i have to say...

....and the winners are....!

Thanks for all of the sweet well-wishes on my one-year birthday post.  You are all so encouraging and your words put a giant smile on my face!

Well, I had my kids pick three numbers and here are the winners:

Jackie H. @ You Just Never Know: Your choice of any half-yard bundle (up to two yards of fabric).  You can even make up your own!

Karen @ The Big Trade-Off: Your choice of any full-yard bundle (up to four yards of fabric). You can even make up your own!

Anita @ Bake and Sew Blog: One $50 gift certificate for my shop.

Congratulations, girls!

You may email me (see the link on my sidebar) or send me a conversation through Etsy to tell me what suits your fabric-fancy.  I just posted Tanya Whelan's brand new line, French Hat Box, and that one is a beauty!  If you have any questions, just let me know!

Best wishes on a great weekend! 

it's a fresh-squeezed birthday party!

One year!

My baby is one year old!

The time has flown by.  I remember when my shop was just an idea and I spent lots of time planning and researching and generally driving my family crazy.  At one point they told me to quit talking about it and JUST DO IT!  So I did.  Our economic-stimulus check got this whole thing started.  Is there a better way to jump start an economy than buying fabric? 

This has been a year of learning things the hard way and figuring out what works.  At this point I have a good rhythm going with the shop and it feels right.  My kids are my packagers and quality-control staff (yes, I pay them a bit 'o money!) so my time working is spent with my kiddos and that is my kind of job!

My favorite thing about doing this is my customers.  Seriously, I have the sweetest ones in the world.  It feels great to send out a pile of fabric to someone who is planning on making a line of kid's clothes to sell online while she stays home with her kids.  Or someone who is making a baby-shower gift for a friend.  I like having a hand in things like that.

Of course buying all that great fabric is fun too!  This fall or next spring you WILL find me at Quilt Market.  It is high on my goal list, but building up stock is higher on that list for now.

Well, I did say this was a party, right?  And parties always have gifts, don't they?  This party has three!

One: Your choice of any half-yard bundle (up to two yards of fabric).  You can even make up your own!

Two: Your choice of any full-yard bundle (up to four yards of fabric). You can even make up your own!

Three: One $50 gift certificate for my shop.

How to get one of these?  Just leave a comment!

I will close comments on Thursday, May 28th, and I will announce the winners on Friday.

If you feel like linking this on your blog or twittering about it, great!  In fact, I appreciate it!

All I can say is that my heart is full.  I am so happy that I have made it through the first year and I look forward to the next one.  Thank you for all of your support and encouragement!

Happy birthday, Fresh-Squeezed!

a special memorial day

Today is an extra special Memorial Day because my daughter's boyfriend is arriving home from Iraq today. What an awesome day to return home! 

We are all so proud of him and very thankful for his service to our country.  I can understand more fully the sacrifice that it takes to send someone you love into a war-zone.  Lots of prayers has covered him over these past few months, and we continue to pray for others still over there.

Have a blessed day!

sewing machine advice needed

My sewing machine has officially died!  Boo-hoo!

Aubry's Hello Kitty machine is coming in quite handy, but I think that I need something a little more grown-up, you know?

The problem is that I have no idea what to buy.  Singer has always been my go-to brand, but I am interested in a Janome or a Bernina (Bernina may prove to be too expensive for me at this time).  Any advice?  What brand do you like?  It is possible to get a nice machine at a reasonable price (there is no way that I can buy a $1000 machine!)?

My last machine was a basic Singer ($120 at Target) and I used it up in 2-1/2 years. I worked the poor girl to the ground! I would like my next one to last longer.

Any advice is appreciated!  :)

finally a friday!

Ah, Friday is here!  A long, unplanned weekend stretches out before me and that puts a smile on my face. 

Sewing Seeds is on it's way and I am so thankful for your support!  When we get some pictures of the kids in their new duds, I will post them here on my blog.  Please continue to pray for Bella's time in Costa Rica, that it will be fruitful.  I love to see kids (young adults) giving themselves to people who need them.  It is quite inspiring.

Next week is a big week here in "Casa I Have To Say"!  My oldest daughter comes home from her missions trip on Wednesday (I haven't seen her in 6 months!!!!) and Fresh-Squeezed Fabrics celebrates it's one year anniversary.  Me thinks a give-away is in order!

Have a great weekend!

sewing seeds

I am so excited to announce a new Sewing Seeds project! 

"Sow the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of my love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and shower righteousness upon you."---Hosea 10:12

Sewing Seeds started two years ago when my oldest daughter went on a missions trip to Africa.  In an effort to support her and help the kids she would be blessing while she was there, we managed to gather 118 handmade skirts for her to stuff into her suitcase.  The sweet people who visit my blog made this possible!

As far as my blog is concerned, this is the #1 topic of email and inquiries that I get:  ladies wanting to know if we need more skirts.  I have been patiently waiting for a new project to turn up and it has in the form of my friend Kimmie's daughter Bella who will be traveling to Costa Rica this summer for 2 weeks.  Bella is following in the footsteps of her parents who have a tender heart towards missions and orphans, which is evidenced by the fact that they have 7 children, one homemade and six adopted.  They are truly a precious family that loves God and seeks to follow Him in practical ways.  If you need encouragement or prayer, Kimmie is your go-to-girl!

This project is much like the last one in that we are asking for your help in gathering skirts and shorts for Bella to take to the kids in Costa Rica.  I love to think of the kid's faces when they receive something of their own.  Something lovely and new. I think this a perfect way to show them that they are loved.  All of us pulling together will be able to make a lot of kids smile!

So, could we ask you to consider making a skirt (or two) for a little girl?  Most sizes are needed and can be used.  I figure that each skirt will cost approximately $10 to $15 to make and 2-3 hours to put together, depending on your sewing abilities.

One idea is to make a skirt in your own daughter's size and let her pick out the fabric.  This makes it a mommy/daughter endeavor! 

Here are some links to skirt tutorials:  tiered skirt tutorial, easy skirt tutorial, lazy days skirt pattern, twirly skirt tutorial, and the drop-waist twirly skirt tutorial.  Wow!  There are lots of choose from!

If sewing is not your thing, a pair of shorts for a boy will be perfect.  A sturdy pair of jean or khaki shorts will be perfect for a hard-playing little boy to wear this summer.

We will not requesting particular sizes (except to ask for clothes for kids ages 13 and under) or a goal amount because we trust God to take care of that.  He knows what is needed and will bring that about.

We need to have the skirts finished and mailed by June 29th so that Bella can get them ready to transport.

Please pray about this...

If you are interested, please leave a comment saying so (please make sure that your email address is correct so I can respond to you) and I will send you more information and Bella's mailing address.

Here are some photos of Bella on previous missions trips and a photo of a town they will be visiting this summer:

Blessings to all of you!

***Please feel free to link to this post and to download the graphic for use on your own blog.  Thanks!

a quilt in the works

Today a friend is coming by for a sewing day.  We've decided to make the exact same quilt, just for fun.  I feel like I am in junior high planning a coordinated outfit with my best girlfriend. 

Oh, those were the days.

Of course, for the quilt we are using Darla prints, and this one is all about the fabric rather than the design.  Big 10" squares of fabric surrounded by white sashing is all we are planning.  Honestly we wanted to try something more challenging, but that will have to wait since we needed a simple design to showcase Darla's beauty.  She is just so lovely!

By next week  I will have a quilt top to show you. 

I promise!

a contemplative-snacking bench

Our co-op garden is half planted.   Today will be spent planting the rest. I need to carry a sign that says "plant it all or bust" because I am running out of steam.  Weeds have been taking up lots of our time!

My friend's husband built these wonderful benches to sit on while we are weeding.  They sure make the work easier.  No more head-rushes from standing up too quickly and back-aches are down to a minimum.  This is the kind of weeding I can handle! 

Aubry decided to use the bench for some contemplative-snack time.  I am not sure what was running through her head, but she was obviously feeling very wistful and introspective while I was taking pictures.  Not one smile!

We do have some turnips or rutabagas growing nicely:

We don't know what they are because we forgot to write it down on the garden plan.  I suppose that harvest-time will hold some surprises for us!

Have a great Monday!

when your hubs is a flooring-guy...

...he carpets the garden:

The first year my husband did this, I was not happy about it. I thought it looked terrible and I got very tired of people wondering what on earth was in our garden. As soon as I realized that it totally stops weed growth, I became a big fan. Now I even tell people about it!

Not only does the carpet stop weeds, it also cuts down on watering since the carpet keeps the water from evaporating. In other words, you can't lose by doing this, unless you consider that your garden looks ridiculous. Once the garden gets growing more, you can hardly see the carpet anyway.

I guess you could say that my #1 gardening tip is wall-to-wall carpet. I only wish we had enough money to cover our 4,800 square foot co-op garden!

Wouldn't that be nice?

making me smile...

***the sunshine.  i really can't get enough of it!

***a planted garden.  our big co-op garden still needs planting, but our small backyard plot is set.

***God's forgiveness

***new fabric lines coming soon.  i feel like a kid in a candy shop waiting for all that loveliness to arrive!

***the slowing down of the school year.  math and language.  that's it!

***the thought of a summer vacation.  who knows if it will happen this year, but dreaming about it is fun.

***a smaller waistline.  the exercise is finally paying off!

***i know 3 of my forms for karate.  testing is in the 3 weeks.  this ignores the fact that after a 6-month break i have forgotten all of the previous forms--completely.  my plan is to practice each one, every day.   my motto is "i can do all things through Christ who strengthens me".  yes, i can do it!

What is making you smile today?