I couldn't resist!

I'm always on the look out for various items that I find while shopping that I can incorporate into my kid's Bible teaching. The kids enjoy being involved in the Bible story lesson and being able to act out parts of it are some of their favorite times.

In Hobby Lobby I discovered these two long skinny boxes that I couldn't resist leaving the store without.

A coloring wall. Can't you just see Joshua and the Israelites marching around this wall once a day for six days in the battle of Jericho? And then on the seventh day marching seven times and the walls come crashing down?!?!?!

And especially when I discovered that it was reduced to this price, then it was a must-buy! :)

Then this. Noah's Ark, of course. And origami. I love it. It looks so fun! And of course one of my favorite Bible stories to teach. I won't even mention how many other Noah's Ark crafts, lessons, activities fill my closet....;)

But don't the characters look soooooo neat?! And fun to fold the paper and put together?? They do to me!!! :)

Organization feels soooo good!

Recently, I've been storing my greeting cards in the top drawer of what used to be Mom's desk. It's worked out fine except for the fact that they are all mixed together--birthday, sympathy, occasions, etc.

For the last couple of months, every time I've reached in there, I have thought, "I need to sort this." Well, I could stand it no longer! I emptied out the drawers, created piles of cards on the floor and started sorting!

The single cards are sitting upright, sorted by blank, friendship, birthdays, congrats, wedding & baby, sympathy, thinking of you and misc.

And the bottom tote has the majority of my thank yous and little note cards. You know--the ones you get in groups of eight or ten. Love those--and they make such cute ones!

Much, much nicer!! And much easier to find!! And three drawers of that desk cleaned and organized! :)

Why the pressure to do this now???? It's just the whole January month thing!! ;) lol!!!

Christmas Exhibit!

I have to admit....I'm not quite ready for Christmas. I'm still into fall and Thanksgiving and those decorations. I'm not even the slightest bit ready to move into the holiday season yet. But when I was asked to showcase an exhibit at the Stauth Memorial Museum for their Traditions of Southwest Kansas, I said sure! I've always enjoyed showcase different booths there!

So I dug out my nativity scenes (I've only just realized how many I have of those!), gingerbread collection and various snowmen, greenery and trees. Added some batting with clear lights underneath to create a "snow" effect and tada--Sights & Smells of Christmas!

A wonderful invention called a pencil case...

Which can be used for anything and everything. Including pencils. And pens, markers, sticky notes, usb drives, business cards and whatever else I can cram inside....


I have to say that I love using these clear, zippered envelope pouches. They easily fit into a three ring binder and are much more durable than hole-punched paper envelopes. And on top of that they are clear, so not only can I see what's inside, but they match whatever color themed project I am organizing.

Plus with school supplies still readily available, now is the perfect time to stock up! And yep--that's exactly what I've done! In fact, I'm almost tempted to buy Wal-Mart out of them, but really? Seriously? Do I have to have 200 of them?!?! ;)

It was just a sticky situation--really!

Kid's Klub has started once again! It's already been an exciting two weeks! There's always little issues that come up that need to be worked through the first couple of Wednesdays and the very first Wednesday was no different -- yep, a new issue Erinn and I have never faced before!


What was it?! Flimsy little star stickers that would NOT peel of the sheet for the kids to put on their charts!!

Of anything I could ever have imagined having to tackle that first day, it was never those cute little star pokadot stickers! Never! As Erinn and I were discussing how the afternoon went, one of our first comments was, "Those horrible star stickers! Who would have thought we'd be battling stickers?!?!"

So.....when I went to Oklahoma City last week, a school supply store was right next door to one of the bridal gown stores we visited and what did I stop in to find??? Yes, star stickers that peeled off quickly! Ahhhh....much better!

A sticky situation?! Yes, for sure! Who would have guessed?! ;)

Shhhhhhh......

.........the really great thing about having sisters who have moved out and yet are still storing their stuff at home is that I can raid their stashes they've left behind! :)

The ever-elusive tabbed folders

Doesn't it just drive you crazy when you discover that you are just a few short of what you need?! Well, even if it doesn't drive you crazy, it does me. :)

Last fall I totally reorganized and sorted my recipes and many of the ones Mom had and combined them all into one notebook, created my own folders, pages, etc. I wanted to use some fun colored tabs, so I dug around in my pile of office supplies and found 15 tabbed folders which I had previously bought and didn't use at the time. Perfect. I'll just use those.

They worked great! Large enough, easy to quickly scan and flip to...only thing is that I needed an additional 4 tabs to complete the last four sections. No problem; I'm sure Wal-Mart still has them. You must understand at this point that it's been over a year since I bought those folders and Wal-Mart has completely redone their store and they don't carry half of what they used to have on their shelves (which is an entirely other issue of frustration).

So, in and amongst my many trips to Hutchinson and Wichita last year and this year, I stopped at every Wal-Mart, Office Depot, Office Max, Staples and even online looking for those tabs. I'd given up; apparently they are not making that kind anymore.

My choices now were: just use a different style for the last four sections (and every single time I would open my recipe book, I would think about those odd-matching tabbed folders - trust me, I would) or completely replace ALL the tabs and start over (not something I really wanted to do). But I decided I didn't have any other choice.

Then what did I discover when I sorted all my Bible teaching material? Yep, one more package of those exact tabbed folders. 5 tabs and I needed only 4 more. Perfect! Complete! Cross that off my driving-me-crazy-list!

24/7: My computer is always on and working!

Anyone who knows me has knowledge of my complete dependency on computers. Yes, I am rarely without one. In fact most of the time, I'm working on more than one; I've even been seen with up to four in front of me. But that isn't the point of this post. Most of you already know that.

My Dad for sure knows that. He sees me sitting at a desk in front of a computer just about every time he comes downstairs. Or sees me carrying around my laptop upstairs from the kitchen to the family room to the schoolroom. But that is not the true point of this post either.

The main fact here is that Dad knows how invaluable computers are to me, so nothing should really surprise him in that area. But I guess that's exactly what I did.

We were discussing how long it took to upload my class lessons every month and because this last one I taped was so long, how long it would take, etc, etc. So I told him that I have to start it, let it upload for a couple hours, check on it, start another, etc.

THEN, I proceeded to tell him how the best time to do it is at night. So I would start one when I went to bed about midnight. Then set my phone for 3 am, get up and check on it. If it isn't finished, I would set my phone and check it every hour until it was finished and then start the next one, etc, etc.

Well, after I said THAT, he looks at me with this unbelievable face and starts laughing. Well, chucking. Dad isn't one to really laugh (unlike us girls; I'm not sure where we got that from).

What's so funny or surprising about that? I've been getting up in the middle of the night to check my computer for months. Just like he gets up in the middle of the night to check on cows getting ready to calve. Only mine is much easier; I don't have to go out in freezing cold weather to check on my job-related, necessary uploading.

I guess I did surprise him with that bit of information. Maybe I'll just keep more details like that to myself in the future. :)

Perhaps I'm doing one too many things at one time?

Considering that I...

...sent an email to the wrong mailing list while shipping orders, answering email and printing sales sheets.

...burned my finger while cleaning the kitchen, talking on the phone and boiling potatoes.

...let the potatoes boil over on the stove, leaving a burned ring to scrape off while sorting laundry.

...somehow managed to let the potatoes boil over again, the gravy bubble up and overflow (leaving a huge burned mess on the stove!) while starting the third load of laundry.

...spill my pop while opening the can, pouring it into a cup, walking across the basement and turning on the light switch.

I think I'm trying to do one too many things at once. Maybe. Just perhaps.

So I've decided to sit down at my computer and just answer email from over the holiday weekend. Just answer email.

Oh, yeah, while listening to Christmas music, placing a fabric order, scheduling blogging posts, peeking in on facebook, downloading photos and let's see...what other programs do have open on my computer? Oh and last, but not least....the last load of clothes in the dryer!

Whatever happened to the "Just answer email?"

An open apartment door, a bad dream and a wrecked car - what's the combination??

Today I went to Dodge and met with several people to drop of some embroidery and sewing as well as do some church related things and run several errands. One thing I did very carefully is lock my car, hang onto tightly to my purse and tuck my keys into my purse. I always do that, but all the more so today.

But before I go into detail as to why I took more care to do that especially today, you have to understand this. Last night I had a horrible dream; actually not a dream - a nightmare since I woke up sweating hot at 4:08 in the morning. Never does a dream seem so real except when you first wake up.

But before I can explain exactly the reason for that dream, I have to tell you our conversation with Krissa last night.

Last night about 9:30 Krissa calls and wants to talk to Dad. (That usually means she's in trouble or needs advice!) She got home from work around 6:30 and found her apartment door open. Clue #1. She went in, hung around the apartment for a couple of hours, wondering where her roommate was. Clue #2. Susanna's car was there, her phone in the apartment and her door was shut. Clue #3. Krissa is concerned, so she tries Susanna's bedroom door and finds it locked; odd since she never locks it. Clue #4.

All is quiet and all kinds of horrible thoughts are running through Krissa's mind, so she goes outside to her car and calls home. She tells Dad what happened that evening and that she is afraid to go back inside and she's not sure where Susanna is since her room is all quiet and locked and she can't find her.

Dad tells her to go to a neighbors and ask someone to go back into the apartment with her to knock again on Susanna's door and see what's going on. She hangs up the phone and we are left wondering what is going on and what they will discover in the apartment.

She calls back in a little while, laughing. One of the neighbors went in with her, knocked on Susanna's door and they discovered she was sleeping. Apparently she was sleeping hard enough and had something over her head that she didn't hear Krissa before. And as to the locked bedroom door, she wasn't sure why she locked it because she never does.

So Krissa felt pretty silly after the whole incident, but at the time she called us the first time, she was scared and didn't know exactly what to do. The longer she stayed in the apartment, the more her mind conjured up all kinds of things that could have happened.

Ok, so that explains Krissa's adventure in Alabama last night.....right before bed. Now onto the dream part....

I usually am so tired at night that I never remember my dreams, if I do dream at night at all. Last night I did. I woke up at 4:08 am sweating and have to make sure I really am awake. Then I had to remember that it wasn't real. And keep in mind that dreams are always strange and weird after you are awake, but are so real while you are sleeping.

I had planned a bunch of shopping and stops to make in Dodge this morning including the library. Before I fell asleep last night, I was planning my minute by minute itinerary and what I needed to get done. I knew also I had to be sure and take my sewing and embroidery to drop off, my SS supplies and my computer.

In my dream I walked into the library, reserved my dates for my quilting classes, visited with Linda there and walked back outside. As I'm walking out the door, I see my purse lying on the cement, torn open. No dollar bills inside, no credit cards inside, no checkbook inside, no keys, no cell phone, nothing. Not even sure why it's there, but it is....

I look toward my car and discover the doors widely torn open and as I get closer, I see a huge mess of seats and metal all smashed together, but no computer, no clothes to deliver, nothing except a huge mess.

So I called Dad. (Yeah, I know this sounds familiar, but that's how dreams usually are - they tend to mirror the events of the day before.) I'm not quite sure where the phone came from since my purse was totally empty, but somehow I had my cell phone to call Dad.

My first thought and horror was my computer and then my financial information I lost in my purse. I had Dad on the phone, searching my records at home for my credit card companies to close those accounts before who knows what was charged to them. It was a mess telling Dad where they were and having him relate the info back to me.

About that time I woke up. And I told myself my computer was still on the bed, my purse was safe in the house with credit cards intact and my car was parked unharmed in the garage. But was it ever so real in my mind!

That's why I was sure to lock my car today, hang onto my purse and enclose my keys in my purse. And when I went to the library....I parked in a different spot than where I was last night.

Call me crazy...probably true, but I'm sure that all came about because of Krissa's phone call last night and the fact I had today's list of my things to do on my mind. But it did remind me of one thing I need to do.....make copies of my credit cards and driver's license.

I did that several years ago in case my purse or cards were ever stolen (that was a from mom - you must do!), but since then I have new and different cards and need to do it again and make a couple of copies to keep.

I'm not sure that was worth the scare of my dream and being on alert today, but it did remind me to do that!

It looks like May instead of August

With our recent rain, Dad actually had to mow the lawn on Friday! I was doing some cooking in the kitchen and all of a sudden heard the mower. I looked outside and yep, Dad was mowing. The lawn looks so green and spring looking! You would think it's May instead of the end of August!

It only takes a couple of days being gone...

...for the packages to pile up downstairs:

...and Skittles to pack her toys on my bed:

After getting home from Colorado yesterday afternoon, I walked downstairs and discovered a table full of boxes to unpack and mail to sort through. It looked like UPS, FedEx and DSL have been here in my absense.

Then I walk through my sewing room to my room and discover that Skittles carried her toys and fabric scraps I left on the floor onto my bed. That is usually what happens when I'm gone. She drags those toys around looking for me and they wind up on my bed.

Revealing that "exciting news"

Ok, I know some of you have been wondering what exactly is my exciting news that I mentioned quite a while back. I actually meant to write about this "news" before now, but as too often happens, there have been some glitches that came up. So instead of a one, possibly two month process, it actually turned out to be a three month ordeal and not everything is complete, but almost!

First of all, I must warn you.....this is exciting to me, but probably will not be as exciting to you. Several of you have emailed me wondering if it has to do with getting a different job, moving away from home or being engaged to be married. And let me tell, you....it's none of those things. :)

But like I mentioned in that initial post, it has been over two years since I have been waiting for this and finally decided to do it. And I'm glad I did!

So the news is.....my website, as exciting and informative as it has been in the past, has a brand new look! Yep, that's it. No, probably not what most of you were expecting to hear, but excited I was/am!!!

I designed the first design and shopping cart, which worked fine, but lacked the professsional look that I wanted it to have. So I had a couple of web designers redo the graphics, main site and shopping cart! And I even added a forum, online chatting and new photo album (still to come)!

Hopefully this will draw more visitors to my business and will be much easier to navigate and use! Although I'm still working on a few areas, the majority of the work is done, with the exception of my embroidery blog which should be complete in the next couple of weeks.

As I have time, I will continue to update and work on the other areas, hoping to improve my site and make it as user friendly and informative as much as I can. I actually would love to learn more of web designing and coding as it's something I really enjoy doing, but does take time. And as much as I would love to devote more and more time to learning html code and such, there is only 24 hours in a day and only so much I can do. in those 24 hours....!

So all those who have totally forgotton about that post and those of you who are still wondering....that's my exciting news!!! :)

Exciting news!!

Ive got some exciting news to share with all of you, but I can't tell you what it is just yet! It is something I have waited for the past two years!! And while it may not be too exciting to everyone reading this, it's exciting to me! ;)

Finally finished among other things

I've been working on completing my tax information for over a month. Well, I actually didn't work on it for an entire month, just off and on during that time. I hunted up all 2007 invoices, orders, files and paperwork and camped out on the dining room table starting in February.

I spent a day on it then, filing and organizing and figuring my income. Since I have multiple sources, it makes it a bit of a challenge. Then I spent another day, figuring expenses, what I can and can't deduct as a business expense, depreciation on my equipment and such. Some of their terminology I just cannot understand...it is totally foreign to me, but hopefully everything is figured correctly.

And finally last night I entered the last bit on the computer and hit the send button!!! Hip, hip, hooray...done for another year! As Dad said last night, "You've been working on that for quite a while."

Yep, it sure seems like it. Now I can file away all my paperwork and have a cleaned up dining room table.

We are having an Easter brunch tomorrow morning at church, so I made a coffee cake this evening for that. And then I made a pound cake since Jena bought strawberries home this week. Jena has to work tomorrow, so it will just be Dad and I that are home. But I'm still going to fix a ham and scallop potatoes for lunch. I ran out of ham in the freezer, so that will leave some for us to eat this week and then I will freeze the rest.

I'm planning to put the ham in the oven and potato casserole in the crock pot before church tomorrow and then it should be ready when we get home. I've been on a hash brown potato recipe kick for the last several weeks. I've been trying out several new recipes involving hash browns, but I think this is the last one for a while. Dad will probably be glad to hear that; it's likely he's getting tired of hash browns! :)

With everything done and ready for tomorrow, I'm sitting here watching the Ten Commandments while answering some email and catching up on most of the blogs that I read regularly.

Out with the boots and in with the sandles!

Yesterday I went to Dodge to meet with a couple of clients for dresses I am making for weddings in June and the weather was so warm, very windy, but warm. I was able to wear short sleeves and even got out my sandals to wear.

I store my shoes in shoe boxes at the bottom of my sweater closet. So I had to dig through my boxes looking for my pair of brown sandals, which of course, were in the bottom box, the last one I looked in.

But the great and wonderful thing is that I can put away my boots and winter shoes and get out all my sandals! It's only the middle of March, so I'm sure we will still have some cold weather, but at least sandal-wearing weather is on the way!

I actually won something!! :)

I actually won something! Of all the bloggy giveaways I've entered, I never have actually won something until now! A couple weeks ago, I was delighted to receive an email in my Inbox saying I was a winner.

And then this week, here is what came in the mail: a matching bracelet and earrings in one of my favorite colors - blue! I have a tough time finding smaller sized bracelets that will not fall of my narrow wrist, but the size of this one is just perfect!! Thanks, Brittany!! :)

Brittany creates such beautiful jewelry and you can buy some of her wonderful pieces. Be sure to take a peek! :)

California decision on homeschooling

I've been seeing lots of posts around Christian sites and blogs dealing with California's recent decision regarding homeschooling. It's sad to see the courts hand down this ruling and it's scary to think that there may be other states to follow in the near future.

Crystal has an excellent post which is well worth reading for more insight into the issue regarding California homeschoolers. Be sure to pray for those involved in this battle and sign the HSLDA petition.

Spring forward!

Don't forget to change the clocks forward one hour tonight! I rather like Fall better with gaining an hour than Spring and losing one. But at least I can look forward to longer daylight hours! :)

Middle name...hmmmm

Morgan tagged me a while back with a middle name meme.

Here are the rules: Post the rules on your blog, and then give your answers. List one fact about yourself for each letter in your middle name. Each fact must begin with a letter from your middle name.

I didn't think this would be too difficult considering that my middle name only has three letters, but then I've been staring at this computer screen for the last 10 minutes trying to come up with a word that starts with the letter "K". I finally resorted to a Google search for words that start with "K", "A" and "Y"! I wonder why I thought a three letter word would be easy?!?! ;)

K - kitchen: I love working in the kitchen, whether it's cooking or baking, it's one of my favorite places to be.

A - addicted: Yes, I can become (more accurate to say I am) addicted to my computer. Big surprise, huh?

Y - yahoo!: My email and many of my online groups are hosted on Yahoo! and it certainly is a great site that I use, but Google's search engine is better.

Anyone else who wants to get in on the fun; go right ahead and post on your blog!