Cuckoo Buds 3 Column

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Spring is Coming Soon

I am so ready for Spring to arrive!  It's been a very cold and rainy Winter, and I can hardly wait for warmer weather, sunny days, walking the neighborhood and just generally getting back in to the swing of things.  I feel so much better when the weather isn't so chilly and damp!

It looks like the temperatures and real feels will be above freezing now, so we'll be taking off the plant blankets and get ready for Spring plantings.  We had our two planting areas filled with a soil amendment as well as the small green house and rototilled.  This year we want to remove some of the lawn areas and plant our citrus trees.  We've been babying them for four years now and we finally have fruit on the Mandarin Orange and Meyer Lemon trees.  The lime and two other orange trees haven't produced yet, hoping this year.  But, when we plant them in the ground, we will need to make a tent structure to cover them during the cold winters.  They are all dwarf trees and we plan on them staying under 8' or so high.  We may also put in a second, and bigger, green house.  It's easy to talk about what we want to do and harder to get them up! 

I can hardly believe my blog will be 2 years old this month.  I do plan to utilize this more this year and start getting photos up.  There's always so much to do and it's easy to forget writing here!


I'm finishing Lavender/Rice Comfort Packs for my mom.  Sending two large and two small ones.  They will help her achy bones and muscles.  She, like many of our elderly parents, suffers with arthritis all over.  She also has spinal problems and some bionic parts (knee and hip replacements) and has many aches and pains.


Also, still working on the Hexagon Afghan.  It's coming along beautifully!  I've used so many left over yarns!  Actually, like many of you, I save anything over about a yard long, rolled into balls of various sizes.  I really find it hard to believe I am almost depleted of left over yarns and will be using only full sized skeins to finish it up!  There are already over 40 different colors I've used in this afghan!  I counted today how many I have and how many will be needed for the bedspread - I've completed 134 and will need 195, so 61 to go.  My sweetie told me, "you'll have that done in no time!"  He's great and always positive in my hobbies!



Other craft items - well, cards, of course for all of the special days - Birthdays, Anniversaries, Valentine's Day, Get Well - all of the everyday events.  The Comfort Packs, my first Sock Monkey (I'll talk about him another post in a couple of weeks with a photo),  a few pin cushions, the Hexagon Afghan, and many different little things.  I need to get the new serger and sewing machine out and begin working with them.  I want to make some new table place mats and I think the serger will be perfect for this project!  Fun, fun, fun!


I had the chance to spend a whole week with my little ones.  They are growing so quickly.  My little Lisey is sewing her first project, all by hand.  She received an American Girl Stuffed Animal project and I taught her all of the hand sewing stitches.  She was doing a great job.  She is very detailed oriented and everything has to be just perfect, so these types of projects will be perfect for her.  I think she would really enjoy embroidery, too.  That's another art that is very detailed.


I was so blessed to win two different giveaways on two different blogs!  One from Monique Griffith Designs, a beautiful layout kit for my Cricut, and a copy of the first Cricut Magazine from Creative Critters Cricut Club!  Two different contests!  What a blessing!  When I finish the layout, I will post it.  It is just perfect as it is one of children in the garden and I have the perfect pictures of my all of my grandchildren at different times throughout the last couple of years that will fit on this wonderful layout!  I would love to share it!


I'm also going to try my hand at sourdough bread!  Both of my sons are making these beautiful and tasty works of art.  One gave me some starter which is growing beautifully in my fridge!  I have my ingredients coming from King Aurthur Flour, then I'm good to go!  I just hope there aren't too many pounds attached to this bread!


My Fibromyalgia has been really acting up.  This flare is going on two weeks now and is the worst one of the year so far.  I'm going to start a second blog on my fibro journey.  It's a very misunderstood disease.  And, until you are diagnosed and understand what this monster is, you start to wonder if you are crazy and a hypochondriac.  It's horrible and debilitating, and if I can help just one person figure out what this monster is in their life, I will feel blessed.  When I first read an article about fibro, I sat down and cried - I cried because I was relieved, I realized I wasn't crazy. 


On a lighter note - I wish you all a wonderful Spring!  May your gardens be free of weeds and grow only beautiful flowers!  May all of your projects come out the way you want them too! 

Be happy, be blessed, and a blessing to others!
Donna

2 comments:

  1. Hi Donna, Happy spring to you! It sounds as if you are keeping really realy busy - how lovely that you are able to do stuff with your grandchildren - mine love to make cards with me (well, the 6 year old does, the three year old just likes squirting glitter!). Hope your bout of fibrom is subsiding now, perhaps warmer weather will help?
    hugs
    Enfys

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  2. Hello new friend. I'm so glad you stopped by my blog. I look forward to seeing and hearing more about all these wonderful projects you have going on. I also wanted to tell you about another blogging buddy that suffers from Fibro. Her name is Karen and she is at
    karens-kakes-krafts.blogspot.com. You should check her out. "See" you soon.

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