Turning 3 Dresses into 8 Pillows!

 

A few weeks ago our neighbor asked me to make pillows out of some of her 'old' bridesmaids dresses. Above are the 3 dresses that I had to work with.  She had ideas of what she wanted and some pictures, which really helped me know what she liked. :-)

 The bodice of the red dress had this lovely beading on the front, part of which ended up....

 ...on the front one of the pillows!

 These are two pillows made from the red dress...

..and 2 pillows made from the red and cream dresses.

 

 The 4 pillows from the blue and the cream dresses.

 Close up of one pillow.

 And here is a close up of the dress where the blue fabric came from.

It was a lot of work and took longer than I thought it would, but it was fun to be creative and come up with different designs. :)

Please Pray

Reposted from Stacy McDonald at LAF:

"Please pray for LAF writer, Kelly Crawford, and author of Generation Cedar. She and her family lost their home, outbuildings, and vehicles in yesterday’s tornadoes. They (and 4 neighboring families) sought refuge in the Crawford’s basement. One of these families – a family with 13 children - lost their husband/father in the storm. Kelly’s husband pulled them out of the rubble; and at this point, I understand some are badly injured.

I am getting regular updates, but last I heard, rescue workers were not able to get to them. Please pray they get relief soon. Also, Kelly gave birth to a baby earlier this month, so please pray for an extra measure of grace and protection for her as she ministers to her family and neighbors.

Again, Kelly and her family are safe. Praise God He spared their lives. Please pray for provision and peace for all involved. And please remember the precious wife and 13 children who woke this morning without a husband and father, and without a place to live.

I will update you as I get new information."

Edited to add:
An update on the family with 13 children can be read HERE.
More about the Crawford family HERE.

Resurrection Sunday!

"How deep the fathers love for us! 

How vast beyond all measure, 

That He should give His only Son,

To make a wretch His treasure! 

How can I gain from His reward? 

I cannot give an answer, 

These wounds born by the chosen One, 

Bring many sons to glory!" 

- Stuart Townend

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

 Sunday we made the long drive down to Grandma W.'s home.

The frost is really making a mess of out gravel road. It makes driving an adventure!

 Waiting for lunch...and Uncle Rob, who was bringing the ham. :)

After eating, visiting and cleaning up we all went for a walk.

 John helping Aunt Shelly with her shoes. :) 
(She sliced her fingers when making the scalloped potatoes and couldn't tie her shoes with one hand.)

 Uncle David, Dad, and Uncle Rob.

We walked up to the apartment building that Grandma is thinking of moving to.

Smile!

It was a beautiful day for a walk!  Uncle Chuck said we went 2.3 miles.

Lemon Sherbet

 I made this the other day and it was delicious!

Lemon Sherbet Recipe:

1/2 cup (120 ml) of lemon juice (2 - 3 large lemons)

Zest* of 1 large lemon

1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup (120 ml) milk

1/3 cup (65 grams) superfine (castor) sugar  (Can use regular granulated white sugar that has been processed in the food processor for about 30 seconds)

Lemon Sherbet: In a measuring cup, stir together the lemon juice, lemon zest, cream, milk, and sugar. Taste and add more sugar if needed. Cover and place in the refrigerator to chill for several hours.

Once the mixture is thoroughly chilled, place in your ice cream machine and process according to the manufacturer's instructions. Once made, transfer to a chilled container and store in the freezer.

If you do not have an ice cream machine you can 'still' freeze the sherbet. Pour the mixture into an 8 inch (20 cm) or 9 inch (23 cm) stainless steel pan (will freeze faster in stainless steel), cover with plastic wrap, and place in the freezer for about four hours. Stir the mixture every half hour, to break up any large ice crystals that have formed. When the sherbet is firm (will not be rock hard) with a consistency somewhere between an ice cream and a sorbet, transfer the sherbet to a plastic container and place in the freezer.

I like to make the sherbet the day before serving to give the lemon flavors time to mellow.

Makes about 4 servings.

*Lemon Zest - The yellow outer rind of the lemon that contains the fruit's flavor and perfume.  The rind being the outer skin of the lemon which consists of both the yellow zest and white membrane (pith).

Read more: http://www.joyofbaking.com/LemonSherbet.html#ixzz1JiHNheVV

A Concert!

Sunday afternoon we all piled into the van and headed out to hear the Garms family, known as the Great Adventure Gospel band, give a concert in a country church about 40 minutes from us. We got there early (so as to secure seats!) and by the time the concert started the church was packed! :-) 

We've gone to their concerts for the past two years and always enjoy them so much!!

Caleb playing a guitar solo

Two of the things I especially appreciate about them is that they obviously enjoy performing together; making people smile and pointing them to Jesus, and the other is that they are so friendly, and enjoy talking with the people that come, before and after the concert.

Caleb and his Mom singing together.

Friends!

Caleb joins us... ;-)

Receive and Treasure

"My son, if you receive my words,

And treasure my commands within you,

So that you incline your ear to wisdom,

And apply your heart to understanding,

Yes, if you cry out for discernment,

And lift up your voice for understanding,

If you seek her as silver,

And search for her as for hidden treasures;

Then you will understand the fear of the Lord,

And find the knowledge of God."

Proverbs 2:1-5

An Unexpected Treat!

Northern Lights Gospel Quartet

On Monday I was doing childcare with a friend for a monthly Stonecroft Women's gathering. The male quartet that was going to sing came into the room we were using and wondered if they could practice in there. Of course we didn't mind, and we got to listen to them sing through both of their songs twice!! They were amazing!! I love 4 part harmony and this was a treat! :) 

The Final Auction...

...of the Roy Rogers Dale Evans Museum will be tomorrow, Saturday the 9th of April, in New Braunfels, TX . 

I was so sad when I found out the museum was going to close in 2009, since I'd wanted to visit is someday.  But, a friend told me that 'Trigger' and 'Bullet' are on display at the RFD Channel Theater in Branson.  So perhaps one day I'll get to see them! 

I enjoyed looking through the listings and seeing some of what had been at the museum. Here are a few of my favorites:

  You could bid on this shirt worn by Roy!

Roy and his son Dusty

To me this looks like the same shirt!

One of Dale's dresses.

Pictures of Dale in later years.

A silk ribbon quilt.

Framed bandana.

 A pair of Roy's cowboy boots.

 A large welcome mat from the museum (it's 69" X 47").

Movie poster.

 Toy guitars.

 Roy Rogers & Dale Evans Hartland Figures.

There were also dozens of guns, spurs and many of other things!  (Especially guns and spurs...)  ;)





Reverse Thinking

Signs of Spring!

Melting snow...

 

...goats outside enjoying the sun...

 

...and muddy roads! 

Quilt Show!

Lat Friday Mom and I went to a quilt show in a nearby town. Dad had found out about it and thought I'd like it.  He was right!  Below are just a few of the 100 pictures I took! =)

A display of old sewing machines.

:)

This is what I bought - a book of vintage sewing articles and patterns!

Miniature quilts...these were very small.  

It's hard to tell the size in this picture, but the one with the burgundy border is about 8x10".

A lovely wildflower applique quilt.

A log cabin quilt made to look like watermelon slices!

Of all the many quilts on display, I think this was one of the only ones that was hand quilted.  

(It is an antique one.)  

I thought this was really neat - the 'flowers' are made from neck ties!  

I think Id like to try this someday.

Here is a quilt with embroidered blocks - one for every state!  Ana is working on embroidering this same pattern so it was fun to see one all finished. 

Cute!

A western/cowboy quilt! 

I like all the different cowboy boots and how they made the spurs.

It really needs some Roy Roger/Trigger fabric though. ;)

Wool 'applique' and embroidery.

I love the colors in this quilt!

Examining a quilt pattern. :)

A "Fractal' quilt.  (A fractal is a geometric shape that can be split into its parts, each of which is a reduced-size copy of the whole.)

A teeny tiny 'Cathedral Window' quilt that was in the auction.

This is a clothespin holder that was also in the auction.

 I really enjoyed it the show and spending time with Mom!  

Now I have a lot of ideas of things to make! :)