I should stop saying never.

Really, I said I’d never quilt. In the last year, I made three quilts. THREE!!! Ok, granted, I never really “quilted” them, I mean, that’s a lot of work. And patience. And who has the time unless you are 50+ and maybe have a lot of cats? That’s an unfair statement but once my blanket is put together, I really am done with it. I like short projects that can be finished and used and not sit and me say things like “wow, only 11/12 left to quilt. Glad I decided to do this by hand.” (that’s a true conversation. I ended up ripping out my hand stitches and went with little yarn ties.)

I was going thru my stash last night and thought I’d do a simple tag blanket for our church bazaar. Instead, I found quite a bit left of my Moda fabric from the Oz collection. After I cut it up, I thought “hey, I can try my hand at triangles! who cares, right?” So off I went, measuring, cutting, drawing diagonal lines and sewing a quarter inch on each side…and I came up with…

It’s just started. That’s 36 squares and I have 36 more (I think) and then I’ll attempt to sew it together. I don’t know what I’m going to do with it yet. It’s cute but I don’t know if it’ll go to the bazaar or a friend or where. Oz, maybe :) We’ll see how it goes. I still need to find a border for it and backing. Again, just not sure.

I’m a liar.

Well folks, March 30th was my last post and that’s because I’m terrible at keeping secrets. So if you can’t say anything nice…wait, totally different post. But anyways, about a week or two before that post, I found out that Mr. Lulu and I are expecting a baby. Or a velociraptor. Either one. With the migraines I’ve been getting, I would not at all be surprised if it was a velociraptor.

My baby velociraptor will totally wear a hat and ride a bicycle.

To avoid any leaking news, I just avoided blogging. But if you’ve been on facebook or pinterest, you already know this news. I haven’t been sewing since finishing Miss Charlotte’s quilt because sewing clothes seems silly if they won’t fit and although I will be sewing for the new baby, I am waiting for eight more weeks-ish to find out what it is and then sew.

Oh wait, I lied again. I did sew three yoga skirts which are WONDERFUL and comfortable and very versatile. But not really anything exciting to show. I mean, it’s just some jersey knit with a fold over waistband.

And semester ended with a B, which is not what I wanted, but what I got and just glad semester is over. Of course, Baby Bean Sprout threw a wrench in me finishing school by the spring, so….yeah, push that one back a year.

But there’s a lot of excitement and joy in the Lulu Bean House right now. Thank goodness the baby isn’t coming until November because there is so much that needs done around the house. Honestly, what motivates people to fix up their homes are babies and selling the house. So, sewing will commence in a while, although there are some new late-summer patterns out by (I think) Mccalls for maternity clothes and I will probably give them a shot. And maybe do a pattern a review! We’ll see…

But in the mean time, I’ll try not to be a liar.

Nothing going on here, folks.

Not too much has been going on at the Lulu Bean home, so I’ve not had much urge to post anything. It’s actually been quite- just working on homework (semester is winding down already) and church has been gearing up for Holy Week, which is always filled to the brim with preparations, services, and of course, Easter Egg hunts.

I did a little sewing this past week. I made a yoga skirt for myself, which is super comfy and about like wearing pajamas at work. AWESOME. And I’ve been working on the quilt for Charlotte. That was going great till I finished the top and spread it out and said “OH CRAP!” One whole row was all wrong and it was in the middle. I had to rip out the row and the rip apart the squares. It’s ready to go now, just needs border and flannel and Miss Charlotte can have a nice spring blanket for her bed. I’m so excited about this quilt!

Anyways, other than that, it’s the same ol’ same ol.

A finished bowl of chicken soup with rice

My dear father reminded me that I hadn’t posted lately. Mostly because I haven’t been home, work has been busy, and my volunteer work has increased, so the time I am home, I try and sleep.

However, on Saturday, I took time to sit down, watch trashy TV (on Netflix) and finish “Chicken Soup with Rice.” It’s finished in the sense that I have finished embroidering. It is hooped, but not finished, but will be. This absolutely is my favorite piece I’ve done.

Mr. Lulu found the thread for the leaves, which was a fun multi-colored strand.  Stitching this piece brought me a LOT of happiness. It’s my first real character piece. I hope you love it as much as I do.

Sipping once, Sipping twice…

Maurice Sendak wrote in my favorite (lesser known Sendak book) Chicken Soup with Rice,

“In January it’s so nice, While slipping on the sliding ice, To sip hot chicken soup with rice. Sipping once, sipping twice, Sipping chicken soup with rice.”

And how I wish my January was filled with slipping on sliding ice while eating chicken soup with rice. Instead it has been filled with friends, folly, and infections. The infection though, is being treated with antibiotics and complimented by soup, which is so nice. I have not done nearly what I wanted to accomplish in January, but I have begun a new project, which, in my head of crazy deadlines, I’d like to see done by Monday when semester begins again.

A while ago, I listened to an interview on Fresh Air, where Terry Gross interviewed Sendak. I was in tears my whole way home. He was on to talk about his newest book, This Pig Wants to Party, but it was such an amazingly touching story of him growing older, loving, being loved, and knowing his end is near. His end will never be near, I know he is so loved, not just by me, but by everyone. His book like Where the Wild Things Are is a classic. All of his books are classics, in my mind. So are his illustrations.

I decided to embroider a drawing out of Chicken Soup with Rice. I know I carried this book with me everwhere. And somewhere in moves, my original hard copy has been misplaced and has been replaced with a newer, paperback version. This is my way of expressing my love to a man who I grew up with and can most definitely say, with whom I’d sip chicken soup with rice.

 

HI!

Hey there! Hi! YOO HOO! (I really just like saying YOO HOO! <- see, I did it again)

I wanted to update you…no, I haven’t quite moved to Tumblr yet. I know. And no, Jon Hamm did not show up at my house with hockey tickets, or a trip away, or anything like that. Mr. Lulu did make me scream on Christmas morning LIKE JON HAMM was at the door, when my stocking rang…and inside (buried at the very bottom) was a new iPhone 4s. SIRI! She’s my new BFF.

But this isn’t about Christmas past….No. Or New Years…because that too has come and gone and here we are, ten days into the new year. Only 355 days left to accomplish all I need to accomplish! 

Let us start with a list of (and I will put this in big bold letters for dramatic effect) EVERYTHING LULU BEAN WANTS TO ACCOMPLISH IN 2012!!! (if you said it in a big booming voice, you got what I was going for!)

• Clean my sewing closet. I wish I had taken photos of it to post, but um, its an embarrassment. It needs cleaned, purged, reorganized and made all the better. Are baskets REALLY the best way to store fabric if it ends up in piles? I don’t know. Thoughts, dear reader(s)?
• Take three more graduate classes (and then I will have one left in 2013 and I will graduate!)
• Continue to work with the commissions I sit on, without being a poopoo head about it
• Continue to work with my most awesome church and do the most awesome things for the Most Awesome. (She totally deserves capitals!)
• Keep my hubby happy. (Make your hobby, hubby. Keep your hubby happy. When he’s a little chubby. He’s the happy pappy. With Rockenschpeel! Flintstones, anyone…anyone…?) This includes renewing our vows at our 10 year anniversary.
• Redo my screened in porch, which includes painting, replacing wainscotting, cleaning, maybe removing furniture. Why DO we have so much furniture? Again, I’d show pictures, but…it’s scary
• Sew more. Hey! Look at that! A sewing bullet! And by sewing more, I mean, the quilt top for me. A new dress for me. And work harder to better my sewing skills.
• Better my sewing skills (totally deserves its own)
• Learn how to use my serger

It’s going to be an exciting year, this 2012. Iwill do what I always do…get ridiculously busy, freak out, wonder why I do it, enjoy it, and then rinse and repeat. Because that’s what I do. And at 32, I think I’ve become OK with that. I’m not sure Mr. Lulu has…I really don’t think Mr. Lulu is OK with the “freak out” step in all that, but he’s supportive. But I’m sure he’d like to see one of those bullet points “not freak out when I put too much on my plate and can’t deal with it simultaneously.”

So before I leave this posting today, here is the finished quilt I made for my friend April. We are doing a blanket swap. She’s crocheted me a blanket, I quilted her one! It’s so exciting!

April's Quit

This is the beginnings of Charlotte’s quilt. Her mama picked out the fabrics, which are adorable! It’s another Disappearing/ Vanishing 9 patch. When it’s finished, I’ll post more pictures!

 

 

Charlotte's Quilt

 

Till then, happy sewing and happy 2012!

 

 

 

Twas the week before Christmas…and no donkey (or John Hamm) in sight

I have found that I cannot name a post until I write the post. I mean, who writes their abstract of their 55 page paper before writing the actual paper? I cannot predict WHERE this may go.

Except, I thought I would update you all since my last posting about John Hamm. He has not shown up at my house yet, but when he does, with hockey tickets in hand (for the Leafs game in Toronto, no doubt), I will let you all know. In the meantime, I have a super amazing husband who is not indulging my Christmas wishes. No one likes a spoiled wife, apparently.

I have yet to find a donkey and this is a slight tragedy, but in the grand scheme of things, this could be kind of frightening:

Hello, Christmas Donkey

 

 

 

 

 

My baking is almost finished. I’ve made Christmas thins, almond crescents, white chocolate cherry shortbread, kolaches, and chocolate orange fudge. I still have the frangelico crinkles to make, but I keep forgetting to leave my eggs out.

 

We had a slew of people over to make gingerbread houses. I will post pictures when I get them off my camera, but in the mean time, this is what mine didn’t look like:

So….maybe I lifted this off of Google images and didn’t really make it.

We had a great time with Kelly, Aaron, Meredith, Todd, Sue Ann, and four of Todd’s nieces and his nephew. I loved seeing the kitchen a mess and the beauty and creativity of all everyone.

 

In other news, my shopping is *almost* finished.

 

And lastly, before I go, because now I’m sorely irritated that WordPress will not un-center …

I opened a tumblr account. My Mr. Lulu urged me to think about it and so I did. I haven’t started it yet, but if you want to go ahead and bookmark the site, it’s Gin & Tunic. Get it? Get it??? I will probably make the transition off of wordpress to tumblr at the beginning of the year.

 

Until then,happy baking!