Evening Edition! Free Kindle/Nook Book--

Book Description:

Song of Renewal received glowing acclaim upon its hardcover release. Now, Emily Sue Harvey has dramatically expanded this extraordinarily touching work to allow us to experience its riches at new levels.

The Wakefields seem to have everything. Garrison is a hugely successful graphic artist. Liza is an active member of the community and a patron of the arts. Their 16-year-old daughter Angel is bright, beautiful, and a gifted dancer. At the same time, though, they have traded away many of their dreams. Garrison gave up a future as an accomplished painter to make money. Liza suspended her own dancing career to raise a family. And Angel is setting aside her ambitions to live her mother’s dream.

When Angel gets into a car accident that kills her first love, the Wakefields’ lives turn on a dime. While Angel lies in a coma from which even the best prognosis is devastating, Garrison and Liza sit by her side, their once-passionate marriage in tatters. As their heartache over Angel builds, Garrison and Liza struggle to rediscover who they once were—and who they were meant to be. They come to realize that it will take everything they have within themselves to heal Angel, heal their hearts, and renew the power of their love.

At once romantic, inspiring, and empowering, Song of Renewal is a rare bauble of a novel, one with something to say to every family.

And these reviews are straight from the Amazon page:

“Thrilling read for all crime and mystery lovers!”– Crystal Book Reviews

“James LePore really knows his stuff. I found myself really pulling for Chris as he struggled with his dilemma, and hoping that he would find the best way to protect his family. I was also pulling for Michele, trusting that she could overcome the life that led her to lose her daughter. If you are into a good thrilling read, then you should definitely check out Sons and Princes by James LePore. You will NOT be disappointed!”– Confessions of a Real Librarian

“LePore is a wonderful storyteller, captivating the reader through his prose…. As the twists and turns develop and the story begins to solidify, you will be shocked by the choices and actions that take place within the novel.”– Books: The Cheapest Vacation You Can Buy

“Lepore had me hooked from the very first line, which is not hard to do when you’re asked to envision body parts showing up in a suitcase…. An absolute must-read!”– The Celebrity Café

Yup! Already downloaded it and it is ready to go to Alabama with me! The usual advice applies – download it now, or it might not be available later. And check the price before you click BUY – just to be sure it is still free!

Click HERE to get the free book from B&N.

If you haven’t commented on yesterday’s post yet – the giveaway for the civil war panels is still on-going! I’ll draw the two winners Wednesday morning, so there is still time to leave a comment there until I draw!

Mahhhhhvelous Monday!

I mentioned in yesterday morning’s post that Lisa and I were headed out to Pilot Mountain! And head out we did!

I haven’t hiked Pilot Mountain in a couple of years, and I was itching to go! It’s nice to find girlfriends who will get me OUT of the basement and go do something healthy – like moving my body – and something soul enhancing – like going up a mountain side and enjoying the beauty and wonder of creation.

First…I over-shot the exit! Lisa and I were coming from two different directions, and so we had picked a meet-up place. There is a Sam’s Club headed North on I-52 that is a great “leave one car in the parking lot” kind of meet up place—and because the trees have leafed out so much I blew past it! No problem, that’s what cloverleaf exits are for, right?

We left my car in the parking lot, and up the road we went! And soon, very soon….I could see Pilot Mountain just beckoning me in the distance!

Isn’t that just an amazing looking spot for a hike?! The trails go all over, and there is a great view from up top…only…..

When we GOT there…the park was closed for REPAVING!!?!??! They weren’t letting anyone in, and said it would be closed most of the week. Bummer.

We chatted to the workers for a while, and we decided that since our plans had been NIXXED and we had come all this way – that we would re-route ourselves and head back south a bit…and then EAST…and get ourselves over to Hanging Rock State Park!

After all, the day was lovely, temps were mid-cool and there probably won’t be a lot of Mondays left like this before summer fully sets in around here…

But, It is MONDAY for crying out loud, and life has a way of throwing conspiracies in our path!

MORE roadwork! This, my friends, is what we refer to as a “North Carolina Traffic Jam!” Which usually means construction, or slow moving farm equipment that can back up traffic for miles. I have a theory that the guys in the green/orange vests at Pilot Mountain called ahead to these guys in the green/orange vests on the way to Hanging Rock just to put off our bliss of nature just a bit longer! But it didn’t work. We eventually got past them and on our way up the windy road to Hanging Rock.

1.3 miles? Not a problem! Until you realize it is UPHILL ALL THE WAY!

But LOOK at that new green! And how it glows with the sun shining through! I really wished I could bottle up this smell and send it to you, it was that fresh and amazing out there. I love being in the mountains!

The mountain laurel is in full pink splendor and exploding bouquets of beauty everywhere along the trail!

It was too beautiful for words! Besides…it was so steep we were breathing too hard to be able to speak the words even if we wanted to! LOL!

Here it is! the Stairway to Heaven! We’d only passed two people at this point, and they were coming DOWN…with YOGA MATS under their arms? We are still trying to figure out just WHERE was flat enough to DO yoga up on Hanging Rock – The rock stairs go up and up and up and up and up…

Shelby and I stopped to catch our breath before going up any farther. Okay…that was an excuse. *I* stopped to catch my breath, and to tie my shirt around my waist before going up any further. All that exertion and temps were starting to climb. I just wanted to sit and love on a cute Shelby girl a bit before going further!

That Shelby is quite a poser! And too cute not to snap pictures of! I’ve never had experience with toy sized dogs before, and I really enjoy having her little person-ality around! She is the perfect size, the only thing missing is a PURR!

And Miss Lisa is pretty great to have around too!

Up and up and up and up – You mean we are going up HERE!? Yes. We are!

Almost There! I can see the view from the trees! ((And aren’t trees that grow up through solid ROCK just an amazing example for life?! I love life-lessons, and I know there is one for me in the fortitude of these amazing rock anchored trees!))

This is the view south, Winston Salem and Greensboro are somewhere out there….we are UP on top of the world!

That is one super rock climbing dog! She really did do most of it herself..jumping those rock steps as if they were hurdles! But LOOK at this view?! Can you see why we are so happy to be here?

Glorious scenery in every direction. There is NO ONE up here…not a soul – but Shelby, Lisa and myself. Oh. And one buzzard who kept swarming – must have been thinking that Shelby looked like LUNCH!

There just are not words for this kind of beauty. This is looking toward the North. We are about 10 miles south of the Virginia state line as the crow ((Or buzzard)) flies! The only sounds we hear are the buzzing of busy insects, the sound of the wind through the tree tops far below, and the beating of our own hearts from the climb.

This sky of scattered clouds mixed with blue and sunshine would continue to gather and shower us with a huge thunderstorm come later in the afternoon, but for now, all was perfect.

I could have sat here forever. Time stopped up here. Yes, there were mountains of STUFF at home, but somehow, I needed time out on THIS mountain to refresh my soul. STUFF can wait. But these moments – time out with nature, and a friend – those are too priceless to put off!

Things I continue to ponder and apply from this day trip:

• Don’t quit due to a detour!
• Slow down and enjoy the view!
• Take time to appreciate flowers!
• Stand steadfast in rocky places!
• Dance and climb while the sun shines!
• Laugh! LOTS!
• Consider the unconditional love of dogs, and apply it!
• Don’t be so busy that you pass up TIME with friends.

And--

Never let a chance to walk barefoot through moss pass you by!

Happy Tuesday, folks!

Clean & De-Clutter Giveaway!

**NOTE** This Giveaway has Ended!!

This afternoon, after Lisa dropped me back at my car—I ran errands like a crazy woman! But what’s a girl to do when she is parked in front of Sam’s club? And Lowes and Home Depot and Target and the bank and Walmart are in close proximity?

I don’t often go to that side of town – so it was like discovering a whole new place!

What was I searching for?

Plastic stackable drawers! It has been so long since I have bought any – who would think that just like everything else they would not only change style, but SIZE and stackability?! Why do they have to do that? I didn’t want them in colors? I didn’t want funky textures on the front of them…I didn’t want the plastic to have glitter sparkles in it..I just wanted STORAGE that matched my other storage. HA!

The two columns on the right are the drawers I already had for FQs. They have a deeper profile, but are the SAME SIZE as the two columns of drawers on the right, which are wider, but not as deep. AND…I couldn’t find them in individual stacking drawers so I could stack them as high as I want to match the others. I like the individual ones best because they support more weight than the frame for the 3 drawer cart will. I can’t stack the 3 drawer cart double tall, because the weight in full drawers is too much. I left the wheels off because I don’t plan on wheeling these anywhere.

I could return the farthest left cart – turns out I didn’t need it- YET! But I still have some rearranging to do and I might find it useful for something else. Maybe UFOs or something.

But I do know one thing for sure – I’m running out of wall space down here. I’ve moved book cases and treadle machines around, every wall is lined with SOMETHING quilty! And there is more furniture down here because of the re-roofing/re-sheetrocking of the sun room going on.

In my mind, I know that I should be getting LESS stuff, not MORE stuff – but my creativity revolves around having lots on hand to choose from, and I can’t work in a sterile minimal environment. I just can’t. So be it!

One of the things I unearthed was THIS:

This was tucked into a remnant bundle from a shop in Bay City Michigan….I never unpacked the bundle until yesterday! It’s actually a double panel, depicting Civil War Generals. There are TWO of these identical to each other. I know I will never do anything with this….so any takers?

I’ll cut the two panels apart and offer them to two people! Leave me a comment below telling me just what plans you have for it and why you want it! I’ll draw two winners Wednesday morning before leaving for Alabama –I’ll pack the envelopes in my stuff, and mail them from the road. Fun idea, huh?

Let’s see what else I can get rid of around here!

Organized Chaos!

I think the funniest thing I ever learned on Flylady was just what CHAOS stood for – Can’t Have Anyone Over Syndrome!

And basically, that is how I have felt about my basement space through the winter. I could start to get a handle on it, but there wasn’t a lot of time before I was flying off on another trip, and other projects had deadlines, so a lot of things I wanted to tackle just kept putting themselves on the back burner…or the way back way back burner! And there is more to be done, but I’m happy with what I accomplished yesterday!

Stacks of Fat Quarters were separated and sorted by color or category depending on what they were, and were put away in their drawers. See those two NEUTRAL stacks to the left? How many did I think I needed? Ahem. I Need. More. Drawers. This is creating quite a conundrum because I really “AM” about using what I have, but it just seems like I’ve been restocking my variety this year. And some of my drawers are shared by two colors, all of which could use their own drawer now ((Like the pinks sharing with purples or the yellows also sharing with oranges)) And I’ve found that as I’ve used yardage, some of the leftovers if they are large enough have also graduated down to the Fat Quarter drawers…((I put anything less than 1/2 yard in there)) and I added a new category of black and whites –Those need their own drawer because they really don’t mix well with the other beige-y civil war type shirtings and backgrounds.

But look! This table is now COMPLETELY clear – With the exception of those African prints that I KNEW were buried somewhere ((Yes, I found them!!) and I also found the ones that Aby gave me while in Germany! and I found a whole baggie of batik scraps –We’ll get to that later --

I made some make-shift Fat Quarter space in plastic shoeboxes on this old bookshelf I got at the second hand store for something crazy like $8.00. It’s SOLID wood….I really don’t like my fabric out in the open air. DH’s workroom/aka: Lawn Mower Garage is down here, and it has a Garage door on it, and it is often open, and dust and dirt and blower stuff and whatever comes through – But until I decide if I need more Fat Quarter drawers or what….this will have to do for now.

{{Insert personal-note-to-self: STOP. BUYING. BLUE!! You have more blue than you can use in a lifetime. USE IT!!}}

At this point I’m still mulling over that small pile of scraps on the table! Can you hear them calling my name -- LOUDLY!?

I have a set of bed risers under this table, so it is a great sorting, folding, cutting, laying out height.

THIS mess is next in the Queue – MAGAZINES. Old and new, some picked up from guild meetings, It’s become the magazine dumping ground. Before moving here I had gone through all my magazines ((I’ve done this several times over the years after they pile up a bit)) and saved the pages I wanted to keep in page protectors and put them in binders and use them as “Dream and Idea” books. But I’ve gotten behind on it, well—BECAUSE. Do I want to sew, or do I want to tear apart magazines? THAT IS A NO BRAINER!

And it’s not just that bottom shelf…What started to look CUTE in this fun wire basket is now overflowing….And I admit it. Some of the magazines have not even been taken out of the plastic bags that they were mailed in! Many of them at first glance don’t have anything I want – “Seen that, done that, nothing new, same old same old same old” and those will get donated.

Uhoh! Enough Cleaning!! And the pile on the clean table began to GROW!! This was evening time, and I was itching to play!

At this point I was thinking….I need something that will work with some of these African prints that are no more than 4” wide –Maybe I can find a batik or tone on tone texture that would play well with each of these, and pair them with a black and white ((Since I had just fondled,folded and put them all away!))

Did I really THINK I could get away with just ONE test block?! These are 6” “Kings Crown” blocks, and I am loving them! The on point Square in Square is a great way to frame those fun African fabrics, and the black and whites are so fun! The corners are more tone on tone batik or hand dyes –I have NO idea how I am going to set them yet…on point? Straight? Sashed? PIECED sashing? Alternate block? I don’t have enough done yet to even think about it….

But I did have enough time to kit up 25 blocks! They are ready to travel with me to Alabama this week! Since it is a road trip with nights in hotels, I’ll be setting up my machine and making good use of evening/morning time!

And it’s a good thing because I asked DH last night just when his Assistant Controller’s baby is due – “Oh, early June…” was the reply! ACCKKKK!

So! It’s Monday! My favorite day of the week—Monday is new and fresh with all kinds of possibilities. Today, Lisa and Shelby and I are going to hike Pilot Mountain! That should be loads of fun—Maybe some more piecing tonight, or some more digging through tonight. The jury is out on that one yet.

Tuesday will be a “packing up” day—because YES! I’ve decided to leave Wednesday and enjoy my journey to Huntsville, Alabama instead of just pedal to the metal to get there. Seems like a good plan, eh?

Enjoy your day!

How Much Fabric?!?

HA! I was happy to be corrected this morning on just WHAT day of the week it is! I don’t know why, but when I woke up this morning, I had on my mind that it was MONDAY…not Sunday!

This is awesome! This means I have a whole extra day to do “stuff” before heading out to Alabama early Thursday morning! It’s an 8 hour drive – so with lunch and gas and everything else, I’m giving myself 9 hours and will be leaving the house around 5:30 am on Thursday. OY! Lecture Thursday Night…Double OY~~Maybe…I’ll leave Wednesday afternoon and drive half way instead~~ Or I’m really going to be wiped out for my lecture on Thursday night!

So..back to my day! I decided…it’s TIME!

Time for TAKING TIME….to tackleTHIS:

((OH yes, piles of fabric yardage that go back to my trip to Hershey in JULY!!))

And THIS:

((Oh, this table is packed with fabric, and some recyclable articles of clothing, and fat quarter boxes and orphan blocks and……))

It’s time to slow down, even though I have sewing on the brain…to get it all back where it needs to GO! And if it is a newer purchase and hasn’t HAD an assigned spot yet, to FIND IT ONE!

A funny thing happened when I started to uncover this table……remember me being frazzled about losing THIS??

MY BLUE TOOTH ear thing!! Yep. It was buried under piles of fat quarters and fabric yardage on the big cutting table in the “other” side of the basement.

I knew it would show up SOMEWHERE at SOME POINT.

That side of the basement is not heated, so in the winter months, unless you want to be over there in a parka, things DO just get laid on the table until it warms up enough to want to be in that side of the basement comfortably.

So now I’ve started turning the mess ((That grew over many months of neglected time)) to THIS:

It’s amazing how just having things folded into equal sizes makes everything look better. I also see a LOT of chrome yellow and at the far far end ((though you can’t see it as well)) a lot of yuk green! LOL! And when I'm done folding, onto it's shelves it will go!

There is more to do. But sometimes a day spent reorganizing and re-familiarizing myself what what already LIVES in my basement can inspire me on to future projects by using what I have --- We all need to re-confirm this to ourselves at one point or another don’t we? Or -- MORE OFTEN would be good too, wouldn’t it?

It’s a good thing I won’t be headed down I-85 on my way to Alabama– Or I’d be tempted to make a pit stop at Mary Jos! Instead, I’m going to head over I-40 and route through Asheville, Knoxville, Chattanooga and down into Huntsville!

Come to think of it, I’ve never BEEN to Chattanooga….and I bet there are awesome antique malls on the way. If it were you, would you go WEDNESDAY instead of trying to cram it all into Thursday? Just for some wandering opportunities? I’ll have to think on this – but you know me, I’m already leaning toward it!

Homeward Bound!

It was a great workshop yesterday!! Pics are on my phone, and I’m being picked up for the airport in less than 1/2 hour so I need to be quick about this!! I’m heading home to North Carolina from Tyler, Texas today --

Michelle MADE my day when she sent along an excerpt from Quilters Home Magazine June/July 2011 listing the 55 top Quilting Blogs!

I was completely gobsmacked to read that we were listed as NUMERO UNO!! Wow…I’m not sure how they came to their conclusions, but I was also tickled to find that there are great blogs that I don’t KNOW about….and I’m going to pick up the full issue so I can go check them out!

Pictures have started flooding in from Quilt Market in SLC! I’m so tickled that Kansas City Star put my quilts right where ordering people would be standing for a close up and personal look!

You certainly can’t miss them if you are standing there placing an order at all, can you? :cD

So off I go home…I’ve got a 3 hour layover in Houston, so I hope the A/C is back to being FIXED!! At least it is a sunny beautiful day today….I’m still shaking over that flight of terror on Wednesday night!

I refuse to be a whimpy traveller! This girl is getting BACK on that horse and is going to enjoy her flight home!

I’ve been working on the hexagons….of course. And it isn’t a lot of anything exciting to show you because I’m simply filling in background areas right now until I get up to the inset borders I want to do:

The cream part is almost done, you can see my little drawing for my map on the hexagon paper….this is to straighten up TWO opposite sides…and then I’ll have to do the top and bottom to square it off. It’s coming along! I really enjoy working on it…..and it is worth the time that it takes. It really is. I love every stitch! ((When the plane isn’t bouncing!!))

I hope you are enjoying a lovely weekend wherever you are…..I’ll catch you back from the NC side!