Busy Busy Bee...

There are lots of new things (which stem from old things) going on in my life right now. That unlike the reflection in the coffee cup above are not necessarily visible on the surface (I was sitting by a window in a restaurant on 15th Street in downtown DC when I took this photo...couldn't resist the reflection of the building across the street in my coffee I guess). All good, but it is keeping me busy as a bee.

I have just been hired to teach at my local quilt shop, Material Girls Quilt Boutique. I am so excited to get back into quilting. I have been a quilter for 25 years and have taught off and on over the years. The last class I taught was about 10 or so years ago. Just before 9-11 happened. I went into in home sales for a while selling Stampin' Up products. Did that for almost 4 years. After finding out I was expecting my little guy who is now 7, I gave up all the extra activities that took me out of the house. I focused on being the healthiest pregnant mom I could be (my older son was 14 at the time). Then after giving birth I could not justify being out of the house with a brand new babe who needed to bond with his momma...and me with him. I made the right choice...never one doubt about it. Now he has swim practice twice a week, soccer practice once a week, and ice skating lessons once a week. All in the evenings. My hubby takes him to swimming, because for some reason they don't like little boys in the womens locker room, or moms in the mens locker room...tee hee hee. On soccer night it is all guys so I stay home to get dinner going once I am home from work. Ice skating however, is my favorite physical activity to do with him so we all go to the rink to ice skate before his lessons.

Now that I will be teaching again I plan to do it on one of the evenings he is at the pool for swim practice. It won't take away from our time together and I get to do some girl stuff I enjoy (not that there are only females interested in quilting). I have a laundry list of new ideas for classes I want to teach...have pretty much been given free reign over what classes I teach, what day and time they are to be held, and how often. Fun is on the horizon people and I am ready to meet the challenge with much enthusiasm.

I have been working on knitting my Tea Leaves Cardigan I started last February, 2011. It is coming along nicely, and I cannot wait to wear it. Malabrigo worsteds are my most favorite yarns...so soft and snuggly, and beautiful saturated colors. This sweater is going to be my go to sweater for everyday wear. I can just feel it in my bones everytime I pick it up and work on it. I chose a beautiful shade of dark green for this particular pattern. Green goes with everything! Think about it...flowers of all colors have green leaves, grass is green, trees have green leaves...green goes with every color of everything in the whole world! As do sunshine yellow, sky blue, and earthy browns. Black and white are not the only paints in the paint box to go with all other colors.

Have also been working on writing and illustrating a childrens book...this has been my dream since I was a child. We will see how far it goes, but I am giving it my all. It is quite a process and I love every minute of it. I will at least have some colorful artwork to frame and hang on my walls if it doesn't work out. :)

Hope everyone has a wonderful and creative weekend...I know I will. Tomorrow we are planning our vegie garden for the spring and summer so we can get our seeds ordered. So, I will be busy with lots of creative things (with a little ice skating thrown in for good measure!).