Second Update on Hayden

Well, today is a disappointing day ~ DD will not be having the e-version after all. DD has been seeing a fetal heart specialist because baby Hayden has some calcifications on her heart and also her umbilical cord is not attached in the right area (it's attached at the thinnest part of the placenta, at the very tip of it). The specialist has determined it would be too dangerous to try to turn her so unless Hayden decides to turn herself, DD will have to have a C-section. She is so disappointed (upset) and scared, too. Anyway, just wanted to update ~ thanks so much for all the kind, encouraging words and well wishes!

Update on Hayden

Just a quick update on baby Hayden who is due August 13th. Right now she is still breech. DD will be having an e-version (external version) Friday wherein the doctor will try to turn the baby. Sometimes this procedure sets off labor. If they are successful and she does NOT go into labor, they will let nature take its course. If they are not successful and she does NOT go into labor, a C-section will be scheduled at 39 weeks (in about two weeks). Of course, if labor starts, baby Hayden will be here hopefully this weekend and hopefully without a C-section.

I had this procedure done with younger DD and it was not successful ~ I had a C-section later that afternoon (prearranged). I told the doctor I was not leaving the hospital without a baby!!! It is painful ~ they can't give you a lot of pain medication because it sedates the baby, too.

So lots of prayers, please, that all will go well and that Hayden will get herself turned and not be so contrary? Thanks!

With in-laws coming into town Friday, etc. I will be hit and miss with blogs and updates.

New Sewing Machine??? Need input!

I had planned on doing some serious quilting on Hayden's baby quilt this weekend ~ I have three more squares to quilt and then the border.  However, my old Singer (15-18 years old) had other plans.  After pulling out about 5 miles of tangled bobbin thread and making up some new words while I was at it, I knew she needed to go in for a tune-up at my local Singer center.  This morning I took her in and, of course, just had to look at the new machines.  I really really want a new machine.  My old Singer is just a student model, has 3 decorative stitches, the feed dogs don't drop, no needle-down position, etc.  I really want a more "grown-up" machine.  I don't do a ton of sewing ~ mostly small quilts, crafts, curtains, and just maybe a simple dress or two for Hayden (LOL).  My dear MIL has a couple of Berninas, but those are out of my price range, plus the costs of extra feet.  I had thought about a Janome, but the closest dealer is about an hour away.  Anyway, they have a new Singer 7469Q (as seen on Martha Stewart).  You can read about all the features here.  And here's a picture of it:

 

My price range is pretty much under $500 (yikes!) and the Singer place will sell this to me for $349.  It has a 25 year manufacturer's defect warranty, 2 year electronic warranty.  Any ideas?  I'd love to here from y'all about your experiences and advice.  I've only owned two sewing machines in my life, both Singers, and I've not had any trouble with them whatsoever. 

On a creative note, here's a little "mattress pincushion" I was able to stitch AND finish back in 1998.  It's a pattern by Ewe and Eye and Friends called "Sampler Pincushion".  It is stitched on 32 ct. natural Belfast using DMC.  It's very tone-on-tone.  I love that it uses a few specialty stitches (double leviathan, 4-sided stitch, satin stitch, and Smyrna cross).  Most especially, I was able to use some antique buttons that belonged to my grandmother.  I have a standing apology for crappy pictures.

Hoping everyone had a lovely weekend!

Couldn't Resist!

I just couldn't resist taking this picture of Sophie in her Playboy pose!

Some Catching Up To Do

I have really been MIA these past couple of days!  Lots going on in the real world ~

I work as a medical transcriptionist and it has been busy, busy, busy!  I've been working until 6 and 7 each evening, sometimes typing up to 1500 lines a day!  By the end of the day, I'm sick and tired of looking at the computer screen and my right hand hurts like heck!  Last night, I ended up splinting it at bedtime and indulging in a Darvocet...

Fortunately, today I don't have any work (given the day off to recover, so to speak)!

This is the very small piece I worked on all weekend and yesterday.  I've discovered it is next to impossible to stitch when a little ninja kitty is constantly trying to attack what I have in my hand!  Grrrr!  Anyway, this is a freebie from Plum Pudding Needleart called Blessed Be...

I stitched it on a scrap of 32 ct Belfast Summer Khaki with the suggested DMC threads although I did substitute out the colors on the pumpkin and yellow flower for some GAST and WDW ~ what was called for was too bright for me.  The total size is about 3 x 4.  I think I'll try to fashion this into some sort of needle book and then maybe stitch just the tall flower and make it into a floss tag thingy...

I have a dilemma today.   Have you ever ordered something and then can't remember what project you ordered it for?  I ordered a skein of GAST Green Pasture (a very pretty blue-green) and I can't for the life of me remember what it was for.  I've been kitting up projects from The Goode Huswife, Carriage House Samplings, Birds of a Feather, Blackbird Designs, and La-D-Da, but nothing I've pulled out calls for this color.  It might be for a freebie, but I can't figure out which one.  I'm about to pull out my hair!!!!  If anybody has used this color in a project, let me know what it was for and it may be the one I'm looking for!

Recipe for Disaster

Do Not Try This At Home!

Take one of these...

Add in half a bottle of this...

Mix with 2 square feet of this...

And stir in a helping of Mom distracted by this (slobber, drool, guh!)....

And this is the end result....

A Heartfelt Thank You!!!

A big hug & thank you to Deb at Threadgatherer ~ she sent me two of the charts I was desperately seeking ~ The Sparrow's Song and The Quaker Four Corners Sampler (both by The Goode Huswife) ~ I'm doing the Snoopy Dance here.  Thank you again, Deb!!!




Deb is also having a cool giveaway on her blog to celebrate reaching 300 followers (well, over 300 now)!  Way to go, Deb!

I did not accomplish much of anything yesterday...as you know, the road to hell is paved with good intentions and I had lots of good intentions ~ but I did manage to haul my gnarly feet to the nail place and get a pedicure ~ pedicures are absolute love!  I would pay just to sit in the massaging chair and soak my feet.  Did you really want to see a picture of my tootsies?

I truly hope to get a few more squares quilted on Hayden's quilt and get the fabric cut to make my pillow. 

Hoping y'all have a great day ~ stay cool!

Blogger Issue!

I'm getting very frustrated with Blogger! Beginning yesterday, I noticed that when I would try to moderate my comments, they would DISAPPEAR! Same thing this morning!!! So if you were kind enough to leave me comments that do not appear or that I do not reply personally to, please know that I did not receive them ~ this is a Blogger problem!!! So very sorry ~ I love to hear from people visiting my blog!!!

A Stitchy "Finish"

I'm slowly, but surely working my way through over 350 blog posts to catch up on this weekend...I'll try to get them all read this week, and will enjoy it thoroughly ~ I love to see what everybody has been up to!

I did manage to start & finish something this long weekend...the freebie from the Arizona Historical Society I mentioned receiving from Stitchin' Sweet Sue? Here it is, along with the fabric I found in my stash that I will use to make it into a pillow...doesn't it match the Needle Necessities Woodland Fantasy thread perfectly? I can't wait to get it really, truly finished!

 Plus, I managed to get four blocks quilted on Hayden's baby quilt.  Will try to do a couple each night.

Hope y'all have a wonderful week!

Warning ~ Not for the Faint of Heart

I'll get back to stitchy stuff tomorrow, I promise.  Just got to get this off my chest today.

I remember reading the following on Neal Boortz's website (America's most under-rated and over-paid radio talk show host) a few years ago, and thought it appropriate to post it here. You can read the original version here.  Please be warned ~ Neal Boortz isn't known for holding back on his views (Libertarian views) ~ it's probably what I like about him so much....

********************
Neals Nuze
Wednesday, July 5, 2006

WHAT KIND OF MINDLESS HORSESQUEEZE IS THIS?

The July 2nd edition of the Asheville Citizen-Times carried a front-page questionnaire titled "How Patriotic Are You?" Readers were invited to take a quiz of ten questions and grade themselves. Under this questionnaire there was a quote from one Randy Goodstadt, the chairwoman of social and behavioral science at the Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College. To wit:

"If people don't have a basic knowledge of history and civics, it means that people who are voting are complete ignoramuses, people who don't read a newspaper, who don't understand the policies of the people for whom they are voting. It's very scary. Very worrisome."

Well said, Ms. Goodstadt! Now perhaps you need to have a bit of a talk with the folks at the Citizen-Times. Here are the ten questions they posted to test the historical knowledge of the readers:

1. What is the date that the Declaration of Independence was signed?
2. What document is the legal framework of the United States?
3. Who wrote the words to the "Star Spangled Banner"?
4. What is the Pledge of Allegiance?
5. Where was the Declaration of Independence signed?
6. What is the number of original Colonies?
7. Who was the first president of the United States?
8. What is the minimum voting age in the United States?
9. Who is the current governor of North Carolina?
10. What is the motto of North Carolina?

Well ... somebody's gotta say it, so here goes. There are only two questions out of the ten that are worth spending more than one nano-second in answering. Those would be questions 2 and 8. People do need to know that the Constitution is, or is supposed to be, the legal framework of the United States, and if you are at all interested in voting it might serve you well to know that the minimum age is 18. The other eight questions are complete BS. Worthless bits of information that do not make one either knowledgeable or patriotic.

Eight out of ten makes the entire article a vapid exercise in banality. Perhaps the Citizen-Times was having it's annual "Shallow and Meaningless Writing" contest.

Now you just know I must have some suggestions on how to beef up this particular quiz in order to give it some actual value, right? Of course! Let me noodle this out out for --- say --- 60 seconds or so to see if I can come up with a better citizenship quiz than did the Asheville Citizen-Times.

1. Forget when the Declaration of Independence was signed; tell me why it was signed? What were the signers trying to accomplish?
2. What happened to the men who signed the Declaration? Did they go on to be heroes and live happily ever after?
3. What does the Declaration of Independence say the people can do when a government becomes destructive to the ends of liberty?
4. What would happen to anyone who tried today to alter or abolish our government if it became destructive to idea that government derives its powers from the consent of the governed?
5. Which articles of the Constitution grant specific powers to the federal government?
6. Which article of the Constitution restricts the powers of the government to only those specifically set forth in the Constitution?
7. Describe the circumstances under which Francis Scott Key wrote the words to the Star Spangled Banner?
8. Do you believe people living in a free country ought to be compelled to recite a pledge of allegiance to that country? Why?
9. Was the Revolutionary War supported by a majority of the Colonists?
10. Where in our Constitution is it stated that anyone has a right to vote for the office of President of the United States?
11. How did our original Constitution provide for the appointment of Senators?
12. Most foreign countries appoint an ambassador to be their official representative before the government of the United States. Who officially represents the 50 state governments before the government of the United States?
13. Explain the difference between a rule of law and the rule of man.
14. Explain the difference between a democracy and a constitutional republic.
15. Was our country founded to be a country of majority rule?
16. Can you imagine what our country would be like today if the majority did rule?
17. Aren't you glad the majority doesn't rule?
18. Why does it matter in the grand scheme of things who the governor of North Carolina is?
19. Isn't a governor something you put on a state to keep it from moving ahead very fast?
20. What possible benefit could you gain by memorizing the motto of the State of North Carolina, or any other state for that matter?
21. How many times can the word "democracy" found in the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution?
22. How many times can the word "democracy" found in the constitutions of any of the 50 states?
23. What does this tell you?
24. Define "civil war."
25. Was the war between the northern and southern states in the mid-1800s a civil war?
26. Who is third in the line of succession to the presidency?
27. Based on your answer to the foregoing question, would you demand that George Bush and Dick Cheney never eat from the same container of potato salad should the Democrats gain control of the House of Representatives in the next election?
28. How did the political class manage to fool the people of the United States into supporting a Constitutional Amendment creating an income tax?
29. How do most people get their news on a daily bass?
30. Does the "freedom of press" clause in the First Amendment apply to the broadcast media?
31. So, do most people get their news from agencies licensed to operate by the federal government?
32. Why were the words "under God" placed into the Pledge of Allegiance?
33. Do you think that it is proper for the federal government to compel students attending government schools under compulsory attendance laws to acknowledge the role of God in the formation of our country? Would this constitute "effecting an establishment of religion?" If not, why not?
34. Do Americans derive their basic rights from the Constitution?
35. If we don't derive our rights from the Constitution, just why was the Bill of Rights added anyway?
36. Define a system of government where the means of production are owned and controlled privately.
37. Define a system of government where the means of production are privately owned but controlled by government.
38. Define a system of government where the means of production are owned and controlled by the government.
39. What percentage of total income is earned by the top one percent of income earners.
40. What percentage of total income taxes collected by the federal government is paid by the top one percent of income earners.
41. Where in our Constitution does it specifically state that only U.S. citizens may vote for the office of President of the United States?
42. Name one right that a state government can exercise without interference from the federal level.
43. Where in our Constitution does it specifically state that only U.S. citizens may vote for members of the House of Representatives?
44. Look at the Bill of Rights. List any Amendments in the Bill of Rights that were ratified for the purpose of limiting the powers of the government.
45. If our Constitution provides for equal protection under the law, why, then, does the Voting Rights Act only apply to certain states who were held in political disfavor in the 70's?
46. List any Amendments in the Bill of Rights that were ratified for the purpose of limiting the rights of individuals.
47. If the Bill of Rights was written to limit the rights of government and to guarantee certain rights in the individual, try to explain why so many people seem to think that the 2nd Amendment was written to limit the rights of individuals and guarantee the rights of government?
48. Does the First Amendment protect speech that some people might find offensive?
49. Explain how our Republic was threatened when Janet Jackson showed the world that she likes to wear a Japanese throwing star on the nipple of her left breast.
50. What is the one exclusive power our government has that no individual or business can legally exercise?

Now this list could be expanded to fill an entire book. I could, for instance, add a hundred or so questions beginning with "Where does the United States Constitution give the federal government the right to .........." Fifty questions is enough, though, and it's time to finish the Nuze and head to the studios.

It does occur to me that some of you high school and college government teachers and instructors might have a bit of fun with these questions and your students. No ... I'm not providing the answers.

*********************

On this 4th of July, ponder this....Liberty or Security?

Excellent article on what Freedom & Liberty truly are! You can find the original article here: Craig for Congress, Missouri's 7th District U.S. House of Representatives.  I don't know this guy, I don't live in Missouri, I do not know what else he stands for or against.  However, he is absolutely RIGHT ON THE MONEY with this. 


Congressional Issues 2010
LIBERTY OR SECURITY
What Do YOU Deserve?

Congress should

* make liberty a higher priority than "security"

Benjamin Franklin is often quoted as saying:

Those who would give up Essential Liberty
to purchase a little Temporary Safety,
deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.

What is the opposite of "LIBERTY?" The answer is: SLAVERY.

What is the opposite of "SAFETY?" Some might answer: DANGER. But that's not the correct answer in this context. In the context of Ben Franklin and the American Revolution, the opposite of "SAFETY" is PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY.

Samuel Adams said the opposite of SAFETY is "the animating contest of freedom." And in certain situations, Sam Adams said the opposite of LIBERTY is WEALTH. Here is the quote from Sam Adams. "Tranquility" is what Franklin described as "temporary safety":

In a state of tranquility, wealth, and luxury, our descendants would forget the arts of war* and the noble activity and zeal which made their ancestors invincible. Every art of corruption would be employed to loosen the bond of union which renders our resistance formidable. When the spirit of liberty, which now animates our hearts and gives success to our arms*, is extinct, our numbers will accelerate our ruin and render us easier victims to tyranny. If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom—go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen!
* Note that Adams and the Founding Fathers believed they were engaged in a defensive war against tyranny.

America's Founding Fathers would say that Americans today are slaves. Wealthy slaves, but still slaves. Slaves that enjoy luxury and tranquility, but still slaves.

Sam Adams tossed tea into the Boston Harbor rather than be subjected to a tax of 3 pence per pound. How much tax do you pay on each gallon of gas you buy?

Why do you pay 20 times more in taxes than America's Founding Fathers? Because you think the government guarantees you "the good life." You have your own computer, central air conditioning, a DVD player in your SUV, and you think the government made all of this possible.

Most people think that if you have wealth, you have Liberty. There is an element of truth to this. But it is also one of the most dangerous myths of the century in which we live, as Sam Adams can help us see. We think of slaves as being poor, deprived of all wealth. Sam Adams will help us see that we now live in the century of wealthy slaves living in luxury.
China = U.S.A.

China is experiencing phenomenal economic growth. Many are becoming wealthy. The poor are becoming middle-class. In a few years, China may be more powerful and wealthier than the U.S.A. In what way would America's Founding Fathers say that secular America with its 60% tax rate is better than Communist China with its flourishing capitalism?

There is no longer any fundamental distinction between the U.S.A. and Communist China. Americans and the Chinese are both slaves in an atheistic dictatorship. The difference is quantity, not quality. China may be a bit more enthusiastic about its atheism, and a little bolder in its dictatorship, but from the perspective of Ben Franklin, Sam Adams, and Patrick Henry, America is an atheistic dictatorship, and you are a slave.

Governments want you to believe they can give you wealth and safety. All you have to do is give up your liberty, and especially "the spirit of liberty," to quote Sam Adams.

But you don't really want "liberty" anyway, because that means personal responsibility. That means risk and uncertainty. Better to be a pampered slave.

What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!
Patrick Henry

Sacrificing Morality

Sacrificing "the spirit of liberty" and personal responsibility is un-American enough. But the price of "safety," "security," and a government-guarantee is the death of virtue and morality. To obtain a government guarantee of security, you have to give up your moral standards.

You would never use force or threats of violence to compel a customer to shop at your place of business. You would never steal, kill, kidnap, or defraud in order to get your HDTV. But if you're willing to have the government steal, kill, kidnap or defraud others in order for you to enjoy lower gas prices, or secure the trinkets of pop culture, then you are a slave. But the government calls it "security."

If you believe it's too "risky" to compete in a Free Market without government protection, subsidies, bailouts, and guarantees, you're a slave.

If you believe a government-guaranteed life is better than the "anarchy" of competition, and if you believe the government is going to guarantee your tranquility, your wealth, and your luxury, then you are a slave.

To paraphrase Patrick Henry's "Give Me Liberty Or Give Me Death" Speech,

Mr. President, it is natural to man to indulge in the illusions of hope. We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth, and listen to the song of that siren till she transforms us into beasts. Is this the part of wise men, engaged in a great and arduous struggle for liberty? Are we disposed to be of the number of those who, having eyes, see not, and, having ears, hear not, the things which so nearly concern their temporal salvation? For my part, whatever anguish of spirit it may cost, I am willing to know the whole truth; to know the worst, and to provide for it.

Is security so dear, or wealth so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!

If you cannot stand competition, if you are afraid to compete in "the animating contest of freedom," if you're willing to kill, steal, or in any way initiate force against another human being in order to obtain "tranquillity, wealth, and luxury," you are a SLAVE.

History of the Quote

This statement was used as a motto on the title page of An Historical Review of the Constitution and Government of Pennsylvania. (1759) which was attributed to Franklin in the edition of 1812, but in a letter of September 27, 1760 to David Hume, he states that he published this book and denies that he wrote it, other than a few remarks that were credited to the Pennsylvania Assembly, in which he served. The phrase itself was first used in a letter from that Assembly dated November 11, 1755 to the Governor of Pennsylvania. An article on the origins of this statement here includes a scan that indicates the original typography of the 1759 document, which uses an archaic form of "s": "Thoſe who would give up Essential Liberty to purchaſe a little Temporary Safety, deſerve neither Liberty nor Safety." Researchers now believe that a fellow diplomat by the name of Richard Jackson is the primary author of the book. With the information thus far available the issue of authorship of the statement is not yet definitely resolved, but the evidence indicates it was very likely Franklin, who in the Poor Richard's Almanack of 1738 is known to have written a similar proverb: "Sell not virtue to purchase wealth, nor Liberty to purchase power."

Many paraphrased variants derived from this saying have arisen and have usually been incorrectly attributed to Franklin:

"They that can give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
"Those Who Sacrifice Liberty For Security Deserve Neither."
"He who would trade liberty for some temporary security, deserves neither liberty nor security."
"He who sacrifices freedom for security deserves neither."
"People willing to trade their freedom for temporary security deserve neither and will lose both."
"If we restrict liberty to attain security we will lose them both."
"Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both."
"He who gives up freedom for safety deserves neither."
"Those who would trade in their freedom for their protection deserve neither."

Quilting Has Begun...

I have quilted my first block and it looks good!!! Of course, my neck is hurting from the tension, but I now know I can do this!!!  11 blocks to go and then the border.

Three Day Weekend!!

I'm so looking forward to a three-day weekend ~ whatever shall I do? Stitch, of course! First off is to quilt some on the baby quilt. I finally figured out how I'm going to do the pinwheels so I'll start there.

Secondly, I'm going to work on this little Quaker piece I've been messing with...it was a freebie that I got from Edgar at Blacksheep's Bit of the Web a couple of years ago.  I don't know where it came from and I don't believe he remembered either, but I love it.  I'm stitching it in my greens, of course, WDW Sage.  Edgar might have used the sage, but I can't remember.  I know he used a green though.  I goofed on it already.  I think I'm using a piece of 40 ct, but two strands of thread so it looks too heavy, but I didn't "discover" that until I was halfway done.  Too much frogging to even think about.  My second goof was running out of the sage and ordering more, and the dye lots do not match.  I can tell, of course ~ it's like a neon sign to me, but I don't think anybody else will ever notice.  Here's a pic...

Then I've started another little piece that comes from a freebie from the Arizona Historical Society.  Stitchin' Sweet Sue shared the pattern with me.  I'm using a scrap of fabric from my scrap bin, probably 32 ct, and Needle Necessities #130 (Woodland Fantasy). Once I get a bit more done (like more than four lines!), I'll take a pic and share.

I'll leave you now with a pic of one of my favorite pieces, BBD's Quaker Garden, that I worked in 2008.

OMG ~ Isn't She Precious?????

This is my little granddaughter Hayden ~ (I feel so old)!!! Isn't this picture AMAZING???? Six more weeks....

Kitty Update & Penny Rugs

Thank you all for the sweet comments and advice concerning Kitty (who has no name right now).  He's had a bath and has no more fleas ~ totally fluffy & cute.  He's also gotten into a lot of things....

Here's Buddy hanging out at the bathroom door ~ "I'd like whatever is behind Door #3, Monty" ~

Slow is the name of the game...

Since I haven't had a chance this week to cross stitch, I thought I'd share a penny rug I made about two years ago.  I had seen a similar one on Bluejean Primitives website and just fell in love with it.  My late FIL had been in the Army and served in Germany during the Korean War and I used his old army blanket as the base.  All the pennies used came from reclaimed wool from the thrift stores.  It's one of my absolute favorites and holds special meaning because I used Poppy's blanket.

The next one is my very first penny rug I made ~ I used a pattern by Colleen at Penny Rugs & More.  It's called Hit & Miss and you can find it at her Etsy shop here Ragamuffin2006.  Such an easy pattern and perfect for your first!

Hope y'all have a wonderful day tomorrow!