Somewhere in the Middle

Needle case for Nana

There's a long list of things I want to sew. Among them are some sewing accessories: a pin cushion, sewing machine cover, and a needle case. But I'm holding off until I receive some fabric I ordered. In the mean time, I decided to try my hand at a needle case that I decided to give to my Grandmother. To help guide me I used this tutorial from "Sewshesews" but what inspired my little needle case was this one from "a cuppa and a catch up".

I wish I could say I whipped this baby up in a matter of an hour or two but no... it took me a wee bit longer. Let's just say my seam ripper was my best friend throughout this project. But isn't it cute. I just love the way it came out and I really did learn tons. I'm crazy about the colors & fabric. Next time I may add some stitching on the exterior like the inspiration case I saw on "a cuppa..."

Nana is in her mid 80's and loves to sew. She's an incredibly talented woman and enjoys embroidery and is forever sewing new curtains and clothes. When I was little she used to make me some lovely halters and matching shorts. And I loved to wear them! 

Every week Nana attends a sewing class in her community. The students mainly work on clothes which they model at a year end fashion show. I love to see photos of the fashion show because she always looks so happy walking the runway. ;)

When I spoke to Nana a few weeks ago I asked her where she keeps her needles when she attends class. She made me laugh when she told me she constantly loses her needles and is always asking her instructor or fellow classmates for a needle. So this needle case is perfect for her. I gave her the case along with a little bag for Mother's Day. And she absolutely loved it!

Making your way back home.

Post originally written: 29 June 2011.

It's funny the random things I remember growing up in New York City... our apartment and the amazing view we had from our kitchen. There were so many trees it looked like a mini forest. Never in a million years would you guess you were in NYC. I even remember the Cornell dishes my mother used daily... white with yellowy orange flowers along the border.

One item I can recall with much fondness were a set of silver rimmed monogram highball glasses. I absolutely loved these glasses. It seem like everyone had these glasses. When I'd visit my grandparents I always made a point to chose a silver rimmed high ball glass. It's been years since I've seen these glasses in my parent's house. I have no idea what happened to them. Most likely they either broke or were given away.

Several years ago we were having brunch at a friend's house and to my surprise they had a set of these silver rimmed glasses passed down from their parents. Ever since that day I've been longing to have a set of my own.

For years now I've searched for these monogram glasses with the initials from my maiden or married name but no luck. But last week, my luck changed. I couldn't believe it ... a set of six monogrammed with the letter R and in pristine condition. I immediately ordered them and just yesterday they arrived. They're so pretty and much more substantial than I remember. When I asked the seller about the glasses she told me they were purchased from an estate sale in Palo Alto, California. The glasses were an anniversary gift and it seems the couple may have displayed the glasses rather than used them. The previous owners parted with the tumblers because they were moving to the East Coast and worried that the glasses would break during transport. And that's how these pretty little glasses made their way to my home all the way in Belgium. ;)

Update: I've had my monogrammed high ball glasses for almost a year now and I hate to say it but I rarely use them for fear of breaking one. S absolutely refuses to use or wash them.  So I've been searching for another set so we can use them daily and if we break one or two we won't feel so bad. And last night I found another set again with the initial "R". From the photos the glasses seem to be in great condition and they were $30 less than what I paid for my first set. Sweet!!

Well, hello there.

Goodness, it's been so long since I've posted I almost couldn't remember my Typepad password! lol!  That's horrible isn't it?! So what's been going on?? Lots of good stuff! And I promise to share it all one bit at a time.

So I hope everyone had a lovely Mother's Day weekend!

My boys made me breakfast in bed. C ate with me.

Waffles with Strawberries and whipped cream. Delish!

C made me the sweetest little card with a beautiful family drawing and photos of me while I was pregnant and one of him as a newborn. The card was wrapped in red fabric covered with little crowns. When he gave me the card he said,  "Mommy, here's some crown fabric because you're the queen of the day". 

S & C also surprised me with a Kindle. Last Christmas when we went back to the US, I played with a Nook and I have to admit it was really cool. And what's great about the Kindle is that you have access to the internet anywhere you go for free. Big plus in my eyes.

In the afternoon, C & I took a nice bike-ride through town. Unfortunately, S had a work event planned so he couldn't come with us. The day was absolutely beautiful! I snapped a few photos and had fun editing them with Instagram. It's an addicting app!

Look at that sky! So pretty!! Wish we had more days like this!

One of the houses we usually pass have these crazy dogs that bark like they're going to attack you but they're all talk no action. The house is a bit of a mess with cows lounging around and goats that are constantly escaping. They also have some farming equipment sort of abandoned by the side of the road. It's not very attractive but I thought the photo came out nice.

I love playing with the contrast.

If you're walking along the fields, you're bound to run into one of these... inside you'll find a statue of a saint. I'm curious if farmers prayed to these saints for a good harvest.

Along the way, we came across lots of cows. They're super friendly.

Thanks for looking!

 

La Maison Exchange

Have you ever seen the movie, "The Holiday" where Kate Winslet & Cameron Diaz temporarily exchange homes? How great would it be to actually swap homes with someone in a different country.

Well, this summer my sister is doing a house exchange in Belgium for one month. So that means I get to spend a whole lot of time with this little cutie pie! Look how big she's getting!

I'm so excited to see my sister & her family. Plus, my mother has decided to fly back to Belgium with me once we return from our US summer trip.

And to think this started with just a simple question at my English conversation...

During our breakfast break I asked Golf Grrrl what her plans were for the summer. She told me her husband & their nephew were planning a trip to the US. When I asked where she told me they were going to Las Vegas, Arizona, and California. California? Hmm... what part I asked? To my surprise it's the exact location where my sister lives! Golf Grrrl continued to explain how there were no time shares available during the time period they wanted. When I told Golf Grrrl how my sister lives in that area of California and is interested in doing a one month house exchange we both started to get excited about the possibilities. After numerous e-mails & Skype phone calls, everything has been finalized & both families will exchange homes this summer. They're even exchanging cars! It's a win, win situation. Both families feel very comfortable with the exchange. It helps that I've known Golf Grrrl for over two years now and that the other person is my sister. And it gets even better... my sister's husband's best friend & wife are coming along with another friend. Last week we had lovely dinner at Golf Grrrl's home and they showed us all the in's & out's of their house. My sister is going to love the house I just know it.

Lots of good things happening this summer! I'm just a little worried about flying home with my Mom. She hates to fly and anytime you ask how her flight was she'll say, "It was the worst flight I've ever had!" I find it interesting that all her flights are horrible where as the majority of my flights tend to be great & quite uneventful. Of course it helps when you fall asleep before the plane takes off and magically wake up when it's landing. But that doesn't happen all the time. lol! My Mom is that woman who panics & grabs the nearest stranger when there is turbulence and is always picked during random searches. And I don't think she's ever had an uneventful flight. The last flight she took the pilots never arrived, the flight was delayed over 2hrs, and after all that they had all the passengers get off the plane so they could change planes. Yes, definitely say a little prayer for me. ;)

Charmed to meet you.

When I was younger I remember being completely fascinated with my grandmother's charm bracelet. I can see it now jingling around on her wrist. It was absolutely gorgeous & every time I see a vintage charm bracelet I think of her. My grandmother's gold charm bracelet dated back to the early 60's or perhaps even earlier. It was filled with charms that held special memories for her. One of my fondest memories was sitting with her as she described each charm & what it meant to her. The one I remember most was a calender charm my grandfather gave her with the month's stone placed on the date they met. Such a romantic gift. I never would have thought my grandfather was the sentimental type to remember the date he met my grandmother. My grandmother's bracelet was not only about her memories but those that loved her and gave her these special gifts to remember a special date, place, or event.  She also had one that said "Mother" with pearls surrounding the charm that my father gave me when she passed away.

I've always wanted a charm bracelet & for Mother's Day this year Lil' C & S gave me one. It's very different from my grandmother's bracelet but like her's it holds some beautiful memories for me. I absolutely love it. The very talented Mia from Formia Design created the charms from Lil' C's drawings. Mia did an amazing job capturing all the details in C's drawing.

What makes this bracelet so special is how most of the charms represent different stages in Lil' C's life. Like the various art periods Picasso experienced. lol! When C was about 2-4 years old he went through his rainbow period. All he wanted to draw were rainbows. Rainbows, rainbows, rainbows... they were everywhere. S & I constantly were asked to draw the outline of a rainbow so C could color it in. During those days, he'd line up his toys to match the order of the colors in a rainbow. If there was a color out of place, you could be sure C would make the appropriate changes. ;)

Towards the end of his rainbow stage, he started drawing butterflies. He loved creating butterflies in the Charlie & Lola Butterfly gallery. And of course his most recent interest... fairies.

The three other charms were from a drawing he made especially for my gift.  The middle drawing is of Snowflake, our visiting cat, a heart symbolizing love and on the right is a drawing of him & I. I love all the details C included... a little handbag, my necklace & hoop earrings, high heels, and his backpack & lunch bag.

So for this Father's Day I wanted S to have a little C creation of his own. So we sent Mia this drawing and she created a simple yet classic key chain for S.

Years from now I have no doubt we'll look at these keepsakes and it'll bring us back to these precious early years.

Happy 19!

Today S & I are celebrating our 19th anniversary. 19 years! Wow, it actually doesn't really seem that long. The time has flown.

S & I celebrated by going to restaurant I've been dying to try for the past 4 years. Not that the restaurant is super fancy or difficult to get reservations. No... the restaurant just has some crazy hours and then it underwent some construction and seem to be closed forever. So we finally went. The food was good but the company was so much better. We don't have many date nights so having dinner together was a real treat. 

Over dinner, S & I agreed that the past 19 years have definitely flown by. Neither one of us ever expected how our lives have turned out.  It's definitely been a wonderful adventure! There is no one I'd want to experience this incredible journey with then with you, S. I look forward to being together many more years. Love you!

Love the typical "Calvin" look after just 24 takes. lol!

More of California

French class was canceled today so here I am trying to finish some posts that are long overdue. Here's one from our trip to California...

Even though it was Fall in California it felt more like summer. On many days, the temperatures reached into the 90's. The weather was beautiful.

When we first arrived Lil' C was able to go to a Fall Festival centre which he loved!!

C even made a little friend while he was bouncying in one of the castles and towards the end of the day we already had a playdate invite. That is one thing I just love about California... people are super friendly!

On another afternoon my sister, C, and I went to Color Me Mine to paint ceramics. C painted this cute little cat he saw in the shop. My sister chose a little bowl while I picked a small serving plate.

My drawing was inspired by an idea C gave me. We had a great time! I was really happy with the results even if it did take forever to paint the images with 3 coats of paint.

For Halloween this year, C chose to dress up as a black cat. He really enjoyed trick-o-treating and with no jacket!! It was also fun to see all the neighborbood Halloween decorations.

I felt a wee bit guilty that C missed the Halloween festivities at home. His school was having a Halloween Disco and of course we can't forget about Trunk-o-Treat. Over the past five years, the Halloween celebration in our community has really improved. I'd say it's just about as much fun or even more fun depending on the US neighborhood.

Although I must admit spending Halloween in the warm California weather was definitely a wonderful treat!

Not only did we get to spend Halloween in California but we also experienced a bit of the Christmas spirit as well. Most people complain about how the US kicks off the holiday season too soon but I welcomed it! I was nice to see all the beautiful decorations at the indoor & outdoor malls. Before we flew back to Belgium, Lil' C had a chance to chat with Santa & take his photo with him.

C & I also went to see "Alpha & Omega" which was a cute movie.

One of the highlights of our trip for C was a visit to the "Build-A-Bear" shop in Downtown Disney.

His favorite build-a-bear needed a bit of reconstructive surgery since she's a few years old now and the recording in her arm no longer works. So what better place to have a bit of cosmetic surgery than in Disney's Build-A-Bear shop. lol!

Sparkle left the shop feeling like a million bucks... New stuffing, fancy clothes, high heel sandals and a new blonde wig! She's a California Grrl now.

Meeting Baby S

Amazing how much babies change in such a short amount of time. Baby S is about 3 weeks old in these photos.

On Saturday, Baby S will turn 5 months old.  Last night, while I Skyped with my sister, Baby S was smiling, putting her hands in her mouth, grasping little toys, and rolling over. 

She's at a really cute age right now. This photo is my absolute favorite. Baby S looks like so happy!

Our trip to California was wonderful. It was a VERY long flight though. About 3 hours into our first flight Lil' C asked me if we were almost there! I laughed and said we had about 12 more hours to go!

When we arrived in Los Angeles, Baby S was sleeping soundly in her car seat looking like a little angel.

Like most babies she adores being snuggled and I spoiled her as much as possible. One day I remember we watched an entire movie while Baby S slept in my arms.

One of the best things about visiting someone with a new baby is that Lil' C & I had company around 3am when we couldn't sleep! lol! This turned out to be pretty advantageous for my sister as well. Like most mothers she was exhausted and needed sleep. I'd come into her bedroom in the middle of the night completely awake and cheerful and offer to feed Baby S or try to calm her down if she was crying.

We spent most of our time at home which was perfectly ok with me. My sister & I had a lot of quality time together which I really savored. It was also a perfect way to bond with my niece. Some days we had the best intentions of leaving the house but sometimes it just didn't happen. The feeding, changing, playing, napping schedule happens so quickly and before you know it you're doing it all over again without having the opportunity to get out of the house. lol! I remember those times when Lil' C was a baby. I swear I saw Fall turn into Winter in the blink of an eye through my bedroom window.

My Mom also flew out to CA for a few days so it was great seeing her. C loved seeing Mema too and enjoyed getting spoiled.

Lil' C was a great little helper too although he didn't pay Baby S much attention. He was very curious why she seem to cry so much. lol!

The princess has arrived.

After receiving hourly updates from my Mom and G's best friend, I'm happy to share my sister just delivered Baby S! I can't believe it. My baby sister. Has a little baby.

According to my Mom my sister, her husband and Baby S are in recovery so I'll know more details tomorrow. I hope to get my hands on some photos real soon too. ;)

Baby S is on her way...

For the past few days we've been guessing when Lil' S willl arrive. T's brother is hoping for the 5th which just so happens to be his birthday, my sister thinks it might be the 6th (the day of her birthday) and me?  I'm hoping for the 7th, Lil' C's original due date.

I talked to my sister yesterday and she said her doctor would induce her on Tuesday evening.

But this morning the phone rang and I knew it was news about the baby.

G left me a message saying they admitted her one day early. The doctor said she'd lost some amniotic fluid and the baby's heart beat was a little slower than they'd like.

Unfortunately, I didn't speak to my sister but I talked to my Mom and she explained how uncomfortable G was the night before and how she felt the baby wasn't moving as much. So they went to the hospital. My Mom said eveything is fine and now we just have to wait. The doctor said she could deliver anywhere from 24 to 48 hrs. But it could be sooner.

My sister is really hoping for a natural birth but she's concerned about the pitocin increasing her chances of a c-section. I just reminded her that regardless of the delievery my family & I just want her & baby S to be healthy.