{Cigarettes and Crocheting}

Last night I dreamed about laundry and how much I had to do when we still smoked. Happy Anniversary to us! It's been four years since Brian & I stopped smoking. Now, we can wear an article of clothing more then once, (hence, there is less laundry each week), I don't huff & puff climbing two sets of stairs with said laundry, we are $20.00 richer each day (a pack of cigarettes averages $10 here), and we are no longer offensive to the people around us. Each day without those stinkers is a good day.

Going back four years......I knew that I would need something to do at night while I was sitting in front of the tv to keep me occupied so I would not think about smoking. Smoking isn't only a physical addiction (which was being taken care of by a nicotine patch and inhaler) but also a mental addiction. I needed an activity that would keep my hands occupied. {Crocheting} would be my salvation. I enlisted Brian's niece Donna to teach me some of the basics and she provided me with my first pattern. I ran to {Michael's} to purchase the yarn for my first crochet project.....an afghan for Steph.

It took me a few tries to get it right. Somehow my rows got longer as I went along so I had to do some ripping out. Eventually I got it done and Steph loved it. Over the next year I made afghans for all of Steph's college roomies....6 in total, three for { Project Linus }and one for Brian. The next year I made two Christmas gifts and two baby gifts and another afghan for Steph .... I was afghan crazy. I'm not even going to mention all the scarves I crocheted. I really believe that the crocheting helped me finally kick the stinky habit.  Currently I'm working on an afghan for Danny in his Lehigh colors. It should have been done already but the {quilting} has me snagged right now. I promised I'd have it done before the end of the Thanksgiving break.  Sheet....that's only three weeks away.

{My Camera}

Last night I dreamed about photographing brown bears in Alaska.  I'd love to get back to {Alaska} someday with my new and better camera. The last time I photographed them using the original Canon Digital Rebel. Although the photos were good, I'm sure I'd capture some real arse-kickers with my {50D}. Naturally, the 50D has already been replaced by the 60D but I'm not planning an upgrade anytime soon. I love my {camera}. There's so much flexibility built right in that it's usually a given that the photos will be good.

There's still things I can learn about taking good photos. I occasionally buy a book or take an online seminar to help me improve my photography. I take photos for me and no one else. I feel good when my camera is in my hand and I miss it when I don't pick it up on a regular basis. Of course when we're traveling it's easy to find subjects to photograph. I love {landscapes} and including my {husband} in those photos. For several years now I've been making {photo books} of our trips and an annual "Year in Pictures" book. I love looking back at where we've been and what we've done. If we ever had a natural disaster and had to evacuate, those books, my other photos and my camera would be the first things I'd pack.

Lately I haven't been taking too many photos. There's been nothing important going on recently so the camera's been in it's case. Last June I started a {Project 365}....one photo a day for 365 days. It sounds easy for someone who loves to use the camera, but some days it was difficult finding the picture of the day. I tried to take photos that were representative of our daily life. I managed to complete it on May 31st of this year and since I was scrapping each week as I finished it, the photo book came together quickly. I've looked at it several times since and love it every time. I decided that in January I'll be starting an new {P365}. There's a terrific online community for those of us who take on a P365. Capture Your 365 is a great place to share your daily photo, get inspiration and to ask questions about photography. I think I'll make a point of posting my photos daily this time. P365 will allow me to spend some time each day with the {50D}. That will make me very happy.

{My Daughter}

Last night I dreamed about my daughter. She's such a sweet girl .She's living in Tennessee now, attending The University of TN College of Veterinary Medicine. A life-long {dream} of hers is finally coming true. She spent the past four years at UCONN for undergrad and now is living in the land of hillbillies, pickup trucks and kudzu. 

I really hope she's going to be happy there for the next four years. Her apartment is very nice and with all the little decorating touches she's adding, it's starting to look very homey. She's never really had the opportunity to decorate in "her" style and it's great to see her personality show through. There's lots of {cow }stuff around...she LUBS cows. And her collection of {milk bottles} is displayed over the cabinets in her kitchen. Yup....people do collect milk bottles.

And this is one of them.

{Swoon}

I couldn't resist the pattern for {Swoon} by Camille Roskelley. I first saw it on her blog Simplify and decided that I'd like to try one of the blocks. She's also the designer of one of my favorite fabric lines, {Ruby}. The colors are beautiful. Anyway, I cut the fabric three nights ago and finished the first block this afternoon. I think it turned out  pretty darn good for a first attempt at a more complicated pattern. I even had a turn with flying geese for the first time. The only problem I ran into is that the finished blocks are supposed to be 24 1/2" and mine are 23 1/2". Guess my 1/4 " seam allowances aren't exactly 1/4". I would think that as long as I'm consistently inexact I'll be ok. Next week I'll cut another block and piece it. I'll see how long it takes to finish the 9 blocks required to complete the quilt top. I already have someone in mind to give it to...

{My First Step into the World of Blogging}

Well......I did it. This is the first official post on {The Sweetest Dreams} blog. I just set up the new template this morning and I'm still working on the customization. I have no idea how this works or how it will work out. It will be a learning process as I go. I still haven't figured out how to post a {photo} yet. I'm hoping to find some helpful instructions to guide me through.

I'm certainly not expecting to have many followers....probably only my {family}. I know I can count on my {sister} to be a regular visitor...can't I? I get a lot of enjoyment reading certain blogs each day. Some I've actually learned from....mainly the {quilting} blogs. There is so much information and inspiration out there.

I hoping this will be a good way to record the goings on around here. Kind of journalish without having all the crossouts I'd inevitably have on my written pages. (Love being able to edit my posts!)  Here we go.......