Stitchin' on Saturday

I had this brillant idea I think to do a fun Saturday meme. If your like me you itch and ache to find time to Stitch. With my current schedule it seems that Saturday is the day I can block out hours to do one of my favorite things
stitch!
Here's what I am working on today.

I originally wrote about the inspiration for these here http://myjourneyback-thejourneyback.blogspot.com/2008/10/show-and-tell.html BTW this isn't a link. I don't know how to do that. Can anyone tell me how.
But this is the orignal inspiration.


On my other blog where the inspiration is posted I have a label called Dummies at Blogging I think it is time to add that label here! LOL.

So what are you stichin' today? Why not take a little break and take a photo and link up here.


(Hope this works) and share your creation with the rest of those that are just itchin' to stitch! Well for some reason I couldn't register this blog with Mr. Linky. I hope this doesn't mess up my other Mr. Linky's. Well see.

Right now I am just itchin'!

Happy Stitchin' on Saturday!

Show and Tell Friday

Welcome to Show and Tell hosted by Kelli at my new home. To visit my past Show and Tell's please visit my other blog.

For the last couple of weeks I have been showing my collections of vintage linens.
Today I am sharing a couple of pieces that I am repurposing for a new use.
These are part of a collection of linens that I have bought over the years and repurposed into sewing and craft projects.
Here's one still awaiting a new use.

These I have saved sadly because they didn't fit into the other projects because they were a little worse for wear. You can't see from the scanned image but there are some soiled areas that I couldn't get out. So sadly they weren't pretty enough to be used. But yet they were too pretty to just through away.
Here's another one.

I could not imagine just discarding someones hard work. And so the other day when I unpacked them a new idea came to me.
This part I hope you'll like. It is where making my Home a Sanctuary comes in.
You see my darling Cowboy has this problem when he is in the kitchen.
For some reason he becomes blind when it comes to the roll of paper towel. He just does not use it for anything. Except maybe draining bacon on. Anyway he will spill something or splatter. He loves meat blackened. Do you know how much of a mess this makes? If he drops a little butter on the counter. What do you think he grabs to wipe it up?
You guessed it my pretty washed cotton dish towels.
So I figured these little linens have survived many years and they might just possibly survive Cowboy. So they are going in my kitchen today. I am going to put them in a pretty basket and on the counter well within reach of the messy cook.
Which by the way I try really hard not to let in the kitchen! But sometimes I just can't keep him out. And I love it when once in a while he cooks for me!
Hopefully this new idea will keep me from yelling at him. Which I have decided does no good but maybe it will keep me from biting my tongue so much!

Before I go I have to ask. Do you have any ideas to repurpose vintage linens?

Thanks for visiting my Show and Tell and come back over the weekend for my Home Sanctuary posts.

Making My Home a Sanctuary one clean counter at a time!

Making Cards w/ Kelli (repurposed supplies)

Hi.
Thanks for visiting. I love Kelli's Thursday meme making cards. She makes some amazing cards and I hope soon I'll get a chance to use some of her ideas.
Today I want to share a card I made from re-purposed supplies.
Here's the card.

This is actually my proto type for 4 cards that I am making that will all be alike.
Since I wanted to make so many I needed lots of supplies and so I repurposed part of them.
The beige main body of the card is a file folder. I didn't have any pre-made cards so I figured this would work since it already had a nice crease.
To determine the size I first found an envelope to repurpose. I ran into a snag here because the only extra envelopes I had were stamped on the back so. I covered the snap with matching paper and die cuts.
Here's a photo of the envelope

The black inset on the front of the card is actually an envelope that I cut up. I happened to have 6 of these and the paper was textured so I thought it looked good.
I attempted to stagger the little strips of card stock that I put the letters on but I don't like the look though. It just looks crooked to me so the real ones that I make will not be staggered.
I am making these cards to mail to some friends that participated in More than a Friend. A meme that I host on my other blog. This week is the second week and I am having a giveaway. There is still time to join and get in the drawing so go over and check it out.

I hope you enjoyed my cards from repurposed supplies. Please leave a comment and come and visit tomorrow for Show and Tell Friday

Happy Card making

Tips on Tuesday a new meme

I found a wonderful new and fun meme at one of my favorite places to visit.
Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom
has a wonderful new new idea to post tips. I almost missed it today because I have been so busy the last few weeks. But I am glad I came by today to check in.
Sandra shared a tip about these.

I have a fabric softener sheet tip also. They are great to use in your linen closet. Just place one in a stack of extra sheets. Or amongst your blankets when they are stored away.

Here's a tip to help rid your house of paper clutter. Do you have stacks of mail to go through and magazines? My mail box is at the curb. When I check the mail I immediately stop at the trash can and sort the mail. I even open the bills etc. and throw away the envelopes. We usually either pay on line or in person at the location. The only thing that make it in the house is the actual bill. This really saves on clutter for me. You might consider stopping at your recycling bin on the way in the house or get an extra waste basket for your garage or mudroom where ever you go in the house.

I used to have a problem cleaning my ceiling fans. I would just forget to clean them. So now I clean them every Monday when I am doing laundry. I use a kitchen type wet wipe now once a week so I don't forget them.

Do you have a tip to share? Go over to Sandra's and join the fun.

Making My Home a Sanctuary
Sherry

Menu Monday on Tuesday and Today's Small Thing

Welcome to my late Menu Monday post. Late it has been harder and harder for me to get to the computer or at least spend any length of time writing posts. Why you ask? Here is why.

This is a collage I put together of photo's when my grandson was 3 months old. He is 5 months old and even cuter. I am sorry I guess I am a little biased. But don't you agree he is just adorable. O.K. enough baby stuff. Here is my dinner menu for this week.

Monday
Steak, Baked Potatoes w/ cheese,butter and bacon bits,brocolli and garlic bread
Tuesday
Pinto Beans and bisquick cheese biscuits (super easy. I might even get the kitchen totally clean tonight! Yea)
Wednesday
Chicken hot wings and parmesan roll ups (these are really yummy basically a crescent roll filled with pepperoni super simple) and salad
Thursday
Meatloaf,garlic mashed potatoes and salad
Friday
Lentil soup and bread
Saturday
Mexican. Yummy yum. My favorite. Taco's,rice and maybe I'll make chicken flauta's
Sunday
No plans now. Depends on if we go out for lunch after church and if our kids come over in the evening.

I just love knowing what I am going to cook. It makes life so much easier. I have been wanting to try once a month cooking again. I did that when our kids were at home. Does anyone do once a month cooking? I am seeing that I am so busy now with keeping the baby and all the other things I do that having dinner almost prepared would be a huge help.

Today I took Rachel's suggestion and cleaned my spice cabinet. She suggested checking the dates on spices and throwing out old ones. She even posted a chart on the shelf life of spices. I had already done that in June when we moved but I knew that my cabinet needed to be cleaned. I have no idea how it happens but I always have spices spilled all over the cabinet. I have some round turntables that are inside the cabinets that I sit the spices on. I love them. I have had them forever and they are really handy.

Thanks for coming by and btw if you want to see what else I am up to come by my other blog. Tomorrow I will be hosting More Than a Friend Wednesday. Come over and link up and write a post about someone special. It doesn't have to be a blogging friend. I hope to see you and meet your friends.

Making My Home a Sanctuary
Sherry

Five Favorite things this week

Welcome to one of my favorite meme's Favorite Five hosted by Susanne.
It is fun to sit and reflect on the week and consider five of the most special things or moments.
Here's my list:
At the top of my list is my grandbaby. I keep him on Mon.,Tues. and Thurs. He is a hand full but so much fun. Yesterday was a really fun day because my daughter decided to start giving him his bath here. Her tub is to big for her to reach him and he is getting to big for the kitchen sink. Here is a photo collage. One of the shots is him at bathtime in the sink. Can you say adorable? I am sorry I am biased I know.

My #2 Favorite thing this week Is fall. I love the cooler weather and the changing colors on the trees.

#3 Favorite Has to be sitting outside and enjoying the sunset with my Cowboy husband and our animals. My dog loves sitting outside with us in the evenings. I hope fall lasts a long time!

#4 Favorite Don't laugh this is silly but one of my favorite things is Dr. Pepper. I know your thinking this woman is crazy for listing something as sill y as Dr. Pepper but it is my favorite drink. And it is my list so that is all I have to say on the subject.

#5 Favorite (BTW I decided to add that my list isn't necessarily in list of priority)Home Sanctuary
Rachel is the inspiration for this blog. I love her daily meme. She is such an inspiration and she is a wonderful writer. I miss her when I don't get to read her blog. She is just a lot of fun.

And, if your curious to learn a little more about me please visit me at My Journey

Making Cards with Kelli

Welcome to my new weekly feature. You've probably come over from Kellis
or from my other blog
After much thought and consideration I have decided to make some changes.
Because I have realized I have so many interests and enjoy blogging and participating in so many different meme's and carnivals I have decided to post all my homemaking type post here. So I hope that you add My Home Sanctuary to your favorite's and come by often. You'll find all kinds of fun things here. And hopefully I'll be writing more Home Sanctuary posts. I have had a hard time keeping up with Rachel's challenges lately but I am hoping that I have come up with a way to be a bit better organized in my posting. I'll share all that later. Because
I know that you have come by to see my card making post.
Here's what I have been working on.

This is a card for my churches card ministry. It is made with brown cardstock that sort of looks like papersack. I really like the dot paper and the colors in it.
The 'Thinking of you' is stamped on white paper in a rosey red ink. The edge is smeared slightly to add just a little color to the edge of the white.


This is a place card that will be used at a Thanksgiving Dinner. This one was actually made a couple of years ago but I really like it so I saved it to use again.


I started with a piece grayish lavender cardstock. Cut it to the size I wanted and folded it in half and creased it. Then I printed the verse in red on the computer and printed it on cream cardstock. After I printed a bunch I cut them apart and glued to the background. The cross in the upper edge was embossed with gold embossing powder. I plan to make 25 of these for a Thanksgiving Dinner.

Please come by again soon and leave me a comment. I love visitors! And please stop over at My Journey

Till next time. Happy Papercrafting.

Friday Small Thing Challenge

Rachel posed the question "Do you have a busy weekend planned?" I have a busy Saturday planned. Then Sunday we plan to visit a different church.

Here's more of Rachel's thoughts . . .
"There is nothing better than coming home to a clean house when you've been running around all weekend. However, when you're running in and out the door, it is likely that your house could resemble a hurricane aftermath when it's all said and done.


It would be nice if we all got up and did chores first thing Saturday morning, like in the olden days of yore, but that can be nearly impossible for some families. Today's Small Thing is to do a little pre-weekend planning so that you can enjoy coming home after all the activities."


Ask yourself 3 questions:
1. What will we eat? I planned stew from the left over roast

2. What will we wear? What will I wear to the church where we plan to visit...that is always a problem because you want to fit in and not stick out like a sore thumb. I now that sounds petty when your talking about church. But where we live we run the range of anything goes which could include shorts...and no I don't live in Flordia. To dresses and panty hoses And, I have to say I can be a little judgemental on this issue. I mean really since we don't live in Florida or California or even Hawaii must shorts be acceptable Sunday morning attire?
Well for this girl nice dress pants or a skirt or dress is what is acceptable. So I plan to wear dressy black pants with a dressy top. I figure that is pretty much in the middle so I should fit in ok.

3. What can I eliminate? Wow this is a really hard challenge for me because tomorrow morning to afternoon I am taking my halfway house girls to a conference and concert. It will be amazing. Lisa Welchell who played Blair in Facts of Life is one of the speakers. I have to admit she just amazes me; and I want to go just to hear her. I am praying that our girls are totally Blessed.
Then the rest of the afternoon is free. The only thing I can think of to eliminate is the mess in my kitchen. But that isn't what Rachel was suggesting was she. I guess what I need to eliminate to make this hose a weekend Sanctuary is eliminating anyway computer time until said kitchen is clean and in order.

Wow what a challenge for me. So tonight at 10:12 p.m. I resolve to clean the kitchen and get my life and home orderly this weekend.

My prayer for you my blogging friends is that you have a Blessed Weekend.

Rachel is such an inspiration. She gives us such amazing ideas, challenges and suggestions to basically be a Proverbs 31Woman. A woman of noble character. A woman who's husband is proud of her. Today she put out a challenge that was difficult for me. She suggested that we write a mission statement for our blog.
As wordy as I am most of the time in my posts. And as good as I am at providing information. This was difficult for me. Mainly because I have difficulty expressing myself.
Below is my attempt at sharing with you my mission for this blog and for my other blog

(sorry you can't read this. Click on the photo and it will enlarge in another window)
This verse speaks of my desire to lean and trust in God. To allow him to guide my steps. I must cling to it as I am really good at turning it over to God and then taking it back by worrying etc. I have to give it all to God and allow him to take me on the journey he has planned for me.
My hearts desire is to use the talents that I have to glorify him. Below is an illustration of the primary way I share God with other women and girls.

It is through the art of quilt making and sewing that I share God's love for us.

I know this wasn't exactly where Rachel was going with her suggestion. Hopefully anyone that reads this post will glean where I stand and where I wish to go. In a nutshell I wish to share God with other women and girls.
I wish to share my experiences and my skills and talents to teach women of all ages about God and his love for us. And that the coolest part is that we are all Princesses. How cool is that?

Simple Thing Challenge....pockets of time

But what I've discovered is pockets.
Here are Rachel's thoughts on finding time to get things done.
Little pockets of time, here and there.

"See, I rarely get big chunks of time to "get organized." But Pockets of Time, say 5, 10 or 15 minute pockets, can pop up at unexpected moments. " Rachel
Here is Rachel's list of things done in 15 min. or less.
Fold a load of clothes.
Unload a dishwasher.
Load a dishwasher.
Wipe down a sink and mirror.
Scrub a potty.
Clean the kitchen sink.
Pick up an entire room.
Make my bed.
Water the plants.
Straighten a junk drawer.
Read a story to a preschooler. (sometimes I would put it off, thinking I didn't have time...but it actually fits in a pocket, too!)
Shave my legs. (it counts as a task)
Clean a stove top.
Today's Small Thing is to see what you can fit into a pocket. When you start to see all those giant, looming jobs for what they really are, they don't seem so bad. See? They can't be TOO big if they fit into a pocket

O.K. did you read this list? I love Rachel's sense of humor....I mean Hello she gave us the opportunity to count shaving our legs. Hello....points for shaving my legs. I would be a dummy to pass that up.
So I am off to do just that. And I think i will light a candle and pour a glass of wine and pamper myself a little bit.
BTW I loaded the dishwasher and cleaned the sink twice today. Does that count for points? I log 50 points for doing a task. And another for coming up with a list.
Here's my list:

Make a greeting card for the churches card ministry
Send an email of encouragement to one of our ministrys volunteers
Sweep the kitchen
Dust the bedroom
Tidy the computer desk....I cannot seem to keep it clean. It is the catch all
Sweep the front porch and shake out the rugs
Read my 15 minute Devotional book by Emalie Barnes
Read a Psalm
Make a journal entry
Look up an old friend and make a plan to reconnect (visit my blog to see a post about
friends.)


Well now I am finally off to relax in the tub. I mean Rachel suggested we do that so he what is a girl to do? I am just following instructions! LOL
See you all tomorrow.

You've Been a Friend

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