.....and the Beat Goes on....

and on...and on.

I am still around, but there has not been much computer time lately.  I can't believe that it has been nearly a month since my last post.  Lots has happened in the last month so I will only catch up on small bits of it. 

My mom had surgery several weeks ago and her recovery involves two months of bedrest so there have been many hours sitting in hospital rooms.  She had a rough start, but things are looking up and she is doing pretty well.

May is always a crazy month for our family with six birthdays, two anniversaries, Mother's Day, final school year events and the such.  This year we also added several bridal showers and a couple of business trips.



First Communion party



Glass flowers hanging from the ceiling at the hotel we stayed in for business in San Antonio



A side trip visit to Hoover Dam on business in Nevada



The new bridge that was built to avoid any terrorist attacks at the dam itself.



Chocolate wafer cake in a giant "R" shape

Work in the sewing department has been next to nil.  To tell you how bad it got, when I walked into my studio over the weekend I walked into a cobweb!!!

I did manage to finish my May mug rug for the swap and my mini quilt swap.  Both were mailed off and I received word that the mini has arrived at its new home.




Birthday mug rug for a friend

May mug rug swap



Mother's Day postcard for my mom



Mini Swap quilt went to Wendy in Montana

Awhile back I was asked by Jeanne Gwin (at The Learning Curve~Quilts and Such) to participate in a fun quiltalong with eleven other talented quilters.  We are all working out of the same book, but working on different quilts from the book.  This is my completed top.  I will write up a review on the book and show you the completed quilt shortly.

Of course the garden also beckons at this time of the year.  There is lots that needs to be done out there, but there are some wonderful blooms going on as well.




Blooming cactus



Blooming orchid

This final flower is a Streptocarpus from my father.  The freeze got to the plant this year, but I managed to salvage one leaf and got it to root.  I now have the first bloom on it and hope to have many more.

After watching four grandchildren for a weekend a few weeks back I found that my blocks had been rearranged.  I loved this and guess it says it all!

I apologize to all for not being around to visit much.  I will do it more as time allows.  I thank all of you who have e-mailed me to see if I was "okay" while I wasn't posting.  Blogging friends are wonderful!!

Sand and Surf

We took a break from our lives last week for a few days of RandR.  We headed to a place that we consider a little slice of heaven - Hawaii.

Many years ago my DH was a Navy pilot and stationed on the island of Oahu.  Naturally, we enjoy returning and seeing the changes made over the years.  We love the easy life on the North Shore and like to base ourselves up there. 

Everyday we watched beautiful sunrises from our balcony and gorgeous sunsets as we sipped Mai Tais and Blue Hawaiis at the outdoor lounge. 

Our homes where we lived have often changed over the years, but it is always nice to revisit them and recall the terrific times we enjoyed. 

This was our house.  It has definitely seen better days.  Our view stretched the entire coastline from Diamond Head towards Makaha.

There were no gates when we lived up on the 8th floor of this building.

...and this was our backyard!!!!!

The hospital when our second son was born. 

We loved the week filled with awesome views, warm temperatures, great eats and carefree living.

Lots of time for looking upwards at the graceful palm trees.

Diamond Head

Surfboards are as good as hoses on a fire truck.

If we had not had the wonderful recommendations for the shrimp trucks, we would have never stopped.  They were fabulous and most generous in their servings.

Even the limos stop here.

There were chickens running loose everywhere.  This little one had managed to get on the road and we all stopped while mom carefully got it over to the side.

Loved the dog with a lei on the beach.

The BEST shaved ice on the island!!!!!

Our final glimpses of the wonderous colors as we left.  I can't wait to return!

How much sewing did I get done????  I picked up my cross stitch project on the flight home.  It was a long flight though so I did get a few stitches done. 

BTW....I switched back to the old interface on Blogger and managed to access Blogger with no problems.  I guess it is the new interface that kept giving me the error message on my desktop.  VERY strange.  Any one else have that problem?

Changes, Changes.....

One takes a few days away and everything changes.  For some reason when I try to access Blogger on my desktop computer (where all of my photos are kept) I keep getting a nasty error message.  Until I can figure it out, I will give you a glimpse of a fun project that I had the opportunity to work on for Melissa Stramel.  Melissa is a very talented pattern designer with a beautiful family.  Her children make the best models for her work!!!

This is a new pattern called Picnic in the Park.   The design is delightful and the quilting, done by Lisa,  is beautiful.  Please be sure to check it out on Melissa's blog.  She has more great pictures of it. 

Pictures from Melissa's blog!!!

Updated....I switched back to the old interface and can now access Blogger on my desktop computer.  That was really strange, but at least I am not getting that odd error message.

Easter 2012

The Peeps have departed the shelves in the stores so I guess it is time to move on into thoughts of summer.  It seems odd to imagine it, but we have another winter storm bearing down on us this week with rain and  lower elevations of snow.  What an interesting year it has been for so many of us. 

Saturday evening we watched a couple of the smaller grandchildren while their family attended the Easter Vigil services at church.  We managed to get a bit of egg dying in while they were here. 

Easter was glorious with temperatures in the 80s and plentiful sunshine.  We all celebrated with a wonderful party at our son and DIL's home.  There were about 100 of us there, but you would never guess it with everyone spread throughtout the yard.   There were the Jolly Jumps, volleyball, races and lots of food. 

I believe those suits belong to another game!!!

Oh...this is where they belong!

Cousin snuggles.

"I don't like that BIG bunny!!"

The dog managed to find a place to escape from the people.

Even the Easter Bunny made an appearance for the egg hunt.  That caused quite the excitment!

Yesterday our #4 son and his wife presented us with our newest granddaughter - the best Easter egg of all!   Lots of fun baby snuggles ahead for all of us.  One can never tire of those.

So....this week will be a quiet one on the computer as we are keeping their other two little ones until Mommy is home from the hospital.  I will check back when time permits.