AnnieOfBlueGables

My Memories Suite Giveaway

2011-11-04T22:45:00.001-06:00

editor's note a winner has been chosen: congrats Mike! I've recently been given the privilege of trying out and reviewing a new-to-me product called My Memories Suite. Amazon best-seller and the #1 rated Scrapbook Software. And in conjunction with that, I get to offer one in a giveaway! How cool is that? I clicked on My Memories Suite and downloaded a bunch of free kits to start. I am not

Murmuration

2011-11-04T11:44:00.001-06:00

I learned a new word today. Murmuration. Which means a flock of Starlings flying in formation. These birds seem to perform an aerial dance, a perfectly choreographed ballet. I've been fascinated with these birds for years. In fact I made an entry in my poetry book about them. When I wrote it, I mistakenly thought they were red-winged black birds. Here is my entry: Blackbirds, October 1983

Arugula and Chicken

2011-10-27T16:44:00.000-06:00

Have you ever tasted Arugula? Sailor planted some seed in August and now it is a foot high. I saw it next to the peppers I was harvesting and asked him what it was. So I cut some off and used it in my salad. I am hooked. It has a nutty flavor, if that is possible. I added pinion nuts, sunflower seeds, onions, tomatoes, mandarin orange slices and an orange sauce from Panda Express for dressing

I have little Halloween Ghosties dancing around my tree

2011-10-16T23:01:00.002-06:00

I have little Halloween Ghosties dancing around my tree I don't often decorate for Halloween, but this year all the stars aligned, I had a sweet hubby who helped by mowing the lawn, and helped cut PVC, and these came together in an afternoon. have a Happy Halloween.

Children's Toys

2011-09-22T23:21:00.000-06:00

The children of Great Grandma's time Had plenty of things to do With buttons and balls of string They'd play the whole day through. They had no brightly colored toys That did everything for you Their moms and dads would make them things And their imaginations were their wings. I remember my dad once made me a toy Using a wooden spool and some paraffin, A tooth pick and rubber band, I had a

Like Grandfather, like Grandson. . . uncanny

2011-08-10T17:15:00.002-06:00

This is a picture of my husband when he was about two or three. I've had this picture for quite some time, but I just found a lock of his hair when he was born. I found the picture and put the envelope with the hair behind the picture in the same frame. I thought of his sweet mother, taking a tiny lock of hair and saving it. The tiny piece of hair is carefully taped to a piece of paper and

Welcome New Arrival

2011-08-10T16:22:00.000-06:00

Hello Little One, Welcome to our family. This might sound really trite, but it comes from my heart. I wanted to welcome you and I am so glad you have joined our family. I am so glad you and your mom are doing fine. You are my seventeenth grandchild. This just astounds me. I feel so very blessed with each new arrival. I love each grandchild with all my heart. You are so tiny and so perfect.

Isabel Delhousie, philospher and editor of the Journal of Applied Ethics

2011-07-19T13:45:00.000-06:00

The Right Attitude to Rain by Alexander McCall Smith A quote from this book made me laugh out loud: "Was electronic memory a place? Before they appeared on the screen weren't they just endless lines of noughts and ones, or odd decimals? That she thought, was the ultimate triumph of reductionism: Shakespeare's sonnets could be reduced to rows of noughts; or even the works of Proust; although how

Wonder box

2011-05-05T14:14:00.001-06:00

Just before Christmas I decided to make my husband a Wonder Box. He built an 18 foot sailboat which we take to Lake Powell every year. And I thought it would be nice to be able to cook as we traveled. The box is fabric and filled with the small Styrofoam balls you use in bean bag chairs. The pattern can be found here. The cool thing about these is you can start your meal cooking on your stove

I'm trying to be like Jesus

2011-04-27T10:51:00.003-06:00

It has been a busy 4 months. I am amazed it is already the end of April soon. Time seems to fly, especially when you are having fun. I spent the first two months of the year making quilts for two of my grand daughter's baptisms. They took place a week apart and in two different states, so we literally jumped in the truck and headed to Colorado as soon as the first one was over. Calise's

Where have I been for so long?

2011-04-05T13:18:00.001-06:00

1/16/11 I've been rather negligent about posting on this blog for a while. Let me "esplain". In October I worked in the outage at the Power Plant. I worked as an "entry attendant". This is where I sit on a chair, usually in a freezing place somewhere in the shut-down unit of the power plant, with a clip board in hand and watch every.single.worker who goes in and out of the confined spaces.

Daddy

2011-02-02T23:02:00.000-07:00

Irene Sessions Poulson 1920 - 2010 Irene Sessions Poulson, 89, of Bountiful, Utah, died peaceful of natural causes, Saturday, February 13, 2010 at her home. She was born July 28, 1920 to Alvin and Alice (Hogan) Sessions, in Salt Lake City. After graduating from Davis High School in 1939, she briefly attended

I'm missing out

2010-02-12T14:27:00.001-07:00

Any of you who know me at all, know that I hate to be left behind. I will rise to the occasion, come up out of my sick-bed and do anything it takes in order not to miss out. But today, that's not going to happen. Our 14th grand baby is scheduled to be blessed at a special ceremony on Sunday, and we were all set to drive out to Denver and participate in this special event. But that won't happen

New Favorite Singers and Song

2010-01-20T10:40:00.004-07:00

You Are Loved (Don't Give Up) - Debbie West Coon & Justin Williams I just love the passion in this song. I could just listen to it over and over. (did you see him wink at her at min 3:31?) ::sigh:: ~a update: I purchased a copy for my Itunes here. Only 99 cents.

trouble with blogger

2010-01-16T00:19:00.001-07:00

While writing the last post on Christmas Surprises, I had trouble downloading pictures, placing them where I wanted them and getting the text to go to the right spot. As a result, I hit publish before I was ready. So in order to see the whole post, if you are reading this from a Reader, you will have to click on my site and go read the whole thing. I started writing this at 10:30 pm, and didn't

Christmas Surprises

2010-01-16T00:00:00.003-07:00

Some things I have been waiting to blog on were Christmas Surprises, and I had to wait to post them until after everyone opened their gifts. Now that Christmas is over, I can share what I gave the grandchildren. Earlier this year, I was talking to one grand daughter on the phone. She always asks for stories of when I was a little girl. The one I shared with her that day was about my ZB. We

Bragging Rights

2010-01-15T11:30:00.002-07:00

I'm published. I've always wanted to say that. I am a wannabe author, and would LOVE to write a book that is so compelling that it becomes the hit. Kind of like Harry Potter, or Twilight. I look at those authors, and say to myself, they were once just ordinary people, like me, but something compelled them to tell a story, and unlike me, they possessed a talent to tell it. That's not the case

And the Giveaway Winner IS. . .

2010-01-12T10:00:00.000-07:00

I've been gone from home for about 3 weeks, so this drawing has been on hold for quite some time. For those of you who have already forgotten about it, I was giving away a copy of the Quiltmaker 100 Blocks magazine. I had won two. I am happy to announce that as a result of random.org Lissa Jane from Fabricologist Anonymous is the winner!, who said: "Oh wow.. you have had some very happy mail

Gratitude

2009-12-22T22:08:00.005-07:00

I have gratitude so often in my heart, but sometimes I don't express it enough. That said, I would like to express that gratitude: First for my friend Bowbie. She used to coach my two youngest children in Swimming and Water Polo. She was one of the most positive people I know. She didn't allow cheating or underhanded things to go on during the meets. Believe me, there is a LOT of underhanded

Giveaways for Christmas

2009-12-21T13:58:00.016-07:00

I feel SO Rich! I have been on the receiving end of some giveaways lately and I would be most ungrateful if I didn't post about them. The first was during a contest put on by Quiltmaker, the magazine. It is an amazing magazine with many wonderful patterns and quilting suggestions. You were supposed to go to each of the blogs of the talented quilt designers who had made the

Want a good giggle?

2009-12-21T12:02:00.004-07:00

I don't know how I happened upon this blog, Feathered Fibers, probably because I am following about a hundred quilting blogs, but today's was great for a laugh.She links us to an Amazon product called the Laptop Steering Wheel Desk. It really is a product, but the reviews are hilarious. And then I got caught up in looking at the Customer Image Gallery. That is where people can add the image of

Homeward Bound

2009-12-15T22:52:00.004-07:00

This is such a beautiful song. I have sung it now for two funerals with our choir. It is associated with the military in this video, but the words and music can apply to many other aspects of our lives. This choir does an excellent job. It is something that I don't want to forget. Thanks Sterling for picking such beautiful music. God bless all who are suffering from losing someone at this

Firewood

2009-12-08T01:41:00.006-07:00

Sometimes I receive forwards in my email. The above picture came in one of those emails entitled amazing pictures.My sweet husband chops a LOT of wood for our wood stove. We have a wood pile in our back yard, lining our fence that has about this amount of wood. It is the result of chopping down an 80 foot tree on the side of our house last summer. We have worked on that tree all of the rest of

It is December of 2009 already! Where did the year go?

2009-12-04T23:00:00.000-07:00

We finally got the tree up tonight. I love this tree. It rotates. In fact, this is the third rotating stand I have purchased. I am hooked and they are HARD TO FIND.I do the same thing every year. Start with around 800 lights, then add the ribbon and bows. This year I added some pine cones that had sparkles glued onto them. I purchased them at a discount last year after Christmas.This year I have

December Birthday

2009-12-01T13:13:00.004-07:00

ed note: I wrote a similar thing in my December (birthday) grand daughter's card Having a December 1st Birthday is the way to go!It means all sorts of fun things:Great gifts, because the toy stores are all stocked with many fabulous things, and it gets every one in the shopping moodGetting your birthday gifts wrapped in Christmas paperGetting your birthday gifts combined with Christmas gifts even

Too Fun

2009-11-25T15:42:00.004-07:00

When my daughter met her future husband online, then met him in person, fell in love and married him within 5 months, I had many misgivings, even though I am a great fan of You've Got Mail.But he turned out to be a wonderful young man and we are thrilled with how happy they are. They recently celebrated their 5th anniversary, have purchased a home, have two children and are living a

Mannheim Steamroller Christmas anyone?

2009-11-21T15:42:00.010-07:00

The much anticipated birthday gift day finally arrived Thursday. Sailor took half the day off and came home around noon. We packed our suitcases with overnight things, loaded the car and headed to Salt Lake. When we arrived, we had the brilliant idea to park in the hotel parking lot and unload our luggage before the concert. We stayed at the Salt Lake Plaza Hotel. The room assignment had some

Pulled Hamstring

2009-11-17T12:28:00.004-07:00

I don't know if I have mentioned it here on the blog, but my friends are aware. I have been hobbling around for 7 weeks with this thing and it is painful. Last week I went to see the doctor for the annual check-up. Among other things, he asked me if I had any health concerns. I mentioned the sty in the eye, gone awry and the hamstring. He is sending me to an eye doctor for the sty, and gave me

Today I am Thankful for. . .

2009-11-11T13:10:00.006-07:00

. . . a brand new grand son. Born on Veterans day, 11 November 2009. No name that we know of yet, but that will come soon enough.Hello Little Guy. Your parents sent me a text on my phone, but because it wasn't anywhere near me, I didn't discover it until 4 hours later when I saw one of my children's entries on FaceBook!!Then I went to check my phone, and sure enough there was the announcement:

biorhythm

2009-11-11T12:21:00.001-07:00

I don't usually look at this, but on days that I am feeling just lousy or days I seem to magically get TONS done, I check it out. Today I just happened to be posting something about my newest grandchild and was amazed to see all six of the rhythms meeting in the center.I feel . . . medium . . . as Phoebe in friends would say. I guess that is appropriate.heh heh~a

Overwhelmed

2009-11-05T13:47:00.009-07:00

Gratitude.I hardly trust my voice to speak,therefore it is a good thing this is a blogand I can express my deepest,most overwhelmed,grateful,heartfeltTHANK YOUto my sweet family.This arrived in the mail today.What's This? I thought.delivery confirmation??? why???It is not a special occasion.My birthday is a month away.That is what threw me off guard.Upon opening it, there was that beautiful red

vivid dream

2009-11-05T08:27:00.003-07:00

I rarely remember my dreams. But this morning's dream is vivid. I awoke relieved it wasn't real and my hands and feat were sweating.What causes my hands and feet to sweat? High places. YIKESSo without further adieu::fade to dreamy music::I am on some sort of campus. I was with my B-girl daughter. She was looking for a certain professor to ask a question. She had told me he was hard to find, but

Visible Risible

2009-11-04T09:14:00.005-07:00

Last night a new experience was introduced into my life. For the first time I got to meet fellow blogger friend, I had "met" on the internet and loved for several years. I feel like I have known her forever.In my posts I have often mentioned Lori from Mostly Risible. I was first attracted to her blog from some other I was reading that mentioned Lori was in Italy now.With Italy, being on my wish

How Wierd

2009-10-29T15:07:00.007-06:00

This is the forecast for the next week. Look at today and then Sunday.Sunday's low will be what today's High is!They say in Colorado that if you don't like the weather, wait 10 minutes and it will change. I have never seen such a huge change in my life. They got 2 feet of snow, and it looks like by Sunday it will all be melted.It started yesterday around 3 in themorning and continued all day,

Hippo Birdie

2009-10-27T09:55:00.006-06:00

Today is a special day for two reasons. It is my sister's birthday. Happy Birthday, ZB. It is also the date my youngest son and his wife chose for their wedding day. Two years ago today, we were witnessing their marriage and celebrating their new life together. Happy anniversary S3 & DIL3!ZB is my younger sister. The nickname started out when we began calling each other Seester, then Seeeeester.

Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy

2009-10-22T09:30:00.005-06:00

I belong to the Choral Arts Society of Utah Master Choral choir. We have such a LOT of fun. I was given the honor of getting to sing in an octet. It scared the lights out of me, yet I felt pretty calm as we performed. We pulled it off. This is my debut on stage in front of 500. Hubby didn't actually tape the performance. :(So this is our rehearsal. But I think we did OK. I'm glad it is over

Receiving Blanket tutorial

2009-10-20T07:33:00.018-06:00

if make something with this tutorial leave a comment with a link to your blog so we can all see your good works! I've had a request for a tutorial on making this receiving blanket. I got the pattern from a friend. It was originally made at a now out-of-business sewing center in Utah. It still gives credit to the makers on the pattern. To print the pattern, first click on the pattern. This

Roller Coaster Ride

2009-10-08T12:20:00.004-06:00

What is it about dreams? They are disturbing sometimes, especially when you awaken and remember the troubling details vividly. Analyze for me, will you?::dream harp music::We are standing by our front door.Sailor, my hubby, is waiting for his carpool ride. When it arrives, he turns to me and asks, "wanna come?" True to my nature of not liking being left behind, I grab a poncho (I don't own a

Creepy Crawly Things

2009-10-05T09:32:00.019-06:00

I've been working on a new knitting project. I am learning to knit socks with a Magic Loop cast on process. This means you knit both socks at once. To me that makes sense because they will match, and when they are finished, you can wear them, not set one aside and start the second.After lots of learning and knitting practically the whole way to Lake Powell and home, I had gotten to the cuffs. As

What a lovely day!

2009-10-03T01:19:00.011-06:00

We were able to go to Salt Lake today to celebrate a very special occasion with my sister and most of her children today. (We missed you Sam.) Two of my children were there as well, plus a darling little grand daughter. <3Families are so precious, and days like today where we get to see each other, eat together, visit, laugh and love are the most memorable. It is amazing to watch all these

WIP 18 Sep 2009

2009-09-18T10:11:00.007-06:00

Latest projects, Works in Progress.The blue blocks are for a charity quilt being made by Heidi over at Pottery and Everything Else. She is the one who made the beautiful doll quilt and check book cover for me.Starting a Short & Sassy lime green purse for my niece. She had a Catholic Confirmation this summer and I am proud of her.Who knew you could knit two socks at once on one circular needle?

Bread and Quilts

2009-09-12T10:03:00.007-06:00

Yesterday evening I made bread. I have taken to grinding the wheat first with our hand grinder. It takes 100 cranks to get a cup. I wanted four. So each hand alternately ground 25. I had started the bread mixing upstairs in my wonderful Kitchen Aid. I love that machine. I set it on low after I added the warm milk, water, yeast, salt, sunflower seeds, chopped pecans and honey. Oh and for good

Dining in Luxury

2009-09-10T22:11:00.004-06:00

Our Choir will be holding our Gala, this year, at the La Caille restaurant in Salt Lake. (I love the girl singing in French on this site. I just let it continue to play as I read my blogs.)If you go look at the menu you will see what I mean. They are serving us a plated meal for much less than the menu charges. I think we will have such a good time.I wonder what I will wear? I'd better go

Raising the Bar

2009-08-31T21:53:00.012-06:00

This morning I received a Pay it Forward gift from Heidi who writes Pottery and Everything Else. She was the one who gave me the idea to try it on my blog.*by the way, I still have three openings if anyone wants to follow the rules.*Today her gift arrived in the mail.Can I just say OH MY GOSH!? I really didn't expect so much. I don't really know what I expected, but I was so surprised at what I

I won!

2009-08-30T18:26:00.001-06:00

This is the first time I have ever won one of those giveaways! I got a checkbook cover made by Heidi. Thank you Heidi!

McGuckin Hardware

2009-08-29T20:02:00.008-06:00

Whenever I go to Boulder Colorado, I have to include a trip or two to McGuckin Hardware. It is the neatest hardware store in the World. And I am not a person who likes to loiter in a hardware store.If it isn't found in McGuckin, then you don't need it.It doesn't matter what you need, they have it. Their isles are filled with people in green vests just waiting to help you. Every single isle has at

Tearful Reunion

2009-08-26T15:14:00.005-06:00

Way back during my Ricks College days, I discovered a new me.During my younger school years I had a lot of trouble making friends. I was terribly shy. I would duck into the nearest class room before I would meet someone I knew in the hallway to avoid saying "hello." I never knew what to say, so I would have rather hidden than embarrass myself. Most people thought I was stuck-up. Needless to say,

Cute contest

2009-08-26T15:07:00.004-06:00

Heidi in Pottery & Everything Else is having a wonderful giveaway for a beautiful mini quilt. Go on over and check out her beautiful work, and enter the contest.~a

Gulp, here I go. . .I'm so scared

2009-08-22T10:17:00.008-06:00

This is my first attempt to quilt on my machine. Well, I have done individual squares. The middle squares of this quilt was quilted individually then I added the edges. This quilt has been a work in progress since 2006. I started it thinking I would sell it to one of the members of my choir, the Choral Arts Society of Utah, to raise money for our trip to Austria, but when I found out the CASU

Memories

2009-08-21T12:00:00.003-06:00

I just saw a facebook picture of a friend's cats eating watermelon. It reminded me of our cats.When I was a little girl, we lived on a farm, well, mom still lives on that farm. Anyway, we had many cats. At one time, I remember counting the numbers and I think I came up with 27 cats. Most were wild and would not let us near, which was OK, they kept the mouse population down.We had some tame cats.

I got better

2009-08-18T23:18:00.020-06:00

"I got better. . ."Pronounce that title in your best English accent and think Monty Python.I am amazed what E-stim does. That is short for Electrical Stimulation. They put these little pads on your leg in four places and hook it up with wires. It stimulates the area and actually made my foot tingle sometimes.I have had two 15-minute sessions with this, plus ice, Aleve, Tylenol, and exercises.

Sabotage

2009-08-15T21:30:00.002-06:00

I just hate when I have such a great resolution to exercise and something happens. So I fell and pulled a hamstring.Back to ice, and pain killers until it gets better. . .grrrr~a

Blogging while I walk

2009-08-11T12:07:00.006-06:00

I have been gaining weight for no apparent reason. It just seemed to start creeping up on me. I started the South Beach diet, but there was always a "special occasion" that distracted me from my goal. And by the time I would get back from whatever it was, my momentum was all messed up. Then it takes weeks, nay months to get back on track. I haven't mastered that yet.I realized the other day, if

Tredputer

2009-07-28T08:09:00.002-06:00

I thought I had invented it. A treadmill with a computer attached, so I can blog while I walk. I bet I would lose lots of weight and use many calories if I could walk while I read other's blogs.But I found one already invented in life hacker. I love this.Have a great day!~a

This and That

2009-07-25T22:10:00.004-06:00

I stole this title from my sweet friend, Mostly Risible. Her blog sometimes just covers several topics, and similarly, mine does as well. This video on You Tube just made me laugh till I cried. Today Sailor changed the oil on all three vehicles. While he did that, I vacuumed, washed windows and detailed the insides. He then gave them a quick wash and we have three shiny, newly cleaned and oiled

My Version of a 9 Patch Quilt

2009-07-24T17:33:00.000-06:00

Well, not really. I joined the second round of Crazy Mom Quilts Nine Patch challenge. the challenge is to sew one block a day.I loved the idea of taking out a little part of my day and just sit down and sew. I admire all these people in the blog world who accomplish so very much. It is because of several traits they have that I don't. One, they are tenacious. They sit down and work on their

African Rainstorm

2009-07-21T11:47:00.004-06:00

This is an incredible performance just sent to me from my choir director. I belong to the Choral Arts Society of Utah and we put on at least 4 performances a year, they usually turn into 6-8, but it is so fun. I would LOVE to try something like this. Even the percussion is done with voices.Amazing. I love the song as well. They are really talented.have fun listening~abtw here are the lyrics if