We had a crazy long weekend. Saturday the water heater died and started leaking. My hubbie was up in Toccoa Falls at the college helping the kids with there car problems.  I called and told him what was going on so he stopped at Lowe’s to pick up a new one. Only to get it home and it had a huge dent in the bottom. So he had to box it all back up and go swap it out. (Not a happy camper)     We had to unload the laundry room and clean up the mess on the floor. Can you say clean sort and throw away? Still not done with that part of it. He finished installing the new one and we were good to go.

I cooked all weekend, and canned 2 quarts of tomatoes and 7 quarts of pinto beans. I cooked a roast on friday, roasted a chicken on Saturday and made chicken and dressing on Sunday. Then on Sunday we got the call that hubbie’s mom had a lite heart attack. Hopefully that was the last bad thng. (you know they are suppose to come in three’s) I was tired after all of that. Thankfully we went to my girlfriends for a BBQ Monday evening. Tuesday I had to go back to the real world and get up bright and early for work. Work was crazy today too, I was hoping for a slow day to recoup from the long weekend. One good thing, all the cooking brings you left overs! So I didn’t have to cook when I got home today. I popped open a bottle of the pinto beans that I canned and they came out so good. I was very happy that was my first time canning pintos.

Whew, I’m tired just from typing of of that. Think I’ll go rest now. Time for Sci-Fi

Wow,

I’ve been gone for over a year. Less see where to start. I’m still working at the North
American Mission Board. Still happy there.

BOTH of my kids are in college now, had to get use to that one.

I began trying to loose weight. Trained with a personal trainer for 6 mos, got injured and I’ve had knee injuries and plantar facitiis in both feet since last Christmas. I guess that is what I get for trying to be healthy. I had tried everything to get rid of it. I am now going to a massage therapist and so far she is the only one that has made any difference whatsoever. She believes that it started with my knee injuries. See I have been busy since I last posted.

I have only had a few small embroidery jobs, but with cooler weather those are starting to pick up again. Fall and Christmas seems to be my busy time. I have several sewing projects I would like to complete. I have a purse cut out and on the table and I would like to make a vest for the fall. They are suppose to be in from what I understand this year. I also need to complete one more embroidery job. I’m interested in learning how to quilt. I am hoping to incorporate using my embroidery machine. I would like to use the bigger squares and include some embroidery. I think that would be very pretty if I can figure out what I am doing. Better let you go for now, I need to check on my chicken.

Wow I have the day off today and I have about a thousand things to do. I know it has been a  long time since I posted but let me tell you a few things that have been going on. I got the new job and right after I started I twisted my ankle really bad. I had to go on in to work that day (I did it going out the door). Boy that wasn’t fun it still hurts a little and it has been several weeks. I heard crunching noises, yucky huh? Then the next week I had a tooth abscess that was bad also. I had to have pain med’s called in and those didn’t do much good. so I was in the bed all weekend. The following Monday I had to go have a root canal done Yucky again. Still have to go back and have that finished. Then a week later my father-in-law caught himself on fire. I’m not joking! He has 1st, 2nd and 3rd degree burns and he is 76 years old. We finally got to see him on Sunday and he is doing well considering all he has been thourgh. He leaned up against his electric stove top with it on and his robe caught on fire. Flames were licking up over his head. His wife is wheelchair bound so she could not help him. He took his robe off and his tee shirt and he was still on fire. Which he put out with his hand. His hand is burn also just not as bad. So they took him to the burn hospital in Augusta Georgia. This is two hours from our home. My husband stayed the night with his mother for several nights because she can’t be left alone.  He came home on Saturday and we got to see him Sunday. He has to go back for skin grafts this week so we will have another busy weekend. Well that is all the bad stuff. Now for the good.

1. God protect him and did not let him die.  We are so thankful! And he is in good spirits which is surprising..

2. Yesterday I got a permanent position at the North American Mission Board where I have been working on a temporary basis. This is what I have been praying for and is a huge blessing. It comes with all the wonderful perks like health and dental insurance and a huge raise.

3. The embroidery orders are pouring in. I guess it is that time of year. My customers are finding me even though I haven’t had time to notify everyone.

So I guess all the bad evened out with all the good.

Well that is a huge update. I will not post all of the embroidery work since most of it is not that interesting but several orders are so I will post on those. I better go get busy and make the most of my day.

I know it has been forever since I posted. The new job has me so tired. I am not a morning person! But I get up at 6am now and I am out the door by 6:15. I lay everything out the night before and shower the night before. It takes me around an hour to get to work depending on traffic. I get off at 4 but don’t get home til 5. Then it is time for me to cook dinner. Joe is always hungry when he walks in the door. Then we clean up and do a few chores and maybe watch a little t.v. and then it is time for bed. Usually between 9:30-10.00. Then I start all over again. All this makes for a tired girl. Altho I do sleep in on weekends. Even on Sunday I don’t have to get up til 9 so that helps. Not a lot of time is left for crafting. But I have to make time I have 3 embroidery orders pending right now. Got to get those out the door. Well I better get to work. See ya.

I finally got a job. I’m working for the North American Mission Board. It is a hour and fifteen minutes away. Right now I’m only temp-ing. But there is a permanent position available that I have applied for. So I’m temping til the powers that be come back from where ever they are and make a decision on my application. I think I’m gonna like working there. Last Thursday was my first day. So I got two days under my belt maybe that will help me settle in and down next week. We are going tomorrow to try and find a shorter route than I have been taking.  Maybe we can cut down the drive time. And wouldn’t you know that gas went way up just as I was driving that far every day. I do not enjoy traffic.

But this is a cool place to work. they are in a huge building, complete with a cafeteria, gym, and a pond out back with a trail around it so you can walk on your lunch break. They are very fitness oriented. They even have a weight watchers program in the building. Maybe I can kill two birds with one stone. hmmm something to think about. The only thing is I won’t get a check for a month! Wow that is a long time to wait for a paycheck. But you do what you have to do. I also got a embroidery order in yesterday. So that will help a little bit. Well I better get going got laundry to do and I need to start on that order. Then go to the grocery store and fix dinner. Whew still a lot to do.

Here is the picture of the motorcycle seat we did. The embroidery is a combination of my digitizing and a dakota collectibles file (the wolf). The customer was thrilled with the outcome. Click the picture for a close up view.

Well I have my embroidery machine home now. Still trying to decide on what to do with my time. I’ve not had any luck getting a job so far so… anyway we still have plenty of stuff to move home. I also got my computer and desk set back up and internet service switched over and hooked up. although it did take a timely visit from my college student son to get everything sorted out on that end. (I was hooking the router up wrong) Still need to bring my light weight industrial home and my heat press. Maybe I can talk him into that one tonight. He is always so tired when he gets home. He gets up way earlier that what he was use to. Lately I’ve been thinking about getting a web-page up and running since I don’t have a official business building anymore. Problem is I’m not skilled in that area. I hear go-daddy.com has one that is simple to do. If only it was as simple as blogging. Of course I have to learn about that one also. <sigh> just not with it today, kinda discouraged.

P.S. I added the link to my Embroidery Catalog that is available online. Oh- and the motorcycle seat pic is coming soon.

Been working on the motorcycle seat. I got my part all done. Now I’m waiting on Joe to upholster the seat. I will post a picture when it is all done.

I’m really ready to be out of this building and back home. But I have to get all my eggs in a row first. The phone switching, internet changed, embroidery machine moved. It is massive and weighs about 800 lbs, so it is not something I can do by myself. I have already move the little machines. And the light weight industrial one will come with the embroidery machine. I’m not looking forward to all the mess this is going to create at home but at least I can take my time and get it all sorted back out. I just discovered that my emb machine will fit in the house. (My hubby previously said it wouldn’t fit thru the front door ) but I measure it and the door and I think it will go thru. Yea, We have a shop at home but it is detached from the house and it is cold out there. We have a room that we added on a couple of years ago and I would like to put everything in there. The lighting is good lots of windows. And it is big enough.  Al-tho I will have to move some stuff around. But I think it is the best place to put it all. The living room (tv) is in the adjacent room and the kitchen is just across the way a bit. So I could watch tv while I’m working and cook (popping in and out). Not to mention be free to do laundry, vacuum, etc. But who would want to do that when I could be sewing.

Anyway I got a lot of filing to do that has piled up so I guess I better get to it so everything will be in its place when we move it all.

Whew, I’ve been on the internet applying for jobs the last few days.  Boy does that take a lot of time. Unfortunately I didn’t get either of the jobs I hoped for at fabric.com. Boy that was a disappointment. But oh well back to the drawing board as they say.  I have out about 1/2 dozen more applications we will see what happens with those. In the mean time I am here at the shop and we are packing and cleaning out. I got a lot of inventory for pocket books I purchased from the mart in Atlanta. Thinking about posting those on this site to see if I can just get my money back out of them. Not real sure I have enough traffic to bother with that tho. I’ve been around reading and posting to other sites but not many seem interested enough to stop in here. If they are not many of them comment. Linda , (so sweet) is the only one who takes the time to leave me little notes of encouragement. So if you are reading this thanks Linda! I better sign off now and get back to throwing stuff away.

Been thinking about posting some free embroidery designs (from time to time). Only draw back is I’m not sure how to get them downloadable. I was also considering posting design in my etsy shop for purchase. The only way I can figure to do this is have people e-mail me and then send them the file. Linda thought this was the idea too. If anyone else out there has a better way let me know. The only draw back I can forsee is I can only post for industrial machines. I don’t have a way to convert for home embroidery machines. Altho some of those can run the dst files. So not sure what to do on this one. Feed back would help.

On a different note. I should hear by tomorrow if I got the job or not. Waiting is a killer. Just trying not to think about it, just praying about it. I really want it.    One of our prayers already answered with Joe getting his job. Thank you LORD. He is so excited to start on Monday. I am very happy for him. Any way this means ‘ve got to get busy on packing my stuff up to move everything back to the house shop. Thank goodness we have that space to put everything back in. But it has become a storage place over the past few years so we have to get that cleaned out first. Wow lots to do. Better go get busy throwing out the stuff I don’t need and packing up the good. At least I will get to do a good purging!