desimms clips 4u

Where I leave notes for myself on her current hair color(s). A mother has to keep up. xoxoam

I adore the nickname given to the Biltmore.  The structure is really quite stunning.  And it does seem to be a graceful lady of a house.  You feel permitted to love it as you tour the inside, because you learn of George Vanderbilt's legendary kindness.  So you can unapologetically love the beauty of it all.  Anyway.  I took so so many photos.  Not so many of the house exterior (you can't photograph the interior), but the several of grounds as I have for you below. I took even more of the conservatory and dozens of intoxicating greenhouse blooms which I'll share next. I could have kept snapping for another few hours. Above is me with mom, and Eleni, my sissy. Enjoy the rest. If you've been waiting for more in depth info about the fall needleworks workshop, here's a pdf: Needleworks Nashville The info pdf is also now located at the shop page where the event will be on sale Wednesday morning. xoxo, Anna

Xristos Anesti! Care for lunch? Here's what we had (and are still having): Lamb: 2 rolled boneless legs from Whole Foods (8 lbs or so).  I rub salt, pepper, oregano, thyme, and lemon juice on them, and made small incisions with a knife to insert garlic cloves in several places.  Then I seared them in a hot pan of my dad's olive oil and placed them in a crock pot for about 5 hours.  A very delicious alternative to roasting on a souvla (spit).  I drizzled a bit of red wine on them about midway through cooking. Kefthedes (aka meatballs): I used ground beef from the cow that Jeff's step dad, Ben,  gave us for Christmas.  It was already butchered.  But we were still really happy about it.  Anyway- 3lbs ground beef hand mixed with salt pepper, parsley, oregano, cinnamon, chopped garlic and onion, 1 cup bread crumbs, 1/2 cup parmesan, 2 eggs.  And a douse of red wine. Red Potatoes: chopped and mixed with fresh garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper, lots o...

Of course I agree with them. Eastern Orthodox Easter is one week later than Western Easter this year, so in addition to getting all your Easter candy on sale (thanks for leaving some), I also have an extra week to absorb some really good egg dying ideas.  In addition to our traditional solid red eggs, as soon as I saw my friend Alicia's botanical eggs, I was dying to do it (pardon the pun).  Falling in line with their typical kid selves, the children did not trust me when I explained the process.  There were smirks, huhs, quizzical brows, rolled eyes, and every manner of mom-yer-dumb looks on their faces.  Then I pulled up Alicia's post on my laptop and a chorus of aaaahhhoooOOOHhh came over the room.  Why do I always have to prove myself to this bunch.  Hmpf.  This is one rare occurrence where I am totally happy to give someone else the credit (even if those stinkers shouldn't need proof).  (Anyway, Alicia, and then they kept reading your blog w...

* hihowdyho *I'm sorry this post title sounds like a surgery documentary that I would cover my eyes through. *That Anna (the other one) is too nice. What started as her making fun of me to my face (which is what helps her keep her job) ended with her saying very nice things on my blog. *She was promptly scolded for that. *Kidding. I wuvher. *If you were to photograph the inside of my brain right now, I am certain it would look exactly like the above. *That is my book cover. *Kidding again. *Last night I walked by Isabela hunched over the dining room table trying to draw something with her left hand and I overheard her mumbling I wish I was both-handed . * Good thinking , I told her. Then I spent five minutes staring at the ceiling and wondering if I were both-handed would I also then have enough coordination to be able to type with one hand and sew with the other? Which would do which? Hm. *I am so looking forward to getting on the other side of my book deadlines for many reas...

So they brought me a car load of family handworks to photograph. The best gift. One favorite and very rare example of quilt making in my family is this beauty that my mom put together from her own grandmother's blocks. I asked her to tell me more about, so the following is her description: "My grandmother Hooton made the blocks; they are hand pieced. (She died in 1948, so they were made some time before that.) I found them in the cedar chest in {my mother's} attic when we were cleaning out for the "sale" before she moved to assisted living. I didn't want them to go to waste, so I put them together to use as a baby blanket. I found the "tea colored" flannel that I thought would look more vintage. Unfortunately at the time I didn't know about quality quilter's flannel, so it's the cheap stuff. I did use it for some of the grandchildren when they visited, but after a few washings, I decided I wanted to keep it as more of an heirloom...

This past week amongst 7,253 things that I did, I asked my mom if she wouldn't mind going through our old family photo albums and pull any pictures that had anything that she made shown in the picture. As expected she relished in the task and a few days later I got this big manila envelope (in fact it blew right in with the tornadic weather yesterday) filled with some of my favorite photos, as well as some I couldn't remember ever having seen. What a joy to see. I'm working on a meaningful way to try and save some of them long term and also include in my upcoming book. It got me thinking about the documentation of handworks, especially as my mom remarked on the phone this morning that the process unearthed several memories of things she had made but couldn't find photos of. It made me thankful for this space, obviously, where I document small and large works. Today, after being begged since my waking hour, I sat down with the kids to watch an episode of Phineas and...

I realized recently that there is something about a quilt, that is entirely different from everything else that I sew, and not just how its made. But I regard a quilt as such a different event, it occupies my mind in a completely different way. I never know what I might be about to sew next, whether a skirt, or a bag, or a pillow, or fixing Nicolas's backpack as I did yesterday with seconds to spare for him to catch the bus. But with a quilt, I seem to hover on it mentally for a while before I begin. I compose internally for a good while before setting out to make. I always know which one is next. It is an event- making one- isn't it? Small or large its a save the date taped to the wall in your mental creative space. Flipping back through my iphoto events this morning I came across this little one Eleni started early last summer. I realize only now where my triangular love of late began. With my genius little pumpkin. I have the girls' quilts almost all planned no...

I've been back since Sunday night. Jeff and all the kids came to the airport, waited in the pull through for me. I walked out and immediately saw our van but at the same time walked right past my Nicolas, who was waiting for me at the door to help with my suitcase (don't get excited, Jeff made him do it). My subconscious mind knew that was my son in my peripheral vision, but I ignored it because my son isn't that tall. Or he wasn't when I left 10 days prior. Sigh. I got all the expected screams and squeals from the rest in the car, a sea of arms reaching out for a hug, and each got theirs, one at a time. Roman was excited but did not want a hug or a kiss, and even pushed me away. Strapped into his carseat, he pointed to the front passenger seat very earnestly "Mommy, sit down! Sit down right there! Bye Daddy! Mommy sit down!" He wanted nothing to do with affection, or hugs, or kisses, there was no time for that, he'd finally found me and wanted ...

(As I wrote this earlier this morning) I am somewhere in the air between Los Angeles and Sacramento right now, and thought I would share my flowery snaps around Beverly Hills. I spent a lot of time in my hotel room watching old movies and working on various embroidery projects. My legs started to go numb so I thought I should walk around. The walk from my hotel to Rodeo Drive seemed a nice distance, and I guess I felt an obligation to see that. Saw it. But I really enjoyed a few stops on the way back - a coffee shop and the Paper Source . I found some sweet Valentine kits to take back for the girls, a stuffed giraffe for Roman, a harmonica for Nicolas, and a mini sound effect machine for Joseph- (the cartoon edition that has like 16 buttons each with a funny cartoony noise, like a bomb exploding, a springy noise + that sound that Bugs Bunny's eyes make as they pop out of his head when he sees a pretty rabbit- those sorta sounds.) I missed the kids so much by the time I got b...

Just one more piece of nostalgia this month, as my first born just turned 20 a few moments ago. This is a mutually favorite photo between the 3 of us who were present when it was taken- Jeff, our photographer. Juliana was just a little over one and we were visiting friends in Sarasota, after having left the Ringling School to come home and become a family. Its nice now to think that I had attended school there to make art, but this is my favorite piece. Happy Birthday Juliana! I wish we were together. Hey peoples, want to come to California? I leave first thing in the morning for Palm Springs, LA, and Sacramento. I thought I would send some postcards along the way to share the trip with you..... But first I should get to bed, more soon! xo,AM

While I am not especially good at chronicling photos or artwork into albums or folders of and for my family there are certain scraps and bits of things that I hang onto. Not for any certain reason other than they feel especially poignant. And I am most certainly not great at organizing them, but they just get tucked here and there. I was cleaning out my closet on Saturday (just typing that doesn't quite cover how much that actually required of me). In the process this little card floated on the air down from the very top. A handwritten index card from a 6yr old Nicolas. Translated from his lovely phonetic spelling it reads: Whenever Juliana isn't here I will be there if you fall down. Nicolas turned 14 yesterday. I am so happy to have this postcard from his inner heart, his child heart. He was and is a gorgeous boy. Such a treasure to watch the rest as it unfolds. (And in my mind I can still hear little-him whispering words out loud very carefully in order to spell h...

So I'm a little proud of this, when you consider birthday cake situations I have suffered in the past . (But thankfully barely recovered from.) My sweet Eleni turns 8 today. Pffufff. The time. She do pass us by. Eleni has invited a pair of friends to come home on the bus with her today. And together with her sister we're going to have a painting party. It was Isabela's (secret) idea to make Eleni a paint palette cake. Genius. Thank you Isabela. Talk about an easy design to execute! I did get a little fancy with her name on the side of the cake, but I was staring down at a plate full of beautifully colorful paints, erhhh icing plops. I had to do something besides eat them. So I painted on the side with a butter knife. And with "painterly" as the theme, I allowed myself not to worry about perfection. One helpful tip: etching her name in the white frosting with a toothpick first. Anyway, I think now I need to buy pretzel rods and black licorice string...

We tucked in on Friday, side by side, upstairs, busy. Quiet, working, drawing, laughing, ignoring, talking, singing. Then snow. Tiny at first. Then huge. She said we should take photographs. I rolled my eyes. But then she put on makeup. I got my coat. Froze my fingers. Click. After. Click. These pictures document the last of her dark hair for the now. She spent Friday evening trying to go blonde. Then I stayed up with her until almost 3am, helping her go blonder. Then she kissed me goodbye only hours later (her head, a little brassy) while Jeff warmed up the car. I slouched on the couch with Roman. And I was fine. Saturday. Fine. Sunday. Fine. This morning, I headed to her room to ask her to go out and buy some milk and juice for me becau ........OH. Not here. Right. So I texted instead. She couldn't go get the milk and juice right away. She's in Brooklyn. And then I looked at these pictures for about an hour. It was a good idea, as it turns out, to take them. ...

Post Disclaimer: All photos reference the THAT of which I am thinking and not the THIS of which I am doing. There are too many THISs to photograph. Doing:: Replacing six 10 1/2 ft structural porch columns on the front of our house :: waiting impatiently to have this installed in the dining room :: and two of these and one of these in the hallway :: attending to the lingering details in Nicolas's room and the girls' room after having renovated both :: considering which day to buy our Christmas tree and therefore decorate the whole house Thinking:: About picking up all the little sunshine crochet squares I started last winter on the couch with Juliana and lots of Whoppers :: Wondering if I need all those things again to be able to do it :: Yes, I do :: I was originally inspired by an amazing blanket that I saw either on etsy or flickr or both.... I think by a talented (Northern?) European woman.... and she had it styled on a modern gray couch.... anyone? I have seen sever...