Jenaveve....

I have been meaning to tell you that Jenaveve has hit the shop!!! Yeah, we have it in the store ready to go to a good home....I also finished up a small pattern booklet to go with the fabric. We are trying to keep as much local as we can and support our community and I have to say it paid off our printer did such a great job on the booklet! Very exciting.....

Now in the lovely booklet are these projects....

The Anya bag....LOVE this bag my girlfriend Jules has made so many of these for friends it is amazing. Very simple yet gratifying....can't go wrong with a project like that!

Luna Quilt, fun, simple and perfect for a day out and about with the family.

And pillows - you can't have a quilt without good pillows. As I looked at my couch the other day and the pillows have been worn out by the kids I realize I need to make new pillows for the couch. With little kids I have decided that you can't just make pillows out of the quilting weight cotton you have to have something more durable. The next set to hit the Kennedy couch will be out of cotton linen or home decorator weight goods. Nothing like a sturdy pillow for a good pillow fight.....

I thought that I would also show you the swatches of Jenaveve to tempt you.....

There you go my friends!! I want to spend some time making something for myself but I know my sample yardage for Wrenly is going to arrive shortly and my studio needs a cleaning. Studio cleaning seems to be normal in my world....I get so busy I can't seem to keep it clean. I have decided that I am going to totally re-arrange the studio and DEEP clean.....hope to get some help on the best way to re-arrange from Miss Carolyn. She has such a good eye and I know she will be able to help me come up with a more efficient set up. So many things to do and so little time.....

Happy Day!!!

XOXO

Valori

Fabric Cave.....

I've been in the fabric designing cave for the past few weeks. Working on my fall collection of fabric! I am really excited about it and can't wait to show you but it will have to wait until I get some samples. It is amazing how I am working on this fabric but at the same time thinking about my booth for Spring Market and the Wrenly collection that is coming out this spring. So many things to think about and so many ideas! Oh thank god for the ideas....there are times in my life where I wonder if I am going to be able to come up with another collection or another quilt or another booth but then when it comes down to it I do! It is all so exciting these days with the work I am doing and there are times that I can't believe it is real! I have struggled for years with lack of confidence in my work and myself and finally I am getting there. Getting to the place that every artist dreams of, the land of confidence!!!

While I have been in the "cave" I have had lots of help from my kitties...they follow me everywhere when I am in the studio. When I was taking a break from drawing (my wrist has been aching)) I shot a couple of photos of the kitty helpers.

Lilly is not much help so she sleeps and purrs SO LOUD! Gotta love a purring happy kitty...I just wish I could nap with her.

Leo on the other hand is very frisky and he runs around harassing Sophie as much as possible. I think she secretly loves it.

Even though she acts like she is pissed off and being put out by the kittens! She also likes to eat my erasers on my pencils when I am not looking......not sure how good that is for her digestion.

I am not very good at being idle so there are a ton of projects going on in the studio....my girlfriend Andrea told me I need an intervention! She is probably right or maybe just an assistant!!! Anyhow, we have a new quilt contest with Quilt Show this year, Small Wonders. I really wanted to make a quilt for the contest, so this is what I have started....

The contest will benefit Quilt Show and our Parks and Rec in town. I am so excited to help SPRD (Sisters Parks and Recreational District) they have do so much for our community and our children in the community. We are hoping to get some of the kids to make some quilts for the contest.

I have attached some information from the Quilt Show web site for the Small Wonders contest just in case any of you would like to enter....I love the idea - it is like making doll quilts, they can't be smaller than 18" or bigger than 24". OH, so attainable for someone like me!!! It is fun to work on something like this nothing to do with my fabric but everything to do with my community and my family.

Well, back to the cave and the kitties!!

XOXO

Valori

The Stitchin’ Post and Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show challenge you to create a "Small Wonder” quilt and donate it for a fundraiser benefiting Sisters non-profit organizations. These Small Wonders will be between 18” and 24” in size. The quilts will be displayed at the Sisters Library during the month of May where visitors will vote for their favorite. Prizes totaling $500.00 will be awarded and the quilts will be displayed and sold during Quilt Show in July. Proceeds from the Challenge will be divided between the show and Sisters Park & Recreation District which provides much needed recreational opportunities that benefit the health and wellness of the Sisters community, especially our youth. For rules and entry information click here. Quilts are due by April 15th

The rest of the best of 2010.....

Where did I leave off on my adventures of the past year.....OH yes, accomplishments....my mom had a huge accomplishment this year - I was a very proud daughter seeing my mom be inducted into the Quilter's Hall of Fame. Tears filled my eyes as she spoke of her lifetime of quilting, realizing that I have been apart of it for so many years.

she just glowed that night, it was great to see her so happy.

I have learned that I have to be happy with me and quit trying to please everyone else or I will never full fill my dreams or destiny that it is time to lead my life to the fullest.

Talk about an AHA moment! To quote Oprah...

The year had some normality's....Quilt Show to be exact....it came and went perfectly....

The kids enjoyed it to the fullest...

We had birthday milestones.....

we planted our garden and watched it grow....I loved the excitement from the kids to go out and see what had grown over night.....every evening we would spend hours outside in the garden - eating most of our produce raw and playing in the flowers and sand.....I enjoyed every second and found such peace in the laughter and silliness of my family.

I got more ink this summer for my Violette Grace...

and realized that I have to really control myself  not to pick!!! very bad habit....

We played in the ocean and sand.....the energy and excitement of the kids oozed over to us adults and we all got a little wet.

Sunbathing and cuddling became a norm in our house....

especially as we brought new family members home....

to my amazement it isn't too hard to have three cats, three kids and a puppy.....instead of being totally overwhelmed I am learning to embrace the chaos and laugh at it all......HUGE for me!

There were so many firsts this year......

the first guitar lesson...

the first soccer game.....I am officially a soccer mom, and a dance mom, and a Tae Kwon do mom and, and, and, and.....

The first day of school....for my baby.....

This winter I had an awesome opportunity to do something special for my girlfriends....two women that I have know since we were kids but it is only now that we have become such great friends. We were having a Christmas dinner at my house when Sondy pulled me aside and told me that she pulled Trea's name for their family secret santa and she really wanted one of my little bird paintings....How could I ever say no, I was honored! Well, funny thing is towards the end of the evening Trea pulls me aside and tells me how she got Sondy's name for secret santa and wanted one of my birdy paintings....I was so excited to get to do the paintings for them....and oh so wished I could be a fly on the wall when they opened gifts.

Luckily I had Julie (another girlfriend of ours) at the studio when I was painting and she mentioned it to Sondy's husband so he got a photo for me....kind of like being a fly on the wall.....

Sondy's bird....so perfect for her...

Trea's bird.....she loves green...

And the girls....

I loved being able to something that was so special to them, it filled me with joy and satisfaction.

So my friends this is it.....part of my year in photos......there are times I wish I could express more in words and find more time to share where I am and what I'm doing with you. For me this year has been filled with tremendous growth....I am proud of myself and who I am and who I am becoming as I believe that life is ever changing and so am I....thank you for all of your kind words over the past year and I hope to hear from you more.

find your beauty this year and push yourself in some way or another......

to a great 2011!!!
my love and gratitude!

XOXO

Valori

Happy New Year.....a little late.....

Welcome to 2011! It is starting out as crazy as last year. Is that something that just happens as we get older and have more responsibilities? I also consider technology a culprit in the crazyness, it seems I am always able to be in touch except on about 8 minutes of my drive to and from our house, no cell service. I remember when......we didn't drive with phones, home phones were connected to the wall, our computer was connected to the desk (no lap tops). I was wondering when the comment "I remember when" was going to come out of my mouth. Alas, technology has a huge roll in my life and I will have to learn to find a balance.

I recently was reading AnnaMaria Horner's blog post about 2010, she remembered her year in bits and pieces of good, bad, sad, happy all of those emotions. It made me reflect on my own year. What happened in 2010 that I remember...what made me cry, laugh, reflect, sing, dance..... I am not as eliquent with words as others but I do take some good photos and they can help me convey my feelings. Here you go my memories of 2010......(in no particular order just how I feel)

To start with something beautiful, my family....whom I love so much and have taught me so many things this year...

Patience, friendship, love, the art of dancing and singing just because you can.....and being silly

I watched my kids become less like babies and more like people - funny how that happens...

They became friends...beyond just being Sisters....

They painted with me...and now it is a constant request on the weekends - "can we paint?"

I watched my dad beam as Vivi learned to bake bread with him...it was so rewarding to give something to him in my children that he missed out on in me. Reminding me that forgiveness is so important in life and that if you don't learn to forgive you may miss out on something beautiful.

From the darkness of Winter we came into the beauty of spring....loving the time spent cuddling by the fire in the winter but anxious to be outside and plant and play...

even in my dark times I always had a part of me that knew it was all going to be alright....

Things broke in my life but even when broken they were beautiful in their own way and I learned something from each experience....

I found my love of photography again....not sure if I lost it or it was just quietly waiting for me to come back to it....

I was inspired to look at photos a little different....bubbles for instance...

Baby and bubbles...

 

and then there were the clouds....my fascination with clouds, I still love them and have recently bought myself a new "point n' shoot" that will take RAW images and is totally awesome - to put in my purse and have with me at all times. The iphone is great but does not do my vision much justice. My new canon will.

(along with clouds is my love of wine) I found times this year that just sitting and being was the most wonderful, rejuvination experience. Learning to quiet my mind and stop the chatter.....

Anyway.....

Inspiration....oh where, oh where does it come from....

A trip to a zoo brings inspriation...

a bar in an airport.....

yarn....and of course my children and family....the most inspiring part of my life.

So many accomplishments, falls, highs and lows for the year....there will be more tomorrow.

XOXO

Valori

Merry Christmas....a couple days late...

Merry Christmas to all!!! Running a bit late on the salutations....but I am running late on my Holiday Cards also. Good thing that they say Happy Holidays rather than Merry Christmas!

Here is the picture that comes with the card...

They are too cute! My girlfriend Sondy (who designs stationary) did our cards with some of my designs and then the photo of the kids. Love it...Love her!

Over the past few weeks I have been furiously making Christmas Presents. Still not done with a few of my Wish Birds but luckily I have some time this week to get them to my friends.

Some birds....

I made a bag for each bird to "wrap" them in. I couldn't think of any other way to wrap up the bird. My husband thought I was crazy to do so much but I just couldn't help myself. They have to look right and feel right for me otherwise I am not going to give them away....

For my girl Andrea.

For my mama.

In the meantime I received my strike-offs for my Spring Collection....want a sneak peak?!

It all looked wonderful! What a great Christmas gift!

Our day was so fun with the kiddos. Ross and I were so excited that we didn't sleep well....The morning 5:30 a.m. was filled with wonder and amazement of Santa and presents. The weather was pretty good so Ross, the girls, my parents and I hiked down into the canyon. There was defiantly some snow but manageable. The canyon and creek were absolutely beautiful. Couldn't believe that we hadn't been down there in ages. In the summer I am cautious of the rattlesnakes and cougars. Well, cougars anytime but there were a lot of us and the dogs. The girls did great in the snow until the end of the hike when we had to climb out of the canyon. I carried Olivia on my back and Ross carried Violette. Not sure how I got the bigger kid. Better work out for me with all the yummy food and drinks it was good calorie burn.

Now we are on a cleaning mode. We thoroughly went through the kids rooms yesterday. I am wondering how long all of my baskets will stay organized???!! Tomorrow will be the laundry room and what ever else we can get to. My pantry needs a good cleaning and mom gave me great containers for organizing it. Just have to get my motivation up for it. Cleaning is not one of my favorite things, I really have to get over that.

Now back to work before the kids get home from meme's and papa's.

XOXOX

Valori

It is official I have an sinus infections....god, I feel like my head is going to explode. Yuck! I have to be happy that it is now and not next week when I have so much going on. Well, I always have so much going on....today will be napping and working on birds. Gives me an excuse to sit on the couch. I would rather not have the pounding head but can't be too picky......
xoxo
Valori

The fog in our canyon is how my head feels....

December....holiday....

December is here and I am in full swing making holiday gifts for my family and friends. My husband thinks I am crazy because I am working every night on gifts but I love it. To make something special for the people I love full fills me. Now I can't wait to wrap them up and give them away...just have to finish!

I thought I would share a birdcage that I made about a month ago...with a little help from the puppy and kittens. No they didn't really help but it was fun to play with them with the sticks.

Inside this lovely cage is a "Wish Bird". I have a great friend that once gave me a cup that said wish, wish, wish, wish all down the side of it. I found myself staring at that cup and finally just took out a piece of paper and wrote a wish. There have been several wishes added to this up over the past couple of years. The thought of having a special place to put a wish has been growing on me and I thought about my obsession with birds and how I could make  a bird into a place for special wishes.  Each one of the "Wish Birds" that I am making for gifts have been uniquely crafted with embroidery, beads and LOVE for the special friend. It is important to me to give to these friends and family something from my heart and that is just for them. Once they are all done I will photograph them to show you.....

Lilly Bean, my little shadow, likes to help me while I make the birds and other goodies in the studio. I love having the kittens in the studio. They get into trouble sometimes but they are so cuddly and cute you can't get too mad at them.

I finally finished Teague's birthday vest. I had to start over three times.....he is long and skinny so I had to adapt the pattern to fit his cute little body.

This was on Thanksgiving at my brother's house.....he is such a little man!

Love to all.....

XOXOX

Valori

November.....

I have to admit it is hard how quick the months slip by, it is almost Thanksgiving....which I love but at the same time I am not ready for Christmas! SO many things to make....who is with me on that? I love the idea of doing a handmade holiday but how do you fit it all in when you work and have family????

There hasn't been a cloud posting in awhile so I thought that I would share some new clouds....I think all of these were taken on my iphone. Amazing how much I use that camera, probably because it is always with me.

When was the last time you looked up at the sky? What do you see? When was the last time you looked at the stars?

This is a spot that we drive by when we go into town from the house. I am always stopping and taking photos of the clouds....or sunsets...or the mountains....

This was even more amazing in person. I really need to carry my good camera with me.

A contribution from my brother, Jason, when he was out fishing. Love that he takes photos of clouds and sends them to me....kinda cute!

I have to get to work...it is never ending. I wanted to end this with some cute kids......

And our most recent family photo.....

Have a great Thanksgiving!!! Enjoy your family and friends and be thankful...I know I am!

XOXOX

Valori

Nothing like being sick and having a kitten cuddle with you! Love my kitties.....hate being sick.....

Jenaveve photo shot day 2.....

Home again....it is so great to see the kids and play with the puppy and kittens. I am such a home body. Today I am hanging out in the studio working on my next fall collection, starting with the drawings. Going to market does get all the creative juices flowing. I had ideas of what I was going to do for the fall but it was just in my head not quite ready to come out. Now after market I am ready to start drawing....god that feels good!

Now, where did I leave off yesterday.....oh yeah, we had started our "speed" sewing for Wednesday's photo shot. We were successful at finishing all of the projects on the list.

Mom with the projects at the lake...

We do tend to re-organize the "set" if we need to. There was this log seat that someone made up by the fire pit and we wanted to move it down to the beach. Dang it was heavy....

This is where we set the seat...thought it was a great place to sit the pillows.

A bit of mom and Carolyn doing work to set up the next shot.

The Luna quilt and pillows that we made. The quilt is very simple yet visually complex because of the fabric itself.

There is not much quilting on it for this photo but over the weekend I was able to add some more. Worked for the photo...

The Anya Bag...this bag is so easy to make and very versatile. I just LOVE how the fabric looks with the worn out stump and rocks.

This is the skirt that we put together....it is an A-line but a little straighter, does that make sense? The skirt hits just below the belly button and the hem is mid shin....I have a great friend, Nick, who is a dressmaker that I am working with him on doing the pattern and sizing it out. I don't know how to do that but I love to design the clothes....great to have good partners to help you out where you might fall a bit short. And I might learn something new also. Fun!

The things you do for a photo....

The grass that is starting to turn yellow looks so great with the colors in the skirt....

And that is it...our photo shot, a little edited because I took a lot of photos but you get the idea.

The fabric and my patterns should be out in December...I will keep you posted.

Hope you have a great day!! Back to my drawing...yeah! love it when I am inspired to draw!!!!

XOXOXOX

Valori

Jenaveve photo shot day 1...

I'm sitting in Salt Lake City airport waiting to go home from market and I thought I would share our photo shot we did last week with Jenaveve. As you might remember I received the fabric on Monday.

The lovely, colorful box from Korea....it is so fun to open up the sample yardage boxes and see your hard work come to life in fabric.

Tuesday morning.....

Three Creeks lake the location for Jenaveve photo shot. It is so beautiful at the lake that day. Knowing that we only had a couple of days before the weather turned.....No one was at the lake and the water was perfectly still, clear, and cold.

Mom, Carolyn and I started scouting out the beach area for photo opportunities....

Mom decided since she had her camera that she would take "behind the scenes" photos....kinda fun, huh?

We laid out all 15 pieces of lovely cotton linen....oh so soft and yummy! I envisioned (with some help of Carolyn's brilliant mind) a clothes line of the fabric blowing in the wind.....now to find the trees to tie the rope onto.

It took some time to get all of the fabric on the rope....I didn't realize how heavy the fabric would be it really weighted down the line. But we did conquer it!

This was the final outcome...there were tons of photos taken but this is my favorite. As we were scouting out the area we noticed so many great possibilities for photos with the fabric.....the colors of the area were perfectly neutral. Does that make sense?

 

I love using my LenseBaby....it creates the soft affect on the edges. You can move and tilt the lense to pick your sweet spot. Too much fun!

The greens.....

Teal and grey.....

This print is the Tribal Floral...I just love it. I'm thinking that some pillows need to happen or maybe a chair...just have to find a chair to cover. Not like we have a lot of room for another chair....maybe something small. Anyway, I digress...

The reds......isn't it just perfect with the red of the stump?

There are a lot of rock "studies" going on up at the lake....I love taking photos of what others have left.

Around 2 p.m. we decided that to sew up as much of the projects on the list as we could knowing that Wednesday was going to be beautiful. Carolyn and I heading to my studio to make a skirt, quilt, bag and some pillows. Mom would come by later and pick up some of what we couldn't get done.....it was going to be fast and furious.

Carolyn and I had so much fun sewing and getting time to just be together. We hadn't spent time like this in ages....did I mention that we recently adopted two kittens and a puppy. Yep, chaos in the Kennedy house. But fun all the same....Carolyn had a heck of a time getting the skirt cut out with Lilly attacking the tissue.....

The final result for the postcard for Market ended like this.....

The back had swatches of all the designs and then we stapled a swatch of the fabric to the card. I thought that it would be good to have the fabric on the card. We are such a tactile group of people once you feel the fabric you will want it!

Tomorrow I will share the photos we shot with all of the projects...yep we even got them all done! Giving ourselves a big pat on the back......

Now I must catch a plane home. I can't wait to see the family!! YEAH!
XOXO

Valori

Kindergarten Quilts....

Earlier this month I was asked to help with a fund raiser for Sisters Elementary School. That was fine and good but I only had a couple of weeks to get a project done for both the A.M. and P.M. class. The tradition for the Green and Gold Gala is for us to use the kids in the class to help create something that the parents would want to bid on at the Gala. Something fabulous of course! Well, the easiest thing I could think of was a quilt besides I just didn't have any other ideas on such a spur of the moment request. My friend, Julie offered to help me, thanks goodness!

We went to the classes and took the hand prints of the students and then started sewing.....

I picked solids to play off the fun, creative, exploration of Kindergarten. Then the technique was inspired by my mom and her free form piecing. It was so fun to just sew without a pattern or having to write a pattern for the quilt.

We sell these rolls of solid fabrics in the shop in soft, bright and dark color palettes. I picked the bright and soft to play with in the quilts.

Miss Sophie had to come and lay in the strips while we were quilting. I have to say the best of doing this project was getting to have Julie in the studio. We had such a wonderful time chatting and sewing.....need more of those days in my life. It is amazing what having some girl time can do to your attitude!

The finished quilt for Olivia's class, A.M. I wrote all of the kids names next to their hands so that they could find their hand-print. Mom has already decided she wants this quilt....she is going to be out of town on the night of the Gala so she is sending John.....He loves auctions!

This is the P.M. class. I love that they are different from each other, the shape and construction. It makes me happy to be a part of this and that the quilts ended up as good as they did. I was hoping that my idea would work. It is always nice when that happens, don't you think?

When I took them in on Monday, Mrs. Kamrath loved them...she wanted to know how much she was going to have to "fork" out to get them. That was a huge compliment to me.....we will see on November 6th how much we can raise for the school!!! With all of the budget cuts in our district it is amazing that we even have a kindergarten. It is so frustrating to see our schools suffer, well I should say our kids suffer. Our little town is lucky because the community is so supportive but we still struggle.

Anyway, have got to head out to the last soccer practice of the year....and potluck that we do with our friends after soccer practice. We are hoping to continue the pot luck...it is a great excuse to get together and the kids have a blast!

XO

Valori

Jenaveve....

Just a little tease of my new fabric...Jenaveve. It is cotton linen blend and oh so lovely! We just did an amazing photo shot yesterday at Three Creeks Lake. There will be more photos to come soon!
XO
Valori

The little man's one....

How has the time flown…I swear I just posted but no it has been weeks. Part of me can’t remember where it all went then I cough and the memories of being sick for 10 days hits me. I was taken down by this cold knocked me on my butt….it hit everyone in the family except Ross. There has to be one man or woman standing to take care of everyone. Mother natures way of keeping us a little sane…..

 Yesterday was Teague's first birthday....I got to spend the whole day just playing with him. It was wonderful just to play and do what he wanted.

  Sweet little baby.....

 
Getting to be such a big boy....

Oh, the clouds in Central Oregon are just breathtaking….I must share the newest clouds and a few rainbows.

Now I am off to photograph some covers for new patterns....

Have  a great day!

XO

Valori

Top 17 photos of summer.....

I was trying to come up with just 10 top photos of the summer but I just couldn't narrow it down...

With the hundreds of photos to go through I think that 17 is pretty good. Besides 10 is hard for me because I really like odd numbers and find myself working with them as much as possible.

I couldn't resit a cloud photo...our trip to the beach with family in June.

My favorite Quilt Show photos are the kids and mom and....

the girls and I drawing quilt block with chalk in the parking lot.

The teachers at daycare took this of Teague during Vi's birthday party.....we all "heart" Violette.

My garden.....

Quilter's Hall of Fame....go mom!

Birthday girls...more than anything we just had an excellent summer party....don't you just love summer parties?

 
At the cabin in August.

Even in summer we get the rain and the beautiful rainbows over the canyon.

Papa and the kids...

Two of my favortie photos this one of Miss Vi.....

And Miss Liv.....

My summer in 17 photos....I have to say I think there needs to be more to express the whole summer but it was fun and challenging to be able to pick those faves out.

XOXO

Val

Clouds.....(again)

Tonight I discovered how to keep my 11 month old busy while I cleaned the kitchen.

1. Start with an empty dishwasher and a sink full of dishes.

2. Load Spoons (only) into the silverware basket.

3. Place 11 month old at the edge of the dishwasher so he can see the spoons.

4. Proceed to load the dishwasher leaving the other silverware until last.

5. Don't dilly dally around he still has an short attention span. (be careful to make sure you empty all the water out of the cups before loading - he does not like water on his head)

So happy to have the time to do that becasue the kitchen was driving me crazy. The girls are so good at playing together they let me clean but Teague is just everywhere these days.

My interest in clouds continues...I have decided to do a post a week about clouds....I even have some from my brother. He sent me a photo that he took the other day and I asked if I could post it he said yes and thought that I should learn more about the names of the clouds.  I love the idea but honestly I so don't have time to read about clouds I am lucky I have this time to blog.

Jason's first contrabution....

And a few of my own...

Have a great night....I am noticing an itchy throat and stuffy nostril, darn it!! Olivia has a cold and I am pretty sure I am coming down with it. Just what I need, to get sick on a deadline.....

XO

Valori

September...already...I mean really!!!

Wow, it is fall around here. The wind, cooler tempretures, school starting....this is the first year that we have had to even recongnize the school year....Olivia started kindergarten this year...wow she is 5.....I remember when she was born! Never thought that I would say that. Funny how you turn into your family without meaning too.

Well, mom and I had a great taping at Quilting Arts TV and I hope to get some photos soon. I will share I promise...once we were done with taping I sat down to work on my fabric while mom and I sat in the hotel...my computer decided to just quit. Yep quit..oh my god I couldn't believe it. My total mistake was that I hadn't backed up in 2 weeks or so...lots of new fabric designs were on my computer and not on my back up hard drive. Panic set in.....but at the same time I knew I couldn't do anything until I got home and called my Mac Doctor.

As we were coming home on Saturday I found out that our daycare was closing on September 30, 2010....thought someone smacked me up side the head. SH** what was I going to do with a 3 year old and a 11 month old...and the emotion hit me. I will admit that I had just started my period..I am an emotional gal so you can imagine. I cried all the way to Chicago....daycare, my computer, my hormones....I think that people were looking at me like I had just left my boyfirend or something like that.

I still don't know for sure what we are going to do for daycare. It is hard in a really small town to find good care! But life goes on and we will figure out what to do...I am trying to be stong and positive so that the kids don't know and so that I don't lose it. The week went on...Liv started Kindergarten...such a big girl. I am so proud of her. 

Then Vi got sick...high fever - 104- last night...I lost another day of work but on the good note I had a day with Miss Vivi.....we really kind of enjoyed getting to be together in spite of the circumstances. She is wonderful....I don't get much time to spent with her, it was lovely!!

It is now Thursday night.....listening to the football game on the TV, Ross and I just got home from our first parent teacher thingy...My dad and step-mom are in town and they watched the kids while we were gone...I am happy as a lark that my computer is home. All is well, some freak thing happened but I didn't lose anything and I am backing up every day. I am rolling with the punches....I have little control of somethings in my life and am dealing with it.... the best that an quirky, intense, artist type can. There are probably more words to describe my personality but I think that will do for now......Donkey (for those of you who don't watch Shrek there is a line - "That'll do Donkey." that we love to quote in our house.)

While I waited for my computer I was forced to get my butt in gear with my flannel...it has been sitting here calling me for weeks....Bliss...what am I going to do with you?  I figured out my "free pattern" for Free Spirit and a new Sewing Card and..... some new stuffed friends. I would say that maybe there was some good reasons to have the computer be out of comission for 5 days.

We do have the new flannel on our web site for pre-orders....I have decided that I LOVE the elephants...there is something about them....

Here are the other prints that I did for the flannel and some of them are also coming out in fleece... there are lots more colors I just picked one color from each design...

Life is crazy and I am reminding myself to breathe and to remember to just take the day and make the most of it. I am so being tested these days.....

XOXOX

Valori

Clouds.....

What do you think about clouds? Recently I have been fascinated with them. Of course the only camera I seem to have when I see something amazing is my phone. The images that I have right now are from my phone but beautiful all the same..... What do you think?????
XOXO
Valori
The first photo is from Cleveland near our hotel the other one is from our flight to Cleveland.

Quilting Arts TV....

Mom and I are heading to Cleveland to tape two programs each for Quilting Arts TV. Should be fun.... I will share more of what we are doing when I can. I shot these photos as we flew into Portland at 6 a.m.
Now off to the Chicago flight!
Have a great day!
Valori

My new friend Zoe has posted a Day in the Life....of me...check it out.

http://zoeanddrew.blogspot.com/2010/08/day-in-life-valori-wells.html

Have a great day!!!!
Valori
Had to include a photo that my lovely husband took of me and the kiddos on our vacation.....love it!