the quilt...

I can't believe it's actually finished. I started the blocks in this quilt over two years ago, I added the sashing around a year ago and yesterday, I took it out to my mom's and she helped me add the binding and finish her up. So, like I said...I can't believe it's actually finished. It turned out so pretty, it is such a sense of accomplishment, I don't know why it took so long. I have a couple more quilts that are in the final stages and I think, one by one, I'll take them out to my mom and she can give me the final encouragement (aka...kick in the pants) to get them done. I forget how much I enjoy the whirrrrrrr of my sewing machine. It reminds me of growing up, there were many nights that I went to sleep listening to my mom's machine as she stitched up clothes for me and my little sister. Back then I wanted store bought clothes so badly, now I know the time and love that went into the matching (yuck) outfits she sewed for us.

I stitched up a couple of book bags and a purse for my daughter Annie but I'll have to show those to you later. I won't see her till next weekend and I want to give the purse to her before I post it, just case she reads my blog.

Sunday is winding down so I think I will spend a few moments in my craft room working on a halloween project before starting dinner. Enjoy your afternoon...

Blessings,

Patty

pretty please...

just because...

get comfy, rest and get better...

happy birthday...

thanks for all you do...


Thanks for stopping by my blog. When I began this site a few months ago, I wasn't sure if anyone would ever visit. It's reassuring to know you're out there...

I just came home from my Women's bible study and I can't tell you how special my table ladies are to me. Some of us have been together a long time and have been through the highs and lows that life brings. We have also been joined this year by new ladies and time is revealing to us why God has placed them at our table. It amazes me how He weaves together such diverse women with so much in common. What a blessing it is to have such a support and accountablity system in place. I am really looking forward to studying and growing with these women this year.

It's getting late, so I am off to bed...

Blessings,

Patty

The cards I posted tonight came together easily because of the beautiful paper from My Mind's Eye - Pretty Please. The stamps are from Papertrey Ink, Karen Lockhart, Unity and G Studio, the buttons are vintage from PTI, colored with copics and distressed with rose coral chalkbox ink.

If you're here from the Gratitude Hop, your next stop is Pam Speidel at http://smileycollector.blogspot.com/ ...enjoy.

check..check...

nine months old...

eight months old...

five months old...

seven months old...

I have been having a blast catching up my grandbabies first year albums. Emily Jean's is now current... (checked off my UFO list) and oh so adorable, just like her. I am thrilled that she will now be living within cheek pinching distance so you will be seeing and hearing alot more about her.

I have finished Andrew's first year album, yes, I said finished... (checked off my UFO list). I will share a few pages from it some time soon.

Enjoy those God has placed around you,

Patty

one cute chickie...

It's in the details...

right side view...

left side view...

bringing up the rear...

I know, I know, I have way to much time on my hands. This little chickie was hatched from an idea I saw on a Valentines day post by linda albrecht. It was one of those little creatures where you say, "I could make that," only this time I actually did...

The details...the little bird is made out of brown felt, I drew up a pattern on cardstock, traced it and cut it out and sewed him up, right sides together, leaving an opening to turn him right side out. I stuffed him with fiber fill and hand sewed up the opening.

The beak is also felt, which I folded in half and hand sewed to his body. The eyes are blue pearl stick ons. I cut out paper wings and felt wings as well as a paper tail and felt tail. I overlapped the two, zig zagged them together and glued them onto the body. I embellished him with all my favorite things, buttons...pearls...flowers, both paper and cloth...an old key to who knows what...ribbon...and of course, some eggs.

I didn't have a nest, so I improvised with some twig ribbon, moss and my good old trusty glue gun but you could just as easily by one at the craft store.

Now what to do with him...maybe put him onto an old box or jar full of buttons. Maybe sitting on some old books or on top of a bird house, hmmm...let me know what you think. Where should this chickie feather his nest?

Blessings,

Patty

the fig tree... {D}

the pumpkins vines...

zinnia seeds...

*Edit...after reading this over, I kinda feel like it came out of left field. Sometimes I forget that I have had time to think over what I share with you and you haven't. So let me start again...In my quiet time this morning, my devotional had me in Mark 11. After reading the scripture, I pulled out a couple of commentaries to see what the scholars had to say. I started to think about my longed for pumpkin patch...I started the seeds in plenty of time, the sun was good, the water was adequate but no fruit...sigh. Sometimes our spiritual life can be the same. We do what we are supposed to do but somehow our life doesn't appear to bare much fruit. Appearances can be deceiving. Now...

I show you these two pictures to make a point...the seeds were both planted at the same time, both showed signs of promise, both germinated and produced leaves, same sunshine, same amount of water but one flourished and one never made it past the show of leaves...the promise of potential...it literally died on the vine.

My post will be short because I believe it provides plenty of food for thought, (I know it has for me) it will take a moment to ponder.

Mark 11:12-14, 20-21 "The next morning as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. He noticed a fig tree in full leaf a little way off, so he went over to see if he could find any figs. But there were only leaves because it was too early in the season for fruit. Then Jesus said, "May no one ever eat of your fruit again."...the next morning... the fig tree had withered and died."

This is one of those portions of scripture that I never understood. At first read it seems that Jesus is acting out of anger and has cursed the fig tree. But his cursing of the fig tree was to provide a teachable moment to his disciples who were with him. To put this into context, this is Jesus last week walking the earth in human form. His disciples have now been with him for two years, they have seen him perform countless miracles, they know his teachings and they know him intimately as a friend. Their faith should be huge, their fruit should be abundant.

He is not making this point to new believers but to well seasoned followers. The fig tree was not cursed because it bore no fruit, it was cursed because it was not what it appeared to be. This teachable moment was a warning about spiritual hypocrisy. He was saying that the Jewish people appeared to be religious but they were merely hypocrites.

If we claim a desire to be authentic, then this is one scripture we don't want to ignore or take lightly. Think this one over and let me know what you think. Leave a comment or send me an email at inthegardenpm1@aol.com. I would love to here from you.

Blessings,

Patty

fall inspiration...

I finally had a chance to clean off my front porch last weekend, clear out the cobwebs, hose away all the ashes from the recent fires and put away the summer decorations. The temperature actually dropped for a brief moment so I started gathering my autumn decorations together to deck out my front porch and dining room hutch. I love the change of seasons and have found it just enough to decorate the front porch and my dining room hutch without having the need to turn my whole house upside down. (With the exception of Christmas, that's a totally different story. I have been known to even put a small tree in the bathroom!)

These pictures are of new additions to my fall collection. I couldn't resist the boy and girl scarecrows and I love the crow yard stake. Don't you love the retro plaques I found at Tom's Farms.

I'll be heading to the nursery to pick up some mums and other fall flowers and can't wait to spend the weekend repotting my containers, pretending the temperature has not climbed back into the high 90's. Ugh!!! Southern California weather, gotta love it. I'll post pictures when I'm done.

Blessings,

Patty

aye matie...

mommy and gramma with our favorite little pirate...

Okay, I know he's not exactly Jack Sparrow of the Black Pearl but you have to admit he is just about the cutest pirate around. This is my grandson, Andrew's first Halloween and it is month six of his first year album. Where did the last year go, I can't believe we are already getting ready for Halloween again. I am trying to finish up my UFO's (unfinished objects) and Andrew's first year album is on the top of my list...then I have at least four quilts and a box full of photos...oh yeah and the flower beds are looking pretty raggedy after that last killer heatwave. Am I alone here?

The paper is from We R Memories, the stamps are G studio, the sparkle on the spider backs is from orange stickles and the buttons are vintage from my stash.

autumn blessings... {D}

the buttons...

vintage autumn blessings

boo...

I found these great vintage buttons in historic downtown Temecula, CA. Each one is different, each unique and that's what I love about them. I love that about people, too. Each of us, with all our quirks and insecurities, is different with a story to tell as to why we are the way we are.

I watched Gran Torino last night with my husband. It was a movie that was hard for me to sit through because as my husband says, I don't like to see things that are too real. I would rather not see that a darker world exists. It is one of those movies that sticks with you, I can't stop thinking about it. It's a world foreign from mine and yet, the family ties, the love, the loyalty, are the same.

I find myself this morning thankful to God for a safe place to live and raise children and thankful for a heart that longs to make a difference even if it's just one life at a time.

Psalm 86:11 says, "Teach me your ways, O Lord, that I may live according to your truth! Grant me purity of heart, so that I may honor you. With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God. I will give glory to your name forever, for your love for me is very great. You have rescued me from the depths of death."

What are God's ways? What does his truth say? We are to love Him and to love one another... We are to put other's needs above our own... We are to show others the love of Christ. We can't do that, if we don't venture out of our comfort zone and trust him to show us the way.

How does that look for me? I come before God and ask him to show me some way, each day, how I am ignorant to someone else's struggle. How can I make a difference for them, right now? Whether it be a kind word, a meal to eat or an ear that will listen. There are hurting people out there living in a too real world. I know I will be held accountable for having eyes that do not see and ears that do not hear. Thankfully, we have a merciful God and he gives us today to make a difference. Forgetting the missed opportunities of yesterday, I want to live according to his truth, today.

Blessings,

Patty

The cards are made with My Mind's Eye paper, Papertrey Ink sentiment and crafty secret flowers plus some really cool vintage buttons!

bliss established... {D}

Bliss...established 1976


This heart is a gift to my sister in law for her 33rd wedding anniversary. Hers is a marriage of perseverance, as is most any marriage that lasts. I'm sure if she had know the difficulties and heartache ahead of time, she would have thought twice but if she had also been shown the joy and happiness, she would do it all again.


Life and love are like that. Sometimes it is so easy to love and then other times...My scripture reading today is from 1 John 3:16-29 "We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters...let's not merely say we love eachother, let us show the truth by our actions...Even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings, and he knows everything."


It is so easy to feel love but it is much more difficult to do love. I think most of us want to treat those around us with love and respect, we want to live righteous lives, we want to have the love of Jesus show in how we love others, but then life happens. Our best intentions are met with resistance...our buttons are pushed...our thought lives go into over drive...and then our actions follow. God knows this will happen, he tells us not to feel guilty over our failure, he knows our hearts and he is greater than our feelings. Does this mean we shouldn't even try because we know what the result will be? No, we are still commanded to love eachother through our actions. Even those who are difficult to love. It means we are to ask God daily...hourly...by the minute...for the supernatural ability to love as he does, sacrificially.

In love,
Patty

The heart is made from a chipboard that I painted white and distressed. The papers are from Melissa Frances and they have been inked with Vintage Photo ink, as have all the embellishments.

autumn...

This is my first Autumn card of the year. The paper is from Boo to you from My Mind's Eye. The stamps are a combinaton of Recollections and Stampin Up and are colored with Copic markers.

the gift... {D}

We do not remember the days, we remember the moments...

The next generation...

The latest edition, baby Noah Grace and great gramma...

Our sweet baby girl, Emily Jean and great grandpa...

Dog pile...Summer...Childhood...Memories...

We spent yesterday at my mom and dad's house for a BBQ. I went over early and was able to enjoy a couple of hours with just my parents and oh, how I enjoy that time. Nothing important needs to be said, it's just the time together, just being with them, that does my heart good. Their home is like that, not just to me but to everyone in the family. There is rarely a day through the week, that one of us is not there to eat dinner and watch a little TV or take a quick nap.

This book was a gift of love to them. It represents what they mean, what they provide for our family. It represents their legacy of love to us. It is what I want to provide for my children and grandchildren. It is part of what they will leave with us, in our hearts.

My scripture reading today was John 14. "...I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Sprit, who leads into all truth...When the Father sends the Advocate as my represnetative- that is, the Holy Spirit- he will teach you everthing and will remind you of everthing I have told you. I am leaving you with a gift -peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give, is a gift the world cannot give. So don't be troubled or afraid." John 14:16-17, 25

I can't think of any greater gift than that of peace of mind and heart. It is what we are all searching for -- safety, security, peace, comfort... What the scripture is saying is that we have all that in the form of the Holy Spirit, our Advocate, our Counselor, our Comforter. He resides within us, he cannot be taken away. He can however be crowded out, confined to a little corner deep within us, when we allow the outside world to take over what he was sent to do. When we allow our bank account to replace him for our security, when we allow our alarm systems to replace him for our safety, when we allow whatever we do in excess to replace him for our comfort. Not that these are all bad things, we are called on to be good stewards of our finances, to watch over the safety and security of our families, but these are worldly forms of peace of mind and each is not fool proof.

True peace of mind comes from resting on God's promises. In knowing him as our Protector, Provider, Sovereign Lord, our Faithful Companion. The Holy Spirit within us is there to remind us of why Jesus came, of what he has already done for us and of what he promises to do for us in the future. This is the true gift. "So don't be troubled or afraid."

Embrace the gift,

Patty

The paper is from Basic Grey-June Bug line, the cardstock book was from Michael's dollar bin, Stamps are Unity, the doo dads are from my stash.

you inspire me... {D}

You inspire me...don't you just love this sentiment. To be inspirational or encouraging to someone, what a compliment. Don't take it lightly. This life we're living can be tough at times and if you can encourage someone to persevere or inspire someone to make a difference in their world or someone else's is huge!

My quiet time this morning, had me in Ephesians 1: 3-8. "All praise to God the Father who has showered us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ...He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding."

I am thinking how often I choose to go it alone in life. How often I make decisions or choices without calling on the spiritual blessings, wisdom and understanding that God has showered on me. I not talking which scent to buy at Bath & Body...I am talking about decisions that affect me and my family, whether it be financial, emotional, or spiritual.

I am a doer, not a contemplater by nature and that is not always a good thing. Yes, I get a lot done in 24 hours but what gets done is not always for the best in the long run. I am married to a contemplater, he will analyze the thing to death before beginning. Needless to say, painting a room together is not going to be a harmonious experience. In the time it takes him to decide on the color, purchase the right paint, determine if we have all the tools, prep the room and begin the job, I have put on two coats of paint and shoved the furniture back into place. But...two weeks later, I discover the paint color is wrong, I didn't cut the corners just right and the dresser is sticking to the wall because I didn't let it dry all the way. You get my point.

Ephesians 1 tells us that we were chosen by God which brought him great pleasure. He loves us simply because we are his, not because of the amount we do or don't do. He pours out grace on us, he showers us with every spiritual blessing. He has wisdom and understanding at our disposal if we would just ask for it.

So this brings me to the question...Why don't we call on him? Why don't we use what he has freely offered? Why do we go it alone based on our own limited, finite resource of wisdom and knowledge, when the creator of the universe has offered us his unlimited wisdom to draw on?

This lesson is definitely for me...Slow down...breathe...inquire...listen...obey.

Blessings,

Patty

The paper is My Minds Eye, Bloom & Grow, the sentiment is from Unity Stamp July KOM.

andrew's antics... {D}

This picture is just a sneak peak at a project I will be posting next week...

I guess it's no secret that I am crazy in love with my grandbabies...honestly, when people say you should just skip right to them, I get it. Your children just come with so much more of the day to day responsibility and routine of life. But by the next generation you have relaxed a little bit and what's truly important is much more clear.

I just love to watch my grandson Andrew do life. From the time he wakes up until he is tucked into bed, he is constantly searching and learning. Right now at 16 months old he has discovered where gramma's pan lids are and will go grab his favorite two, along with a wooden spoon and have himself a parade. When he's done, or gramma's deaf, he will return the lids and spoon to the cupboard, shut the door and look up at me with those eyes that say "aren't you proud of me?" Of course I will indulge him and clap like he just won the pulitzer prize. He has now taken to covering his ears and shaking his head no when he is corrected...He figured out the hand motions to twinkle, twinkle little star...he runs to the door when the choo choo train goes by, yelling choo choo...he loves story time and snuggles just as close as can be to hear his favorite book, and will say "again" when it's over...he loves to help grandma water with the hose and practically drowns himself drinking from it. Such joy in the every day!

I know this phase is fleeting and he will very soon be a teenager with all that comes with it. What I also understand as a grandparent that I didn't get as a parent is that part of life is searching out your personal beliefs.

My devotional today was from Luke 15: 1-7 "I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous persons who do not need to repent." This is the parable of the lost sheep, where Jesus says that a shepard with 100 sheep will leave 99 of the sheep alone for a bit to search for the one that is lost. When it is found he will joyfully carry it back to the fold.

I have had rebellious children, (I was a rebellious child) I know first hand how heart wrenching it can be. What the Word of God has shown me is that we should never give up on those who rebel...God doesn't. He waits patiently for any sign of our return to the fold. We should to. He rejoices and celebrates the victories, instead waiting for the defeats. The celebration of victory not only encourages the wayward child but it also does our heart good. It gives us hope. If they fall again, so be it. Then we begin the wait again, until one day, the rejoicing in heaven begins.

Even if the situation seems impossible, like there is no coming back...keep praying...wait patiently..for nothing is impossible with God.

Blessings,
Patty

The paper is Basic Grey, Lemonade. More details later.