hexies...

hexies... fun to make and once you start it can be a little addicting...

 

i always knew that hexies were something that i wanted to try... and when i walked into a local quilt shop  one day over the summer, i found the perfect fabric...

 

i love the fabrics that bonnie and camille produce... the patterns and colors are just so cheery... they kind of make you happy just looking at them... well, right there in that shop i spotted marmalade... just what i had been looking for... i added in a little of their vintage modern line to mix it up a bit...

aquas, reds, oranges, yellows, greens, pinks, and grays... LOVE...



i started off slow...

and thought... this is fun... a nice way to pass the time in the evenings after everyone has fallen asleep...

my pile of hexies began to grow...

and grow...

 i went from wanting to make a little tea towel to diving head first into a grandmother's flower garden quilt...

 i started playing around with different combinations... pattern, aqua, pattern...

pattern, off white, pattern...

 

for those of you who know me, you know that i am VERY indecisive... i was having such a hard time making a decision, i decided to put it out there on instagram and facebook... it was fun to read the input from others...

aqua is my favorite right now... but the thought of putting SO much aqua into a quilt that is going to take me forever to make scared me a little...

 

the off white felt safe to me...

 

so i decided on this...

the best of both worlds...

 i'm really loving the process... even though it takes forever, there's a crazy amount of hand stitching involved, and english paper piecing has taken a little getting used to...  {i'm still not sure i'm doing it right... i started off with the plastic hexie templates}

 

here's a bit of my progress so far...

 

this...

turned into this...



and... here's the latest flower that i completed this morning... 



that makes a total of 5 flowers done and 1 more on its way...

 

 this is going to require some patience... but in the long run, i'm hoping for a family treasure that can be passed down through the generations...

 

what have you been working on lately?

i'd love to hear...

 

have a happy day~

angie

apple crisp...

we're settling into the new school year... the temps are falling... jean coats and boots are re-surfacing... people are ready for all things "fall"...

 

this past sunday i wanted to take the girls to our local apple farm... we drove there only to find a completely packed parking lot... cars parked at the street... in the parking lot behind the main building... shopping carts were e v e r y w h e r e...

i pulled in and pulled back out... my main reason for going was the honeycrisp apple...  i'm thinking about heading back during the week when the traffic has slowed down...

 

luckily for me, when we went to visit my grandpa later that day, my uncle had brought over a whole bucket full of apples from his apple tree...

 

hmmm... what to do? what to do?

 

make apple crisp...

 

 thought i'd share our families recipe with you today...

 

apple crisp 

 

ingredients

 

8 apples {peeled and sliced}

 

1 cup of oats

 

1 cup flour

 

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

 

1 tbsp. cinnamon

 

1/2 cup butter

 

directions

 

preheat oven to 375 degrees

 

lightly grease the bottom of your 13 X 9 baking dish

 

peel and slice apples and layer in the bottom of the dish

add all other dry ingredients into a mixing bowl and mix... 

{i didn't have any regular oats so i added the instant maple brown sugar oats that i had on hand... it worked out just fine}

then cut in the butter to form a crumbly topping...

 

pour topping over the sliced apples in the pan

bake for 30-35 minutes {you'll be able to tell when it's finished because the top will be nicely browned}

 

i always serve ours with a side of vanilla ice cream... it's really yummy!

enjoy!

 

have a happy day~

angie



ten on 9-10-13

ten on ten... oh, how i've missed you... {while my computer was down, i couldn't link up...}

 

it's a fun little photo project that i saw over at a bit of sunshine... ... you take 10 photos throughout the day on the tenth of each month... it helps you to remember the little things... the moments that make up our days and our lives... i love the idea...

 

 

here's a glimpse of my day today...

john surprised the girls by making them chocolate chip muffins for breakfast this morning... a favorite around here...

 

as soon as this photo was taken my little one completely burst into tears... and it broke my heart... she was a bundle of nerves about one of the centers in her classroom... an activity with magnets and words... it was partially coming out in bits and pieces through her sobs... so i took her to school... her teacher was the sweetest... made it all better and i got a call about a half an hour into her day just to let me know she was ok... {no one prepares your heart for when your child is hurting... and that's tough...} hoping for a better day for her tomorrow...
 

this yellow chair... you know when you've been looking and looking for something and you're just not sure what you want... that's been my deal with a new chair for my office... until i saw this gem... i'm really hoping that it's still there when i head back... i love the color... and the chippiness... i think it's perfect...

 

spent way too much time perusing pinterest...

 {you can follow me... angie reese}

 spent some time finishing up an order that i have for a custom lamp shade...

 

packaged up a cd of photos that i took of my friend's kiddos... so happy with how they turned out and can't wait for her to see them...

 

added some cute washi to the packing envelope... {side note... how cute is the made with love tape... just found that at michaels...}

 

made some more progress on my hexies... so slow going... this project may very well deserve a post of it's own...

 

i made marina's bed today and set up her favorite things... didn't think much of their placement until marina asked me tonight if fuzzy was in time out?  haha...

 

lastly... we had a little homemade bread for a late night snack... yum!

 

have a happy day~

angie

 

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back to school...

it was back to school this week for my girls...

 

there's been clothes shopping...

 

 shoe shopping...

 

 supply shopping...

 

 

 all of the usual things that gear one up for a new school year...

 

our summer was a good one... but by the end we are all ready for some routine and schedule in our lives...

 

it's always a little bittersweet though...

 this year I have a sixth grader...

and a second grader...

i can't stop thinking about how marina is now in the BIG kid hallway at school...

and...
 that after this year maizie will be halfway DONE with middle school...

 it's crazy, i tell ya!

i love these girls so much... and i'm so thankful that so far their weeks have been going great and we've successfully made it on the bus three days in a row... that just may be a record for us...

as far as my schooling goes... it was a tough decision and one i've been struggling with for quite some time but i've decided to take this semester off... time to do a little soul searching and focus on my creative side... art and my love for making things... we'll see how it goes... hoping to find some clarity...

have a happy day~
angie



the 2013 mugswap {hosted by a cuppa kim}

there's a great blog called  a cuppa kim...

and she hosts what is known as a mug swap...
 

here's the gist... she hosts it every year around her blogiversary... this is the third year for it...

 

i participated last year and was so excited to do so again this year...

 

basically, when all is said and done... you meet two people... the person who you send your mug to... and the person who sends you your mug...

 

fun, right?
 

 

each year her participants have increased... people are swapping mugs across the world...this year there were over 800 swappers... so awesome...

 

last year my mug swap person lived in california and the person who had me lived in hawaii... i keep in touch with both girls via instagram and what a blessing it is to have them as friends... {hi meghan and salla!}

 

this year my mug went to texas to dana who blogs at dana rae
i had a little bit of information about her based on reading her blog and the email that was sent from a cuppa kim... here's what I put together for her...

a pretty mug, heart shaped pins, a stack of heather bailey fabrics tied up with a bit of lace and a handmade tag... some trims {mini poms, ric rac, and ribbon}, and a happy day flower pin that was hand crocheted by me :)

the excitement was checking the #mugswap2013 hashtag on instagram to see when she received her happy mail... such a great feeling to brighten someone's day!

since this is the second year for me... my family and friends know ALL about the mugswap... i'm always talking about it... searching for the perfect things to send out... and am busy stalking my own front porch waiting for my happy mail to arrive from a surprise sender...

this year... i came home from an outing with my girls and spotted this package waiting for me... W O O - H O O...

amber at bumber's bumblings did such a nice job on the packaging... cute coffee sayings were on each side of the box...

and when i opened it it was stuffed with fun...

an adorable mug with colors that i love...
a little dark chocolate treat... delicious flavored coffees from a local coffee shop in delaware... cute napkins... she made me the cutest bracelet which i immediately put on... and also a beautiful necklace and pair of earrings...so thoughtful!

she really made my day... amber, if you're reading... another great big THANK YOU to you!!!

since i've received my mug, it's my go to... i came home from dunkin donuts a couple of days ago and promptly poured my dunkaccino into it...

 

 it absolutely gives you such a great feeling to choose the perfect mug, gather some goodies and make new friends... can't wait til next year...

we live in the days of an overabundance of bills and junk mail clogging up our mailboxes... kim, by putting together and hosting this incredible mugswap, you've given so many of us something to look forward to... it's so fun... thank you!

 have a happy day~
angie


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