[ drumroll please... ]

Using

the winner is....

Olivieri Portrait Design said...
A table runner by Marcie! Even if it's a Halloween one! ;)

Congratulations Annette!

I decided that the winner would receive whatever the winner suggested as a prize. So...

What color scheme would you like?

[ Happy Birthday Jessica! ]

Happy Birthday Jessica Fife!

Enjoy!

[ what I've been up to ]

Here's a look at what I've been up to in the craft room during June. I've made lots of birthday presents, finished the largest quilt I've done so far, and learned to label my quilts thanks to Rachel Griffith at p.s. i quilt.

The labels will appear on birthday days and match up with the project my friends are receiving for their birthday. :)

Here they are all ready to be given away!

Here's one

(yep - I made another one! And, if you haven't voted yet, please go to the Piece n' Quilt Patriotic Quilt Contest and vote!!):

This is a Camille Table Runner with Soiree fabric.

Another Camille Table Runner with Aviary.

This is a lap quilt that I finished the first of June. I love it. I really like the brown binding that anchors the rest of it. Love it! I think it uses Amy Butler fabrics.

And my favorite...a quilt that I finished last week. I got this kit at the Village Quiltworks and I love how it turned out! It's a great size. Mom & I have plans to make a quilt out of this pattern for her with Dick & Jane fabric!

And, here's a sneak peek of what I'm working on now. I just need to sew the binding on.

And, if you haven't left a comment on my contest post, make sure to do so by Wednesday morning! Please please comment!

[ happy birthday! }

Happy Birthday to Samson!

Samson is 3 years old today! He makes me laugh everyday and I'm so glad he is mine!

[ wow a wee ah ]

Wow! I hit 10000 visitors today! (probably about 400 of those were me, but whatever!)

So, I promised a contest and a contest you will get. I just can't figure out what to give away.

So - post a comment, give me a (reasonable) suggestion, and I'll pick a random entry on Wednesday, June 17th (my first day of summer!!).

Sound good? Go!

[ my new favorite ]

A few weeks ago, I tried a knock-off recipe for Starbucks' Passion Tea Lemonade. I'm proud to say I was pretty successful. Since then, I've been making jugs like this each Sunday and shake it up every morning to enjoy at school like this:

So delish. Since I've been drinking it, I've lost my taste for pop and sometimes, even coffee. Oh, the horror. !!

So, you want to try it too? You should - it's refreshing & amazingly delicious.

Boil 2 qts of water. Add two Passion Ice Tea bags from Starbucks ($4.95 for 6). Cool.

Mix 2 qts water, 1 c. lemon juice, 1 c. sugar.

Combine.

When you're ready to enjoy, put a few ice cubes in a shaker, add lemonade mixture, shake shake shake (10 times is recommended by Starbucks), and pour into a glass with ice. ENJOY!

[ CHS Class of 2009 ]

Congrats CHS Class of 2009! You did it! You graduated!

These little squirts were just sophomores when I came back to CHS and I have loved getting to know them and love them. This class is full of knuckleheads, but loveable knuckleheads. I am going to miss them.

I'm so proud of all that they've accomplished and all that they've set their sights on. We have college bound athletes, prospective doctors, protectors of our country, and faithful employees. About 1/2 of this class visited my office on a weekly, if not daily, basis...I'm afraid I'm going to be quite lonely for a while!

At least I'll get a little bit of a fix this week as they come to get their diplomas.

(I took these pictures from Tri-City Herald [dot] com...thanks!)

DJ receiving a well-deserved Principal's Award.

Debbie & Felisa

Aaron & Joel receiving their salutatorian and valedictorian awards from Mr. Peterson.

Check out Marisa right in the middle - so her!

The graduatiom crowd...

I was lucky(?) enough to get to celebrate with them at their senior all-nighter party. I think they had a pretty good time. It was fun to spend those last few hours with them as a group.

Class of 2009. I will miss all of you! Don't be strangers!

{p.s. AND I got to see Coriann...what a day!}

[ contest ]

I entered this table runner:in this contest:

There are some super cute quilts in the contest, so VOTE!

and if you vote for mine, I won't be sad!!

(Click on the Piece n Quilt logo for the link.)

Speaking of contests, I'm inching closer to 10,000 visitors and I'm thinking about doing a little giveaway since they're all the rage on blogs lately. What do you think?

[ goodbye goodbye goodbye ]

Today was the last day of school for the seniors. This day always brings mixed emotions for me. By this time, the seniors have worn out their welcome, so to speak (they get awfully sassy and beligerent) - but despite that, I will truly miss the seniors. This class is full of great personalities. The hard work is done and now's the time to celebrate accomplishments. Congrats Class of 2009!

[ a grand new day ]

This past weekend, a big group of women from Connell went to Women of Faith at the Spokane Arena. The theme was "A Grand New Day" and we had a great time! We had concerts from Steven Curtis Chapman and Mandisa and heard from great speakers, like Lisa Whelchel (Blaire from The Facts of Life).

Mom & Karen

Kate and her Mom, Karen

We tried a few times to get a nice picture, then my friend Jody photobombed it! Hello Jodes!

Seeing Jody was one of the highlights of the weekend. She & I went to Whitworth grad school together and we definitely don't get to see each other enough! We got to have a great talk and spend some time together. Love her!

Here's our good picture:

Candace, Kate, & myself

Part of our group:

Amy, Zoee, Me, Melissa, Candace, Kate, & Karen

The group of us at Anthony's!

Sunday, I skipped church (hey! I'd already had 2 days of it!), enjoying the leisurely morning, then headed downstairs for a marathon quilting day! This was just in 9 strips of 8 blocks before Sunday around noon. As of 7pm on Sunday, it is 6 strips from being fully quilted. I'm excited to finish tonight and start sewing the binding on. This quilt rocks my socks off. I love it!

Today was a particulary tough day at work. A freshman student drowned on Friday in Basin City, so it was a day of mourning at CHS. We had the library open for students to come and be together to remember him. There were 30-40 students there pretty much the whole time. He was well liked by so many. It is difficult to loose a friend, especially at such a young age. There were many students with him at the time of his death, so that's particularly hard.

On the way home, I saw this:

Spring Football Practice! YES!!! I love CHS Football!