More Family Pictures

First pic is my dad and I next to the biggest amethyst I have ever seen at the Fossil, Rock and Gem Show in Tuscan with some of his hippie friends that just so happen to be in AZ at the same time as my parents. Heaven forbid them get together in Peoria, IL! Next is my mom and I shopping at the show. And last, Grandma and I (my mom's mom) at our place and then Grandma playing Guitar Hero (she's so cool).

Giving Blood

I'm so proud of you Nathan. Nathan went and gave blood with me for the first time ever. I have been suggesting nicely that he go with me for a long time, but for one reason or another, he hadn't made it until this week. He even gave power red, which is when they take nearly double the amount and give your plasma back to you during the run. I'm not tall enough and don't weight enough to give power red, but they talked him into it. He did great!! No queasiness or fainting. This is one of my soap boxes, so beware! It takes so little time and effort to give a unit of blood every 56 days, that everyone should do it!! It is estimated that 60 percent of the population will need blood or blood components sometime during their lives. If you already give, GREAT! Bring a friend next time and right now United Blood Services is offering free movie tickets.

My Parents Visit

Well, the rush is over! My parents flew in from Peoria, IL last week and stayed at our place for a week. I love my family, but they can be overwhelming for me. My parents are hippies at heart, never plan anything yet want to do everything. They think I'm a little too uptight at times and all that can lead to tense situations. All that said, this was the BEST trip yet. In fact, I was sad to see them go home. This picture is us at the Renaissance Fair. Dad wasn't sure he wanted to go, but mom goaded him into it. Nathan took the picture, so of course missed out on being in it (typical). 

Die Oleander Bush

Above is the destruction of our four oleander bushes that were taking over our back yard. They were taller than our house and from the first to the last pic, you can see the shed get uncovered. We had tried to trim them back, but they were out of control even when we bought the house last year. We hired some guys to come and hack it down and finish off those stumps so they are level with the ground. The bush had been pushing the cement block fence over little by little so we are super relieved to have them gone. 

ACLS

I just completed a four week ACLS class. ACLS stands for advanced cardiac life support. My new job demanded that I have it and since let this credentialing expire, I ended up taking the whole class over again instead of a renewal class. It was a good thing though, because there were quite a few changes since 2005. ACLS includes interpreting cardiac rhythms, pushing cardiac drugs and the use of algorithms for code and emergency situations. My manager had mentioned, that if I was not able to pass the written and demonstration based testing, then my job would be at an end. I wasn't nervous at all until he said this, but I passed with flying colors yesterday. Yeah!! My job will continue, well at least until April 5 when I have to make a decision of where to work next.

Sewing Expo

Oh my word! I am so excited! For years I have been saying that I want to buy a serger and today I did. I went to the Quilting, Sewing and Crafting Expo at the AZ State Fairgrounds today and after wondering around hundreds of booths by myself, I asked myself, "What am I doing here?" I realized it was the perfect opportunity to compare shop. Normally I would have to go to at least 3 or 4 different sewing dealers to look at, ask questions and test drive all the different brands of sergers, but here they were under one roof. I got the best deal!! 

For those of you that don't know what a serger is, or are saying it sounds familiar, but what does it do? I'll tell you. A serger allows you to finish seams professionally so you can wear and launder items hand-sewn without them falling apart. They do a ton of cool stictches that I won't bore you with. But if you are interested, here is the one I ended up getting. Janome 1110D. Now I really need to get sewing!!

Bibs for Baby

One of my good friends from high school, Amber, recently had a baby boy and I had the cutest baby bib pattern from Amy Carol's Bend the Rules Sewing, so I decided to give it a whirl. This is the finished product. I wanted to pick non-baby fabrics, to give it a vintage feel. Sorry the pics aren't better. Photography is not exactly my thing.