Good morning!

Just a quick post before I walk to the post office.

I know that Frank, my partner for the Martha’s Good Things Swap has received his package, so now I can show you what I made for him:

At the top left are felt drink coasters.
For these I went to Michael’s and bought a roll of thin cork,
glued the cork to the felt, traced the design (downloadable from Martha’s website)
and cut them out. This was a good Good Thing - as it didn’t require
alot of extra supplies (who doesn’t have some white glue somewhere in the house?)
and you could easily customize these by creating your own shape to trace.

In the upper right is the Martha supply that I chose for Frank.
Five different colors of Easter ribbon that I thought were very festive and pretty.

This is a bath mitt, that (once I figured out the directions, which were a bit puzzling),
turned out to be a very simple, easy project. All you need is a washcloth, thread and cotton cord. This one was very fun to make - and I can think of lots of ways to “cute” this up… for example, sewing across the top corners to make ears and sewing a little face to the front - wouldn’t that be adorable for kid’s bath time?

Frank’s wish list also included a needlebook.
So - were we fated to be swap partners, or what?!?
Frank has a dog - so I customized his with a little bit of Japanese puppy trim.
I hope he likes it : )

All of the good things that I made can be found on
Martha’s master Good Things List * here *.
I encourage you to give something on the list a try - I had alot of fun making these,
especially the bath mitt…. I’d love to have a reason to make a dozen more of those!

(Hmm… if I made some cute critter bath mitts and put them in my shop,
do you think anyone would buy one?)

******************************************************************

Finally, I’ve been able to do a little shop update this week.

This is a new needle book that I recently added.
The wool for this one was a fabulous remnant find, and is a new color for my palette.
It’s called “Cinnamon”.

And before I start my trek to the post office,
I’ll be adding this pincushion to my shop as well.
It’s decorated with a hand embroidered little spool of thread.

Hope you all have a great day!

Thanks for stopping by : )

Lake Resort Nurse Chapters 13 & 14

(*please click on photos to zoom*)

(Lake Resort Nurse is a 1966 romance novel written by Arlene Hale. I have read the book and am now offering a summary and photo re-cap for my blog readers. Chapter summaries will be posted every Wednesday. To read the Introduction and previous chapter reviews of Lake Resort Nurse click *here*.)

Our last re-cap ended with Reba asking Skip about Helen,
and Skip getting angry and stomping off.
Uncle Charlie and Marie have something they want to tell Reba….

The next morning Lee walks to work, passing Reba’s apartment.
Uncle Charlie invites him in.
Lee sees Reba in her nurse’s uniform:

(Hey good lookin’!)

“She made a stunning nurse but he liked her better dressed as she was after work.
She was casual then, easier.”

(Don’t most men wish you would dress up as a nurse?
The grass is always greener…)

Charlie and Marie have announced that they’re getting married.

Reba gives Lee a ride to the boathouse on her way to work.

Lee: “What am I going to do about you, Reba Rollins?”
Reba: “’I don’t know,’ she answered in a quiet voice.
’I don’t know what to do about myself either.’”

“He felt reckless, wild, unleashed.”
“For a moment he drew her close,
the nylon uniform smooth and cool under his fingers.”

(Haha. There’s nothing sexier than nylon.
And I’m surprised the author didn’t write “his erect fingers”.)

“He let her go only by the sheerest of will power.”
“’Tonight,‘ he whispered. ‘I must see you tonight.’”

When Lee gets to work he overhears a phone call between Skip and Billy’s father.
Skip has arranged a time for them to meet on Old Mill Road.

Later Lee walks in on Skip cleaning a pistol.

(Skip has a gun.)

Lee tries to take the gun away and Skip punches him until he blacks out.

Chapt. #14.

It’s night. Lee calls Reba from the boathouse. “Hurry.”
He has blood on his face. Lee tries to explain what’s happened
and insists that Reba call the police.

(Authoritative erectness.)

Reba talks to the police and they ask her she’s making a crank call.
Lee takes the phone and the “ring of authority” in his voice convinces them.
They drive out to Old Mill Road and find Skip, badly beaten.
They take Skip to the hospital, where he’s questioned by the police.

One of the officers remembers that a policeman named Chandler was involved in a shooting. And here we finally learn more about Lee’s mysterious past and his “authoritative air”.

Lee reveals that he once was a highway patrol officer.
His career was cut short after he shot and killed a young man.

“The police officer rubbed his chin. ‘Rough, wasn’t it? I know how it must be.
They called you some pretty strong names. People don’t realize what it’s like, enforcing the law.’”

“Reba sat listening, mystified and a little shocked. Lee with the highway patrol?
Yes, that was why he had such an air of authority about him!
She could easily picture him wearing the uniform of a patrol officer.”

Lee: “They ostracized me.
They thought I shot too quickly, too deadly.
They wanted me thrown off the force.
They made threatening calls to my mother.”

(I don’t know why that last sentence makes me laugh – but it does. Ha!)

(Young punk.)

“Where do you draw the line of duty?”
“When a young punk comes at you with a gun, are you supposed to stand there
and let him shoot you?” “They called me the kid killer. The boy I shot was just sixteen.” “You think I liked shooting at that kid? I didn’t want to.
But I had to. I was an officer of the law.”
“I lived with it for six weeks and still everyone at home stared at me,
talked about me, distrusted me. So I came to Windwood.”

(Wait.
The town ganged up on him and he bore their hatred for six weeks and then gave up? Six weeks isn’t that long, dude. But, I guess if folks are getting peeved at having to work until 5:00 pm (see chapter #1), then six weeks would seem like an eternity.)

“She understood so many things now.”

A nurse appears.

Reba: “Will Skip be alright?”

***************************************************************

I’m going to end each re-cap with a few thoughts to ponder until our next installment.
Feel free to leave a question or comment.
*** Let’s discuss! ***

1. Do you agree that Reba should move to a lake resort town
that has a better selection of eligible men?

2. Did you catch the part where Reba calls the police and they think it’s a crank call
until Lee (a man) speaks to them?
For awhile there, the cheap sodas of the 60’s had me sold, but I don’t think $0.10 cokes can make up for that B.S.
No way!

Hope you are all doing well and being creative.

I’ll be posting the next Lake Resort Nurse installment on Wednesday.

And hopefully a shop update soon!

Lake Resort Nurse Chapters 11 & 12

(*please click on photos to zoom*)

(Lake Resort Nurse is a 1966 romance novel written by Arlene Hale. I have read the book and am now offering a summary and photo re-cap for my blog readers. Chapter summaries will be posted every Wednesday. To read the Introduction and previous chapter reviews of Lake Resort Nurse click *here*.)

Our last re-cap ended with Skip, Reba, Lee and Tish having a picnic.
After pretty Helen boats by and waves to Skip, he gives Reba a brotherly kiss…

Reba goes to see Uncle Charlie, who is visiting with Billy in the hospital.
Uncle Charlie has decided to stay in town and open a photographer’s shop.

After their visit, Reba goes back to work.

“Reba was busy most of the morning.
There were shots to give, lab work to do, patients to prepare for examinations
and Doctor Sam’s swift pace to keep her hopping. But she loved her work.
She could not imagine herself being anything but a nurse.
Was there any job that could give her such satisfaction? She doubted it.”

Later she calls Skip and invites him
to join her and Uncle Charlie for a homecoming dinner.

(Uncle Charlie you’re crimping my style.)

Skip declines.

(Surprise!)

Skip: “Golly, I’d like that Reba. Sounds swell.
But I just couldn’t tonight. I’m all tied up.”

(That is exactly how I imagine a guy named Skip would talk!
Just like Leave it to Beaver!)

Skip tells Reba that he has to get off the phone, there’s a customer waiting.
“He said goodbye and hung up.
She wondered if the customer might be Helen Wakefield
and then hated herself for the thought.
She must not be distrustful of Skip.
She never had been before.”

Reba is lonely, so she goes to Tish’s bungalow.

(Reba visits Tish.)

When Reba asks Tish how she likes Lee, Tish tells her:

“Look Reba, you must know as well as I,
that Lee Chandler is in love with you, not me!”

(Seems that the plot of this book is so obvious
even the peripheral characters have it figured out.)

Chapt. #12.

Reba tells Tish: “I’m Skip’s girl.”

Tish then confirms that Skip’s been flirting with Helen.
And that Lee has told her that he loves Reba.

Reba goes to the boathouse to wait for Skip.

She ends up talking to Lee, who tells her:
“Don’t come looking for trouble, Reba. You just might find it.”
“He was much too close to her.
Was the dock swaying under her feet or was it an illusion.
Everything told her to move away from him and yet she couldn’t.”

Lee: “I love you, Reba. I have to tell you that. I love you.”
Reba: “Lee don’t! Please!”

“She broke away at last. She had to.
In another moment she would move closer into his arms.
She wanted to be there. That was the idiotic part.
She had come to see Skip and found herself wanting Lee!”

She goes to her car to wait for Skip. She watches Lee.

(Ever heard of a cold shower, Lee?!?)

“She was struck again by his straight, erect shoulders.”

(His shoulders are erect in every chapter of this book!
This guy has to be exhausted!)

Skip shows up and lets Reba know that the insurance people
have stopped Billy’s father from pressing charges.

They chat and then he kisses her.
“She clung to him. This was right. This was as it should be.
There was no Lee Chandler. There was no Helen Wakefield.
It was just Skip and her. Like it had always been.”

Reba: “’Oh Skip, hold me,’ she whispered. ‘Please, don’t ever let me go.’”
Skip: “That’s not very practical, now is it?”

(Skip you double big dope.)

They talk about Skip’s business getting better.
He wants to sell out while he can get a good price for the business.
She asks him why sell now, when things are picking up?

Skip: “Did it ever occur to you that I really don’t amount to much?”
Reba: “Don’t be silly. You’re Skip. Someone very special.”

Then Reba asks about Helen.
Skip gets mad and stomps off.

(Skip stomps off.)

Reba returns home to find Uncle Charlie and Marie waiting for her.

“We’ve been waiting for you. There’s something we want to tell you.”

******************************************************************

I’m going to end each re-cap with a few thoughts to ponder until our next installment.
Feel free to leave a question or comment.
*** Let’s discuss! ***

1. With three more chapters left,
do you think that any of the characters in this book will have sex?
Yes or No?

2. What do you think Uncle Charlie and Marie want to tell Reba?

*Feel free to use your imagination here.*
Let’s pretend for a moment that the next chapter will begin with a shocking plot twist.

I’ll start:
I think Uncle Charlie and Marie are going to reveal
that Marie is really an alien queen and has planted
a chest bursting alien baby inside Uncle Charlie.
As the alien fetus developes, it’s alien personality
will begin to take over Uncle Charlie’s personality.
Wackiness and mayhem will ensue!

Now it’s your turn!

What happens when two friends who are both Etsy sellers,
blog buddies and seamstresses meet for the very first time?

Well, as Christian from Project Runway would say:

“It’s a pretty big deal!”

This past weekend Ginny (of iSew and Monkey Travel Club fame)
was in Seattle for a visit and we got to meet!

We had a wonderful lunch!

And then we dragged our men to the fabric shop!

It was great!!!

It was so nice to meet Ginny after emailing back and forth for so long.
She is super cool and fun, and we laughed and laughed.
And holy moley! I thought I had alot of projects in the works,
but Ginny is always thinking of new creative projects for her Etsy shop,
on top of making her own wedding dress
and sewing most everything for her wedding!

It is very inspiring to spend time with her,
and I am so glad that we had the chance to meet : )

Seriously, I felt like we hit it off immediately.
I really think we could have talked shop for hours.

Um, now that I think of it, we actually did talk shop for hours!

And I can’t wait to do it again.

Come back to Seattle again soon, Ginny and Nick!

P.S. Don’t forget tomorrow is the next installment of Lake Resort Nurse!
Chapter #11 even mentions nursing!
Whoo hoo!

I hope you all had a wonderful Valentine’s Day.

Josh and I are going downtown for sushi Saturday night to celebrate.

I sure do love my man!

******************************************************************

I took this photo yesterday and had to share.

This is a Lucy pose that we see quite often around here.

Note the one hind leg sticking out… we affectionately call that “Crazy Foot”.

Crazy Foot happens when we are relaxed and content,
and everything is right in the world.

So, I hope you have a little Crazy Foot this weekend, too : )

Lake Resort Nurse Chapters 9 & 10

(*please click on photos to zoom*)

(Lake Resort Nurse is a 1966 romance novel written by Arlene Hale. I have read the book and am now offering a summary and photo re-cap for my blog readers. Chapter summaries will be posted every Wednesday. To read the Introduction and previous chapter reviews of Lake Resort Nurse click *here*.)

Our last re-cap ended with young Billy starting to recover,
Lee professing his love for Reba,
and Uncle Charlie waking up from being unconscious for three days…

It will take Uncle Charlie about a week to recover.
Reba goes home and tells Skip.
He buys her a $0.10 bottle of coke.

(Skip’s not stingy with the dimezzz!)

Skip kisses her and they plan an excursion for that weekend.
Before they can kiss again, Lee interrupts them.
Skip invites Lee to double date with him and Reba on their excursion.

(Skip, you big dope!)

Skip takes Reba out in the boat.
When she suggests that they go on a date
away from the lake he blows up and says:
“Listen, I’ve got enough troubles without having girl troubles.”

(Is he 12 years old?)

She finally convinces him to go for a drive.

(”Skip and Reba go for a car ride”.)

Skip takes her out to the country and stops the car.

“When Skip did something like this,
he was either going to fight with her or make love to her.
At this moment, she didn’t know which it might be.”

(Now, this sentence made me pause and ponder the phrase “make love”. Is it meant in the old timey, nice way… or the making babies way? It took only about 1/2 second to decide that it must be meant in the nice way, since nobody seems to ever get to second base in this book! And poor Reba. Can you imagine the stress level that gal is living with if she never knows if he’s going to fight with her or make love to her??? Gee whiz!
She should find a man who’s on a more even emotional keel…. like Mike Tyson.)

It seems that Skip’s upset about Billy and a possible lawsuit against his business.
He and Reba argue and he drives her back home in silence.
Reba still can’t figure out why Skip’s been acting so strangely lately.

Who should she call and ask about it?
His sister, Tish?
Heck no!
She calls Lee.

She invites Lee to meet her that night on the beach.
And when they meet she asks him if there’s anything she should know about Skip.

Lee: “I can’t tell you, Reba.”
Reba: “I want to know, Lee! Please!”
Lee: “If that’s all you wanted, Reba, I’d advise you to turn around
and walk away from me. In fact, I’d run.
Because if you don’t, I’m going to kiss you…”

“She didn’t wait to hear anymore. She ran!”

(She ran!)

Chapt. #10.

It’s Sunday. Excursion day!

Lee and Tish, Skip and Reba meet up for their day out.
First Skip needs to stop at the boathouse.
While he’s there Reba sees Helen Wakefield,
a wealthy young tourist, approach Skip.
Helen and Skip talk and laugh for a while,
leaving everybody else standing around waiting.

“Reba turned her back to the boat house and looked out to the water. She suddenly didn’t want to watch Skip and Helen talking together any more. There was something so familiar about it all, as if they had stood like that many times before.”

Eventually Skip comes back and they boat out to an island on the lake.
They eat a picnic lunch and Tish takes Lee for a walk on the beach.
Reba wakes up Skip, who’s taken a nap after lunch, while the women cleaned up.

Reba: “Were you having sweet dreams?”
Skip: “Until you woke me up.”

(Jerk.)

She asks him to go swimming with her.
They squabble back and forth.

Reba: “Do you still love me?”
Skip: “For crying out loud, let’s not get serious today okay?
Come on, let’s go wading.”

While they are in the water Helen boats by and says hi to Skip.

(Hee hee!)

The chapter ends with Skip giving Reba a brotherly kiss.

Reba is troubled.

**************************************************************************

I’m going to end each re-cap with a few thoughts to ponder until our next installment.
Feel free to leave a question or comment.
*** Let’s discuss! ***

1. If you’re in a relationship where, when your significant other parks the car
you never know if they want to fight or make love,
then you are probably a “spontaneous” kind of person.
A person who doesn’t make a lot of plans.

Hi everybody!

Things have been super busy over here.

My sewing machine has been getting alot of use lately
… and so have my poor hands.
(I’ve got the beginnings of two blisters on my right hand from scissor use!)

This is a custom order bookmark that I recently made,
for a girl who loves little grey cats and reading : )

I’m working on new needle books, pincushions
and sewing sets (tasket-pincushion-needlebook) for the shop.

I’m especially excited about the sets.
I’ve got bunny and hedgehog and puppy sets in the works.

Here’s a sneak peek at one of the hedgie taskets
(love that Japanese fabric and trim!)

Don’t forget that the newest installment of
Lake Resort Nurse will be posted tomorrow.

And here’s a little something that might make you chuckle:

What Not To Crochet.

Enjoy!

P.S. Angie over at The Downtown Boutique has recently added one of my needlebooks to her list of favorites - thank you, Angie!
Check out The Downtown Boutique to see lots of pretty handmade items.
Her latest post is about a contest to win a collection of bath and body products!
(maybe there’s some hand lotion in there - I could sure use that!)

Dear friends who joined us to watch LOST tonight,

I am sorry that you never got to even see
the Hello Panda snacks I bought for the evening.

I am sorry that you never got to see the cute edible panda printing.

I am sorry that you never got to enjoy the delicious chocolate centers.

Well…

I’m not that sorry.

Gosh, they were good.

(Hee hee!)

Jenn : )

Lake Resort Nurse Chapters 7 & 8

(*please click on photos to zoom*)

(Lake Resort Nurse is a 1966 romance novel written by Arlene Hale. I have read the book and am now offering a summary and photo re-cap for my blog readers. Chapter summaries will be posted every Wednesday. To read the Introduction and previous chapter reviews of Lake Resort Nurse click *here*.)

Our last re-cap ended with Marie placing a desperate call to Reba,
telling her that Uncle Charlie is very ill…

Reba rushes over to Marie’s place and finds Uncle Charlie
cold and unconscious with raspy breathing.
Dr. Nelson comes over and declares:
“From all indications, there’s some kind of pressure on the brain.
If the pressure continues to build…”
“A craniotomy will be necessary” finishes Reba.

(That was some date!)

Uncle Charlie is whisked away in an ambulance for tests and x-rays.
Reba asks Marie what Uncle Charlie was doing at her house.
Gasp!
They were on a date!

Reba is very worried about Uncle Charlie.

“Charlie was such a vital man filled with the joy of living.
Underneath his gay banter, there was a seriousness, too.”

(If Uncle Charlie is serious and gay, what’s he doing with Marie?)

Uncle Charlie is taken to a hospital in a neighboring town.
Reba drives Marie there. Skip joins them.
They discover that Uncle Charlie has suffered a concussion.

When Reba asks Marie what happened, Marie replies:
“ He was just sitting there, talking, when all of a sudden,
he got white and he began to hold his head.
The next thing I knew, he had passed out.”

(When I first read this paragraph I wondered if it was inaccurate that someone
could be in a car accident and then days later spontaneously pass out
from a concussion. But, according to the Mayo Clinic website there are some
symptoms of concussions that can appear days after the initial head trauma.
I’m still not convinced that a person would suddenly pass out and be unconscious
for three days. The Mayo Clinic website did not mention anything
about suddenly blacking out days after a concussion… but I suppose that anything is possible. We’ll let this one slide, Arlene Hale.)

Eventually everyone leaves the hospital except Reba,
who is there with an unconscious Uncle Charlie.
Down the hall from Uncle Charlie’s room is the room of the injured boy, Billy.

(Ouch.)

(It’s a small world.)

Chapt. #8.

Charlie’s condition stays the same for three days.
One night Skip can’t drive Reba to the hospital.
As she drives to the hospital by herself she begins to wonder
why things are different between them lately.

Lee comes to the hospital.
Reba notices his golden tan, his bleached white blond hair
and his “air of authority”.

(I imagine that being with a guy with this much authoritative air
would be like dating your school principal.)

“Tears burned her eyes. She had held them in check all this time and now,
suddenly, here they were, wanting to spill over.
Lee came to her and took her hands in his.
‘Go ahead. Cry. It will help.’”

Reba cries in Lee’s arms and he tells her that she looks “lovely, as usual.”

Lee: “Is it serious with you and Skip? I mean, really serious –“
Reba: “What makes you think it isn’t?” “Yes, it’s serious with us. Very serious.”

But, despite Reba’s words…
“Tension crackled between them.”
And “Lee devoured her with his eyes.”

(Lee devours Reba with his eyes.)

(I’m starting to think that Lee is just malnourished. Remember in Chapt. #1. when he looked at her like she was a glass of water? And how quickly he said yes to her sandwich offer? And how he won’t eat restaurant food?? I think he’s just hungry!)

Lee: “I can’t seem to stop thinking about you, Reba.”
Reba: “Lee, I hardly know you.” “You tell almost nothing about your home
or your past life. It’s as if you were hiding something.”
Lee: “Maybe I am.”

Reba tells him that the night of the storm meant nothing.

Lee: “It’s not a night I can ever forget.”
Reba: “I’m sorry. I wish you would.”

She watches him walk to his car “so straight and erect.”

(This guy is the poster boy for erectness!)
(Oh Dear Lord, did I just type that?!?)

Reba wanders into Billy’s room and talks to him.

(How’re ya doin’?)

Billy may have a limp for life and he was hoping
to be a professional basketball player.

(Wouldn’t you know it. If he’d broken his wrist, he would have wanted to play violin.)

Then Charlie wakes up!

**************************************************************************

I’m going to end each re-cap with a few thoughts to ponder until our next installment. Feel free to leave a question or comment.
*** Let’s discuss! ***

1. What do you think really left Uncle Charlie unconscious? ; )

2. How come people in books and movies, who are in accidents that affect their legs
always say they wanted to be basketball players, baseball players, dancers, runners, etc.?

How come nobody ever says:
“Well, it’s not so bad. I always wanted to work as a telemarketer.”
?

Jenn : )