Summer has finally arrived in the Pacific Northwest! I have been doing a happy dance all day long, and I've been outside every possible minute.
This morning I spent some time painting fabric for a project I'm working on. I love painting outside. Kip-the-Wonderdog loves me painting outside. Everyone is happy, happy, happy when the sunny-sunshine is out! My garden has come in beautifully this year. More happy-ness. Soon we'll venture to the farmer's markets for pretty flowers to add here and there among the perennials, hostas, and herbs. Oh joy!
My 14-year-old nephew is spending the night with us tomorrow night. He's the first grandchild for both my family and my sister's husband's family. I can't believe how fast he's growing up. (The Birthday Sleepover is an annual tradition for all four nephews and my niece. There's lots of nonsense, we stay up late chattering and watching crazy movies and eating buckets of popcorn with Whoppers mixed in.)
I always look so, so forward to the sleepovers. It's a rare occasion for me to get one-on-one time with each kid, which I love. I love hearing about their lives, and their ideas, and their friends, and what their thoughts are, and what they wish for. And we laugh. A lot. And eat a lot of junk food.
It's great!
I hope the 14-year-old isn't going to get too old for the Birthday Sleepover. I didn't have an auntie close by when I was growing up, but I always wanted one. A cool one who I liked hanging out with. I hope I'm that kind of auntie. And if I am, I hope he and all the others always like hanging out and coming over for the Birthday Sleepover. I'll be so sad when they're too grown up for it. But, there will be other wonderful traditions and memories to be made.
The photos are of a little stitchery sampler that I'm doing for myself. I was inspired by this one, and this one, and this one. So. Much. Fun. To. Do! I want to stitch a gazillion of them.
I love that I'll have something now to reference for fun little doo-dads to add to fabric journal covers, small quilted bits, and all sorts of fun quilty, fabric things.


