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The break from school (for the kids) and classes and work (for me) and daycare (for JW) was awesome. I loved just being home. I told my friends I loved being able to take a shower and just put on clean pjs again. I spent most of our vacation in pjs. I look forward to the next one!
For the first WIP Wednesday of 2012 – I am working on a few projects!
Here are my fabrics for the older (2010) quilt along I found:
The fabrics are not a charm pack like the author is working with and I’m okay with that. I love these fabrics, but after looking at this picture I realize I should probably replace the two with light backgrounds. I don’t want them blending into the white on white background. I can’t wait to get started on this quilt, I am going to work on cutting everything out and maybe some beginning sewing this weekend.
I haven’t picked out any fabrics for the HST BOM yet, but I am thinking about what I want to use. I have a lot of fabric and it’s not out on shelves so it can be tough to remember what I have. I end up with boxes and bins open all over my sewing room and it becomes a mess that I don’t want to go through, I just want the room clean again! I take this as a sign to clean up the space and have a better system for my fabric. I don’t want it tucked away never to be seen again.
I also commented on Amy’s one week challenge and am working on an oven mitt. I am using the pattern from this blog post and these fabrics, I stitched them last night and will work on cutting them out, etc., throughout the week.
I tried making an oven mitt myself during the holiday break and it went horribly wrong.
That oven mitt, it only fits my kids. This is my lesson on using a pattern. I haven’t even finished it because I was frustrated. Now I think it’s funny and I’ll get the binding on this weekend.
Talk about a let down.
 photo credit: coɴᴅoᴙmaᴎ™
I mentioned how crazy busy I am, how I am taking a total of five classes this semester and then I will be done with my undergrad studies. Well I got a phone call yesterday that said the two classes I was going to take from NWIC will not be accepted because they are not exactly the equivalent to the classes at UMUC. I was also told that I was wrong in thinking I only needed five classes to graduate, I actually need ten more total classes. That is partially my fault because I read my degree progress report wrong, but I also blame my advisor because I have been speaking with a couple of different people regularly and I kept telling them I could finish this semester. Why didn’t either of them say anything?
I decided to fight to get the Native American Art Appreciation class to transfer as Art Appreciation. The woman I spoke with from UMUC said it was too specific since it was Native art, and not art in general. Well, it is from a tribal college so I guess you can say there is a focus, but isn’t that the same as art from a mainstream university focusing on western art for their art appreciation class? What if I took that class to begin with and then transferred to UMUC, would they deny the class at that point? Who knows, but I am going to try to go higher and get the class accepted. I do not see why it wouldn’t be but we’ll see the response I get.
I am going to take a DANTES test to take the place of one of the classes I would have transferred from NWIC. So that takes care of the two NWIC courses. I am still registered for three classes online.
photo credit: elxedder
That still leaves me with six classes to take. Ugh. I am so not interested anymore. I was practically bouncing off the wall excited that I could finish this semester. Now I feel like it is a never ending thing, that I just keep taking classes and am not getting closer. I am trying not to feel discouraged, I am still very close. It may just take me a few days to feel completely motivated and excited again.
I guess I could look at it as though I will still be done this year, but that feels so far off compared to this summer. I need to play with a cute baby and sew, maybe after that I’ll be motivated again.
I am going to be crazy busy for the next few months, the entire spring semester actually. I am taking five classes this semester. Five. FIVE! I know it will be okay because I am taking two and then three, because of the way UMUC has restructured their semester (they offer 8 week semesters now, which makes you a crazy person working on classes, but then you are finished after two months. This new structure allowed me to take more then two classes a semester in the fall, and again now.). Once I am done with these five classes, I am done with my undergraduate studies.
That blows my mind. I am excited way deep down inside. The excitement will come to the surface the closer I get, or maybe not until I apply for graduation? It’ll happen though. I have to get through these classes, but this has been a long time coming. I can not stress enough the importance of finishing your undergraduate degree in a timely manner! I am so ready to move on with my studies.
I am still working part time and the older kids are currently in basketball. The baby will probably go to daycare an extra day of the week so I can get my schoolwork done and also attend a couple of classes in person (I am taking two classes locally, from NWIC, which I am transferring to UMUC). Once basketball is over, the kids will play soccer. We are starting the semester off by not watching tv, this happened in the fall and the winter break was plenty of time to get caught up on my favorite tv shows. TV is something I can definitely sacrifice.
But I did want to find another quilt along to do this year. Last year I did the postage stamp quilt along, and it was so much work – and so very worth it. I loved making that quilt, even if it took much longer then the initial quilt along. I haven’t finished it beyond the top, but I think I will send it out to be quilted. I found an old quilt along – the Charm Pack Quilt Along that was posted in 2010. The link will take you to the blog posts that are all labeled with that, so start from the bottom and go up. I have my fabrics picked out and cut into squares already. I’ll post a picture on Wednesday for WIP Wednesday’s!
I also found the HST BOM:
This looks very fun and since it is one block a month, this is easily do-able despite my crazy schedule. I will have to have some down time otherwise I will just be crazy, and not crazy busy. I haven’t picked my fabrics for the HST BOM, but I am going to do so before Wednesday so I’ll share then!
Classes start today and I am working all week because we are implementing a new database program in my office. Here’s to being crazy busy!
Brittany has put forward a Pinterest Challenge! This is a good one since pinterest can be so inspiring – but we never get off our computers and actually do the project we are so in love with. She’s linking up every Thursday, so head on over and share what you have made.
One of the first craft projects I pinmarked were these page corner bookmarks. They looked fun and easy and I am always looking for projects for my kids to do. We have made these a couple of times since I found them. My son was the crafter both times and he loved it. The hardest thing about this project is getting the teeth to fit right, don’t forget to leave some room to glue to tape them to the inside. Jake gave them to his friends and heard nothing but praise for how cool they are.
Tally’s pic, from I Could Make That
If you have really little kids, it’s easy to cut everything out and just let them glue it down. If your kids are a little older, just help with the main body of the envelope. My son is 8 and once the main body is constructed, he likes putting the rest together on his own.
I think I started out the year in a good way. My Grandma used to say that whatever you were doing on New Year’s Eve would be how you spend the year. That has always encouraged me to do a few things all day long – sewing, spending time with my kids, other family, visiting, reading, exercising, etc. This NYE was a good day, spent with family, full of sewing and visiting. It was a struggle to stay up though! I mean for myself, my kids were somehow full of energy and ready to stay up even later.
I am currently working on quilting a small quilt that I volunteered to make. I plan on having it completed tomorrow so it can be mailed on Tuesday. I also have a couple of pot holders that I made that need the binding put on them.
I also registered for two classes today. I have five to go until I complete my undergraduate degree. This is HUGE. So huge I almost can’t process it just yet. I am hoping I can get all five classes done this semester, I know that sacrifices have to be made in order to get what you want and I am willing to sacrifice things so I can graduate sooner then later. Of course later would be this summer, which isn’t too much longer I know.
I look forward to another busy semester! I am going to rewrite my priority list and get to work.
Happy Holidays and here is to a great 2012!
Nothing like some motivation to get a lot of sewing done! Two of my classes ended (I still have one more this semester) and it seemed to open a huge block of time! Add to that my Dad came for a visit and so JW was interested in Grandpa so I was able to nab time here and there to sew and I really finished a lot over the past week and a half.
I posted about my postage stamp quilt a couple of weeks ago. I’ve been working on this since January! I started the quilt along when it was posted but one thing I did was made the mistake of buying yardage for my neutral. For some crazy reason, I thought it would be easier! Ha! After cutting it into strips, I took a break rather then getting started sewing. Once I finished the blocks, the top came together so quickly. This joins my quilt stack now, I don’t have any plans of when I can finish it and I have other projects I want to get done before the holiday season.
 I am thinking of quilting in a diagonal, to go against the squares.
I also put together a quick and easy Halloween table runner. This was super simple, I used the fabrics from a previous W.I.P. post and they are all fat quarters. I cut varying widths on the 18″ side of the fat quarter. The one on the top is my original table runner, and the bottom is intended for the back. I wanted to use up the fabric and this way I can have a reversible table runner. I don’t have any plans to quilt it anytime soon, but when I do I want to use glow in the dark thread.
 A little hand snuck in the picture! Table pictures are always terrible, so I’m sorry for that. I need to figure out a better way to take pictures, I live in Washington state where it rains a lot so I can’t do many outside pictures in the winter!
A late W.I.P. but it’s still Wednesday where I am! 
In the process of looking at all the beautiful projects people are working on through the W.I.P. Wednesday, I found a Sew & Tell Mini Quilt Challenge. Of course, I failed to notice the date at first and once I did, I knew I couldn’t have anything done in time. But I wanted to share how happy I am to have found so many really great quilters to follow online. I’ve been online for years now, primarily in the work at home mom (WAHM) arena. I don’t know why I didn’t find quilty bloggers until now, but I am thrilled that I have! The pictures shared, the numerous really active flickr groups, the challenges, the sewing summit (which I really want to attend next year!) and so much more is active in this community. I am inspired to finish more of the projects I am working on and share them with my new friends.
I didn’t get a mini quilt done, but click the button and see the amazing quilts others finished. I am heading to my sewing room to find fabric to put together a mini quilt this weekend!
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