Busy

I have been writing more. That is always good, I am at my happiest when I am writing.

I am getting ready for the Grand Opening of my new Etsy stores on May 1st. So excited for that. I have been sewing like crazy. But it's calming and soothing. It's like meditation for me.

I have been meditating though. It helps with my insomnia among other things. But getting to sleep is the best thing that I have noticed.

We got back report cards. Kenz is doing fantastic. He's reading at a third grade level in first grade.
Sapphire is a different story. She is failing handwriting. How does one fail handwriting? By not turning in any of the homework. I am pulling my hair out. And to think she's not even a teenager yet. Someone save me now.

Gardening

Today the sun actually came out! I know, a complete shock for this time of the year. I took advantage of the nice weather and got out into the garden. I planted some carrot and lettuce seeds. I also planted two grape vines along the fence between the neighbor and I. Don't worry we talked about it first. I knew that someday it may grow over the fence and she was cool with that. My snow peas are doing great. Of the 6 broccoli that I transplanted I have three left. Oh well.

I started some sprouts in the kitchen about 4 days ago. I could not believe how quickly they were ready. I got the seeds from Territorial. I adore this company. I ordered the seeds and they were here practically the next day. I was shocked at how fast that was. They have great blog posts with all kinds of gardening information and seeds that do fantastic here in Oregon.

Best part about the sprouts- the kids eat them. All the kids! I wasn't too worried about the boys who both love salads and most vegetables. It was Sapphie I was worried about. But I came into the kitchen yesterday to see her sneaking pinches from the jar.

Sewing

I have been sewing like crazy for the past couple days. I'm getting ready for my stores grand openings in May. At least that's the plan.

I love, love, love this pattern. It's the Buttercup Bag by Rae. It's a free pattern for home sewing. I bought the pattern so that I could sell them. It is so simply, easy and elegant.


Don't you love my dummy? I was at an estate sale and saw this kind of beat up cardboard box. It was flat and about big enough to hold a picture or poster. It said dressmaker's mannequin. No way! It was practically small enough to fit into my purse. It contained sheets of some odd type of cardboard, felt a bit like faux wood siding, brads, and a few metal sticks. For $12 I was willing to take the chance that some of the pieces may be missing. It was all there and came together fantastic, all set up with my measurements. Best score ever!

I wish I had a better picture but here she is in the corner of my craft room. The room looks rather crooked but truthfully it's one of the most level rooms of the house. We leveled the floor before decoupaging it. You'll have to click on the pic to see it.

Eggs

Had fun dyeing eggs with the kids this evening. There are never enough eggs to dye. But on the other end, there are always too many eggs to eat. I cannot stand eggs, especially hard boiled. I may eat an omelet or scrambled, as long as there is something else in them so I can't really taste them.

I've been busy with my novel. I'm on about page 200 of my third edit, out of 312. So not too bad but it's been slow going. I finished this novel as a part of Nano. It had 110,000 words in November. I've cut about 10,000 words. I was hoping to be done with it before my birthday. That obviously didn't happen. My new finish date, when I am going to start shopping it, is the summer equinox. I want a big reason to celebrate.