Joy Leanne

It's finally here! My first give away! My blog has been up and running for a year now. While I am still not updating as much as I would like I have become a lot more consistent. I have discovered an amazing community on here and have had a wonderful time. I look forward to the next year. Now, on to the give away.     As promised I am giving away the above book mark. I also decided to add in a cupcake washcloth since I had such positive feedback. To enter the give away leave a comment bellow. Becoming a follower of course gets you a second entry. Please leave a separate comment to let me know. Good luck! I will be choosing a winner next Sunday evening.

And adorable little gal I have been working on for my sister to give as a gift. She is ten inches tall and I am absolutely in love with her. She was a practice doll with a pattern I drafted myself so I made her with pollyfill and a cotton blend interlock. Can't wait to make one up with real materials! So what is inspiring you today? To be perfectly honest I am packing and my house is a disaster so I'm not feeling inspired at all. I am often very inspired by a clean home though so maybe I should get off here and clean so I can feel inspired. I will let you know how it goes.

   This topic has been rattling around in my head for months. Maybe even a year now. It intrigues me. It fascinates me. It is impartial and available to any one. It does not discriminate. It does pick favorites. It cannot be controlled. It happens when it wants, how it wants, where it wants. And yet it is unnervingly personal and intimate.The act of being inspired is communal. However our personal response is ours alone.   What inspires you may have minimal affect on me. And even if we both were inspired by the same thing there are hundreds of way we may each chose to respond. The same poem may inspired on to write, one to sing, one to paint, one to sew, one to bake break, and one to express affection to a loved one.  "My kitchen is a mystical place, a kind of temple for me. It is a place where the surfaces seem to have significance, where the sounds and odors carry meaning that transfers from the past and bridges to the future." Pearl Bailey I am continually inspire...

I was planning on writing a post about inspiration. But three hours of crying (screaming, howling, tantrum throwing) babies has drained me of all inspiration. So maybe tomorrow. :)

I haven't been on here as much as I planned. February has been full of life. In the best and the worst ways. Josh's grandfather passed away last weekend. We have spent time grieving with his mother. We have also had the chance to celebrate with my brother and his amazing girlfriend as they got engaged over the weekend. In the midst of all this Josh and I have made (multiple) offers on a house and finale had one accepted. We have a home inspection tomorrow morning. YAY! As I said full of living life. The ups and the downs. Good, bad, and beautiful. In the midst of all this, I have actually found some times for a few projects. Some wash clothes.    All bundled up around a ring pop.    Some beautiful felt I bought off of etsy.   Quilt squares waiting to be put into use.    A doll in progress. Still needs some hair. So there is a little glimpse into my life these days.

I haven't been writing much. I had such good intentions but February has been a much crazier month than I expected. Josh's grandfather died last Friday. We have been trying to spend extra time with family during this difficult time. I do have a bunch of projects I've been working on. I will have pictures tomorrow. Just a reminder, if I get 5 more followers before the end of the month I will add something to the give away. I'm thinking of making up a new pattern I am working on. Will show pictures tomorrow. ~Joy

A lot has been going on today and I needed an escape. So I did some browsing. Here's what caught my eye.    An adorable Waldorf mouse for me or the girls to cuddle by thecraggymoorstore.      A flower fairy to remind me that spring does come.  coccinelfe    Pretty little tags I would love to use in my etsy shop.  paperfantasy67124 Enjoy your weekend!

Hello every one. How has your weekend been? If you live any where in the Mid Atlantic probably very white! We only had a few inches of snow down here in VA. There was about an inch of ice but even that is off the roads now. Hubby was home more than normal this weekend and my brother's girlfriend stayed with us. As much as I hate being snowed in I was surrounded by people I love this time and had lots of new recipes to try. Also got to re-watch three full seasons of Friends so that's fun.  I spent a lot of time this weekend working on long forgotten or abandoned projects. I spent most of yesterday ripping seams. I now have a huge stack of quilt blocks ready to be put to use.  I took a rather large block that was suposed to be part of a table runner and made my first attempt at hand quilting. Definately needs some work but it was a wonderful project to work on surrounded by friends and family watching TV.   I think it will trim it up and make a hot pad for my tea pot.

I finally went grocery shopping and cleaned up the living room from the last snow storm. Just in time for the next one coming in. I'm hoping Hubby doesn't have to go work snow days are so much fun with him. On the other hand I don't want his boss to get made and take away vacation time. Oh well. My brother's girlfriend is staying with us. Her roommates are gone for the weekend and we didn't want her to get snowed in by herself out in the boonies. So at least I will have company either way. I love having family nearby.    In other news  I bought this fabric from the Just Desserts line by ClothWorks.  I fell in love with it back in October and bought a yard. I'm not realizing that a yard wasn't really enough to do much with. My two options are  a) table napkins or b) a small market bag. What do you all think? What should I do with it?