B.O.O.K.S. and Time ~

Stars for April's BOM with Quilt Doodle Doodle

It sometimes is a challenge to juggle a balanced life. I think that is how to label the season I'm going through right now. There, how is that for being positive!  insert sarcasm :-}!  School has been a consuming work. Besides the lively group of students that I call mine, our school took on a new reading program which required all books to be given codes. 

I'll compare this to doing an inventory. It needed to be done this year so that the kids could know which books qualify and were at their tested reading level, 

and the testing could be activated by the fourth quarter.  That fourth quarter is here. Being the OCD person that I am, this has gone on for the last month, almost all free time. (Oh, that's where quilting, sewing, blogging time went!) I did ask for volunteers, and there was one of my former students that came for an afternoon and got the ball rolling. I asked him to please write down the step-by-step directions, and bless his heart, it was perfect.

Larry made the cute labels

 I've shared those steps with other teachers in my school, since it was such a daunting task! After that, I started pulling the books, 

 

 I see a Highlights in this pic, we didn't include any magazines in the count.

filling my wheeled carts, and hauling them home.   It was too much to try to spend the days at work, so bringing them home each day worked best, and then sweet daughter worked on it also. Lydia and I have worked and touched almost every book in my personal classroom collection, and I am pleased to see that there is more than 2500 books there!
The students are really enjoying the program, and I'm seeing great growth in the desire to read.

 

this is the tree for March BOM with Cindy of quilt Doodle Doodles,

and this is the April strip of stars. Both have been my little bit of sewing therapy for the last 6 weeks ~

Our Easter break is coming up, and I'm so-o ready!

"May the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus…perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you." 1 Peter 5:10

Hats for the School Christmas Musical!

 Sewing is always occurring, but projects are in various stages. Is that normal? Well, it seems to be for me!

 

These sweet hats were a project for the K, first, and second graders at my school. They are part of a penguin costume. Can you believe that 70 hats were made in one week?

Caught solid color fleece on a one day sale, great deal at $2.49 a yard! 
The "accent" prints were $6 bucks. After I figured out the first 2 hat measurements, there was two days of cutting the pieces.

These would be a quick and easy gift! I worked with 3 or 4 you tube videos, and then made my hats using these guides:

Main body of hat was cut 11 inches by 24 inches, the 24 inches are the stretch.  I was able to make 6 hats from one yard. 

Accent/brim piece is 6 inches by 24, again the long side being the stretchy side.

 

I took them to my Monday night quilting class, and did a quick demo for the class. Then my friend Debbie helped to sew the pieces into "tubes", both the body and the accent/brim parts...

 

 (we left about 2 1/2 inch opening on one end for the fringe, 

I liked that better so there wasn't a stiff piece of the pom pom)

and Kathy cut the threads and stacked the pieces so I could get it all back home. "I get by with a little help from my friends ~" sing along...

 It was fun to put the colors together! The mix I was going for was bold contrasts...made me think of Dr. Seuss....

  Here is the assembly. Fold the 6 inch accent in half, with the seam on the inside. Pin it to the wrong side -seam side- of the body part. Sew around to attach.

  This shows the accent flipped up, but not turned to the right side yet.

  This shows the accent/brim turned up, and now the seam you just made is hidden! I gave them a little steam at this point, half heat, the fleece will melt on cotton setting!

The fringe is cut at 2 to 3 inches, a little wider than 1/4 inch. Nothing like quilting, fleece is so forgiving!

I didn't take a picture from this point, but you need to take a big gathering stitch -1 inch stitches- just below the cut fringe. If you use a big needle and double thread, you can draw it up and tie it tight. 

The last step is to take 2 pieces of the front fringe, cross them over and then tie them in the back, bundling the fringe into the pom pom. This is where you might be glad you you cut the fringe more toward the 3 inches, cuz' those shorter fringe pieces barely reach around ~


Hey, let me know if you try these. I hope it is easy enough to understand!

These are some of my kiddos with their hat of choice. 
I usually take their picture and frame it for a Christmas gift to their folks. Some of the pictures didn't show the pom pom top, so this is just a few of the photos ~

Thank you to my praying friends. Larry came through the surgery well, and is on the mend. His Papa is coming for Christmas! We are hoping he feels great by then ~


I'll leave you with a picture and a link of what we had around here this past week, mm-mm, Sour Cream Cranberry Coffee Cake ~

"Now the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all."
 II Thessalonians 3 : 16

Vintage Topper for Kathy's Piano

The top is finished, I love it! Kathy does, too, I'm so glad.

 I took these photos at school, 

 

 ~ the pieced backing ~

and decided to share with you folks some of the paper rainbow mosaics we created this past week, 

celebrating March, Spring and St. Patrick's Day~

 ~ Washed and crinkly ~

Happy quilting!

 

"And I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened." Luke 11:9,10

Monday Progress, Or, Sewing in Spite of Daylight Saving Time ~

 

 

Shucks, I didn't get to go to my quilt class tonight, bummer.

But, I did get to make some blocks for Block Lotto this month (I feel like a slacker, it has been several months since I last participated!).

Look how the "design wall" filled out this weekend! There are 5 rows of the "wiggly whimsy" together, but not assembled...

...or would you say, the rows are assembled, but not sewn together? 

Are we all confused, lol? 

 If you are confused, maybe its because of suffering from the time change. 

Oh, I really miss the sleep that one stolen hour brings! I think it is silly how much it affects some of us, but the kids came into class draggin', grumpy, tired, and complaining...or maybe that was just me :-}

Cute question was, "Mrs. Davis, just what did they do with the hour they took away?"

 

Oh well, in a week or so, we will all be back into the swing of things, right? 
Until then, keep sewing!

"Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the LORD He is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else." Deuteronomy 4:39

Happy October, On to November!

 This month has found us more with church and school than with sewing. It is the 33rd Anniversary of Lighthouse Baptist Church, and we are in a building program for a new gym, classrooms and offices. Larry designed the church and school logo, and we are going to see large versions of the Lighthouse and of the lion in the gym-pretty cool, huh? We have been members here for 29 years!

Last Saturday found Larry and I with parent helpers, running a cake walk and cupcake decorating booth at a fall festival for the second graders (my class) of West Covina Christian School.  I had baked cakes at home Thursday night, 

and with my students on Friday morning. Then, the students and I frosted and decorated 24 cakes in 8"square pans. 

 Yes, I made a couple of these, and they were the first to go! 

No, I don't have a picture of mine, this is the one I copied from Betty Crocker ~

 We sold them or had them for prizes on the cake walk Saturday, along with 10 dozen cupcakes (Mommies baked these for us) that the guests paid to come decorate.  it was a bit slow, but come to find out, our booth did better than most, with over $200 profit! We are trying to raise the money for a classroom computer to use with our newly installed classroom camera. 

I was able to already purchase a document camera! The kids call it a ladybug (because it's my favorite color, RED) and we can focus on a book page and read it together on a screen!

 

~ Right now, this is what I'm busy with--1st quarter report cards ~

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This is my pomegranate jelly, waiting to be Christmas presents.

 

 It turned out Yum!

 

And it is such a pretty color. It is my first time to make pomegranate jelly. Lydia remembers my strawberry freezer jam growing up, but I bet it's been 10 years ago since my last batch....

  ~ Okay, we didn't wait for Christmas on all of it ~

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This is the progress on Harmony Grace's quilt. The blocks are sewn together, and the word print is where I'll sew her name down. Just looking for the time. 

Oh, I've quilted another I Spy I'll share next time ~

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Friday was the field trip to Riley's Farm, remember me sharing about it last year? Well, my kids went again this year and really enjoyed it. I was not able to go. As I left school, I was in a car accident, and my vehicle was demolished. -insert big sigh here- I was uninjured, the young couple in the other car were okay, too. I called on ahead and made sure the kids would be fine. (Out of my class of 24, there were 22 adults attending with them, plus 3 other parents that are teachers!) Needless to say, the day did not go as I planned. Hopefully, we'll get the car stuff worked out in the next couple of weeks.

 "And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong." 2 Corinthians 12:9-10