Morning Glory Studio

collecting may | 2018 ...

 

(double click to see the images larger ) 

May was filled with 31 days of making scrapbook layouts ...some I shared on the blog over the days and some,  I've also included in this collection. I thought I'd leave the dates off  the collage this time around - I find them intrusive.

A quick review:

• 10 photos are layouts - mostly of Dolly and her boys;  one layout, row 3, features my niece Kayla;
• 3 layouts  are about me: my ride at Disney's Space Mountain; the C grade I received in elementary school for handwriting; and the fiasco with my cell phone ...
• 2 pics show me with both long and short and GRAY hair! Yikes!
• 3 photos share glimpses of relaxing in front of the tv...and 1 TVshot of the brilliant 19 year-old cellist playing at the Royal wedding (I caught the end of the wedding and I'm glad I saw/heard him!);
• the photo at the beginning of (row 4) is my friends here at my house  for our monthly Friendstitching gathering and in the same row, the   little baby boy is  Chris when he was about 6 months old.

All in all, t'was a good month; lots more time at home than on the road and the weather was better more days than not. I wrapped up the month with the Convergence quilting class; twas fun and I'll share the results next week. Do you do Pinterest? I have a few boards but I stay away from it...truly a rabbit hole of the first order. Having said that, I did follow one Convergence pinner...haven't looked very closely yet.  I think I may have at least 3 more convergence quilts in my future. 

Welcome June! Enjoy the weekend; til Monday,

Cheers~

 

Weekending ...

  Photos from L to R: Friday - My now 17 years' old niece Kayla's 10th birthday pool party; Saturday - Dolly's Senior Prom, 14 years ago; Sunday - Mama and me (decades ago) in honor of Mother's Day...these layouts are part of my Layout A Day -LOAD 518 - Challenge. 

 

FriYAY 5/11

T'was a quiet and productive day, somewhat! This is what happened: 

We made an appointment for measuring the fence - after going to two more fence places . Once home, I

• finished the day's layout; 
• Read a lot - more like dipping in this and that: decided one book I bought earlier in the week  goes to the "free library!" I thought it was poetry...and is but I don't care for the first poem - just not my cup o' tea;
• Spent several hours döstädning scrapbook cardstock and pattern papers - I decided to separate by color/type: pattern and plain..

 

SATday 5/12

     8:15 am: Feeling rather lethargic...perhaps up too early. N even slept in late. Read, sort of journaled, piddled ...about 11:30a, decided I needed a nap ... and I did. Slept til 2-ish. Piddled around in Craft Room and then decided to take a walk - to Zeke's Coffee Shop!  On the way, I stopped at Art Enables: open house and free collage -making art activity  for visitors...I was quite impressed with the collages  self-acclaimed newbies were making. I like collage and have a huge stack of magazines I'm saving for just that purpose ... Note to Self: Family gathering the end of this month...maybe we'll collage and paint...I'm feeling a little more energy...and the breeze is delicious ...busy on the Avenue today...Zeke's is a popular pick-up point for Lyft & Uber it seems...

 

SUNday 5/13

7 am: Planned Obsolescence strikes again:  This time - the oven! Seems that something's gone wrong with the controls... so, we call tomorrow to see what if anything can be done...my bet's on a new oven! Why not: after all, it's Lucky 13.* 

8:32 am: Listening to Sunday Baroque while N has msnbc on...he was up too early - the oven...it's raining quietly and the air's cool... Lots of flute on Sun Baroque today, in honor of Mother's Day. Light, playful, joyful, delightful ... Time to delve into a book...and maybe fix a bite to eat: fruit; remainder of the lemon ricotta muffin...N wants to go to the grocery store later, early afternoon. Guess I'll make a list ... a list! The bane of my existence...

Otherwise, t'was a quiet day. N watched baseball, Turner Classic Movies, news shows, napped... I read and spent a goodly amount of time looking at YouTube videos on digital bullet journaling...a whole new adventure - or not! * And to bed, to bed about 10 pm!

And that's how the 2017 Week in This Life Ended ! 

 Cheers~

PS. *Tomorrow, Tues, 15 May, a service call has been scheduled...and two milestones to share: 1- My car clocked 140K miles this morning and 2 - this is my 1400th post...suppose I need to play the number 1-4-0?

 

week in the life: day 3 | 5.9.18

Wed 9 May

6:50 am - Settled in for MSQT - noticed the shadow of the alstroemeria on the wall…today’s a day of flowers. I journal and read for next couple hours… N is up early again today: he and his son are meeting and going shopping for Myron’s birthday! N leaves about 10:30 to meet M…I wrap up MSQT and b’fast: scrambled egg w/ grated cheddar cheese & avocado and berries plus a quarter of lemon ricotta muffin - sooo good.

11 am - Up the steps I go to clean the bathroom and  MBR -  vacuum/dust. NTS: Time to döstädning the closets and make a mental note to schedule the task on Sat…

2 pm: N and M return and N fixes lunch: spaghetti and salad; I’m eating later but do have a snack: 1/2 apple, a Clementine and sparkling water…I take out some trash and decide to check on my Iris …

2:33 pm …  to my delight: one is blooming and two are in the wings. Wahoo!…I. Am. Delighted.

3 pm … N and M are watching a MLB game (while they solve all the world’s problems, too, I might add). I’m in the craft room, posting notes and thinking about taking a walk…but I’m gonna need to wait a bit til my phone charges…

3:30 pm: I start today’s layout: fiddle around with the concept: flowers (photos) and hexagons (shape) and colors (spring: pink, green, white) and a grid…

4:52 pm; iPhone in hand and earplugs in, I start my walk - much later than I planned - listening to this week’s Gretchen Rubin’s Happier podcast #168. My route, 1.19 mi, is my favorite through the neighborhood. My eyes encounter a feast of lovely spring flowers: the azaleas are in full regalia; iris stand tall and haughty; roses are popping up all over, adding their delightfully sweet scent to the air and reminding me of Portland OR - “City of Roses” - and my mom, who was from PDX. A wave of nostalgia for my trips to Sisters, Oregon for quilting workshops and especially, visits with my friend Linda washes over. I sigh and keep walking, arriving home just in time to wish Myron another “Happy Birthday” and a safe drive home to Annapolis.

 
6 pm: I resume creating my layout for today - it amazes me that a 6 x 8 page can/does take so.much.time…I finish with moments to spare before “Nightly News” begins… My energy is about spent for this day…we watch the news, eat a light, late supper and settle in. Eventually, one or both of us will doze off/on as the TV acts as a sedative, I do believe...

Circa 10 pm, I say good night and go to bed. Usually, as soon as my head hits the pillow, I’m out…this night was no exception...

Cheers~

a couple brilliant ideas...

 

Tu 8 May

7 am:  Fiddle around in CR, straightening up…downstairs for MSQT…make tea.  N gets up, shortly after 8 am (early for him)…there goes MSQT! TV goes on (of course); we kibitz…he finishes his breakfast and goes downstairs to his computer.  I eat b’fast…grateful for the resumption of  MSQT!

10:18 - Catch up on notes for WiTL  Appreciate the quiet sounds in the room (and my ears - which long thought was “static electricity,” turns out to be tinnitus~ a mild case) … Thinking I'll  use Pages  for notes -   I can C + V for blog posts, etc…guessing I’d best clear up my space and get ready; we're going  to Lowe’s and Home Depot - fence hunting … Remind myself : take paper and plastic bags and books  to  car…and definitely take a walk this afternoon... 67 degrees @ 10:28 and sunny…

1 pm: Return home. Our trips to both home improvement stores futile - not really any inventory and definitely no inspiration...frustrating -  as this saga with replacing the now fallen fence continues with no end in sight.  I decide the time to take a walk is now!

2:16: Sitting outside @ Zeke’s; a lovely, sunny, low-to-no humidity day... Drinking a decaf caramel latte´ made with almond milk and reading my Monday new book purchase. NTS: next time I come to Zeke’s, bring my own coffee mug (I think the cups they use are too small). Brilliant Idea! I almost blurt out loud. 

2:46 : I decide to take a different path home from Zeke’s: walked down Jackson St and met Jackson, a Westie?! And his owner…she invited me to attend the local garden club meeting; perhaps I will.  Arrv’d home as N was leaving for his walk… drafted/published  blog post and started LOAD - 8.

Later in the early evening, discussed with N the idea of installing  a chain link fence... and use bushes/trees  for privacy. We both thought that's the best solution and congratulated ourselves for our brilliant idea!

Finished my layout and watched TV.  To bed shortly about 11:15 p. Loving those brilliant ideas!

Cheers~

sometimes monday morphs into tuesday...

 

 

LeMoyne Star quilt block

Yesterday, Monday 7 May turned out to be a fuller than full day for me: for starters, I was up at 5:30 am and in my sewing room, stitching together the pieces for a LeMoyne Star quilt block . I retired early Sunday night knowing I'd be getting up and stitching and then getting ready for my weekly quilt group meeting...the LeMoyne Star block was going with me for quilts of valor quilts we are making for veterans...I figured that my project would take an hour - at best, 90 minutes and I'd still have enough time for MSQT and to get ready to leave. I had a 10 AM meeting scheduled so I had to leave home by 9 AM! That was the plan...

It took me three hours to make the block! Little problems occurring...drat! And as I watched the clock, I encountered other annoyances...nothing that couldn't be fixed but did take time. I left home, finished block - not my best but OK -  in tow and arrived about 20 minutes after the meeting started. 

After the quilt meeting, lunch with three quilters...I ordered a kale salad, featuring  3 kinds of kale: plain; curly and purple; walnuts; cheese and a raspberry dressing plus a cup of crab chowder. Sounded good. The soup was delicious. The kale salad only had one type of kale. I brought that to the waiter's attention; upon checking with the kitchen, he discovered they were out of the other two types of kale...so, I didn't have to pay for my salad. Worked for me!

(some of the books I bought)

After lunch, I  made a quick stop at the grocery store and then, to Barnes & Noble; I'd not been in about a month and I had some coupons that were on fire in my pocket. I bought over $205 worth of books and a card; with the coupons, member discount and the 5% rebate I get from my credit card, I saved $50 - the price of my prized book: Obama: An Intimate Portrait, by Pete Souza, the then White House Photographer!  I also got Chasing Light , the official book about Michelle Obama! I'm delighted with my haul.

(the layout)

Homeward bound to meet our yard guy...the lawn sorely needed a manicuring and sprucing...then dinner: still a couple pizza slices left and a bit of kale salad; the news...and finally, one last thing to do before I could call it a day: make my scrapbook layout for the day. The theme: a "fail" in your life. 

Whew! I was tired . About 11:15 pm, I called it a day! The one thing I didn't get done was Monday's blog post. Sometimes Mondays begin with a long list of to-do items and sometimes one just has to say : Good Night!

This week, I am documenting "The Week in the Life," sponsored by Ali Edwards. Today is Tuesday and I will share today tomorrow...still have  a layout to make and finish living today. Hope your Tuesday has been as great - weather wise - as ours! To be continued...

Cheers~

 

unraveled wednesday | 2.28.2018

 

 
~sorting papers, etc in my craft room ~

I was all set to a) write wonderful prose about all the books I've read or am reading and b) share a photo or two that displays, ahem, log-cabin knitting prowess...Neither of which would be true. So, if those things aren't true, pray tell, just what have I been up to? In short, over the past 24 hours, I've been preparing for Döstädning! Yes kiddies, I've declared March the month of Döstädning, especially in my craft/story telling studio.

I am on a roll: in spite of the fact that I was sick for a week, plus or minus an hour here or there, I stayed current with the Layout A Day -LOAD - scrapbook challenge! As I write this, I have today's to make and post by midnight, Pacific Standard Time. Unless something untoward happens between now and then, I will beat the clock! The best part  is I intend to continue the LOAD challenge (telling the stories)  until the well runs dry, i.e, I run out of stories to tell.

~2.27.2018 layout featuring Chris and Norman~

So, as I was telling the stories, I realized that I have a lot of "deep cleaning" to do with my supplies and the notes I've jotted down here-n-there over the years. Some supplies I won't use ever and they, I plan to donate to schools and the Boys and Girls club...but basically, as I sort through and work with my stash, I am also going to put on my librarian's cataloguing hat - don't be fooled: I was never a cataloger - and bring some better organization to the workspace and contents, therein! 

I'm not sure how long Döstädning will take because my next stop will be my sewing studio and then the basement storage area and books and, and, and...a less clock-driven pace ...After all, I've a life to live and books to read and things to stitch (knit, quilt) and places to wander and words to write and connections to be made...so now, I shall sign off and make the layout and check on the spaghetti squash in the oven... I think I smell it...

Happy end of February and til tomorrow... Joining Kat and others here.

Cheers~

3 on thursday | 2.22.2018...

    Thing One: My 22nd 2018 LOAD layout! I departed a bit today to make a 12 x 12 about my nieces Dolly and Kayla...I think tomorrow I'll make a companion piece covering the time Dolly was in the hospital in December...then, back to my 6 x 8 AMAZe album. As I've been culling through supplies and photos, etc  I've found a few surprises: One, contact information for a namesake who graduated 3 years ago. I knew I'd had the info but I'd also conveniently hidden it from me...and the contact info I had was obsolete! My March focal project is Döstädning - the gentle art of Swedish Death Cleaning. Who knows what I may find...

    Thing Two: I am about half-way through Daniel Pink's When.  One of the conventions Pink uses is to present theory and then, application via what he calls a "Time Hacker's Handbook." In chapter 3, he shares "Eighty-six Days in the Year When You Can Make a Fresh Start." These days include: the first day of the month; 52 Mondays; the first day of spring - March 22, Summer, Fall and Winter; your birthday...get the drift? Looking at the calendar, it's sortof exciting to know that in a week's time, there are two fresh start days on the horizon: 1- Monday 26 February and Thursday 1 March! This approach gives a whole new dimension to the concept of time! 

    Thing Three: I may be buying a new car...I don't want to buy a new car. My car, nearly 15 years old, is in good shape but tomorrow it gets new brakes... Perhaps that will be its fresh start!

Any fresh starts on your agenda? Joining Carole and others here. Do pop over and see what others have going on.

Cheers~

sometimes mondays...

February is LOAD - layout a day - month. Idea: make a scrapbook layout, one a day, for 28 (or 29) days...I always enjoy this annual challenge and here's today's : a 6 x 8 two page spread; it goes in my AMAZing  -All About Me, A-Z album... Apologies for the dark photo on right side...can't seem to get it to lighten...but you get the drift...

are pretty quiet and  are also holidays, as is this Monday is/was... The cable to our DIRECTV satellite freaked out yesterday so we had a service call today...the technician was prompt and got the service restored in short order..

happily, both Norman and I are getting better! Such a relief. I made a big pot of chicken noodle soup - yummy! and some corn muffins...

yesterday we had snow; today rain; tomorrow, temps in the 70s?

Trust your Presidents' holiday was quiet and restorative as was ours.

Cheers~

chronicle | february 2015

Last month, I introduced my plan for my 2015 One Little Word: Chronicle. And true to my goal/intentions, I chronicled a story - sometimes two -  everyday during the month of January, using the DayOne app. 

Last month, I spent a lot of time thinking about, writing down, making mind-maps, lists and just in general, plotting, planning, dreaming, tracking, trying a few different ways to gather and catalogue all the stories that are in my head and on my mind. I invited my sister to participate - she claims her memory is not all that good; I beg to differ and I imagine that once we sit down and really start bouncing those memories off one another, we'll come up with a pretty hefty collection.  At least we're game to try and hope we can get to it later this month.

This month, I intend to continue chronicling those bursts of story ideas and  stories in DayOne - it serves as a holding place, among other things. And from time to time, throughout the month, here on the blog…though those stories are more than likely to be contemporary.  

This month, I am focusing on making scrapbook layouts - one a day, at least. Every February, for the past 4-5 years, I've participated in the LOAD - LayOut A Day - event. This February's theme is Once Upon a Time. The daily prompt themes are  loosely  inspired by  favorite children's classics, such as Goodnight Moon, The Very Hungry Caterpillar. It's a fun event and we can choose to ignore the daily prompt, if we so desire. The goal is to simply make a layout, to spend time doing and having fun with a large, worldwide group of scrappers. 

This month, I am also collecting my layouts using the Collect app and plan to share a collage at the beginning of March. 

So, that's my story on this the 5th day of February, 2015. What's your story, Morning Glory?

 

Cheers~

 

PS. Don't you just love those bluebirds of happiness floating around my head?!