Hello again bloggers...

Wow. it's been so long since I have set my eyes on you blog. How are you? I'm doing well, thanks. Starting over is sooo good for me. I feel great today, the sun is shining, it's a wonderful feeling to have the sun shine on your face. It's just another one of those amazing gifts God has given us to help us out with our daily struggles. You know, even if you were blind, deaf or disabled in any way, even in a coma in a bed somewhere, if you turn your face to the sun it WILL shine on you! And it feels the same to everyone, it's truly a gift that everyone gets to enjoy. It gives us vitamins for our bodies to absorb, it warms your skin and it does something to our insides too. It lifts our spirits, even if we were inside feeling its warmth through a window. Always remember to take a moment and feel God's warmth on your face...it's like a kiss from heaven...especially made for you! xoxoxo♥

Moving Forward....

Well, as of the New Year I have taken on a different way of life. I am a happier person, I sleep better and I feel much better in my head. This new change has also brought many other good things for me. I have started a new job at a local nursery. My background is in horticulture and I have found that getting back to it has dramatically changed my outlook on life.

Just being around blooming plants lightens my heart and just does something to me. The smell of a freshly opening Hyacinth is so lovely to me, it makes my heart smile! I am glad that I had the opportunity to take on this job, of course with the help of my parents and grandmother also taking Autumn off the bus and staying with her until I get home!!! I just knew that getting back to work was going to be something good for us.

You know, I have been talking to God a lot more lately. I ask him to lend an ear and I ask him for guidance. I also Thank Him for all the blessings he has already bestowed upon me. I am grateful for so much in my life, and I will continue to serve Him in every way possible. It is easier to wallow in grief when the chips are down, but I have learned that this is the only life I have, this is the only body I carry around. Bringing happiness to myself should always be a part of my life. Allowing others to help and be thankful in tough times, staying positive when it is almost impossible to be, and allowing my heart to open to forgiveness are some of the things that I have learned to do throughout all of this. I'm still working on much more but for right now I am taking it one day at a time. Today is a good day and I am thnkful for it! Tomorrow is tomorrow...but I still feel positive about it and even if the sun doesn't shine, the birds will still sing and the flowers will still bloom. Thank you God for this day.
~Nicole

stitching...

Yes, finally I took the time to pick up the needle and thread and I am stitching in this sunny, warm kitchen by the window... watching the birds. It feels so warm and cozy in this sunny room......I think I'll take a nap.......................................zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Christmas Pageant 2010

It was a beautiful day for a Christmas pageant. The date was postponed originally due to the "blizzard" we had before Christmas. All of the angels were there and of course the animals and shepherds too. This year Autumn got to hold the Star that summoned the Three Kings. She would only do the part if her friend Hannah would do it with her.

So...here they are carrying the Star into Bethlahem with all of the angels following behind. What a sight they were, I guess I am partial because I am their Sunday school teacher after all! They really were adorable.



These are just some of the memories that I will chrish forever!



God Bless us all!
~thyme2sow

New Year, New Me!

Well, I sure am glad that this year is officially over. I have never actually said that before this past year. My life just took a drastic turn in the downward direction and all I can say is...bring on 2010! Without really getting into the details of my misery, I have to say that if I didn't have my beautiful daughter Autumn by my side I would be a basket case. I have been using her as my crutch to get through the day for a while now. She is the sunshine that warms my heart. She'll never understand just what she does for me. I tell her constantly how much I love her, but when I say it I mean it with every inch of my being. She is my entire life now. I live for her.

My parents are the most wonderful people on this earth. They have been there for us and always have been. I never thought that at this point in my life I would be where I am today. It truly is weighing very heavily on my heart. I have to find a place inside where I can go and find some inner peace. I also know that I have to seek out a support group. I have been told that it helps with the healing process.

I look forward to posting again in the near future. It is something I intend to keep up in the New Year. After all, this is something that brings me joy and that is a positive thing for me. Good luck and love to you all out there this year. May you find peace and happiness all your days.

~Thyme2Sow

Christmas bazaar 2009

For the past few years my mother, myself and grandmother and Autumn of course, have been in charge of the ornament table at our church's Christmas bazaar. This year since we had a lot of rain the Christmas parade was cancelled but we all still had a wonderful time selling ornaments and handmade items for our church.

Every year a woman that belongs to our church hand hooks a large rug to be included in the Chinese auction. This year she chose a beautiful country primitive scene with sheep and rolling hills...of course I didn't win, you would have heard me scream if I did! Here is her artwork...



Oh well, maybe next year!!!

The ornament table was all decked out with our handmade ornies, none of which were cross stitch! It seems that everyone likes the shiny sparkley stuff these days. We decorated trees and sold them that way also.





I thought it would be a good idea to sit at the handmade and stitched linen table...





I also perused the other tables. Look at all of the lovely items I found! I took home some of it too!!









I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas!

~thyme2sow

Fun in the Snow!

Even though I am sick I still love seeing my little girl have fun. She makes me smile with her toothless grin. I love being her mama and just adore every minute of this. Here is Autumn and her friend having some snowy day fun.







Who has time to sew when you have a 5 year old anyway? I should name this blog AUTUMN...it's all about her isn't it?!

~thyme2sow

Winter is here!

Winter has arrived and I have the flu! The only reason I am posting right now is that I cannot lay down for another minute, my back hurts from being still and I can't stand it anymore!! The snow is falling here on Long Island and it is a blizzard. Not bad for the first snowfall of the year for us. We should have about 20" by the time it is all over, it's been snowing since yesterday about 12noon and should continue till about noon today. Autumn is going to be so surprised when she wakes up...which should be soon.

Anyway, they had to postpone the Christmas pageant at church this morning. I wonder how many people will go out in this weather? I am on Alter guild duty this week too, it's a good thing my mom, my partner, lives right around the corner from the church! She'll have to take care of things...I love you MOM! and owe you one too!

I wish I was hungry and not nauseous. I'd love to eat a Christmas cookie right now. And a cup of coffee, but tea will have to do for now.

I think Autumn is waking up now so I am off to mother her. Too bad I can't kiss her too much, I would hate for her to get the flu for Christmas! Pray for us!



Have a wonderful day everybody out there! And be safe if you are in the storm.
~thyme2sow

Autumn

I am the luckiest mother in the world. This Christmas I intend to make the most of every magical minute with my 5 year old daughter, Autumn. She is the light of my life and the love in my heart. I can not even imagine not having her around. Her laughter brings me joy, her sweet voice singing Christmas carols around the house makes me smile endlessly. I am alive because of her and I love the little lady that she has become. Dear God, please allow me to stay on this earth as long as possible to be able to see her grow into the fine woman I know she will be. Keep her in your loving care day and night and always let her know how much she is loved and adored. I give thanks for all of the days that I get to be her mother. Love you Autumn xoxox

Christmas dress shopping

Dress shopping with my daughter Autumn is such a fun thing for me. It has become something I look forward to at Easter and now at Christmastime. She knows the drill by now, stand by the wall and pose! She loves to pretend she is either a princess or a rock star, occasionally playing air guitar while wearing a really fancy dress. That's Autumn for you, a joker to the end. My wonderful mother purchased two dresses for her this time because, as always, we couldn't make up our mind as to which one was more awesome. Here are the finalists...

Cute and festive...



this one was a winner!



this one I loved but didn't make the final cut...



another winner!



did you notice the matching doll dresses? How beautiful they both will look on the Christmas card this year!

I want to go back and get this one...soooo cute!



It was tough, but Autumn made the final choices and I think she did an excellent job at that. I don't look forward to the day when she doesn't want to carry on the tradition, but I know it will come. Until then I will take every picture of her that I can and document her beautiful young life because I love her to the moon and back. God bless my little girl and keep her young for as long as possible.

~thyme2sow

A chilly adventure!

Well, we finally did it! Our family has been talking about cutting down our own Christmas trees for years and finally this year, my mother is 60 and grandma is 80, we took the trip up to our cabin in Windham and we cut down our very own trees.

It was a wonderful trip up. As soon as we got to the cabin it began to snow very lightly. We saw from across the valley to the other side of the mountain that a snow cloud was coming our way.



We bundled up and headed towards the right-of-way on our property. I scouted out some trees this fall and knew that there were some nice specimens up there. We all trudged over the field and picked out our favorites. Grandma picked out a small Hemlock and I headed toward the Pines. Autumn and I liked this one the best!



Dad liked this one...



After we all had our trees picked out and cut down we headed towards the cabin, warm and inviting with the stove burning brightly awaiting our return. None of us thought we would make it to 10 pm before getting too tired. We stayed in and hung by the fire all night, going early to bed.

I think we all decided to make this an annual trip up to get our trees. We brought all the left-overs from our Thanksgiving feast and we ate another great meal in the cabin. Driving home the next day was kind of sad. We never just stay one night, but we all knew that our lives were waiting for us at home.

Next year I hope that Steven can join us, as he had to stay home for work this time. Who buys lumber the day after Thanksgiving anyway? Every one's out buying Christmas presents!!!

Hope everyone enjoyed their holiday feast. Looking forward to Christmas now more than ever!




~Thyme2Sow

Giving thanks today

Just a little post tonight to say 'Thank You' to all of those people in my life who have been there through the ups and downs. Without the support of my friends and family I have nothing. I'm wishing for a more centered 2010 for myself. For others, a year filled with love and laughter. Today was a wonderful day filled with tradition and merriment. I pray for a more peaceful way of life for myself and the strength to get through each and every day. I have faith that things will be better in my future. Thank you Lord for this day.

Enjoy the weekend...I'm heading towards snow! More on that later...

~Thyme2Sow

A package arrived today!

My dear sister Louise called the other day and asked me to be honest with her...she wanted to send me a few handmade vests that she made for her dear sweet daughter, my niece, years ago. She was trying to feel me out, see if I was interested and if I thought that my 5 year old would like to wear them. Of course I responded with a "yes" that I would put them on Autumn and give them to another little girl to wear and look adorable in.

When they arrived today Autumn was so excited to see what her favorite Aunt sent her that before the package was even opened she told me that whatever Aunt Louise sends her she loves! She opened the package and said "oooh mom...look...fabric!" kind of like trying to be excited to see something cool but was stopped in her "happy" tracks. I laughed, knowing that she was mistaking the vests for fabric...wonder why she would ever think that?! So I chuckled a bit and held up a vest and said "look, Aunt Louise sent you something special that was your cousin's when she was little!" Then the real "ooh" came out and I smiled again. She wanted to put one on right away and that really made me happy.

I'm posting a picture for the world to see how very special a sister Louise is to me!

Love you sis,

~Nicole (Thyme2Sow)

Happy Halloween!

Halloween has come and gone and the weather stayed just perfect for our little trick-or-treater this year. We started at the park where children gathered for a spooky scavenger hunt...



and then to our high school for their first annual 'safe trick-or-treating' event run by the students themselves...

then onto grandma's for a little candy rustling in the old neighborhood...

we met up with some friends...

and then called it a night.

I'm sorry, but Autumn is the laziest trick-or-treater I know! She wanted me to ring the door bells, say trick-or-treat and even hold her candy when her bucket got too full!!! I did hold her bucket but that was all. When I was her age I walked for miles for candy, I always ate most of my candy that night and I never wanted to go in until it was so dark I had to. My daughter didn't even stop at every house, she just wanted to go to the ones that has nice decorations outside. Can you believe that she has only eaten 2 bags of mini M&M's since yesterday?! What's wrong with this kid? lol

I have a candy collector for a daughter, not a candy eater. I must say she really doesn't have the taste for candy, mostly chocolate M&M's...and that's about it.
So now what to do with the candy?....hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm



I hope your day was spooky and fun!

~Thyme2Sow

Oh toooooth fairy!!!!

It finally came out! Autumn lost her first tooth this morning at Sunday school. It has been hanging on by a thread for about 2 weeks and today was the day it decided to let go. She cried a couple of tears, I think because she didn't expect it to ever happen, but when she bit into her cookie it just popped out. What a day!



So tonight the Tooth Fairy will arrive after she has fallen asleep, and if all things go well for her Autumn will wake up to find something special left under her pillow.

Thanks again for the Tooth Fairy pillow Louise! It will be a wonderful memory for your niece and a great resting place for her sweet little tooth!



Love you sister!

~Thymw2Sow

Dad's Halloween Museum 2009

My father has been collection all things Halloween since I was a young girl. It's safe to say that he just may be a Halloween maniac! I love going into Mom and Dad's house during the week before Halloween because it really is a sight to see.
In addition to giving out candies my father likes to mix it up a bit and give the children a choice between candy or baseball cards. He knows what the kids like! My parents live on a very busy corner and the neighborhood children come out in droves, especially since this year the date falls on a Saturday I am sure that the candy will be flowing at their house.

It really is quite interesting to step into the Halloween museum at Mom and Dad's house. I just had to document all of the interesting things that are on display there. I'm looking forward to seeing what he comes up with next year.

Happy Halloween!
~Thyme2Sow

Field Trip

I love this time of year. But you already knew that!!! I was lucky enough to be able to go on my daughters first field trip with her kindergarten class. We went to a farm on Long Island called White Post Farm and enjoyed a fun afternoon with friends.

First we all fed the animals...





Then onto the tractor ride into the field for pumpkins.



It was a truly beautiful day. I really enjoyed watching my daughter with her new friends. I'm glad to have this opportunity to be involved with her school. She'll only be little for a short amount of time. I intend to live my life with her in the fullest way I know how.

I love you little one! God Bless you always.



~Mama