The Little Things That Light You Up

My daughter just did a post with this title and I thought WOW!! she's really on to something! I thought it was such a great topic I'd follow her lead and do my own version of it and include some of the things she also hit on.

It is so true how the older you get the more the simple things bring joy to your life. Going out to fancy restaurants and expensive places seem to lose their appeal after awhile. You kind of can get tired of having to dress up and make sure your makeup and hair is perfect and all of that kind of stuff. I kind of enjoy a pizza and a movie at home now more than I do going out to the fancy restaurants.

Why do people think that you have to keep up with the Jones every time they replace their new luxury car? A car is just an object that makes getting from point A to point B a little easier and faster. We can't forget all of the little must-have gadgets and appliances. I know I'm guilty of that one as I always think "I need that" every time I'm at the quilt store and I see some new quilting tool or toy.

Let's not forget the guys out there that have to have the newest most up-to-date software programs, flat screen televisions that are even skinnier and bigger than the last one they got, faster computers every time there is an update out and of course all of those tools that they think they have to have to complete even the simplest projects.

All of these things seem to fade from memory quickly with little lasting benefit when you really stop and think about it.

Whether it’s enjoying a cold drink on your patio watching the sunset, a backyard barbeque with family and friends, watching a movie with your honey, enjoying a bowl of ice cream with your grandchildren, catching up with your girlfriend over some coffee, driving through the country looking at the sights or feeding bread to the ducks at the pond. We all just need to think back on the moments that make us smile and realize that we really don’t need all that other stuff. It's just stuff and not the type of thing that memories are made of.

My daughter pointed out that you have 24 hours in a day. Even if you spend 8 of them sleeping and 8 of them working, you’ve still got another 8 left to spare. Find the little things that bring a smile to your face and get out there and do at least one of them daily. If you can’t find the time to do them then it’s time to reorganize your priorities and get your life back on a healthy track. Figure out what’s important to you and cut out all that other stuff.

If we all can’t do the things that make us happy in the life we live, then it’s time to figure out what we need to do in order to make sure we can do these things.

Nothing is worth letting life’s best moments pass you by!

Some Beautiful Flowers

Don't you just love these beautiful Peonies? They are so beautiful. I just love them! It doesn't matter if they are still kind of closed up or when they are all the way open. They are just so gorgeous. I think these are one of my favorite flowers and of course I love the color. They have quite a few shades of pink in them if you look closely.

Flirty Apron Swap

I recently participated in another Flirty Apron Swap. The theme this time was Cupcakes and/or Mary Engelbreit. I know I said I wasn't going to do another apron swap because I already own a zillion but I couldn't help myself! I love aprons and I loved that the theme was cupcakes so I went ahead and signed up again.

Being the procrastinator that I am I waited until the day before the apron had to be made to start it. I work well under pressure! I had already purchased the cupcake fabric that I was going to use but I of course changed my mind as to what type of an apron I was going to make and at the last minute had to run to JoAnn's before they closed to get enough fabric to finish the project and make a ruffle. I always like my aprons to have a ruffle and extra long ties so that if you want you can wrap the ties and tie it into a nice bow in the front. I had already picked up the little extras that I was to include as a gift in addition to the apron so that wasn't a problem.



I decided at the last minute to add the little pink pom-pom trim to the top of the apron and again on the top of the pocket. I thought it just added a little extra to the look of the apron.



Here is all of the goodies I included with my package. I of course had to send one of my all time favorite apron patterns as part of the gift. I included a roll of Mary Englebrite ribbon, some colorful candy or muffin liners, a magnetic note holder that I made and a few other little things.



Here is me modeling the apron. I fell in love with the cute cupcake apron and didn't want to give it up. I always do that. I should just know by now and buy enough fabric to make 2 of them because this has happened the last couple of apron swaps.

I Won! I Won!!

I hardly ever win anything and boy was I surprised when I got an email from Suzanne AT Home With The Farmer's Wife that I won a Valentine's Day contest at her blog. There was a choice of three different Heart Shaped Keychains to choose from. I really don't care which one I get as they are all nice. I was just surprised that I won.

It was just a nice little pick me up to help get me out of my current "funk". I absolutely hate recovering from surgery! It absolutely drives me crazy that I can't go where I want to, and do what I want to, when I want to. I know part of that is just me wanting to be fully in charge of my life in all aspects. It's hard to sit back and wait and recover. I guess Patience is something I am still working on and haven't quite mastered.

I'm sure in a month or too I will look back and say wow I wish I could just get away with sitting on the couch in my p.j.'s and not having to do much of anything again and that I need a break. It's funny that we always want something that we don't have.

To Blog Or Not to Blog...That is the Question

I really do love that I have this silly little blog of mine that maybe 1 other person reads on a regular basis though (Thanks Debbie). I do get a little thrill though when someone decides to take the time to read my blog and leave me a comment. Especially when it is someone new and somehow they have stumbled upon my blog. With that comes some pressure and responsibility though.

I feel like I need to blog about interesting things. Things that I can write about and that people will enjoy. But, lately. Lately. Lately life has been a real snooze fest. Too cold to go out. Too wet to go out. Too sick to go out. And when I do get out..I go to the grocery store or to the Dollar store or to the fabric store. Sometimes I might even actually make it to all 3 stores in one day. Whoo. Hooo. I'm living on the edge. Very little excitement in my life as of late.

My posts lately have been boring. Boring. Boring. Boring. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. I'm sorry. I'm here and I'm awake. I'll try harder to not be so boring I promise you.

Quilting Fun with my Girl Friend

Yesterday I spent a wonderful day at my girlfriend Debbie's house quilting. We don't get to get together as often as we would like because of all the things that take up our time in our busy lives. So it is especially nice when we get to spend the better part of the day working together on our quilts and having the companionship of someone like you who enjoys doing the same types of things.

It really doesn't matter how much we get done or accomplish as long as we are having fun together. We sewed and sewed, cut and measured fabric, talked all day, and drank coffee. Some of my very favorite things to do! So it was a very nice day indeed!

I look forward to getting together with some of my other friends soon to quilt and sew with also. We have a little quilt group that tries to get together once a month to sew and encourage each other. Our group is called the Double D's. No! it's not what you think! It stands for Domestic Diva's.

It is so fun to see what type of projects the other ladies are working on and I think everyone both learns and teaches each other. Each one of the ladies brings something different to the group. We have a variety of different levels of quilters also. Some have been quilting for a really long time and there are those of us who are relatively new to quilting.



I personally have sewed since I was in Junior High School but haven't been quilting all that long. I started my first quilt about 15 years ago but then put it away for about 10 years before I started working on a quilt again. I've only been seriously quilting for about 4-5 years now. I know have way too many UFO's or Un-Finished Objects but I have found the time to finish a few quilts recently.

Be Happy

Life is too short to be wasted on anger.... smile, laugh, be happy!