Hello Friends!
My computer is working again and I am very glad for that, but so sad that I didn't get my matchbox pictures up on the days.  I can't seeem to get my pictures loaded on my computer, but now that I can e-mail, I have A LOT of thank yous to send to all the wonderful matchbox Christmas ornament makers that I was lucky enough to receive treasures from!  That's is what I'll work on this weekend.  And, a HUGE task, is going to be organizing my sewing room.  I seem to be forever working on that. 

Annabelle, Zoey and my Dear Hubby are having a quiet New Year's Eve with me.  We had a party to go to, but it is so foggy out that we decided it would be safer to stay home.  

I am not one for making new year resolutions, but I have been thinking about what I'd like to accomplish in 2011.  I have been inspired by a few blogs I have read today and also by taking a look at what I need to improve upon in my own life.   I do love that a new year is here, fresh and new, and that I can begin the new year with a hopeful heart.    I have so much to be thankful for, including my family and friends.  And also Annabelle and Zoey!!  I thank God for each and every day that Annabelle is with us!   She has a spunky spirit and is so full of love and I know that it is only by God's Grace that I have been blessed with her for so much longer that we expected!   Right now, Zoey and Annabelle are sleeping away and their beautiful snores are a reminder that God is so loving and does care about the little details in our lives.   God knew just what I needed when Gracie Anne passed up almost three years ago now, and with a new year just a couple of hours away, I am reminded that He loves me enough to take me through anything that comes my way this year.

I hope that your new year will be a very good one and that it will be filled with peace, love and friends.

A little behind!

Hello Friends!   Computer problems abound, but now are fixed!!   I couldn't get my pictures to load up.  I will be getting caught up on my pictures and thank yous this weekend!   :) 

On the 3rd Day of Christmas Paris came to me..........

Good Morning, Friends!!
I am having so much fun with my matchbox swap!!  Today's creation is from Marcia Chunn from Colorado!  She turned the matchbox into a house!! It is so sweet with Santa and the front with two Christmas trees and a red bird on top of the house, a french hen for the 3rd day of Christmas, perhaps?! :)  .  The gift inside is stamped with Paris Noel and a Crown!!  I love princess crowns and there is one at the top of my blogspot, so I was especially excited to see that!!  So lovely!!  Thank you so much Marcia!  Bop on over to Marica's blog at vintagefrenchhen.blogspot.com.     Here are pictures for you to see............................

On the 2nd day of Christmas, another angel for my tree!

Hello Friends!
I got a late start today, so I am sorry this wasn't posted this morning.
Today's matchbox is so lovely! It came all the way from Kansas.  Patty Powell is the sweetie that made it for me.  Her blog is bloominginkansas.blogspot.com.  I'll be hopping over there soon, so hop on over too!  The matchbox is an angel made from fabric and on the inside is a sweet victorian girl with s snowball in her hand.  Beautiful!  The gift is a pink hair pin with a yo-yo!  And that is perfect, since pink is the most wonderful color of all!!  Thank you so much Patty!!  :) 

I will be away this weekend, but hope to have internet access so I can post Saturday's matchbox.  But, if i don't, I'll post it on Sunday when I get back.

December 1, First Matchbox from our swap

Good Morning Friends!
Each day until December 25th, I'll be posting a matchbox I received in our matchbox swap.  We took ordinary matchboxes and turned them into beautiful ornaments to share!  This Angelic Beauty is from Mary Pernula in Washington!  Thanks, Mary!  I'll be hopping over to your blog soon! How fitting that an angel is the first one I get to hang up!  The gift inside is a cute santa ornament, which you can see above the matchbox!  All my matchboxes will be hung on my pink Christmas tree!  Enjoy!!

A Quilt in Pinks, Bulldogs at my side and the ocean...pure bliss!!!!

Hello Friends!Not sure anyone is out there, but just in case, I thought I'd update!  Well, I did go to Mexico and had a great time,but I ended up sick as the dickens for three weeks after I got home!  I missed another week of work after my vacation. Now, I know people who have been sick with worse things, but you're sick, you're sick, no matter what it is.  So, I got back home and eased back into life. I have to say, I will not be going to Mexico anytime in the near or far future!   I loved being at the ocean for a while, but I think I will find a different place to enjoy the ocean next time!But, there's nothing like having my toes in the ocean sand!! 

Annabelle, above, and Zoey, below, are still cute as ever!  Annabelle had pretty bad seizure attack a few weeks ago and was in the hosptial for a couple of days.  We are working on adjusting her meds and just thankful for each day God blesses us with her!  

I joined a Christmas Altered Matchbox Swap and here is a peek at the matchboxes I made.  I will be getting 25 matchboxes from other swappers and from December 1 to 25th, I'll be putting a picture on my blog each day!
Till next time.................:)

Getting Ready for the Ocean and A little time at The Quilt Expo

Hello Friends!!
In two weeks from tomorrow, I am going to an all inclusive resort near Cancun with 5 girlfriends!!  I am SO excited, because I think I would have made a great mermaid!  I love the ocean SO much!   But, I am a VERY VERY fair skinned mermaid and burn easily!  So.....I bought a new sun hat for the trip!  It is a really big floppy one and it is PINK!!!  It goes perfectly with my  a beach bag I already had.   What do you think?  I decided that I really need to be careful not to burn, when a friend of mine asked me if I had even seen the sun this summer!  That's how un-tan I am!  What do you think of my hat?

Each year, we have a big Quilt Expo and tons of vendors from all over the country come to display their quilty things!  I actually didn't buy too much,which was a first for me.  And I did not buy anything pink!  Can you believe it!?!?!   I already have tons of pink, so I went outside of my comfort zone and went to purple!!
This will be a beautiful quilt, when I get around to making it!  I have a couple of friends coming over tomorrow for a show and tell of what treasures we all found at the expo!  Here's a little picture of my fabric

And I think you probably want to see Annabelle and Zoey, so here is a little picture!  Annabelle likes to hide behind the curtains and make Zoey find her!

Oh,one more thing!  Thanks for leaving comments for me!  I read them all, but I am not sure if I am supposed to e-mail back and tell you that I have read them or not.  Does that clog up your e-mails?  I am not sure about blogging ettiquite yet, but don't want to be rude either!  I wish there was a blog on that! :)  

Have a wonderful weekend! 

Annabelle, the Naughty Crafter

Hello!
Annabelle decided she wanted to make somthing out of fabric and ribbon!  I knew I should have put things up!  I used the fabric and ribbon for my Crafty Goodness swap partner's box of goodies!  She should get it soon! :)

Now Annabelle is tired!  Being naughty really takes a lot out of a bulldog!

I am off to my sewing room!  Thanks for stopping by!

A birthday, a sewn bag and a bulldog pillow!!

Hello Friends!
I have to show you a pillow I received today from the "Crafty Goodiness" Swap I am in!  It is SO beautiful! It was made by, Jessica, who did an amazing job!! She took pictures from my blog and made them into a pillow!!  SO talented!!

 Also, I made a bag tonight, with the help of my friend, Cary! 

My dear hubby's birthday was last weekend and we had super-fun football party for him! 

My friend, Steph, came over last Friday night to sew and I actually sewed!  Well, I talked a lot too, but I did manage to get some blocks done too!  These are in fairy frosts and eventually will be the center of a butterfly quilt! :)  I not sure why my picture is sideways, but you get the idea! Lots of frosty pastels!  And who is that sweetie pie in the background? Why that is Annabelle Mae Linde!!  PRECIOUS!!  Zoey is currently sleeping, so she missed the photo op!

I am hoping to get better about blogging a little more often!  Thanks to all of you who pop in from time to time!
Good night!! :)

sisters, sewing and a pen-pal swap

Hello Friends!
It has been TOO long!  August has been a busy, but fun month!  This past weekend I was at my sister's cabing for a sister weekend and we had so much fun floating on floats in the lake, talking girl talk and just having fun!   My hubby's birthday is this weekend, so I am busy getting ready for that.  And I am going to be sewing Friday night with a friend!  FINALLY!  Some time to sit and sew.  I have finally found my camera and will take a picture of the georgeous fabric that I am working with!  Lots of sparkly pastel colors!

I am in a super fun pen-pal swap where we swap letter. My pal is Carrie from California and I received a beautiful hand made postcard from her today!  I'll get a picture of that on here too! 

Take care! :)

I am back!!

Hello Friends!!
I am here! It has been a VERY busy July.  I have lots to update, but it has been a long day, so off to bed I go! :)  More tomorrow!

What do you think? Isn't this beautiful?!

Hello Friends!!

I am SO SO SO excited to share my new page with you!!  Michelle did such a beautiful job!  She managed to pull all of things I told her that I like together.  Did you notice the pink bulldog in the center at the top of my page?  And the sewing things along with the ocean shells and sand dollars?  She got it all!! 

I hope you will enjoy visiting me and seeing what I am up to now and then. I seem to have lots about my bullies and not too much about my sewing,so I will be getting a few more sewing related posts out there too!

I have just finished a "Vintage Vacation Swap" and as soon as I locate my camera, I will put some pictures out there!

Until next time............:)

My new look is almost here!

Hello Friends!
My new page is almost ready to go!  It'll be so pretty and I can't wait for you all to see it! Michelle, from Shabby Creations, has been helping me navigate the waters of blogspots.  She has been so patient and has really helped me learn alot.

I'll still have pictures of Zoey and Annabelle and that was pretty important to me! 

So.....................in  a couple of days, it will all look different and so beautiful!

Hope you have a wonderful week!

Happy 4th of July

Hello Friends!
I hope all of you are enjoying your 4th.  It is a good time to remember how lucky we are to have the freedoms that we enjoy.

Annabelle has been doing well with no further seizures.  That has been a total answer to prayer.  Thank you all for your prayers and wishes.  She is sitting on my lap now, while my legs slowly go numb!  Small price to pay for the joy she gives me! 

Zoey is doing good herself!  She is asleep on the couch with her Daddy and is looking SO cute!

I have been doing a little crafting and sewing and that has been fun!  I need to get my sewing room in order again. How do I manage to get it clean one minute and messy the next?  Must be all that creativity!! :) 
Here is a picture of Zoey when she first discovered her love of flowers, like her Mom!

Take care!

Crazy June, Annabelle and my new look

Good Saturday Morning, Friends!
How does life get so crazy?  WOW!  I went on vacation for a week, had a great time, then spent 4 days in bed with a horrible migraine, went back to work for a day, then out of town for a conference for three days, back home for 12 hours, then off to a quilt retreat for the weekend, back home for a day and then Annabelle had several seizures and she spent a couple of days at the University of Wisconsin Vet hospital and I was a wreck!  She is better now and we are in the midst of working with the docs to see what the best thing to do for her is in terms of medications.  She had a "special" heart that doesn't work properly, so that complicates things too. We knew this when we brought her home two years ago, but I had already fallen in love with her via e-mail pictures, so no way was I leaving her with the breeder. I don't think anyone else would have taken her and she was already in my heart. So, we decided to get Zoey, too, so that Annabelle would have a familiar friend with her at her new home. So they are really twins, who don't look alike at all!  Two years later Annabelle is still with us, though the breeder didn't think we'd have her for two months.  SO glad she was wrong.  Anyway, this has been a CRAZY month!  I joined a "Vintage Vacation" swap and it is a lot of fun collecting things for my new friends! :)

I hope you all have a great weekend!  I am still working on my new look, but haven't had a chance to connect with Michelle to get it finished.   I need a little special help, because I know NOTHING about computers or the blog world. I am luck to get a post posted!

Take care!  Love and big hug,
Shannon :)

Back from vacation

Hi Everyone!!

I am back from vacation as of last Saturday and other than being pretty sick for four days, it was great!  We all had a wonderful time and our 15 year anniversary was perfect!  Annabelle and Zoey had fun too!  They had their first trip to the "lake beach" and I should have pictures soon!  They are just so cute!

I am now sewing with a few friends this weekend and having a blast!  I am working on a butterfly quilt and a Gingerbread applique quilt!

Hope you all are having a great weekend!

Shannon :)

A few days away

Good Morning Friends!

We are going on a little trip today!  I don't know how I am going to make it for a week without two things. My sewing  machine and my lap top!  My precious husband, Paul, says I can't take it with me, but I am going to try to sneak it in somehow.  Then, when I am catching up with my friends in blog land, he can watch one of his movies! That is a good compromise, don't you think?

I have packed many quilting magazines and a couple of quilting books!  I have even tucked in a kit that I want to work on. I figure that I can work on getting the fabrics organized. That way I'll still have a few quilty things with me!  

Annabelle and Zoey are ready for the trip too!  I bought Zoey a new swimsuit and Annabelle has a cute cover up for when we are on the beach.  She is white and can burn,so I have to be extra careful with her!

I say "beach", but it is not the ocean beach.  We are going to Door County, Wisconsin which is the "thumb" of Wisconsin when you look on the map.  We have a house rented right on Lake Michigan, which is as close to the ocean as I can get.  There are big waves that come in, so the sound is beautiful!

We have a friend who is staying at our house for the week, so all my flowers will get watered!  I'll post a picture when I get back. My front porch flowers are growing so fast!

Take care everyone and have safe Memorial Day Weekend!

Love,
Shannon :)

Zoey, Checking out my fabrics!

A little view of Zoey's face.  Isn't she precious? :)

So, these are the two bulldogs who are at my side when I am sewing!  Sometimes they play quietly and other times they like to "help" me with my fabrics, thread un-winding, placement of my blocks by sometimes moving them around for me! 

I think I am getting a little better idea of this whole blogging world, so little by little, I'll get better! Oh and soon I'll have a whole new look on my page. I just have to make a few more decisions as to how I want it to look.   Thanks to Michelle at Shabby Creations. She is awesome and is able to take what I can't really explain and put it on my blog page!  The sample she sent me is SO beautiful and I just know you will like it too!  She is fantastic!

That's it for tonight.  Shannon :)

Hot Dog!!My first picture! Annabelle by side, sewing!

This is Annabelle!!  I just figured out how to add a picture!   She is two years old and such a sweetie! She likes to sit in her own chair, across from me, while I sew!  What a honey bun she is! 

Rainy Day and A little sewing

Hello Friends!!

We had a late afternoon storm roll in and the sky is SO dark!  I am not a lover of storms at all and it broke out right when I was driving home!  Goodness gracious!  I was happy to get into my garage!  We have a little bird building a nest in our garage and I don't have the heart to tear it down.   She was so cute sitting up in her nest!  When I get a little better at blogging, I'll post a picture of her. 

Anyway, the storm is passing, so I am going to head up to my sewing room and get a little sewing done.  I am going to start on a tote bag for a swap I am in. 

I hope you all had a great Tuesday!   :)
Shannon

The weekend

Good Evening!!  This weekend has flown by!  My friends and I bowled on Friday Night for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Fund, in honor of our dear friend, Tracie.  Tracie was so brave for 6 years and the Lord called her Home a few months ago.  We miss her dearly, but know that she is dancing on Streets of Gold and in no pain at all.   We had the colorful hats she wore with us Friday night and wore them too.  It was a special night for all of us.

On Saturday, I drove a couple of hours southeast to spend a few hours scrapbooking with my friend Wendy.  We had a lot of fun and I was able to get a few pages done.   Wendy will be having a baby in September, so that was great news to hear!!

I am working on a signature block exchange and have all the blocks sewn up and now I am working on what I will put in the center.   I am thinking butterflies!

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

Pink hugs,
Shannon :)

A new look is coming!

Hello to anyone out there who sees this!  I don't think there are many! :)   My blogspot will be getting a new look, thanks to  Michele at Shabby Creations!    I know you'll love it!  I have a couple more things to think about before it is ready!   I have been doing a little sewing and a lot of playing with Annabelle and Zoey!   I did manage to get my flowers planted in between!   Until next post...................take care!
Shannon :)

Happy Mother's Day to you all! And my very first follower!

Hello There! :O)   I just had the most wonderful Mother's Day with my mom and my Mother In Law. I am SO lucky to have them both in my life!  I made brunch for all of us, including my husband and Father in Law, our two bulldogs and my in-laws bulldog too!  Quite a full house, but a VERY fun full house!  We had a wonderful time!! :)  Happy Mother's Day to you all!

 I see I have my very first follower! Sherry is having what sounds like a super fun paper bag swap and if I could figure out how to link you to her, I sure would, but alas, I am still learing how to blog!  But, I think if you click on the cute little fairy in my "followers" list, you will find her!

Enjoy the rest of Mother's Day!  Love, Shannon

Just Learning how to blog!

Good Morning!  I am trying to learn more about blogging, how to post and especially how to post pictures.  The weather is dreary today and I am hoping to get out and by some flowers to cheer up the day!  I am working on a signature block swap I am in and need to get finishing a quilt top! 

When I figure add pictures here, I will post a few! 

My first post

Just testing to see if this post works! :)