End of Summer Bowling

Today was the end of the girls' summer bowling league. They both did great and had a fabulous time. They were able to wear their pjs and the lanes were set up for cosmic bowling, which they haven't done before.

 Needless to say we had a great time. The whole family bowled and just added to the day.

Yes Daddy I am taking your picture and look at that form!!

When we returned home Angel Baby brought me all her trophies and medals and announced that now she is a professional athlete. Wow, that was easy. Maybe now she can start bringing in the big bucks :) This is one of those days I will never forget.

One For Me

A few years ago on a trip to Kiowa, my Grandma R. gave me a set of beads from a broken necklace. My grandmother was also an avid crafter and when we cleaned out her estate we found boxes upon boxes of unfinished crafts or leftovers from past craft projects. So when this necklace broke she of course kept the beads in hopes that one day she would piece it back together. I wish now that I had asked her how old the beads were.
Since then I have strung these beads a few times and was never quite been happy with the end result. This week I tried again and it looks pretty good. I know she would like it...

I think these are acrylic beads and they are a wonderful peach shade. I paired them with some clear crystals and then crocheted the etched-glass seed beads. They are 2 separate strands. I can't wait to wear them out.

Back to School

I think every mother in America is feeling the same thing this week... where does the time go. The girls returned to school today, Kindergarten and 2nd grade.It's hard to  believe they are that old already. The week before school is always a hard one for me. 

My grandmother and I decided yesterday that even though I have learned how to share, I haven't ever come to terms with sharing. What a blessing it is to have such a problem. 

Both of them had a great time and said they want to go back. Looking at them in their uniforms makes me realize just how much older they look everyday. I am holding onto every day I have with them for dear life.

Crystal Crochet

I've been rushing through projects and squeezing in every moment with my girls this week before the rush of school begins. Here are 2 necklaces that have been running around in my head for a while. They both turned out as I had hoped and what more can you ask for than that.
This necklace turned out so soft and beautiful. The green and white reminds me of sea foam. The white beads are clear etched beads which gives then a slightly translucent look which the camera doesn't catch as I would like. I have got to stop making necklaces that I would like to keep for myself.

This second one is the same kind of concept. The magenta beads against the gray ones give it a more dressy appearance. It would look so nice against a simple black dress.

The Crash

Yesterday Angel Baby learned to ride her bike without training wheels.  I am sad to say that she is almost eight and this milestone is one that we are behind on helping her to achieve. But, after only 2 attempts with her father’s hands to help balance, she took off on her own and is now an official rider.

She called almost anyone she could think of on the ride home and has had a smile ever since.

So, it didn’t come as a surprise that she was asking to go out again at 7am this morning. Later… we headed off to our local park where she rode for about an hour while lil’Bug alternated between her bike and the park. After watching her carefully for quite a while I decided she was fine and settled into reading my murder mystery… when she crashed.

The amazing thing is that I don’t remember hearing her call for me from 20ft. away, I also don’t remember what it was that made me decide to run to where she was. Yet, as I turned the corner and she came into view, there she was picking herself up off the ground and looking for me. Thank goodness for that little mommy voice that sits on your shoulder and points you to where you children are in crisis. A big hug and a few bandages later my angel’s smile is back and Grandma said she could borrow her cane if it hurt too bad.

So, today we survived the first (of many) bicycle crashes to come with only one big bruise and a few small cuts.  I thanked the Lord once again for making my children so tough. Tomorrow we’ll try again, and somehow someday I will survive her learning to drive.

Road Tripping

Last weekend was we took a last minute trip to Nebraska to visit family. School starts next week and we are desparately holding onto our freedom until then. As usual I worked on projects there and back. Here's my in-car view on these trips.

I seem to carry this kit with me everywhere. Though it takes prep, I am so glad to have a hobby that can literally go on the road with me. After starting it over 3 times the resulting chain looked like this...

I should be placing the final pieces on it today and will show you the end results soon.