ALMOST TIME!!!

funny....when i typed in the title above...and began....ALMOST....it popped up a finishing word to the line...and it read..."ALMOST SUMMER" where the heck did it go? summer that is...how do i let time slip away....and trying to remember is not as easy as it was....say....yesterday...lol...

heck...STATE FAIR IS HISTORY (that was always the signal for the new school year for me)

The kids are readying themselves for school...Maddy will be in FIFTH GRADE!!! and Sirr Maxx will begin...4K...and Xander will be in FOURTH!!! wow... I know many of you have watched them grow up on here...such technological kids... This begins the ONLY YEAR they will be together in school....for their school career... Guess that means no little brother "bothering" her...lol...or creating havoc drooling over her friends...

or perhaps...

how could he BOTHER..her...look at that "innocent smile" HA!

Maddy is coming down from a summer where her team won the West Allis championship fastpitch softball league! The got to play at the Brewers Miller park in a little league stadium where the original county stadium was.

and robbie was a volunteer assistant coach for her team..thinking he ENJOYED the championship dousing...lol

This friday is Maddy's 10th birthday...TEN YEARS...she wasn't even a month old when 9-11 happened....seems like forever...and then again...seems like a blink....

She keeps climbing to new heights..

...and maxx keeps racing along...

with his medical issues....heading in for an EMG/NCV test..on Sept 8th...it involves ALOT of "shocks" (shots) so they are sedating him...prayers needed.

Maddy and Xander will be starting a new bowling league..in september..so we went to practice a bit..

"big buddy" and fav uncle, Robbie has volunteered at the bowling center to coach the younger teams! So he came along to get a jumpstart on coaching...he is AMAZING with teaching kids...

Just over a MONTH til I head to ART-is-YOU in Connecticut!!!

..and with THIS post...THE NEXT POST WILL BE 400...and someone who has posted from the last post til the next will win a OOAK halloween art doll!!! So leave me some love...

BIG HUGZ til next time...

just not..feeling it today...

..but this does count as another post...moving toward that 400th...and the giveaway...
i try to be upbeat on here....and a happy camper...(NO THAT DOES NOT MEAN I'M LIKING CAMPING...for the record...lol)
but....
just when you gather a bit of wind beneath your wings....a truck goes by..and sucks the air...right out from under them....and CRASH....down ya go....

life isn't playing fair right now....at all....

hugz til next time....

ta! da!!!! (and a giveaway..)

sounding the trumpets...carrying on like a school girl...yep...WAY UNDERESTIMATED my bloggability...this summer... I thought for sure...this easy-going-got-NOTHING...(i snicker here) to do summer...i could prepare a long tall glass of lavender (is there ANY OTHER KIND??)ice tea...and bloggy for hours.... Well best laid plans quickly get whooooooooooooooooooooooooooooshed to the side...don't they?

Even as the saying goes...corn kneehigh by the fourth of july...didn't quite make it..but if you'd throw in there...AUGUST...we MADE IT!!!

My bits of time quickly were compacted and filled the hours...bits of time to do sewing...firefly catching...

bits of time to have babies come to play....

bits of time to watch the early nighttime hours thru the wired links in fences....

...AND Maddy's team is going to the championships in a game played at the Brewers Miller Park little League stadium! GO SLUGGERS!!!

Bits of time that if we pause too long...the dust will cover our feet..

bits of time to hold tiny Lavender babies as they slept...

...because as we all know babies have that magical way to grow ever so quickly and soon we witness them zipping by...unable to stop...them...from growing again and again...

and soon they are about to turn TEN...TEN!!!???? Where did those moments go??

just know that even with the tiniest fingers...learning..growing...exploring...with each and every gesture...they are saying

I LOVE YOU....just read into it!

can't promise...a post soon....could happen at any time...because we have to grab hold of those bits of time...and use them....as best we can! HUGZ...til next time!

BUT....THOSE THAT LEAVE A COMMENT...WILL BE ENTERED INTO A DRAWING...FOR A SPOOKYLICIOUS...halloween ART DOLLIE....between NOW and my impending 400TH POST!!! (and that's only 3 away!!)

i lost it.....

i was on such a roll, too...thought for sure i'd post more.....if i challenged myself...just didn't happen....last post was june 8...here it is JULY 1!!!! GEEZ...

Today is Shannon and Kevin's 11th anniversary...seems like yesterday!

It also would have been my sister, Pat's 69th birthday...miss her sooo much!

Today Danielle called me...and gushed..."i'm so proud of Xander!" before she could get anything else out of her mouth...seems he came running into the house...to grab his bucket of fishing worms...and dani asked him what was going on....he said he had found a little pink bird....and it must be hungry....(very tiny bird...baby) when he got back downstairs...the teenage neighbor boys..were messing with it...in NOT a good way.....and xander stood up to them....and said they had to leave it alone...he would take care of it...they got the worms away from him and dumped them out..."let your birdie get it's OWN worms..." well he ran back into the house and grabbed a box to put it into...and told dad...dad came out with him and upon the teens seeing damien...they gave xander the bird...and told him.."here's your bird..." damien and xander rushed it to the wildlife perserve building...and they took the birdie in and said they'd keep xander posted...SO PROUD OF YOU XANDER...FOR HELPING THE HELPLESS...

I did a bit of sewing also...for Brynberlee Designs...testing one of her latest patterns...

kaya loves it!!! i'm gonna make up a couple more...for some sweet girls i know...school will be here before we know it!!! thinking a bit of a heavier weight fabric!

rummaging...finds...found this wilton caddy...retails for 65.00 at joann's...for 5.00 and it had decorating tips in it!!!

and then from under the table at the same sale...came a plea...take me home too!!! xander will LOVE ME!

score!!! $3.00 and the machine was RIGHT...he loves it!!!

Well blogland...sorry for the long expanse of time...i can promise to come back sooner...and i will try...

big hugz til next time...

june fun...and frolic...

not to mention heat and humidity!

It's Wisconsin...we went from brisk fall like temps...to 90 degree + temps...

It's the last week of school...and Maddy is now a full fledged Safety Crossing Cadet! (That means moving into FIFTH grade!)...OK..SO HOW MANY OF YOU OUT THERE REMEMBER HER AS A B-A-B-Y???? and now we have only one more year at the school she is in...(the ONLY in her whole school life...she will be with Maxx)
(she was TRYING to hide from her CRAZY-CAMERA-PACKIN

..AH I MEAN proud nonnie...as she carried her sign out to her post)

First day of duty done...and she gets in the car and goes, "nonnie, my belts too big..(gotta be a fashion thing) and it's HOT...MY POST IS IN THE OPEN SUN!!!

She does wear that belt well....and could very well be an ad campaign for SAFETY PATROL! LOL

Gonna make another sister or brother bear...like this oldie but goodie...from a few years back....who resides in California...

This last weekend...we went to the Milwaukee County Zoo...this season they have a new feature...A butterfly experience...
The Zoo crew was so helpful with making sure each person got to hold a butterfly..especially the kids!!
The Crew showed each person how to approach a butterfly to get it to sit on your hand...

...we were so suprized that maxx held not one but several he WILL NOT HOLD A WORM...but he will fish...perhaps thats why his imaginary buddy, BOB...the ladybug..is just that IMAGINARY...

Little Miss Lavender....she is getting more and more sweet every day!
...the BIGGER THE BOW....the better the NONNIE!

AND Logan is settling in as being the BIG BROTHER...well trying to...he stands on his front porch calling me to come get him...(they live across the street)

Maxx is so ready to play baseball...still waiting on his Gait lab results...they said it would take six weeks...it's been three...

we've been practicing...

...and practicing

and practicing...

He may not be able to run well..but the boy can sure WHACK 'EM!

with summer comes the carnivals..this one was at Xander's school...
Maddy transformed into a butterfly...

Working on this Jewel Sparkles dress for a sweet little one I know...who adores her Jewel Sparkles Lalaloopsy!
Here is Jewel...

...and here is what i made...

I had to adapt it from several patterns....and a bit of ingenuity...

and then...we went to an estate sale...and usually estate sales are run by antique dealers in this area..and we avoid them because the prices are well...HIGH...but this one was in a block rummage..and run by the kids of a mom that had passed....i selected a couple of lace doilies...and she asked what I had planned for them...she was sooo excited her mom's things she had made were going to be remade into other things..that she gave me the rest of the pile!
and the runner will be PERFECT on my kitchen table! (sorry, shan) lol

..i can cross off the bird cage from my rummage list!!! SCORE!

I think Lolli is thinking that that pale yellow dotted swiss fabric will be turned into something frothy for her...so she's keeping a close eye on it...

Lady had all these sweet vintage pieces and she has baggies more!!!

Found these baking pan delights...(the set of Wilton graduated pans were only $3.00!)
the other ones were priced from .10 to a dollar!

Maxx gave me a great idea for a father's day card...he put this little squinkie car onto of it's matching counterpart..and says, "look, nonnie..it's me and dad!"

PERFECT!!!! Gotta get to work on it!

Leaving you with...this...close your eyes real tight...

make a wish....

...and BLOW!!! hoping all your wishes come true!

BIG HUGZ til next time!