emerald lane

There’s more new life and activity around here on Emerald Lane! Today we picked up two Yorkshire Pigs from a local family farm. It all started on Tuesday when I passed by a sign that read “Pigs 4 Sale” and I called to inquire, then I shared my discovery with my “gentleman farmer” and he said, “let’s go for it”. So here we are 3 days later, the proud owners of two pigs, Scatter and Petunia. Ian named them right away. Petunia, for the first pig he ever met in person at Aunt Leslee’s Farm and Scatter, “because they use their noses to scatter the dirt around” he said. We plan to raise the male for meat and we aren’t sure what we will do with the female, we’ll just see how we like having pigs around and if we can stand the smell! Let me just say, the transportion of a pig in an SUV is not ideal!

This is the latest post from my bestest bud Kel over at revelations.

Now you see it…

Driving to central FL this weekend on Hwy 27, I passed a place called “Vanishing Species”, which looked like a cheap knockoff of Lion Country Safari. I was thinking, what types of “vanishing species” could someone be keeping in this ramshackle farm in the middle of nowhere? Then I just assumed it was a small group of caged teenagers who act polite, drive defensively, and wear clothing that fits. That’s the only vanishing species I can think of around here…

She has a point!

I am inspired everywhere I go, whether it be the crafty blogs I visit daily, the grocery store, or the zoo, yes I said the zoo! I took the boys to the zoo last Friday with my parents, sister, her girls and our niece. It was packed with Mommies and Daddies, their children and of course animals. Well, the Mommies all had GREAT BAGS! My heart was all a flutter, while my eyes scanned the bags walking by. I was sketching in my mind all the details, top-stitching here, cool fabric there, wooden ring accent on that one. I did look at the animals and kept an eye on the boys while I was mentally gathering inspiration, it’s just so hard not to do that. I have a sickness and it envolves looking at everything that is sewn and saying, “I can make that”! Thanks Mom, I remember her saying that many times while growing up.
My main source of inspiration these days comes from the crafty blogs I visit, soelmama, wisecraft, littlebirds, simplesparrow, angrychicken, weewonderfuls, these are a few of my favorites. I have tried making softies, made a few aprons, with more to come, and my newest creation is a fabric flower pin with a covered button, so cool, due to a tutorial from wise craft. The flower pin goes with a new bag I’ve created, I call it City Bag! Thanks for the inspiration!

This is my Dad, known as Opa to the grandchildren, with Sean at the Zoo. Thought this was too cute not to post!

Green Toile Tote 1
Originally uploaded by emerald lane.

Can’t figure out how to blog more than one picture from flickr at a time, so here is the other bag I made. Oh, I would normally post from Blogger, but the stinkin’ pictures won’t download. Argghh!

Button Tote 2
Originally uploaded by emerald lane.

Yep that’s me! I’ve been busy sewing bags for two days and here is the proof. The other bag to come!
Oh, before I forget, the garden is now 85% planted. I staked out the rest of the garden and planted squash, broccoli (that’s for Jay, I don’t eat the stuff), peas, carrots, two types of lettuce, and tomatoes. Still need to plant eggplant, cucumbers and beans.
It’s coming along and the corn is really thriving!

Okay, I give up! I tried to upload a picture of the bunny I made over the weekend from the wee wonderfuls pattern to this post, but it won’t work! So click here to view my bunny.

There is a new blog out there for coffee lovers. Boca Java has entered the blogger world, with their very own blog called Bloggers Fuel. My fine husband, who of course works for the company, is the behind the scenes computer man who knows how to make it all work. Enter to win free coffee for a year here, and earn $5 for every friend you refer that makes a purchase. Check it out!

Spring in Florida is one of my favorite times, clear/blue skies, cool/warm weather, everything is blooming and the grass is green. The chance of a hurricane or other bad weather is non-existent. Life is good!
This weekend was just an awesome example of Spring and we spent the entire day outside working and playing.

I did spend a little time inside in the morning with my sewing machine, while the boys helped dad outside. I worked on a cute little bunny, the pattern came from wee wonderfuls, pictures to come.

Jay’s dad bought a tiller for his tractor so they could have a giant garden by the barn, so we brought it over to our tiny garden and tilled the side we haven’t planted yet, which only took 5 minutes compared to the full days work the other tiller took. Wow, when you have the right equipment the job gets done much faster!

The boys played on the huge dirt pile off and on during the day, but towards the late afternoon they spent a good hour on it and ended up having a dirt fight which resulted in the following.

After they were covered in dirt what is a mother to do, but throw them in an outdoor bubble bath for a deep cleaning! Too bad they won’t remember these days, but I’m sure I’ll show them the pictures some day!

Now that the shower has come and gone, I can show off my latest diaper bag set. I made it for my sister-in-law who is having her third boy next month. It is out of the Central Park Toile’ with a plaid bottom and a coordinating print inside. There is also a coordinating bib with a button closure and a changing pad/burp cloth to match! More pictures here!

In other crafty news, I made some cute bibs and blankets for a swap with Marce, you can check them out
here!
I made this quilt a few months ago, but never got around to sharing it. I guess I can’t really call it a quilt because it does not have batting or quilting, so I will call it a patchwork blanket!

Our baby chicks are growing up and have been moved from the barn into a brand new 2006 mobile home built by my chicken farmer wanta-be husband. The newest chicken tractor is 85% complete and now houses 50 Buff Orpington hens and 1 extotic rooster, type to be determined. We need to buy more metal roofing for the top and build nesting boxes, so for the time being, a green tarp and old interior door serves as a roof. I think the door is kind of cool, we could hing it and add a door bell while we’re at it!

Our garden is doing well, the corn is thriving and we now have watermelon and cantaloupe leaves breaking ground as well. Ian designed and created signs for two of the rows, all his idea. I let him go and didn’t try to take over, like I usually do. He went through all his popsicle sticks and a good amount of glue and paint for his two signs, but I like them.

My New York trip was a success, lots of fun and laughter with some really good friends. We don’t talk often anymore or even email much, but as soon as we get together we talk and laugh like we have never been apart.
We met on Thursday morning at La Guardia airport and then headed to our hotel next to Grand Central Station. We ate lunch at a really good Chinese Restaurant near our hotel and went ice skating at Rockafeller Center.

On Friday we were determined to be on tv, so we got up at 5 am and walked to the NBC studios, got there at 6 am and waited in line until 7 am when the show started. We planned on staying for as long as it took to be on tv, well that proved to be another 3 hours, because AL never talked to us and the camera man stayed on the opposite side of us. At 9:45am, Katie and I had to leave and sit down, but Kelli was a trooper and stuck it our for 15 more minutes, that was it, just 15 more minutes after waiting for 3 hours and 45 minutes!! While Katie and I were waiting, my sister calls me and tells me she just saw Kelli on tv! Typical, I wait forever and give up. I could have had my moment of fame, oh well, a morning wasted in New York, but not quite. While we were waiting, Katie Couric was walking around posing for pictures with everyone, so we got our picture with her. I guess she’s not so bad after all!

We spent the next few hours resting up for dinner in Little Italy. We planned to eat at Luna’s, a restaurant we ate at 8 years ago, when we all visited New York together. Well, Luna’s was closed for rennovation, go figure. Good thing there are about 500 Italian Restaurants to choose from with all the waiters standing on the sidewalk with menus asking you to come eat at their restaurant. It wasn’t hard at all to choose one!
On Saturday we went on a lunch cruise on the Hudson, which included a buffet lunch, desert, caberet show and dance music and views of the city and statue of liberty. We did some shopping and rested some more and then back out for dinner.

Then there is Sunday, wow that was fast and we had to part. Such sweet sorrow! I did miss my boys and husband. Tried not to talk or think about them every waking moment, but they were on my mind often and I did show a lady in china town the picture of my boys when I was buying them swords and maybe a few other people, like the lady next to me on the plane home!
Thanks girls for putting up with me for 4 days and thanks family for putting up without me for four days and missing me!!