basted!

Well, I'm totally annoyed with this once-favorite quilt.
I'm not sure if it's the thread, the tension on my machine, or ME in general, but the quilting situation is not working right now. I was supposed to have this thing D-U-N by now and it's just not happening. ARGG!

Oh well. At least I got my very special tutu order out the door. I was THRILLED to have a custom order of 4 tutus for flowers girls in a May wedding. Nevermind the fact that I was totally winging it.
I must say she looks absolutely adorable in it, but too bad... it's in NY now with it's 3 other tutu friends.

And I finished up a little colored pencil holder for my friend's daughter who is just a sweety in general.

ETA: I should give credit to Pink Chalk Studios for the pencil roll pattern seen in Last Minute Patchwork and Quilted Gifts.

I'm also a little annoyed with the smudge on my cameral lens. Gotta figure out how to handle that one without making it worse... which is usually the way it ends up with me!

But most importantly right now, I must figure out this tension/thread/me issue. Tomorrow...

Good night.

Monkeys, Dora, and Penguins...

...Oh my!
Are there any awards for worst blogger ever? I realize bloggers are supposed to be a little more regular than once a month, but this is all I got right now! Here are a few of the things I've been doing:

What fun it was to make my first sock monkey! Maybe I've been watching too much Celebrity Apprentice, but I think she looks like Joan Rivers a little. This sweet little monkey girl went to my best girlfriend for her baby shower. They have been referring to the young fetus as Monkey, as the baby's hair was visible on the ultrasound. Seriously. She sits daintily atop a 4-tier diaper cake. Isabella was so sad to see Miss Monkey go, but maybe I'll make another one someday... Or maybe not. I have a little monkey in the background keeping me busy lately!

Shortly after the baby shower was my oldest's 3rd birthday. Part of me can't believe she's only three. I can barely remember life without her. I feel like she's always been a part of my life. She is such a tender heart, a kind old soul. She loves hugging (sometimes to the point of tackling), dancing, singing, and Dora. I'm not a huge fan of my daughter being totally obsessed with characters, but I guess it could be worse. That's the world we live in, so I just have to make sure it stays in check. Thankfully she is all about books, so at least that minimizes the impact of the situation. I decided to make her a birthday cake each year and what a fun tradition it has turned into! Everyone at the party now waits to see what we came up with each year.

As if there were any doubt. Previous years' cakes were Thomas the Tank Engine and a doggy. She's still a big fan of both, so maybe there will be repeats in the future! We had her birthday party at the zoo since our little house can't accomodate our families. It was so great to get everyone together and celebrate our "togetherness" since we are all so scattered these days.

And now I'm quite excited to be almost done with a lovely brown and blue quilt. Stay tuned! Hopefully it won't take a month to post again, but you never know with all these animals running around!