THE SIMPLEST THINGS

Oh dear, it's so close to Thanksgiving, my imagination is running ahead of me. I can already smell the turkey in the oven, even though it's still in the frig. For the first time in years we have invited a larger crowd. Today I am juggling work with prepping for tomorrow. I bet many of you are busy as well, but I just had to pop in to say hello along with some important news.

First of all, drum roll please. I want to give you a preview of my soon-to-be released quilt pattern called Woodland Delight, of course. I have had several requests for it since Quilt Market, so somewhere between projects I have been working on this. Designing patterns is time-consuming, especially for a perfectionist. But alas, I'm coming up to the home stretch. I had hoped to have it ready when my Woodland Delight fabrics hit the stores, but I've had several indications that fabrics have been arriving this week.

I know Fat Quarter Shop will be offering the pattern and fabric kits as soon as I get the pattern to them. Theywill accept pre-orders, just email them and ask to be notified when the kits are ready. The pattern by itself will sell for $9.00. If you are interested in pre-ordering just the pattern, email me. I also know some e-stores plan on carrying the Woodland Delight pattern, so this is your official heads up, with gift giving season in full swing.

Speaking of the release of Woodland Delight fabrics, Hawthorne Threads (previously Fabric Supplies.Etsy.com) is having a Woodland Delight giveaway: Three Fat Quarter Bundles. For details click here. But hurry. You only have til Sunday, November 30!

Now see why I had to interrupt your busy schedules?

We got a huge Wyatt and Amelia fix on Sunday. We had them all to ourselves. Their request for dinner is always the same. Get this: salmon, couscous and edamame. Yeah. My kids would have accused us of trying to poison them. Anyway, W & A want to say the blessing. Amelia bows her head and starts, "God, don't you just LOVE this day"? Then she dives into a litany of simple, yet profound thankfulness. Now, don't you know it melted His heart? Oh, to be more childlike in my praises and wonderment.

So as I head back to my To Do list, I just have to let you know just how thankful I am for each one of you. Your comments are such a blessing to me. When you take the time to nod your approval at my quirks and weird humor is so good. When my last post talked about how I still love to embarrass my grown kids for the things they did when they were little, you understood. In fact, Nancy from A Little Bit of Heaven sent this poem that you might have read before, but it could come in handy these next few family holidays:

When I'm an old lady, I'll live with each kid,
And bring so much happiness...just as they did.
I want to pay back all the joy they've provided.
Returning each deed! Oh, they'll be so excited!
(When I'm an old lady and live with my kids)

I'll write on the wall with reds, whites and blues,
And I'll bounce on the furniture...wearing my shoes.
I'll drink from the carton and then leave it out.
I'll stuff all the toilets and oh, how they'll shout!
(When I'm an old lady and live with my kids)

When they're on the phone and just out of reach,
I'll get into things like sugar and bleach.
Oh, they'll snap their fingers and then shake their head,
(When I'm an old lady and live with my kids)

When they cook dinner and call me to eat,
I'll not eat my green beans or salad or meat,
I'll gag on my okra, spill milk on the table,
And when they get angry...I'll run...if I'm able!
(When I'm an old lady and live with my kids)

I'll sit close to the TV, through the channels I'll click,
I'll cross both eyes just to see if they stick.
I'll take off my socks and throw one away,
And play in the mud 'til the end of the day!
(When I'm an old lady and live with my kids)

And later in bed, I'll lay back and sigh,
I'll thank God in prayer and then close my eyes.
My kids will look down with a smile slowly creeping,
And say with a groan, "She's so sweet when she's sleeping!"

Thank you Nancy, and thank you to everyone who reads my posts. May you all have a Thanksgiving filled with wonderment and praise over the simplest things along the way.

WEIGHING MY WHINES

What has happened since my last post, you ask? Hhmmm, let's see. Oh, I know...the freight company destroyed our booth upon return from Quilt Market. Here's the booth at Market:
Did I tell you that Tim (MacGyver), my husband/engineer, devised this booth to fold up into itself? Pretty ingenious, right? Think about furniture that comes to you either blanket wrapped or in a cardboard box. Now here's the booth I received back.

While these were taken with a cell phone, and I'm only showing a few shots, I imagine you get the picture. Holes were poked throughout. So now the burden is on us to try to get compensation.

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Let's see, what else? My business credit card has been compromised. Someone went on a shopping spree soon after Quilt Market. Then we had the water department come out to fix an underground leak in our yard. They came to the door a few minutes later and proudly announced they'd fixed the problem. At 6:oo pm I went to make dinner. No water, not even a drop. Turns out they never turned my water back on. My mother-in-law's Altzheimer is getting worse. She sometimes calls 6 times a day to tell me the exact same thing. She's afraid and lonely and we're 5 hours away.

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Truth is, these are really nothing more than inconveniences. I get frustrated, but am quickly reminded of how blessed I really am. It truly changes my perspective when I choose to turn my attention to what a wonderful opportunity I had to be at Quilt Market.. and I was only without water for a couple hours, etc, etc. My friend Don's inoperable Stage 4 brain tumor; now that's an inconvenience. Don't get me wrong...I love to gripe with the best of them. And if I'm truthful, I most likely won't change. But what I'm trying to do, at least, is put it on an imaginary scale, and these whines all added up to about an ounce. Sigh.

I know you were wondering what Tim and I were on Halloween, so here's the big reveal:

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Tim as a Canadian, and I as someone who works out. Amazing, huh?

I know, I know. We have pulled off some amazing costumes in the past though. It was so much more fun when we could royally embarrass our kids, but that doesn't have the same effect now that they aren't teenagers.

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Oh my gosh, once Tim dressed as the Godfather. Not THE Godfather, but one of Peter Sellers disguises from a Pink Panther movie. Do you remember how he stuffed his cheeks with cotton so he could look like Marlon Brando then choked on a drink? Then got in an elevator with these tough guys and passed gas? So I found a double breasted black pinstriped suit, black shirt, white tie and Fedora hat...I mean the works. But before we got to the huge Halloween gathering at our church (yeah we weren't bible characters) we stopped at the mall to find a whoppie cushion. We had the kids with us. I was also dressed in an elaborate costume...oh I wish I could find pictures. But the kids wanted absolutely nothing to do with us and walked way behind. Of course, being good parents we made sure to turn around and yell to them, by name, to hurry it up.

I frankly have no trouble embarrassing my kids, sometimes unknowingly. Here's another opportunity for me to pull out that imaginary scale I was talking about. I am reminded of all the times they threw themselves down kicking and screaming in the grocery store. Or the time Jennifer ran giggling, pushing the shopping cart with Jonathan in the seat, barrelling into the end cap of cereal. Oh, and how about them hiding inside the clothes rounders to scare unsuspecting shoppers. I'm the mom who left the cart in the isle and promptly escorted them home. So my thinking is ~Hey, I'm still in make up mode, don't you agree?

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Now as we grow older we will undoubtedly truly embarrass them. To that I apologize now:

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Sorry. I swear, I won't do it again.