Tolentreasures

We are heading into one of the busiest times of the year. My house and business are a mass of lists, deadlines, appointments... It's enough to make your head swim.   You say, "Who has time to take on anything else?"   And I agree that it sounds overwhelming, however, so many of you that read this sew, knit, crochet, paint, craft, encourage, uplift, you name it. We all have a gift! Share it this season!   Below, I am going to list all my favorite service projects from years past.   What will I do this year? Right now, I have no idea, but I do know that there are a lot of crafting supplies calling my name!   This is the most popular post on my blog, close to 12,000 hits!  Shocked?  I was and am as it continues to grow. Thrilled? Yes! That means that there are all the more people receiving these much needed bags!   http://tolentreasures.blogspot.com/2010/04/walkerwheelchair-bag-tutorial.html

Last night the door burst open! In rushes two little boys, costumes fluttering and flying behind them. "Grandma, this is all your job!" "The party is Thursday and we need these fixed!" "These don't fit us!"   I tell them to try them on so I can pin them. Startled looks, big eyes, "You are going to pin them ON US!"   So we settled for a try on and a visual on the alterations.   They wanted to stay and watch me sew them, apparently, not wanting to be separated from them.   In the end, they left them after a lot of reassurance that they would be done today.   And they are.. barely. I worked on them until I fell asleep last night  and finished them this morning!   Tailor to the Turtles.   Can I put that on a resume?

Giving my obsession with the health care fiasco a break, I needed something else to jam into that space in my mind. It is not really working yet, however, I am really trying to make them all think it is working. So, I am taking up some other obsessions. Crazy quilt blocks for one. Since having to give up all the wool or live with the itching, I needed another stitching project. These fit the bill! Creative and fun. Collecting and planning for the trip to Haiti. I leave for Haiti on the 17th of November. Hopefully and Prayerfully, a promise kept. Six years ago, I promised to return and teach calligraphy to the students at the EBAC orphanage. Why would I do that?   Make that promise? Life has been in the way since and I did not know if I would be able to keep that promise. So, the door is opened and I am sewing dresses and skirts and shorts to take with me, collecting formula to take along, some baby clothing and lots

The 5th Annual Open House is over! Another year in!  The house is back to normal. The remaining items are packed for another year. And all that is left... are the stacks for Christmas orders, and all the plans for next year! Thanks to everyone that helped to make it a success!

First of all, for those of you that normally follow along, this is not going to be your typical crafts or craziness post. So, if that is what you are expecting, you might want to tune out now. Second of all, and if you are still with me, please understand that this is not political, I try to be relatively open-minded, have always believed that we live in a free country where everyone has and is entitled to their opinion. That being said, I am a registered Republican. If that offends you, that is your problem. It does not offend me or make me think less of you if you are a registered Democrat. That is your choice, mine is mine. Personally, I rarely vote a straight party ticket, try to be somewhat well informed, and for years was registered Independent, but changed that only to be able to vote in the primaries. What I am about to say, I think affects a lot of people regardless of party affiliation.   My husband and I are self e

Old School? Yes. But I think that I am ready to return there. In today's episode of Me vs. Best Buy or How Many Trips Can You Make to Pittsburgh In A Week? you will find ME that's right, this episode stars ME,  AGAIN driving AGAIN to Pittsburgh to return the computer that we bought because Best Buy told us our other one was trashed. Unfixable, Unrecoverable. lots of "un" words. This purchase included a laptop, a tech support package, an external cd drive... well just read the previous post to get the drift.   And then, we called the local computer guru. Keep him in good Columbian coffee, give him some smoking breaks and viola! The old computer is up and running fine. (I would say that Best Buy should hire him... but he really doesn't fit the Geek Squad mold) and he probably wouldn't sell many computers, he would manage for fix the OLD ones, therefore violating the Best Buy c

  Disclaimer: All of these images were found on the internet, they are not my creations.   With that said, it has taken almost 24 hours for me to put a positive spin on yesterday's events.   First of all, my day started by losing an hour. I wake up and check the time on my phone and wonder, Why is Dianna leaving for work so early? Why is the neighbor's front porch light on so early? Why do I feel like I have slept in? Well, apparently my phone took a trip to the Central Time Zone without me! or part of the government shut down was furloughing the little gnome that must set cell phone times?   Reboot, and we were out of the twilight zone. The next two hours were the calmest of my day.   Hang on. It's a pretty wild ride for the rest of the day! At around 8 AM, I find out that  Jenn's embroidery computer has crashed. This would be the non-backed up, all of our embroidery designs, busiest time of the year,