Sewing 101

Sunday Night Emma called me and said, "Nana, can you help me sew on my new sewing machine?" Ohhhhh, how can I resist? I don't have to explain how much I love to sew (really.....only my quilting thing!) I must have a granddaughter who learns to sew and love it!!! Julie's little girls have a sewing machine as well. It is likely I will have one little granddaughter I can bestow this talent on!

Lindsey gave her girls a new little Singer sewing machine for Christmas. She informed me that I would be responsible for teaching them how to sew! So begins Sewing 101. Emma and Kate were so excited to start they could hardly stand to listen. I let them practice on some little squares to get the hang of it. Emma picked up on it really fast with a little practice. Kate was excited, but lost interest after a few minutes of waiting her turn.

At the end of the hour Emma had finished a row of scrappy squares I gave her to practice on and was so proud of herself. She said, "When are we doing this again?"........"Next Monday I am coming over!"


Lindsey gave Emma a little quilt pattern and some fabric for Christmas. That is the real project!

School "Daze" Are Upon Us!

Summer's End!

Is summer over already? In the old days it seemed like summer went on forever....I remember the smell of summer in Utah, something like freshly mowed grass. Playing kickball or kick the can in the street and swimming at Scera P00l. Going to Bible School and Recreation Days.....making things with boondoggle. I think my mom sent us to Bible School with the neighbors so she could have some peace and quiet! I rememeber the 50 cent movies at the Scera Theatre every Saturday and floating down the canal on inner tubes with the neighborhood kids (there is no way I would have let my kids do that!) My mom would give me a "pixie haircut" every summer! Wish I could find some pictures for that swell look. Okay, I sound like a geek....but truly summer is not the same as when I was a kid.

Two of my grandkids start school tomorrow (Emma and Kate).....August 6th! Just so you out-of-towners are aware, it is about 108 degrees during the day and it really doesn't cool off much at night. It is still, technically, the middle of summer. My heart goes out to the little girls coming home on the bus in that heat....little, or no air conditioning. When they get off the bus their faces are RED! (If I remember correctly from my younger days with small children!)


This calls for some type of celebration! Tonight Emma picked the place (coincidentally it was my favorite!) Nielsen's Frozen Custard....dinner, ice cream and quarters for the prize machine for all those un-lucky kids that start school in the next week........believe it or not that includes everyone in Mesa. Riley and Maddie start on Monday along with Kev-Bo. What happened to 3 full months of glorious summer? These kids are getting jipped (spelling?)

"The Girls"

It's good my grandkids do not read by blog because in reality they are all sooooo excited to begin the new school year. They love to meet their new teachers and see all their friends again! So what do I know???????

I did get the chance to eavesdrop on their conversations in the car. Below are some pretty tell-tale conversations!!!!

Riley to Emma: We will be best friends until we are nineteen years old and then we will call each other and find out where each other is going to live. Won't that be cool?

Emma: I don't want to be an old lady when I go to heaven.

Maddie: I don't want to look at a bald grandpa when I get old.

Riley to Kevin: Sweet dude! (We all knew that was Ryan coming out in her)

Riley and Emma: Discussing that they are for sure going to live in California when they get married. They are sure their husbands will want to do that. Then they can go to the beach all the time.

Maddie and Kate: We can live next door to each other when we get married. That will be fun!

Riley: In the Restaurant....with attitude like I have never seen......"I keep bleedin'....keep keep bleedin' in love!"

Kevin came just to tease the girls!

These kids are really growing up on me!!!!

Blue Ribbon Winner!

This afternoon I went to watch my granddaughter, Riley, compete in a synchronized swimming meet. She is taking some lessons for the summer with some of her friends. First of all, I was surprised that they even taught lessons for kids this young. Actually, there are a lot of kids that participate. Anything to do with water in the summer here is a good idea. It is fun to watch. It takes a lot of control and practice to perform the different moves in the water that they are judged on.

Riley did really well tonight. She came away with two first place ribbons. One for a swim race and the other for the highest score in her age group for her performance in the water. She is a really good swimmer! Way to go Riley!

Ohhhhh How Cute!!

The Artists....Riley and Maddie

Last Saturday afternoon Riley and Maddie came over to visit and go swimming. I noticed that Riley was carrying around a little plastic bag with colored art paper in it. She sat down at my outdoor table and said, "Nana do you want to buy some of our pictures that Maddie and me made? They cost 25 cents a piece....(that made me smile) and you can choose which ones you want!" Riley laid them all out on the table. Of course I am going to buy some of them! They spent a lot of time on them. Riley explained to me which ones she made and which ones Maddie made. She was very business-like. It was a tough decision......Ohhhh is was so cute!

"My Purchased Artwork"

While my little grandkids were swimming Lucy became a member of "The Goggle Girls Club"
She needed some de-fogging solution! She also undoubtedly established the record for the most jumps off the diving board in one visit to the swimming pool. She probably made 20 jumps off the diving board. One right after the other! Ryan had to tread water for a loooong time! He was the emergency rescue person in case Lucy didn't pop up to the top of the water after jumping!

Riley and Lucy....Goggle Girls

Sophie Raine....Eight is Great!

Riley, Maddie and Lucy at the hospital with

surprises for mom and baby.

New Little Sophie

Finally Maddie warms up!

"Sweet Sisters"

Sophie is here! She was born on February 21st, weighing in at 7 pounds. She has just a little bit of dark hair. She is so tiny and petite! Sophie is the fourth of four girls in Ryan and Julie's family.  You always wonder how many different looks these girls can come up with? Well... Sophie looks just like Riley.  It makes ya where Maddie came from because Riley, Lucy and Sophie look alot alike. But.....we will have to see if this holds true, little Sophie is just three days old....too soon to tell.   Sophie's middle name "Raine" is my great-grandfather's middle name (Alexander Raine Curtis).  That's kinda special....!   We are wondering what color eyes Sophie will have. Riley poses all these questions! Ryan (Dad) and Maddie have blue eyes, Riley and Lucy have brown eyes. Julie (Mom) is odd man out with green eyes. Riley has all the details down pat. Another one of Riley's observations..... the whole family has even-numbered birthdays, except Sophie....she broke the pattern. Julie went in for delivery on the 20th, but unfortunately she did not deliver until 12:30 p.m. on the 21st.                                      

Riley, Maddie and Lucy stayed the night with me. I had to keep them busy! We watched movies, made rice krispie treats and popped popcorn! The next morning we got up early and went to the store to buy balloons and a pink bunny for mom and baby. Those little girls were so excited to see their new sister! Riley is already a little mom.  I am expecting her to be the one to take care of Sophie.  At six years old she is already so grown up.  She can certainly take charge. When we got to the hospital Riley and Lucy were so enthralled with Sophie. They loved to touch her hair and skin.  It was so soft.  Lucy especially wanted to hold Sophie. Ohhh.....it was so cute. Maddie on the other hand took a little while to get warmed up. When we were almost ready to leave, Maddie decided she would hold Sophie for a few minutes. It is so fun to have such sweet little grandchildren. It makes me miss the years of having my little kids. MMMMM grandkids are so much fun. Eight is Great!!!!! Welcome little Sophie! We love you...

Mom, Grandma, Great-Grandma Visits

Riley and Maddie with Great-Grandma Schaar

Great-Grandchildren....Riley, Emma, Kate, Maddie

Drew, Lucy and Zack

Emma, Kate and Drew with Great-Grandma Schaar

During the first week of February my mom and sister, Cari, decided to visit sunny Arizona. It has been so cold and snowy this year in Utah. Mom was dying to come down and spend some time in Arizona. She usually comes in the winter and stays for 2 or 3 months, but her health was giving her some problems and they had to cancel this year. She was disappointed! So my sister Cari talked her into coming down for a few days to shop and enjoy the sunshine. We had such a good time. My mom LOVES movies (so do I!) We managed to see our fair share.....27 Dresses (for sure a girl movie must see), The Bucket List (not my fave) and August Rush (definitely my favorite!) I usually save my movie going for Mom....either here in Arizona or when I visit Utah. We managed to get a pedicure and go to lunch everyday. Cari did the shopping thing (she made sure we did not tag along.....she wanted to be ALONE!) Cari has five kids, so this was "It's all about me" vacation time. We dropped her off at Scottsdale Fashion Square and she shopped all day....FUN

Saturday was the day for my mom to see the Grandkids and Great-grandkids! All of my kids and grandkids live in Arizona, so Grandma Schaar and Cari do not get to see them much. This was a fun day. We had lunch in the back yard. It was such a beautiful day. We fixed a fairly new recipe....pork tacos in the crock pot......so yummy!!!!! thanks to Amy girl!

The afternoon took a competitive turn....the grandkids started to have some fun races....three-legged, running, pillowcase jumps and whatever we made up. Of course, Kevin and Amy had to get involved. They are always in the middle of it. They challenged Cari and myself to a three-legged race. Kevin and Amy thought it would be no contest.....no way!....they went down as losers twice over....Hmmmmm not surprising! They know better than to challenge their mom! Losers!!!!!