Diary of an Unconscious Mind

So a new year begins and with it comes the possibility of what can be achieved this time.   Goals to be meet creative idea to exchange and aspire to.  So I begin this year with open eyes, heart and with my soul outstretched to let the light shine in.  I have joined a Tag Swap hosted by one of the very first blogs I read when I began my journey into the craft realm, Elizabeth of Bluebird Papercrafts with her gift for storytelling, vintage take on crafts has inspired me so much.  Each month I will try my hand at a new tag to reflect my take on the months, but also a reflection of the journey I am taking.  The rules are to purchase once a set of paper then use that and whatever you have on hand throughout the year. I am using the K&C Company Daydreams pad and I choose this because of the cartoon whimsy to collaborate with my women, kind of like something old and something quirky just like me. I also am using whatever I have socked away in my file cab...

My niece and I have an close relationship, every morning we talk as we drive to work and later in the evening on our way home. We share musical taste, books, movies and some television show she is like the younger sister I never had. Our 13 year difference has not hampered this when she was a teenager I was the one who taught her the fine art of her mother's moods, how to sneak in the house the forbidden CD and where to hide your private thoughts so your mom won't snoop. I knew these tricks since her mom is my big sister. So as her 30th birthday approached I had to give her a gift that expressed how much she means to me, we both share a love of Día de los Muertos and collect the colorful skulls that mark that day. So I came up with an idea of making her a Día de los Muertos shrine to her grandparents & great grandparents. With the help of a Cloth, Scissor and Paper tutorial I made each of them bright and colorful just like they where in life. I was excited when she opened t...

I have sent off my envelope to Pip for the project..My drawing skills are limited but I hope that it looks good.

This was filmed during Memorial Day weekend at the in-laws. It is always wonderful visiting them because of the wildlife there.

The pilgrimage of the geek is over and done for this year. I sit writing this with a sunburned body, cramped legs, and a smile deep in my heart for the joy that was upon my son’s face. For the last two year my Liam and I have made our trek to SXSW Interactive in Austin a kind of Mecca for tech geeks a place where someone wearing a shirt that says “I π” is commented on as, “hey that is cool”. It opens its arms out to everyone, embracing you with a familiar touch that says you belong, we don’t care that everyone at your school thinks you are a strange kid, because we know how you feel. So this years trek was to be something special for Liam a year to top last in terms of the experience we could have together, so weeks before we scoured the internet for places to go things that must be seen in our limited weekend. So with knowledge on our laptops we got in the car for the drive to Mecca, my son of course started the trip off with a bang playing a podcast of Diggnation that was the bes...

So a new year, new decade begins and with it hope springs eternal in that I will keep up with this blog. Christmas brought me a new camera so that I can take pictures of our precious Marcel who is growing leaps and bounds his personality is amazing in the joy he gives. When he comes in he likes to get into the shower to sing along with splashing in the commode. This year I look forward to expanding my cooking, sewing, art work and writing. I got lost last year as the year ended, but feel refreshed in my goals. So Happy New Year everyone and the Fireworks photo was taken by me on New Year's Eve with the new camera.

I have been bad in not keeping up with the blog, but so much to do so little time. As the year slowly comes to a end my hands have been busy getting present mapped out, meals planned and schedules to maintain. William is about to start his finals and complete his first semester of college, he has gotten the driving part down and little by little he creeps closer to driving further out of his comfort zone (the freeway). I made my first big girl quilt for my niece a Day of the Dead theme which I gave her November 4th though it had lots of issues she did love it. I also finally got around to making my first pair of PJ's which are comfortable so now it is back to Joann's for more fabric so everyone in the family can be twinkies. This year is a handmade Christmas so I will be living in my craft room until then. Here is a pic of the quilt and PJ's

In the early part of the year my hubby was supposed to get his passport for work so that if he had to travel he would be ready. He got everything together to go do it when my car and his truck got broken into, in his truck was all his paperwork, (i.e. social, birth certificate, wallet etc.) needless to say it was crazy for a time. We live in a place where it is not uncommon to not lock doors so the kids that did this hit alot of cars that night the next day they where picked up but they had ditch most of the stuff. So we had to wait 2 months to get his birth certificate since he was born in California, but once it came in they need him to get his passport quick he was heading to Scotland for two weeks. The week before he was to leave we bought my son his first car (a stick) which he didn't know how to drive only to have a few days to teach a left handed, Aspergerian 18 year old who hadn't driven in a year..believe me it didn't go so well. My son was to start his first day o...

I am sorry for being a bad blogger, but life catches up with you and this month I had my hubby go out of country, had a bout with the seasonal blues and projects. Today would have been my father’s 80th birthday with my mother’s following in two weeks I miss them dearly. I wish I would have said it more while you both where here how much I loved you, that you taught me the most important lessons about what true love means, to have a work ethic and above all truth in all things you do. I never appreciated those lesson until I lost you both, but everyday I hear your voices in mine, see your truth in my son and the love you gave in the family. So thank you both and Happy Birthday to you both I miss you.

So today was a momentous occasion in our home, my son got his first car. We promised him we would get him one for graduation and my hubby took the week off to check out cars. Now my hubby is notorious for his careful ways when purchasing a car, he knows what to look for since he has worked on cars most of his life along with working at a paint and body shop in his youth. He is also notorious for purchasing the first car he test drives which in this case became my son's first car, problem is it is a manual which neither my son or I can drive but we will be getting a crash course in this. He theory was since my son like me has a way to go to another planet sometimes that a manual will make sure he has to concentrate on what he is doing, plus it is something everyone needs to know how to do. Last month my son started to complain of extreme pain in his abdomen long story short after Cat Scans, blood work and a few doctor visits we have an appointment to see a gastrointornigist next wee...

I can't draw this is a fact I have come to accept, my mother's artistic gene left me high and dry. I can doodle weird block head creatures, a wooley bugger or flowers yet true life drawing evade me. There is one thing I could always do as a child that was trace and color. I would spend hours with my coloring books, I had to have 96 crayons because 24 was just not enough (this is still true today)even as an adult I love to grab a coloring book and go to town. Then one day I was surfing the craft blogs to find a article about using watercolor pencils, watercolor paper and tracing to make a colorful piece of art. So I decide to give it a try my first one is still a secret because it is for someone special, but I will share with you the two I did for my niece. She is a great artist she inspires me when we talk everyday on the phone while heading to work, she is a talent not only in art but a beautiful poet and writer. So I did Alice and The Mad Hatter I got the art from Urban Threa...

Saturday was the triplets 1st birthday it was the first time I had seen them since they had come home from the hospital. Boy had they grown so much they are the most adorable babies full of looks of wonderment. I have to say they are some of the most content children I have seen they enjoyed being surrounded by people. In my previous update I posted the pictures for the girls quilts which unbeknown to me I did in their colors (Gods work on that one, but I also decided I would tackle a sundress. Now I am still a novice at sewing, but I thought how hard could it be to make a simple sundress I soon learned. I spent a weekend making them only to mess them up I gave up hope that they could be saved until I spoke with my sister. With the help of my sister who taught me the importance of not sewing everything up until you make a facing (which was something new to me), snaps, zipper and such. We spent Friday working on fixing them and I hope they fit them if not I will try again this time with...

OK I am so happy it came out right. Friends of mine have triplets and it is their first birthday coming up so I decided to try my hand at making them each a quilt along with other stuff. I have made both the girls a doll quilt and will be making the boys tomorrow and will have additional photos of the finished project. It has been so much fun getting back to sewing after my hiatus. So without further ado..... Front of quilt: Back of quilt: Front of other quilt: Back of other quilt: I am also getting to the TUTU's soon

Growing up I lived for the summers it was a time that I was able to go see my grandparents in Shreveport, Louisiana. Both my parents where born and raised in Shreveport it was where Elvis Presley started his career on the Louisiana Hayride, birthplace of Terry Bradshaw and home to the Louisiana Fair. My father told me stories many stories of listening to a young man by the name of Elvis play at on the Louisiana Hayride or why my aunt was a Steelers’ fan because of the hometown boy. This is the place I would visit almost every summer, during the fair and on occasion holidays at the time it was a sleepy city with one college there to me a city with less than 4 million people was sleepy. I still remember packing the station wagon the night before we left to be woken up at 5 in the morning while it was still dark, climbing into the back of the wagon to the comfort of the pallet of blankets awaiting me. There were no such things as potty breaks you if you had to go dad would pull over an...

I remember as a young girl in the 70’s that we did not have the cool toys they have today. We would spend hours make believe with nothing more than a large refrigerator box, blanket and a picnic basket making it our house, space ship, theater or school. My mother had old school desk that ranged from 2 from the 30’s or 40’s and one that was from the early 60’s I bet they where a garage sale purchase, but I would ask my neighborhood friends over and we would play school. I had a huge playhouse in the backyard with a chalkboard we would keep our school supplies and the library had wonderful book sales that we could get school books. Those where the day that imagination was abundant we had little TV, no computers, and everyone in the neighborhood. I am sadden that there is a whole generation that was left behind when it came to imagination they are the generation that was in dated with x-box, Nintendo, computers, iPods’ etc. I am guilty of this because my son is that geek. We did a lot...

Sorry been awhile since I updated, but with my arm being shot for over a week I finally have time and both hands to type. I had tendinitis in my rotator cup and with a week of steroids it is back to normal which I am happy about because I don’t know how much longer I could wash my hair with one hand. The heat here is making me crazy we haven’t seen a good rain since May along with over 1 of temps in the 100’s the fourth is going to be hot. So my plans are to spend it with family and friends watching the fireworks from Downtown Houston then spending the rest of the time pool side at my friend’s apartments. My hubby informed me the figs on the tree where ready to be picked and since the bugs are not as bad I needed to pick them. So today I took my blue bucket to pick them to make Fig Jam and Fig and Strawberry Jam this is my first time to make jam so cross my fingers I did it right. I can’t wait for the grapes to ripen so we can make wine also a first for me. Our neighbors where swe...

Age maybe a state of mind, but most of the time the body is a rebellious teenager. please excuse the all lower caps my arm is in a sling and i am typing with one finger. two days ago my left arm at the shoulder began to hurt like i slept on it wrong, the first night i slept OK, the next morning it was hurting a little more. i took more alieve and Advil then i should have nothing stopped the pain leading me to the 24 hour Walgreen's at midnight. i called the Dr this morning but couldn't get in to see him until Monday. long story short, i went to the emergency clinic near work because of the pain was told it looks like tendinitis or something arthritic. so pain killers, naproxin and a sling i will get some sleep and Monday i will know for sure. my sister always said after 40 you roll down the hill. So i may be off grid for a few days, but with the meds and father's day in the country all will be right in the world.

From album Meet Marcel a stray that found his way to our house last week. We figure he is around 8 weeks old and he is quite the fun little creature. David said he looked like a mime so I decide his name should be Marcel as in famous mime Marcel Marceau since his paws are all perfectly line up the same. We have decided to add him to our group of toads, slugs, fish and though the other two cats are not quite happy with us soon they will love him as much as we do. This is the first kitten I have every had my father hated cats so I did not grow up with them.

I was lucky enough to participate in a Spring Swap and late in May I received my package from the wonderful Chez Vies in India. Her package was thoughtfully wrapped and when I opened it was floored by what it contained. My hubby was amazed at the beautiful detail in the ribbon embroidery along with the most exquisite ribbons. I have placed it on my wall in the place of honor so that I may look at it for inspiration Thank you again. Sorry I was so late in posting this but now I am able to breath again. Look out for all the WIP because my summer is free.

Well he did it he graduated this Saturday and I am one happy mother. I never thought I would become so emotional but there I was crying, screaming and jumping up and down as he stepped across the stage. His class graduated 530 students, poor Will was the next to the last row so we had plenty of time to step out to smoke or bathroom breaks without missing a thing. He walked into the arena looking up trying to find the family I thought only later to find out he was looking for a former Texas A&M player’s jersey. We had to drive 78 miles to get him to Reed Arena in College Station on the A&M campus; they have graduated Tomball Seniors along with Magnolia seniors there forever since we are still considered a small town. He had a great party my beautiful sister used her Cricut to make his decorations (I will take pictures of what we have) making sure that when he arrived at her house that the front yard was full of posters with his pictures on it. She slaved in the kitchen to m...