Pay it Forward

---I have my 3 responses, so I'm going to close the sign up. Thank you! ---

I was fortunate enough to be a recipient of one of Heather's pay it forward packages.

Look at all the cool goodies I got!



I love these fingerless gloves! Aren't they so pretty?



That is a horrible picture of the adorable birdies she sent. They are currently hanging on the hooks that my blinds rest on. I don't have any curtains (not that I wouldn't like to make some someday), and they look so cute up there! It is also nearly impossible to take a good picture of a sunny window.



Cute Snoopy stickers! They could not have come at a better time. We had just started a sticker sheet for when Felix does something good like taking a nap, going potty in his chair, or cleaning up toys. He has taken a nap almost every day since the sticker sheet has been put on the fridge. He LOVES the Snoopies!

Thank you so much Heather! You brightened my snotty weekend for sure! Go check out her shop Sew Happy Jane.

Anyway, the pay it forward rules go something like this:

I agree to send something fun, cute, and nice to the first 3 blog owners who post a comment on this entry. In turn, those three will post this information and pick 3 people they want to send something to and so on. If you are interested in participating, be one of the first 3 blog owners to leave a comment!

You have to promise that you will then post about this on your blog, link to me, and then send something to the first three people who comment on your blog so that this continues. When the first three have commented I will email you a request for your shipping address and I will send out something that I hope will make you smile!

I'll probably give myself 30 days to get them made and sent, so it isn't something you'd have to get to work on right away!

Back in the Saddle

I seriously don't know how long it's been since I last touched my sewing machine. I'm guessing a day or so after I made all those pouches, as I did manage to make one horrible experimental purse after those.

I always like to start off a project on the wrong foot. So of course I get super sick for all of February and am probably the last person to finish Darci's February block for the Cottage Quilting Bee. I am just glad that I actually finished it in February. So without further ado, here is my very first slightly wonky log cabin block:



I think it turned out pretty cute for a first timer! Of course the fabric for March's block came in the mail today. I should probably get to work on it asap so I'm not known as the group's tardy quilter.

Thank you to everyone who wished me well lately. I was starting to become convinced that I was doomed to live out the rest of my days with this horrible cold, but I think I'm on the downside now after it reached its horrible peak last weekend. I still don't feel so hot, but I am enjoying starting to feel better!

The List

I know I've been bad at this blogging business again, but it just so happens that I am sick again. This time I am lucky enough to be more sick than last time. I have noticed the sickness creeping around all over the place, and it seems to stick around for a bit after it gets its hooks into you! Felix still has a horrible cough, and now he has a cold sore.

I thought I was lucky enough to not have contracted THAT virus, but my research has led me to believe that pretty much everyone has the virus. It apparently just lays dormant in most people. Here's hoping Felix won't be plagued with those gross little buggers his whole life!

Anyway, onto the list.

Ashley Ann's Official List of Goals and Things to Do:

1. A. Photograph/model the glorious goods I scored from Heather in a pay it forward exchange.
B. Post my own pay it forward!

2. Finish quilt block(s) for Cottage Quilting Bee. That's right, I signed up for a quilting bee. I think it's my turn in May.
A. Go through scraps so I can be ready for my turn. I'm seriously considering sending out scraps for a super scrappy quilt. They are my favorite!

3. Make Felix a cape for his birthday. Holy smokes you guys, I almost have a 3 year old. A 3 year old is like a kid and not so much like the teeny tiny (ok, average sized, but a baby is small, kids) baby I made and birthed and fed with my own body. (Random tangent: Did you guys know I had a home birth? Cool, right?!) Anyway, 3 year old boys need capes, right? A Spiderman cape is awesome, but sometimes you need a cap for doing other not spider related stuff.


Eek! Look at how itty bitty he used to be!

4. Make birthday quilt for my niece Adilee. When did I become such a grown up? I have a niece and my own 3 year old. Yikes! So I was thinking a quilt would make a great first birthday present.

5. Make use of my sewing books. I have quite a few, and I've read them over and over for inspiration. I think I've only made a couple projects from them though. I'd like to up my completed project to book ratio.

6. Crochet t shirt rug for my best friend of all time, Laura.

I'm sure I'll add more to the list later, but that's what I can think of right now as I sit on the couch, wishing my head wasn't about to reach maximum snot capacity and explode. Head exploding is not on the list!

In other news, Mr. P has finally shed his face scales, which made him look the worst. He can now see, which makes me less ascared of him. He's jumpy and hangs out in a ready to strike position when he can't see. I'll try to schedule him a photo shoot soon!

So I hope to be feeling better and back in action soon!

Oh no!

I'm still feeling like a big pile of nothing good, and to top it all off, Felix spilled a whole glass of water on my laptop this morning. She's drying out, but I'm a little worried with the currents of water that gushed out when I picked her up. I'm putting Felix up for adoption.


Just kidding!

Here's a nugget of Felix goodness to brighten your day.

I see he has a 1 star rating. Isn't that nice?

Anyway, I hope I feel better soon. Have a great weekend.

I am most definitely sick

I requested a Saturday morning sleep in, but wouldn't you know that a scratchy, itchy throat and a plugged nose (with exploding sinus pain) made it awful hard to sleep. I decided to pass this sleep in day to Chainsaw. I will be drinking my weight in Traditional Medicinals and working on my tshirt rug.

Speaking of the tshirt rug, if you're looking for a perfect LAZY craft, this is it! I spent part of yesterday cutting up shirts, and it's going together fairly quickly with my gigantor crochet hook. I love a craft that I can work on while sitting on the couch watching Law & Order reruns.

I hope everyone has a great, germ free weekend.

Etsy Color

Have you seen this?

Etsy Color

It might be the coolest thing that I've seen all day.

Still lazy, but trying to shake it off

First off, I just want to say thanks to all who have been stopping by (and commenting or not). I have a hard time making friends sometimes (I'm shy with new people), and it's been fun having everyone stop by. I've also expanded my blog feed by eleventy billion. All the new inspiration is glorious!

Confession time.

In addition to feeling a bit sick/lazy this week, I've also been addicted to a British tv show called Skins. It's about a group of teenagers, and I love it. I accidentally watched all of seasons 1 & 2 since Friday. Oops! I didn't even bother sharing its glory with the Chainsaw. I don't think he'd like a show about a bunch of teenagers. He might, but let's face it- I've only NOT been a teenager for just less than 3 years.

Season 3 just started, but I see that they've started it with a new cast (the other kids were done with school and scattering to Universities, etc.), and I'm not sure I really care. We'll see.

Anywho, I have barely touched my sewing machine all week. I cut some pieces out for a new purse design on Tuesday. Yesterday I cut out a few more pieces for it and sewed some of it together. That's it. I haven't been feeling it, but I should try to finish it. Finishing something always leaves me feeling triumphant!

Heather got her clothesline pouch and posted nice things about it here. I'm so glad she likes it!

Let's end this post with something weird. We were making our semi annual trip (as in, whenever we feel like, but not too often) up to Rocky Mountain National Park in 2007 when this vision greeted us from the side of the road:



I rolled the window down and got this glorious picture. Weee!

I have a quick question. I checked out some old library books about bag making, and they have the teeny tiny pattern pieces that say enlarge 400% (or something else ridiculous), and I have no idea how to do this. If I scan it into my computer, it never scans it at actual size. They always end up bigger, but I have no idea what percent. Anyone have any enlarging tips for me? I don't really want to go to the copy shop, but I guess I could if I have to.