breakfast and a bunny

There are two bunnies living near our shed. They venture out to entertain us at dusk and early morning. Isn't that sweet of them? Here was one this morning at breakfast. He was precious, hopping along.

and . . . they won!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ben's team won 5 games in a row in the tournament. Not easy to do. This afternoon they won the final game and what a game it was! The boys did an awesome job. Hard to imagine that baseball is over for them ... until the fall. I am so proud of my Ben ~ congrads for First Place in the district tournament! Great summer memories.

something NEW

Ok, so it isn't the 1st just yet. But I'm back anyway. This staycation has been swell but I can never just sit for too long. Just ask .. anyway who knows me! The summer seems to be in full swing now as July approaches this week. I have a new pattern hot off the tree, well ~ the tree was a nice backdrop for it's photo. Sweet Land 1831, a Patriotic Pocket is now available on my website as chart or epattern. Stop in and check all the details! It's inspired by that wonderful patriotic song, My Country tis of Thee.

just stopping by . . .

. . . to say check out the sneak peek of the GOS July cover ~ the design is by me and sure to entice Bronte fans!

Lots of fun going on. Back to breaking...see you on the 1st!

welcome, summer

"Far away in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them, and try to follow where they lead." -Louisa May Alcott

Today is the last day of school. Finally. Now on to the 5th grade for Ben. Wow. Amazing, this time-thing, moving so fast while you blink. Note to self: stop blinking.

The Sampler Girl is taking a wee vacation break and will be back July 1. All orders received during that time will be sent accordingly when I return. See you then!

early morning sewing

Remember those bandana shorts I made for the boys last summer? Well, Ben's pairs still fit in the waist for another summer but Zack needed a new pair. I had found clearance tagged bandanas at Target recently which begged to be made into shorts. This is such a simple, fun sewing project and adorable when worn. I'm tickled that Ben still grabs his to sport around the yard. Zack is very proud of his new handmade shorts; they look like a great start to summer in the green grass.

and the winner is . . .

I used the random number generator and the winning entry number is Julie S.! You win the $50 gift certificate to The Sampler Girl. Congrads and happy shopping! Thank you to all who entered.

simple beauty

Last night we celebrated my brother's sweet girlfriend's birthday. Her recent plantings outside their townhouse were certainly camera worthy as dusk came in.

Off for a girl's night out. So looking forward to it ~ enjoy your night!

too hot

I think Maddy has the right idea for a day like this.

recess

Remember those fun hand clapping rhymes from childhood? You and your favorite friend would sit during recess and sing a rhyme while clapping hands in a particular motion all over the place. I had forgotten about these! I was searching summer kids crafts (that time of year again - my favorite) and found a link that had some of these which made me smile with memory. Remember this one?

Miss Susie had a steamboat

the steamboat had a bell

Miss Susie went to Heaven

the steamboat went to

hello operator

please give me number nine

and if you disconnect me,

I'll paddle your

Behind the refrigerator

there was a piece of glass

Miss Susie sat upon it and broke her little

ask me no more questions

tell me no more lies

the boys are in the girls' room

zipping up their

flies are in the kitchen

the bees are in the park

Miss Susie and her boyfriend

are kissing in the

D-A-R-K

D-A-R-K

D-A-R-K [fast]

DARK, DARK, DARK!

fun in a Sunday summer sun

Hope your day has been as smiley as ours!

happenings

Sunday, 12 July 2009
Trunk Show/Meet & Greet
In Stitches Needlework, Alexandria, VA
If you are in the area, stop in and say hi! My models and I look forward to meeting you between 12:30 & 4pm.

new exclusive KIT

These Pattern and Pieceworke Exclusive Kits are fun go-to projects, especially for a summer's daye. No 7 is now available ~ 'On Travel' ~ comes with a pattern excerpt from On Travel with Jane Austen and a piece of that wonderful Jane Austen style Moda fabric and a worke idea of a pinkeep pillow. All details can be found HERE.

born with it

Baseball. Ben was catcher last night and let me tell ya, that kid can play any position to the focused degree it needs to be played. I love watching him on the field. There's magic there. The team finished their game that was stopped the other night because of lightning and ... won it. Then went on a few minutes later to play against yes, the Yankees. Well, they had us beat but our team had lots of wonderful plays to go out fighting. It was pushing 9pm but we had our team party afterwards as planned and the boys had a blast in a nighttime pool. Zack and I are off to the little league closing day ceremony and then lunch out to celebrate, some more...because he made All Stars Team and those games are next week! Baseball. BIG in our house and what fun it is.

blog-iversary GIVEAWAY!!!

To mark 2 years of my blog, let's do a giveaway!!! Just enter your name and email address in this post's comment field field and you might win...drumroll please, $50 worth of patterns from The Sampler Girl. The winner can pick which patterns. A winner will be randomly selected on June 17th. (I had a blog on another service for a few days before this one so I'm going with that start date.)

Good luck and bring on the week-end!!!

en route

June's releases are officially on their way to distributors and my printer is happy about it. So is my tuckered self. Packaging retail orders is quicker as you can imagine but those inventory orders take everything outta me to fill. Is it Friday yet? Maybe if I close my eyes and wish really hard.

Little League playoffs are on and Ben's team was in the lead at last night's game when it had to be stopped because of lightning. Again. Ah, those summer storms. They'll pick up the game tomorrow with the tying run at the plate and see what happens. Winner goes to the next playoff game.

I've a request for more graham crackers ~ best run, hurry up, Friday, will ya?

8 days...

My dear Blog will be 2 years old in 8 days!!! There has to be a giveaway to mark the occasion, don't you think so? I'll be thinking of what...keep tuned!

Yikes ~ look at the time. It's very late, even for me. My printer has been going nonstop since before dinnertime! It's such a trooper but I can't package anymore charts tonight. I'm beat. Tomorrow is another day. Well, it is tomorrow. See you another day then.

Summer Reading

There's something extra satisfying and more fun about reading during the summertime. Don't you think? It's a magical piece of childhood coming back once again just like the ice cream truck! Last summer, if you were a blogreader here, you will remember I did my own children's literature challenge. It was really rewarding and I plan to include some more children's chapter books in my reads this summer too.

What books are you planning to read this summer? Are you off to a good start already? Share with me some titles that you think I'd like! Is there a summer favorite you go to year after year? For me, that would be Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh. I read it every summer as a start to the season.

If you want to follow my bookshelf, check my lists on goodreads.

On Travel with Jane Austen is one of the June Releases available at The Sampler Girl! This design is worked on 30ct Weeks Dye Works Linen with overdyed threads. A DMC conversion is given within chart. Each chart pak includes a 'Barouche Ticket' to begin you on your stitching project this summer!

action shots

Ballgame last night. Ben pitched.

The game was stopped because of lightning but they managed to finish the game after the wait. Little League season ends next week but then there's the fun tournament. Playoffs to follow. Isn't summer grand? I love baseball. Go #1 !!!

june flowers

Look at these gorgeous flowers that my brother's girlfriend brought to me last night. They are a picture in themselves. Our family birthday party for Ben was lots of fun ~ now the official 10yr old is off to school and I'm in search of coffee. Enjoy your day!

and now he is 10

Ben is 10 today. Always amazing how time moves so fast. Whirling past us, leaving us with precious memories of the heart that last forever. Ben's giggles as a a baby grew louder and louder; his smile, laughter and gentle spirit bring me constant joy. What a blessing he is to me.