AN EXCITING NEW ADVENTURE AHEAD!

Yesterday I turned that magical number that allows me to do something very special on July 15th. Here's a little something I made up to announce what I'll be doing:

Relax so I can
Energize to
Try something new and
Investigate hidden treasures
Reflect upon all I've done
Exercise without worry
Make new plans to
Explore
Nap without guilt and
Team up with Mike for new adventures

As most if you know, this little thing called fibromyalgia sucks every bit of energy out if my body. It has made it difficult, if not impossible, to do anything besides work an 8 hour day. I am sooooo thankful to have a husband like Mike who takes such good care of me, the house and our animals! Now I hope to be able to give back to him and our family at least a small percentage of what they've done for me all these years. Emily was literally without a mother for a few years and as I watch what an awesome mother she has become I praise God for holding her in His arms through those hard times! Thank you to everyone for your love, support and prayers!

Happy Easter!

We lost my mother in January 2015. She died peacefully with family surrounding her and her ashes joined those of my father in Wichita, Kansas.

 

 

Soon afterwards we lost my husband's step-father, also of Wichita. It was nice to be able to stay with my mother-in-law during the week of planning my Mom's funeral so I could provide some comfort as her husband got weaker and weaker under the care of Hospice at home.

Life continues to grow for us as we've been graced with two grandsons, one in December 2012 and another in August 2015. They live close and we get to see them often. Here's a few pictures:

 

 

Ollie loves the quilt I made for him.

Still being a bit crafty with the pumpkins for Halloween.

Ollie didn't like Santa.

Wall hanging I made.

Slippers I made out of my step-father-in-law's old sweater.

Leland on the quilt I made for him.

Star Wars was popular this year.

And Ninja Turtles remain popular.

Pictures taken by my daughter, a quite talented photographer.

 

 

 

 

That's all for today folks! I've got tons more pictures, but this post should bring you up to date if you've been wondering what's been going on with my life. Hopefully I'll post more often in the future.

 

Ta ta for now!

Sharon

 

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It's been like, well... forever!

Wow how time flies when you're having fun! Hey, you KNOW it's true, so don't even shake your head at me. I've been soooooo thoroughly enjoying this grandmahood (is that even a word? spell-check doesn't think so) and wanted to pop in to share a bit of what I've been doing lately. Yes I'm still making an occasional greeting card and have done a little scrapbooking here and there, but I've gotta tell you that this little guy has just made our lives around here so much fun! How could anyone possible look at this little face and not smile?

Oh by the way, did I tell you that my daughter is now a photographer? Yup! Well she's kind of doing it on the side now, still working full time, mommying full time and trying to slip in a photo op when she can. You can find her at Photography by Emily Baker here -

http://photographybyemilybaker.zenfolio.com/

How about another peek at the most precious little boy ever?

and back on a crafting theme, here's what I've been working on for Oliver. Just a few peeks, then the finished product will be posted when it's done.

This is my first attempt at strip piecing and really my first official quilt that will actually have some machine quilting if all goes right. Wish me luck!

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Happy New Year!

Today is usually a day of reflecting on the events of the past year and I must say this day is no different except that I haven't been watching all those shows on television. You know, the ones that rehash all the news and events and deaths and tragedies the world has experienced during a 12 month time period

So what did I do today? Well back up a couple of days, or better yet how about 4 weeks to be exact... to that awesome day when this little guy was born. Yup, he's one month old today!

Isn't he the most precious thing you've ever seen? Yeah, I think so too! I feel so lucky to have my daughter and son-in-law living here so I can help pitch in with grandma time and watch him grow. Can you believe they still ask me if I want to hold him? Silly kids! Speaking of kids, here they are in our joint multi-purpose craft and hobby room. Emily and I were cutting out paper snowflakes for Sandy Hook (see below). I just found out today that they received so many they don't want more sent, so guess these will be used to decorate something else next year. Maybe Oliver's nursery?

Matt said he finally has the incentive to get his train layout completed so Oliver can play with it. What fun to be able to all work on our crafts together. Oh yeah, we installed a small flat screen tv on the wall above Emily's area so we can all see it. This week we began watching Downton Abbey which is proving to be all they say it is and quite entertaining.

There are sooooooo many projects already floating around on my to do list for 2013, but for starters and for tonight I need to make a few "necessaries" for Emily. What would those be? Well if I tell you that she's breast feeding would that be enough? I found some tutorials for making breast pads out of flannel and either fleece or wool, so will make a couple of prototypes to have her try out, then will make a week's supply when we know what works best. I also unassembled a soft navy blue leather purse that I could never get rid of because I love the feel of the leather and paid far too much for it to give away. It just isn't made to suit my ever-growing space needs for an every day purse. Now that I have one of those keyboard case things for my iPad it leaves both sides of it unprotected, so I want to use the leather to make a slipcover/envelope-type case for it. Then I need to make a cover for the Kindle that Emily won recently. We have some ideas to use felted wool sweaters in a patchwork pattern to make a cover. I'll be sure to post pics of all of these projects after they're done. For now, enjoy the snowflakes!

 

 

 

 

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My grandson has arrived!

Now the REAL fun begins as we venture forth on this new exciting journey of grandparenthood! Oliver decided to come a few weeks early, but both mom and baby are doing great! My daughter and son-in-law were absolute rock stars throughout the whole process from the time her water broke at 2:15 am to first contraction at 11:30 am to final delivery at 5:15 pm. Short, sweet and to the point just like his mother! The women at the birthing center were awesome angels, providing calm loving support that was very uplifting.

I can't find the words to express how much love I have for Oliver already and how proud I am of Emily for being such a champion during childbirth and Matt for being so supportive as her partner in childbirth!

 

 

 

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T-minus 30 and counting

That would be 30 days and the countdown is for the birth of my first grandchild Oliver who is due December 27th! I can't believe that the past eight months have flown by so quickly and that soon we will hear the cries and coos coming from that tiny little baby boy. Ok, so let's tie that thought I. With today's BlogHer NaBloPoMo prompt:

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

If you could instantly know any language in the world, which one would it be?

Hmmm, it's a stretch, but while looking up the origin of the term t-minus I discovered an interesting fact on the Wikipedia entry. The term was first used in a 1929 German silent film Frau Im Mond (Woman in the Moon) which was the first time a rocket launch was presented on film, or at least the sci-fi version of one. So, rocket launch = birth of baby and German is the language I'd love to know instantly! I've lived in Germany twice and studied the language in collage, but can't for the life of me get a handle on becoming bi-lingual! What's up with that?

Why German and not something romantic like French or practical like Mandarin? Perhaps because half of the blood in my veins is of German origin and did I mention that I'd lived there twice and studied it in college? I thought so! What makes it so special? I think it's the fact that while living in Germany as a soldier in the Army I found something that has remained with me ever since... A true relationship with my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Yes, it happened as a result of a coffee house ministry called King's Crossing Coffee House which was done in the basement of the base chapel. Yup, I was part of the Jesus movement!

I hope to be able to share my love for The Lord with Oliver in a way that enriches his life. Maybe we'll even learn to speak German together!

The tour group in Israel, March 1975

My baptism in the Jordan River March 1975

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The language of Mom

Monday, November 26, 2012

Do you speak more than one language? How did you learn the additional languages?

I'd like to get off the beaten path a bit tonight as I answer those two questions. What do you automatically think of when asked if we speak another language? Yeah, me too... A language other than that of your home country, whether that be English, German, French, Japanese or any other written and spoken language. Well here's the thing... I truly believe there is another very unique and special language that I'd like to call Mom-speak. We all know what that is, but the amazing thing is, it's different for each and every one of us! How many other languages can boast of that power?




Let me give you a few examples of what Mom-speak sounds like to me, but before I do, let me share the most recent picture of her that was posted on Facebook by my niece right after Mom got a hair perm and manicure. Isn't she beautiful?!?

Ka-Mish-Shaaaronnnn!!! She'd say as she worked her way down the line of daughters... Kathy, Michelle, then me, Sharon. Gee Mom, can't you even remember who you're yelling at? Hah! Little did I know that the curse would follow and even with just one child I still do something similar, only now it's something more like just out and out calling her by one of the dogs names. Silly short-circuited brain cells!

There's another sound that Mom used to make as I was growing up. It's the sound of a thick leather belt being doubled back on itself and snapped to make a loud smack. That sound was like the two-minute warning and when it was heard we knew that at least one of us five kids was in trouble. We'd start out with our backs to the wall hoping not to be the recipient of a tanned hide and sometimes use our two minutes to plan and scheme. Mind you, she never really did any damage, but it only took one spanking to instill the fear of that belt and usually just the sound of it was enough to stop us in our tracks!

This next Mom-speak is really a smell, but to me it represents my mom, so it belongs in this discussion. Mom was a coffee drinker and Dad preferred tea, probably because she is German and he is English-Irish. To this day the aroma of instant coffee always reminds me of Mom. Sometimes I drink it just for the memories. I kind of compare it to the instant dry milk we always had growing up. Sometimes we were lucky and she'd mix it with some real milk, but usually it was Carnation Instant Milk straight up!

Not what you expected, huh? Well you should know by now that I don't have a good memory for words, but can think in pictures. Now add smells to that memory bank and I have more subject matter to draw from.

I wonder what my daughter will always remember about my Mom-speak?

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Do you believe in ghosts?

Friday, November 16, 2012

Would you buy your dream house if the price was right BUT you also were told it was inhabited by ghosts?

That is the NaBloPoMo prompt for today. Funny because as we continue to adjust to our new blended multigenerational family in a house that got used to just two people that dream house is getting bigger and more necessary! Every day it seems that we add something to the list of must-have: kitchen the size of this whole house, sunroom with dog shower and drying station, huge craft room, multiple hobby rooms, media room with multiple levels like a theater, fertile soil for gardening, outbuildings for old cars and tools, and the list goes on. You'll notice one thing that is not on the list: must be ghost-free! Who cares if some long lost soul gets lonely every now and then and pays us a visit? This house is gonna be so darn big that they'll have to spend all night looking for us anyway!

On a more serious note though, let me tell you a personal story about my ghost. A very dear friend of mine who used to love listening to Beatles music with me died not long after the release of Anthology I which includes the long lost Lennon song "Free as a Bird". We played the song at his memorial service and I listened to it over and over through my sobbing at home afterwards. Sometimes just out of the blue my stereo would turn itself on and play that song! Or if I was listening to it or another golden oldie the volume would turn up very loud. I kid you not folks, I could quite literally sit across the room and watch that volume dial turning! Don't even TRY to tell me it wasn't him there to comfort me or just joke around trying to make me laugh as he often did! Eventually when he saw that I was finally able to cope with the loss he moved on and the stereo got back to normal. So would I deny myself and family our dream home just because there were ghosts? Absolutely not! Hey, the more the merrier!!!

Now back to the world of the living. How about a few pictures from our mile-long hike through Winter Wonderland out at Lake Shawnee? It's an annual fund raiser for TARC, a provider of resources for persons with developmental disabilities.

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