If you are still looking for me, I am over here now….

Please update your Bloglines, Google Reader, Feedburner, etc. This blog will stay “open” and serve as my archives, but all the new content will be at http://mermaids103.blogspot.com

See you there!

In case you are wondering where I am, look here. I can’t say I am in love with Blogger. There are some things that WordPress does better.

Hi Folks,
The transition to Blogger has begun. I posted photos and details of my Mood jacket here.

Thanks for reading!!

No, we did not buy a new house.  We love our house.  We love our neighborhood.  We love our schools.  The town is a little on the “meh” side, but you can’t have everything.  Oh… the moving thing…

After much (ok, some) soul searching, I have decided to move blog over to Blogger.  Google now runs about 99% of my life… Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs, Google Voice, Google Maps, etc, etc.  It seems only appropriate that my blog join the party over there.  Blogger can do some things that I don’t feel like trying to figure out on WordPress.  Yes, I am lazy and don’t want to write my own code.  Blogger also plays much more nicely with my Blackberry than WordPress does.  I waited and tried out the new WordPress apps for Blackberry.  Not entirely impressed and not willing to wait the updates and upgrades.  Not only am I lazy, I am also impatient. 

Until I can figure out how to import my 700+ posts to Blogger, the blog will serve as my “archives.”  (Because we all know that future generations will want to read all about my sewing projects and my fascinating life.)  I will try to remember to post a link here to new posts on Blogger for a while, sort of like leaving a forwarding address. 

Who knows… after a few weeks, I may decide I hate Blogger and come back.  In addition to lazy and impatient, I can also be terribly fickle.   If something is not working for me, I have no problem cutting bait and taking myself down to the next fishing hole.  (When did I get so folksy?  hmmm)  Let’s blame it on a very long day and very little sleep. 

There was no sewing today because my neighbor and I decided to take a road trip to Ikea.  We left before any of our teenagers were awake.  I really wanted fabric to recover some ottomans for the family.  Alas, nothing would quite work.  However, we did not leave empty handed. 

I found this great lamp for the area near the boys’ computer desk.  I bought the nickel finished one and she bought a red one.  We only had those giant yellow bags because we did not plan to buy too much. (Silly, I know.)  We asked Roger, the nice guy in the lighting department, what was the easiest route to get a cart.  Roger, being the nice guy that he is, went to get a cart for us.  You don’t get that kind of service too many places. 

The kitchen gadget section was our most successful area.  I picked up some new glassware and some fabulous little bowls.  She bought things for actual cooking since she actually cooks. 

This nifty little set of drawers is now sitting at the back of the desk area in the kitchen.  It is the new home for the eleventy million different chargers we have for cell phones, mp3 players, hand held gaming devices, etc.  I tried a basket but the cords would get tangled.  The boys have their own drawers for their chargers.  If they can deal with tangled cords, I really don’t care if they just shove them in the drawer.  I don’t have to see them or deal with them.  The cords on my chargers get wound up and tied neatly before they go in *my* drawer.  One drawer is still empty.  Room to grow.  At some point, I might paint it. 

Of course, we had Swedish meatballs for lunch.  It was a fun day, but we can have fun at Sam’s Club.  One day, I might share that story.  My friend and I may never be able to look at guacamole without laughing. 

Wii Sports Resort was a gift for C’s birthday.  It quickly became obvious that it is really a gift for the whole family.  I am not a gamer, but this one is fun.  The Swordplay is awesome.  Hubski and the boys were a little alarmed at my vigorous attack of my opponent.  Wailing on him with my “sword” was awesome.  Hmmm, might have to look for a fencing class in town. 

Thus far, I have mostly observed.  We only have one WiiMotion controller.  Silly me should have thought to order at least one extra when I ordered the game.  I do like the more active nature of some Wii games.  I definitely like that there are fun games that are not centered around blowing things up or killing something.  However, I do not like all of the “accessories” that one must buy to play some of the games.  Of course, you can’t have just one controller or accessory.  Playing against someone is a big part of the fun.  The game was $45, including one controller.  Extra WiiMotion controllers are $20 each.  It quickly adds up. 

The good news is this game will get used often.  It is not a passive game.  The boys will not be glued to the sofa while playing.  I suspect when we get the second controller and they can play against each other, they will work up quite a sweat.  I might even join in from time to time. 

It is always a good day when the UPS delivers a big box of fabric.  Today’s delivery had a little surprise tucked away. 

My neighbor’s daughter (MND) loves shopping at Forever 21.  The styles are very current and a bit funky.  The price point is perfect for someone who works part time at a movie theater.  The selection is endless and changes frequently.  She has found some adorable outfits there.  However, MND was distraught when she saw a woman of “at least 50” wearing a dress that MND saw in Forever 21.  She explained that a woman of that age should not be shopping in the same stores as MND.  She is not at all “ageist,” but simply thought it made the woman look like she was trying to pretend she was still a teenager.  It made her look foolish. 

The conversation then shifted to my struggle to dress age appropriately when I were the same size as a 6th grader.  Also, 45 is tricky age.  It is time to let go of the youthful 30-something look, but I am so not ready for the granny look.  I explained how I constantly struggle to dress in a modern way that is keeping with my age, but not too stodgy.  My size leaves me perilously perched on the edge of looking like a little girl… with grey hairs popping up and crow’s feet.  Not a good combo.  MND said, “No.  You definitely have a great style that matches your personality and is right for your age.”  She likes that I keep up with the trends without being trendy, that I am realistic about my size and shape.

Logically, the opinion of teenager should not matter, but it does.  I don’t want to look like a fool who is desperately clinging to her long lost youth.  I am not sure my friends would have the courage to tell me my style stinks, especially when they know I sew my own clothes.  “Not only do you dress badly, but you designed it that way.  Ewww.”  But a teenager is brutally honest. 

We decided if you are over 21, you need to stop shopping at Forever 21. 

The day started off with an American Sewing Guild Sew In to make pillow cases for the Ronald McDonald House.  I had not planned to go, but fate intervened. 

Our high school requires students to do community service hours in order to graduate.  Last year, C came up with idea of sewing pillow cases for the Ronald McDonald House.  It would combine his interest in sewing and help sick children feel more comfortable.  While, thankfully, he has never been through any as drastic as cancer treatments, he has been through his share of icky medical procedures.  He likes the idea of trying to make being in the hospital a little less scary for children.

C had it all planned.  He wrote to various online fabric stores requesting donations of fabric.  One online fabric store sent him a $25 gift card.  Well, by the time you pay shipping, $25 doesn’t get you very much.  There is only one locally owned fabric store that carries quilting cottons.  The owner was less than warm.  She told him the store was having a 20% off sale, but did not offer to donate even a yard of fabric.  I understand the economy is struggling, but not even a single yard?  As you can imagine, he was quite disappointed.  He planned to spend his summer happily making pillowcases.  He had lots of ideas of how to embellish them.

Frustrated that the summer is almost over and his project has not moved forward, we were both excited to hear about the Sew In.  It is not exactly how I wanted to spend my Saturday, but he was happy to finally do something towards his goal.  Though he is a little disappointed that he has not met his hourly requirement, he is even more disappointed that he will not be able to present a stack of pillowcases he made to the Ronald McDonald House. 

Once we got home, I spent the evening working on my Mood jacket.  I am so totally pleased with how it is progressing.  Although it is taking quite a bit longer, underlining it was definitely the right plan. 

I planned to sew today, but I got swept up in a cleaning frenzy.  (Get it, “swept up” and “cleaning.”  Such a pun-ny girl.)  It was definitely another “If you give a mouse a cookie” moment.  The thrift shop was coming this morning to pick up the boys’ old bikes, a chair, and a few other odds and ends.  They won’t come to pick up only clothes, but they will take clothes if they are picking up other things.  I decided to make the most of their trip.  I decided to make the most of my insomnia too by cleaning out the closest in the study before dawn.  It was about the only closet I could clean at that hour without waking somebody up.  I had a lovely pile when the thrift shop guys arrived at 9 a.m. 

In cleaning out the closet, I found some pictures that needed to be hung.  To hang them, I needed nails and picture frame hangers, which were in another closet.  While searching for the nails and hangers, I started straightening and purging that closet. 

I will skip to the end of the story.  By the end of the day, each and every closet in our house was straightened and purged to some extent.  (Some needed much more attention than others.)  It is a very good thing that our neighbor is out of town because I need to borrow their trash and recycling bins this week.  So. Much. Junk. 

When I ran out of closets, I finished cutting out my jacket from the Mood fabric.  If the fabric were an inch shorter, there would not have been enough.  Oh, the sewing room even got a tidy up.  This is not normal behavior.  If it was, my house would be a lot cleaner.