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Reptile Center

My middle son went to the Reptile center Tuesday. They really put on a show for the preschoolers. The creature slithering across the laps of 4 year olds is an 8 month old Olive Python, aptly named "Olive". A few seconds after this picture was taken she evacuated her snake bladder and bowels and there was snake "poo" all over. Preschoolers must have some sixth sense because miraculously none of them got "pooed" on. They also got to watch bearded dragons devour cockroaches and a scaleyback lizard sprint (These guys don't actually move much at all, they like to eat fruits and berries. Their defense mechanism is to "poo" in the mouth of predators. This must be all the fiber in their diet). The Reptile center Also has a big Salt water crocodile named Terry. We got to see his thrash around a bit. Very clean teeth. Very Big clean teeth. Rex (aka the "Snake Man") gave us all a lesson in how to react to snakes, since there are zillions out here. We are supposed to stay very still and shout for someone to call him and he will come a collect it. Which he does regularly. When we moved in back in January we had a magnet on the fridge with important numbers. His was number 2 right after 911.

I had a great day of sewing yesterday and the mail went out, so M. Nalli should have her bags in about a week. U. Seeholzer, I am kinda excited about the zipper in your bag. You may not know this about me, but up until now I have hated zippers. I am taking the bull by the horns and really getting familiar with these devices and I think I am overcoming my hatred of them. I need to order some off the Net, they are just too damn expensive here. Anyway I just wanted to say good morning to you all and share a bit of reptile lore with you. Oh, if "Olive" were in the wild she would eat wallabies. Some wallabies get to be the size of a healthy 4 year old....maybe her "pooing" episode was just attempting to make room for dinner. Her Mother was massive...she didn't get to come out and frolic with the children. Thank Goodness.

Just ranting...

OK, this will be more of a rant than real information, unless you are planning on moving your family to a remote assignment. If that is the case then listen up. My youngest son needs to have his massive tonsils and adenoids removed. He has had "kissing tonsils" since e was born. We tried to have them removed before we came down here, but the wait list at FT Hood was too long. We arrived here and everyone agreed that Sam as the biggest tonsils they have ever seen. They need to come out. Nothing happened. So I went back to the hospital, "Wow, look at that. They bulge out into the mouth. Those really need to be removed" Still nothing has happened. Sam as not eaten solid food in about 6 months. He eats yogurt, milk shakes and chocolate milk. He is 2.5 years old, but is the size of a skinny 18 month old. He is such a happy little guy, but I am tired of watching him slowly starve to death. It is 2007, for Pete's sake! I am a fabulous cook, no one is skinny in my house, we have plenty of food. We finally got our appointment to see the ENT. She agreed "Those tonsils need to come out as soon as possible.....we may be able to get you in before Christmas."

In the mean time you need to go have your sons blood drawn. OK, that is fine, normal procedure. But she said that the pediatrician needs to do it. Why? isn't that what you have your phlebotomists for? well they all quit this week. Went home for Christmas. hummmmm...ok. I will play your strange game. So I take Sam down the hall to the peds ward. The pediatrician will be back around 3. come back then, we have a big wait. Yeah I guess so since your pediatrician is doing the nurses and phlebotomist's job. (I am going to admit here that I am a HORRIBLE patient. ) I know how a hospital should be run. I know what people's job should be. I have been an RN for the past 10 years and it pisses me off to be blown off by lazy staff. Dammit give me the syringe and I will draw the CBC myself. That didn't go over well. Maybe I should have approached it differently. But oh well. I HATE mismanagement.

So I came home and did what I have not been able to for the past 5 years. I called my husband and told him what happened. He is always deployed in some God Forsaken country when I need him. I am sure I am leaving tons out....the god awful stench of the drunk Aborigines, the filth of the hospital, the lazy staff.... Well I called on my "big gun" The dear man activated immediately. He fed off my fury and tried to make it all better. All I know is that something will happen now. I have no idea what, but something will. I guess Something would have happened even if we did Nothing.

I just want to go back to happily sewing my little bags....but I have to do all these other things. Grrrrr. My baby is ill, and I am helpless to make it better. Well my middle son and I have a date at the Reptile center this morning...so I gotta dash. Thanks for reading my frustration.

New Wallets!

Here is one of my New Wallets. This guy is the "Jennifer Foldy Wallet". He has 2 Credit Card pockets inside and a bigger pocket for Cash. A loop of Bungee cord and spare Army button secures the little wallet closed. I also have a "Zippy Wallet". You can see more details of both on my Flicker Bag Gallery. So this is a busy sewing weekend for me and I will be doing a big mailing of bags on Monday. The mail didn't run on Friday, so I will be mailing

M. Nalli

J. Reuter

U. Seeholtzer

I am still working away on J. casto and T. Padgett. Those will be ready this week to go to their mammas.

My next batch will be

J. Hunt (Nicole)
C. Vu (Stu, pad, hero quilt)
D. Monte (Stu, Pad, and Molly)
M. Beninato (Stu)
T. Rowell (Zippy Becky)
A. Grant (Amber)

I am working on a group of Hero bags for C. Richardson. Wow, is that a heartbreaking order. His uniform is so big...He was such a big strong man. When I say big, I mean tall. When I hold his pants up the waist comes above my shoulder. I am making 2 backpacks for his children and a bag for his widow, and I have cried through the entire process. I am using some of the fabric Westminster Fibers donated to my cause to make her a "Hero Quilt" as well. He died as a result of coming into contact with a chemical weapon in Baghdad. Hopefully her order will be all ready to ship on Wednesday. I really want it to be as close to perfect as I can get it. I do with all your orders, but the "Hero Bags" are especially dear to me.

I also have most of my fabric uploaded onto my Flicker Fabric Gallery. That was a ton of work. Not all of them are named and alot of them are named incorrectly. I know the Amy Butler's and Heather Bailey's are correct, but I have made up names for alot of them. If you are a fabric junkie like me, please bare with me and my Slow Internet....I just wanted to get it finished! I will make amends as I notice them. I still have more fabric, but I am going to hold off on that until the new site is up. If you can't find something you like let me know and I will look around for you.

I think I need to close for new orders...

Well, ladies....I think I need to close for new orders. Now, with that said there are 2 caveats to that statement.

1) If we have already discussed you placing an order and you are just getting your things together, that is fine. Heaven knows I am ALWAYS trying to get things together.

2) If you really do not mind waiting for your bag, I will be more than happy to take your order. I think my wait is up to 12 weeks right now. I hate that you are having to wait that long, but it is only me sewing. As well as going to the market for groceries, and running to the schools for the kiddos (you know the mom Drill). I will also still take orders from ladies who have lost their husbands or children in the Iraq and Afghanistan (Hero Bags).

Please feel free to email me to see what the wait is and when I will be opening again. I may take some more with the opening of my new website, I know I will have some bags available in my Hyena Cart Store with the new site. It will be the same address, just a different look, and I will be able to update it myself without pestering my web designer.

That is it for now....I am trying to whittle down the list! Thank you all so much for your business and patience!

Wild Weekend

It has been a pretty wild weekend. Ethan is smoked and sleeping in my bed. I have been working on my new website, and uploading so many pictures onto my Flicker Fabric Gallery. I knew I had a ton of fabric, but now it is all getting it's picture taken and being put on line. This will make it easier in the future for ladies to order their bags. Or at least it will accurately depict what fabric I have available for bags. Man, do I have alot of fabric. I stocked up before we moved here to Australia. I am so happy I did, because fabric is insanely expensive here. A regular old Alexander Henry print that costs about $8 a yard in the states is $40 a meter here. To heck with that. I will not pay that for regular quilting cotton. I do a great deal of ordering on the web. So my collection has grown. And it is taking forever to upload it onto Flicker. That is what I have been doing. Oh and I got my eyebrows waxed. But mostly sitting in front of the computer uploading pictures. This is not really my bag, I like to sew...not so much the technical junk. Oh, Marnie showed me my first look at my new site and I think it is going to be great! I can't wait to get the ball rolling!

Wow that was QUICK!

I made this little Yakka Clutch yesterday morning. I am stunned how quick it is to make civilian bags. The Camp Follower Bags and Hero Bags take hours to create. I sew each patch on and quilt, and stabilize...So many steps! But the civilian bags are insanely simple and quick. This one will be listed in my Hyena Cart Shop when next I stock.

My daughter is taking Japanese at her new school and I just love the words and phrases she comes home with. "Yakka" means "Yippee", or "I did it!" Her new words go so well with my wonderful new Japanese fabric.

This bag is made with linen, velvet, and two Japanese prints. The button is handmade bone and horn. Great little clutch.

A Note on my list.

OK, I have updated my list. It is upside down though. The ladies on the bottom are the ones who are first on the list...I couldn't figure out how to number it, but I think numbers are pretty impersonal...like waiting at the pharmacy in the bottom of the hospital....yuck. So, if you do not see your name on the list and you have A: Paid via Pay pal or B: sent your uniform and included a Check. PLEASE let me know! I am really trying to streamline this business of mine. Since I am still waiting to have my website updated this is where I will be putting out info.

This is how my list works. If you pay by pay pal you are on the list automatically. If you are paying by check I put you on the list when I get your uniform and check. I know it is tacky about the whole money thing, but that is how I know you are serious and not just teasing me.

The picture above is where I put your uniform as I work on it. That is like the "up to bat" area. I untie the curtain when we have company over and it doesn't look quite so messy. I have a closet in my Studio where I hang your uniforms with their assigned fabric until I am ready to work on them. Normally all my sewing is spread all over the dining room table and my little sewing studio. I like to work in the dining room because I can keep a better eye on the kids as they are playing or doing their own art projects. I also spend alot of time in the kitchen...that is where my little office is all set up. I also spend a great deal of my time cooking. I love to bake so there is normally something yummy in the oven or on the counter.

OK...I think that about sums things up for now. Please email me with questions about your bags. I am trying to make this as smooth as possible for everyone involved. I hate that it is taking up to 10 weeks to get a bag...but it is only me sewing. I also have to be the mom and wife. I adore all the roles in my life, but some take precedence over others. When the kids are sick...that takes main stage and the bags have to hop back into the wings. To me that is obvious, but I need to spell it out. I want to thank each and everyone of you for your business. I love all the support and praise you give me. When I get an email from you letting me know you have received your bag and what you think of it, it just makes my spirit soar.

Good Morning!

This is where I live. The heart of Australia. I do not know if I have dedicated a blog to how glorious this place is. This is a pirture I took on my "take a camel to brekky" sunrise ride two weeks ago. I love this place in the morning. Not neccessarliy this tree, but my kitchen or my little sewing studio.I love how the sun sets the McDonald Mountain range on fire each morning, I love the birds, and there are zillions of them all singing away. I love the smell of the euclyptus and citrus blossoms. I love the peace and pace of this town. I am even beginning to love my vegemite on butterd toast with coffee. Yep, I am having some now. The mornings are so easy. I normally get up about 0500 when my husband gets up, answer emails, make coffee and do my sun salutations (not neccessarily in that order). Then I start to work on a bag or two before the rest of my tribe rises. The tribe is spotted right now due to an outbreak of chicken pox. They were all immnized, so maybe it will not be as bad as all the nieghbor kids. I just wanted to share a bit of the wonder and glory of this incredible place. It is beginning to get hot again, so the sunblock and a hat is a must. I have to place a commissary order so we can have pumpkin pie next month. It is a great place, do come visit! wait until the chicken pox goes away....but after that!

(spell check is not working for this post, now you get to read the real illiterate me!)

Hero Bags

I made this bag for an incredible lady. Despite her grief she always lifted my spirit when we corresponded. I wish I could have met her under different circumstances.

"COL Harrison was killed by small arms fire May 6 at the Pol-E-Charki Prison in Kabul, Afghanistan.

A devoted husband, father, son and Soldier, Colonel Harrison embodied the ethos of "Duty, Honor, Country."_He was committed to the mission of the United States in Afghanistan and spoke with great pride about the accomplishments of the men and women with which he served. Colonel Harrison died serving the country he loved, but his spirit and dedication lives on with those of us who knew, loved and served with him." Taken from the Leavenworth Lamp

I have 3 more sets of "Hero Bags" to work on from different widows. I have been reflecting on grief and loss and the age old question of what is better "to have loved and lost or to never have loved at all"

Norberta is Complete!

This is where the magic happened....Well I won't really say Magic, but it was a feat unlike any I have attempted before. Not so much the quilting, but the weight of the quilt. The only batting I had big enough was the Deluxe Cotton Dream from Purl Patchwork. That batting is glorious, but dear Heaven is it heavy! I think the finished quilt weighs about 40 pounds (that may only be a slight exaggeration). My wonderful Mom, who has been sewing since she was a little girl has recently taken up quilting. I am so excited for her. It is such a wonderful outlet for art and her beautiful style. She sent me a queen sized quilt top to quilt up for her. I am so thrilled to do it, but I have never tackled anything so large before. I needed to do a test run before I began work on hers. I have no problem messing up and trying to rescue my quilting, but I didn't want to take the chance on her quilt. So I gave Norberta the chance to be my guinea pig. It was a battle, but I think she turned out OK. Mom's quilt will be with the Select weight Cotton Dream makes, so it will not weigh a ton like Norberta does. We are going to try to sell Mom's quilt in my Hyena Cart shop when I am finished doing the quilting....It is going to be lovely!