassed to say I still have quite a few more and am flipping a coin for the next reveal.

    Okay, got it. It's another "Let's try to humiliate Jennifer during her junior high years" kinda tale.

    We were in between selling one house and building another so we moved into an apt. complex for a few months. Jennifer and I went up to the pool together. Soon the boys started "swarming" around her. "Hi Mrs. Prass, how are you today, Mrs Prass. Nice day isn't it Mrs Prass?" So wanted to say, "Sure, Eddie Haskell". It soon became less than relaxing, and I had an appt. I brought my change of clothes & makeup so went to the Pool House to get dolled up. When I came back all dressed up, all those jr. high boys were laying it on thick. "Oh, you going to work, Mrs Prass? Have a nice day. You look really nice, Mrs Prass. Bye Mrs Prass". I'm walking along the curved pool and keep turning my head to answer all the Eddies. Yeah, you got it. I walk right in the deep end. I disappear under the water, but my purse and beach bag are still floating. All the Eddie's jump in to rescue me. They pull me up and out and I resemble a drowned rat. Makeup is running, wet hair in my face. Clothes stuck to my body. Eddie's are handing me my purse, bag and everything that escaped. Water is just spewing out everywhere. Then I notice Jennifer is not only NOT helping, she is cowering as far away from the commotion, and the look on her face was becoming a familiar one..."DO I KNOW YOU???"

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  88. When I was a kid I was terrified of putting my face in the water. I couldn't do it in swimming lessons so I flunked. One summer when I was about 6 years old, our family rented a cabin on a lake. I snuck down to the lake by myself. Waded in and put my face in the water. Then with great confidence since I conquered the face thing, I tried "swimming" under water. I DID IT! I was so proud of myself I ran back to the cabin and told my mom what I had done. I was so confused when she yelled at me instead of being excited about my courage! I thought maybe she didn't understand what I said! I still can't swim but I now understand why mom was so mad. LOL!

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  89. Well, looks like I popped over just in the nick! We've been away on vacation, and I'm trying to catch up on almost 900 blog posts that have piled up on Bloglines while we were away!

    Well, my funny story happened on our honeymoon almost 30 years ago...in the hotel pool. I'm not a beach person, not a swimmer, have never even owned a swimsuit. I actually did go out on a float in a lake once...in a skirt and blouse!

    Anyway, my new husband wanted to go for a swim in the pool. And of course, I didn't have a thing to wear. What I ended up doing was going in the pool in my slip and underwear! The pool was almost empty (but not quite empty enough!). Some old gentleman couldn't get enough of just staring at us. I wasn't embarrassed at the time--guess I was so overjoyed to be married that nothing out-of-the-ordinary fazed me! But now I look back and remember that pool and think, "What in the world was I thinking to wear nothing but underwear to a public pool?!" Of course, I was definitely much more covered up than folks are these days.

    I'd love to enter the giveaway for your beautiful fabric! Thanks!

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  90. This past weekend I went on a long girls weekend away with some good friends. We stayed in a cabin on the top of a mountain. The second day three of us decided to drive back down the mountain & into town so we could go to a thrift store. We had directions to get down which should have been three easy turns & a 15 minute trip. 90 minutes later we finally found our way off the mountain laughing hysterically about our adventure from one side of the mountain to the other and back a few times. But on a positive note I now know that mountain like the back of my hand!

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  91. My Introduction to Murphy's Law

    I love these new fabrics! I was looking through my stash today with my 4-year-old friend Hazel to select fabrics for her Feliz dress (Studio Tantrum/Farbenmix)and the ones she chose are all similar colors to the Miami group. How excited she would be to have some ruffles like that on the back side of her dress...

    Speaking of dresses, one summer once upon a time I planned to stay in and do laundry and other household chores. Something came up, however, and I needed to go out for a little while. Of course, nearly all of my clothing was either still dirty or in one state of wash or another: basically unavailable to me at that moment. Yet I needed to go out just the same.

    Hanging in my closet was a pretty, strappy sun dress I had recently made. It wrapped in the back with a sash that tied in the front and the skirt was just below the knee. It was one of the few things in my closet that was still clean (and the only decent thing).

    The problem was that all my panties were being washed. Well, my errand was important, so of course I went "commando" (as the men folk like to say) because, after all, how often does anyone in a dress actually have anyone see her panties? And I was only going out for a little while. What could go wrong? The only thing that could, of course.

    It was warm, but a little breeze was blowing that made the day very comfortable and just a little bit glorious if you know what I mean. I finished my errands and had a few hundred yards to walk to the parking lot to retrieve my car. It was a quiet day in town with only a few people out and about.

    As I headed to the car, enjoying the idyllic combination of the warm sun and the cooling breeze, a sudden gust came whipping down the sidewalk and straight up the back of my wrapped skirt. Which furled. And unwrapped. Up. And away. Then suddenly shone the bright white moon.

    Let's just say I did not feel much like Marilyn Monroe with the vent blowing up her dress hot and sexy. And I didn't feel cute like Jodie Foster in her famous Coppertone ad with a puppy exposing my derriere. No, neither cute nor sexy did I feel but, well, mortified.

    I could not see anyone ahead of me witnessing the unveiling of my less-than-stellar rear. But neither would I turn around to discover if anyone behind me had enjoyed a fleeting lunar event.

    So I just kept walking to the car, and hoped that if anyone did see me, it was a stranger.

    I think I got away clean.

    Mary

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  92. First of all, I absolutely love your fabric. it is so fun and whimsical. Now for my water/summer story. It was so humiliated. I was in my middle 20's at the time and had just moved into a new apartment complex that was full of many good looking single men. I went to the apartment pool with my roommate. We were laying out in the sun and I got hot and decided to dive into the pool to cool off. I got out on the other side of the pool from where my chair was. I was walking around to my chair and when I arrived and started to lay back down, I realized one side of my bikini top had slipped and my right boob was hanging out - all the way around the pool as I was walking. What a way to make an impression. I needed your fabric to cover it up. Now I am in my 50's and certainly wouldn't be caught dead in a bikini anymore!

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  93. Very fun giveaway! My story happened when I was in Junior High, so of course it was very tramatic! Several of my freinds went to the lake with one of my friends parents. I was determined to learn how to water ski. I had tried endlessly all day long to make it up on those skis. It was not happening. When it was time to go home they offered to give me one more chance. So, EVERYONE piled in the boat and I was ready to give it one last shot. Guess what? I made it out of the water, up on my skis, and my bikini bottoms were around my knees. Yup, it is on camera and video!

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  94. One time I went to the pool with some friends, and because I was a teenager and had outgrown my swimming suit, my mother "kindly" let me borrow one of her old swimming suits from when I was probably 4 years old. Anyway, the boys in the pool were all hitting on me. I was surprised by this because they usually went for my very flirtatious, cute, and blonde friend Hayley. I am much more reserved and quiet. Although I was not really interested in these guys, they kept hanging around and trying to get my phone number and my friends had abandoned me. Finally I escaped and went back to the shower room, where Hayley informed me why the boys were so interested in me. Apparently my swim suit was the culprit because my mother is much larger chested than I am. Although I felt differently in the suit, I didn't realize I was revealing everything through the sides of my poor fit swimming suit as I swam around.

    -Jenna

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  95. Jennifer ProbascoJuly 8, 2009 at 6:51 AM

    Ok, so my husband and I were fishing off of a pier in Wilmington, NC. He thought he would show this young boy how to feed a pelican that was sitting on one of the posts. He grabs a fish and starts to wave it at the bird. As he turns his head to show the boy the "proper technique" the pelican swoops down and swallows the fish and my husband's arm! After a few minutes, the pelican releases his arm and flys away. The next day, my husband and I were walking on the beach and overheard some fisherman retelling the previous days event of this idiot who called himself the "bird whisperer!" We haven't been back to the beach since!

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  96. I love all your fabric designs!

    Funny story....hmmmm...this may have been in the summer

    There was the time my friend and I ordered pizza and she called the place because of the coupon for the cinnamon dessert bread. I went to pick it up and they didn't have our order on file and I had forgotten the coupon. I kind of threw a petite fit and they rushed and made the pizza and dessert sticks for me. It took forever though. When I got back to my friends house I was telling her the story and she started laughing. The pizzas had been ordered from Dominos, and I had gone to Pizza Hut! Woops! Yes it's true - I am blonde.

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  97. When I was 12, my mom got me the cutest new bathing suit -I couldn't wait to put it on. It looked so grown up. The next day we went to the pool, and I rushed to put the suit on. Unforunately, it didn't fit. While many of my friends had started to develop up top, I had not.

    I quickly stuffed toilet paper in the top to fill it out as much as possible. Truth be told, I was pretty happy with the results.

    Proud as a peacock I strutted out to the diving board, in I went. . . And you can imagine as I gracefully swung up the ladder coming out - wthe wet toilet paper streaming down my legs.

    Although a little boy named Alan once told me I was "so flat I made the walls jealous", I still hope to run into him. As I tell my daughter who is eager to wear a bra and grow up too soon - watch out - DD breast run in the family, they are just late bloomers!

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  98. I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to win your beautiful fabrics!

    Here is my story about my new brother-in-law. We all went to Florida in June, me, my husband and our two kids, my mom, dad, niece, sister, new brother-in-law, my sister daughter. Also to note we are a religious family so there was no drinking involved!!!

    Well, my brother-in-law, who is white as snow, decided he'd had enough of the sun and swimming and would go up to their room. He did't have a towel with him so he was dripping wet(water part, LOL).
    He got onto the elevator ,along with a man and his daughter. The man pushed the button for their floor and my brother-in-law pushed the button for his floor, then the little girl pushed an extra button.

    Well, the man and little girl got to their floor first and got off the elevator. The doors closed back and so my brother-in-law is expecting the next time the door opens it will be his floor.

    Well, the door opens and my brother-in-law gets out of the elevator as he is dripping wet and got to the condo door and walked right in. He walked down the hall alittle and noticed a man sitting on the couch that he did not know. He was thinking to himself "What is this man doing in our room!?

    Well, he had a short second to recollect on the extra button being pushed in the elevator and realized HE was on the wrong floor and in the WRONG room!

    He said his face turned so red! Here he was dripping wet, and a total stranger who just walked into this man's room.

    He apologized to the man and told him he had the wrong room and quickly left.

    He said when he got back into the elevator he was pushing every and any button he could just so the door would close and he could get out of there.

    When he got back to his room he told everyone if the police come to their door , they are looking for him.LOL

    Needless to say, when he told me this I laughed so hard I almost peed my pants. This could only happen to him!

    Hope you enjoyed my story!

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  99. About a year after I married my husband, we took a beach vacation with his family. His parents, sister (and her kids), grandma and my husbands kids went with us. I was fairly new to the family. We did not date long before we married. The year prior to this I had to have a double mastectomy. Since I was only 30, I decided to get the replacements bigger than what was removed.

    So- here is where I mention that my father-in-law is a preacher.

    We get out on the beach for my first family fun trip. I have never had any kids and had not adjusted my swim wardrobe accordingly. I get down on the beach, take off my cover up and proceed to the water to help with the kids in my little red bikini. My father-in-law looks at my sister-in-law with raised eyebrows and says "I don't know where to look!".
    The horror. She told me that night and it was all I could do to not bury myself in the sand the rest of the week. My husband still laughs about that 2 years later and I can't put on a bikini without him saying- I don't know where to look and going into hysterics.

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  100. Well I have a few, but I will share the most recent just happened on the 4th!

    FIRST: We have had an unusually nice & hot week of weather around the 4th... normally we have rain. Anyways since it was almost 90 out we set out the pool for the kiddos so they could play while all the adults sat & chat. My son is almost 4 & my ID twin daughters just turned 2. Well after about 20 minutes of playing my son tells us he needs to go potty... well since it was a small pool I wasn't gonna tell him to pee in it, but I didn't want him making a wet mess all over the house... he is a boy so, I told him to go pee on the bamboo bush. Being an almost 4 yr old little boy he had is shorts at his ankles & was 'watering' it before I could finish talking.

    Well the twins are starting to potty train as well are just interested in everything... so Baylie walks over to her brother & asks 'What you doin' Nander?' He replied 'peeing on the bush' then she asked 'why?' and Zander responded 'I gotta pee' which was apparently enough to satisfy her & she returned to the pool.

    Well about 20 minutes later I notice her grabbing at her self... since the twins had both pooped already that day I hadn't put a swim diaper on so I asked if she had to go potty!

    As soon as she heard the word 'potty' she was out of the pool & standing in front of the bamboo... 'I potty'. I started laughing & said 'sweety, girls don't pee on stuff, they don't have a wee wee, girls have to stick to peeing in the potty, lets go use the potty inside' which was answered with stomping little feet, a shaking head & 'no I potty' while taking turns between pointing at the bamboo & looking down trying to figure out how the heck he did it.

    She was so determined... it was so cute & funny we all laughed about it for the rest of the night!

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  101. Okay, confession time. Truly embarrassing and....how do I tell this tastefully? Years ago in a land not so far away my husband and I were houseparents to 12 boys. We had an opportunity to take them to a waterpark in Florida, it was the highlight of our year. They were so excited and so was I. The day finally came and we rode man waterslides yada, yada....but there was one I really didn't want to go on. It shot you what looked to me to be straight down four or five stories. Now I'm just telling it how I remember it, it may not have been that high. The boys kept be begging me to go, but my sanity kept kicking in and saying absolutely not! Finally they offered mass appeal congregating together and causing a scene. I'm sure passers by were wondering just what would cause such an appeal. Anyway in a moment of something akin to peer pressure insanity I gave in and climbed trembling to the top of the slide, which to me greatly resembled the Empire State Building. I closed my eyes, held my breath and let go. It was over quickly gravity met pool and the result was something I can only describe as a pool sized enema!!! And it had the same result. Shaking and very uncomfortably I pulled my swimsuit from the nether regions of who knows where and in short tight steps fearfully and quickly made my way to the nearest restroom, and thankfully made it just in time. Of course ten minutes later when I finally left that building there was a crowd of boys waiting outside to laugh and see if I was alright, in that order!

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  102. Oh my, please pick me!!! These fabrics are simply TDF!

    hm...a funny summer story. Okay, when my oldest daughter was about a year old, we were at the beach. She was dressed in a one piece HOT PINK bathing suit with yellow and orange trim (kinda like your miami colorway above). A little old lady commented on what an adorable baby BOY we had. WTH???

    Regards,

    Karen Moore (naturemomm)

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  103. Hi Paula,

    I would love to win your fabric but the only funny story I have is that this summer I started sewing again after a 20 year absence from sewing. I was raised around seamstresses and bridal designers while growing up so I started sewing as soon as I could reach the sewing machine and the peddle at the same time.....well life happens and I just stopped...

    This summer I started up again because of having 3 wonderful babies around me at all times going through cranky toddler attitudes.

    Well one day I was taking the kids to get their photo's taken professionally at this place near our mall and my daughter was in this cute two piece outfit and the boys were their little polo shirts and slacks that matched and were same colors as my daughters outfit....

    The kids were cranky and were hungry so we stopped at the mall before the appointment...Mistake number 1.....While I was at the food court getting food for the kids that wouldn't mess up their clothes the people behind the counter were laughing at something and thought maybe it was something between each other....

    Well while this was going on my kids kept saying that their clothes were itchy and they were hot and wanted to take their clothes off and I wasn't the good momma and paying attention to what they said so I said "yeah yeah sure".....and then all of a sudden the food people busted out laughing and pointing towards my children....some how my daughter in the stroller had taken off both her top and bottom and one of the boys had her shirt upside down on his head so he looked like a flying nun and my other son had her pants on his head and looked like he had a giant diaper with ruffles and large scarfs.... And the boys had pulled their clothes off and had the pants around their necks and put a shirt on my daughter like it was a pair of shorts and wrapped the shirt around her chest like it was a tube top.....all the span of about 8 to 10 mins while we were standing in line and ordering food...

    I was so red in the face that the Manager who was working the register looked at me and said the meal was on him and put it in a bag so we can creep quietly out of the mall....

    This happened recently and I haven't been back to the mall since then....

    I am to scared too!

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  104. My summer water story:

    I recently undertook a MASSIVE project in my front yard...including 5 inches of river rocks and trees being ripped out of a bed. Well I have 2 little boys and while I was working they took off their shirts and soaked each other too the bone, their shorts were so wet they hunt of their hips and a hint of little boy "moon" peeked out from the back of their shorts.

    Funny boys.

    Later they ended up in the dirt pile which resulted in 2 mud babies with droopy pants.

    Fun times. Why do they have to grow up?

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  105. I really love your bright fabrics.
    This story is really different.

    This happened when I was about 13. My older brothers' girlfriend called and told us (my older sister who was 15, my twin sister and our 12 yr old brother)to come on over for a party and there would be a pool! So, bring our swim suits and towels. We mosey on over on the day of said party. After hanging out inside the house greeting her family and friends everyone starts to go outside. We get out side and there's no pool (scrunch face in confusion). I ask her - Janelle where's the pool? She says ok I'll be right back and goes off. I kid you not when I say this women came back out the house dragging a kiddy pool!!! The small ones with the collapsible sides and starts filling it up. A kiddy pool?!? Does anyone see the problem with this? Go back to the beginning of the story and read again.

    We were told that she was crazy but, I had no idea how loopy she was until that day.

    Needless to say that we did not get in the "pool" because only one of us could fit in and we'd certainly look like bullies knocking the 1 and 2 yr olds out to make room for ourselves. There's actually more to this story but, I think that's enough said. To this day I still scrunch my face in confusion when I remember seeing her dragging out that kiddy pool.

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  106. When I was 8 or 9 we took a family vacation to Lake Michigan. We were swimming and playing on the beach when I saw a dark, flat rock. I picked it up and said "Look at this rock!"

    My mom yelled, "That's not a rock! That's a fish eye!"

    I screamed, through that rock into the water, and ran! Scarred me for life! I won't go near beaches now and I certainly wouldn't pick anything up!

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  107. OOOOH! Those fabrics are beautiful!

    When I was a kid, my siblings and I used to go to a friends house to swim twice a week. It was so much fun! Sometimes there were more kids, some older and some very small so my friend had a way of letting everyone know that it was very important that no one pees in the pool.
    She would say, "Listen carefully everyone, because you will not want to be embarassed! If anyone pees in the pool, there is certain chemical in there that will turn your pee into a brilliant red all around you and everyone will know that YOU just peed in the pool!"
    I wasn't sure if she was joking or not when I was a kid. I only found out later that it wasn't true. (And not because I peed in the pool!!)
    Now, I'm not in the habit of lying to kids or to anyone for that matter, but on a couple of occasions this little story has kept my little guys from waiting too long before getting out and running for the bathroom. It works great because everyone wants to keep some things secret, like Peeing in the water! But in case of the RED PEE CHEMICAL.... Do not pee in the Pool!! LOL

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