Trudy vs. James Street Hill - April

Trudy 3 - James Hill 1

Apr. 25 - 41 minutes (temperature about 50 degrees) It was off and on sunny. Springtime is pretty on the hill.

I start at the bottom of the hill and when I reach this street the steepness of the hill goes away and I know I can make it to the top.

March - I didn't do the hill in March. I blame it on the weather and busy Saturdays, I know that's no excuse!

Feb. 21 - 40 minutes (temperature about 58 degrees)

Jan. 31 - 39 minutes

The goal is to walk up the hill starting at the Chevron on Central Ave. up to the pedestrian walk-way at the grade school and back down the hill, a minimum of once a month this year.

Utah Trip - Starting with the Food!

I have to show you this great pizza I had for lunch at SeaTac airport. It was called Tutti Carne and had pepperoni and sausage with fresh basil, it was so good.

Then there was the Nachos from Porcupine Pub where we met our cousin Russell for dinner.


Then on my last day, Natalie and I went to Leatherby's for a good old fashioned ice cream sundae. She had the black and white and I ordered the white and tan sundae. It was almond ice cream and vanilla ice cream with carmel and chocolate toppings.

What? You don't eat fries with your ice cream?

Vacation

It's 10:00 p.m. on Tuesday night. My bag is pretty much packed, the laundry is all done, the kitchen is cleaned up and homemade cookies are on the counter. Tomorrow I board a plane to Salt Lake City. It's my annual "sisters" trip. This was started many years ago.

I live in Washington State, two sisters live in Idaho and one sister in Utah. The sister in Utah is a school teacher. This is her spring break. I'll meet my two sisters from Idaho at the Salt Lake airport were my daughter will pick us up.

Then it's off to dinner with our cousin Russell. After dinner Natalie will drive us south of Salt Lake to Springville where we will stay with Nancy until Sunday afternoon.

While in Springville, we will eat, clean house, catch up laundry, run errands, eat some more, talk, read, watch movies and visit the local quilt shop. It's the ultimate girls vacation.

I'll also get to visit some friends and attend a wedding reception while I am there.

While I'm gone my husband and son have to fend for themselves. They don't really cook so it either has to be microwaved, boiled or fast food. They're adults so I don't worry about them. I do worry about the dog however since she can only do so much for herself and really does depends on others. But it's just 5 days and she can survive the minor inconvenience.

The moment I hit that airplane seat with my iPod and book in place, I will relax and enjoy whatever comes my way. I'll check in later and post pictures.

Through the Eyes of a Three Year Old

Today in church we had our hands full with 6 three year olds. For the first time in over three months, two crayons attacked the chalkboard. They move so fast it was unavoidable.

The best thing today was when I looked at the only little girl in class and asked, "Did you mix the green and blue play dough together?" She smiled at me and said, "yes".

Then one of the little boys who surprisingly was listening when I asked her, looked over at her wads of blue and green play dough on the table and said, "it's the world".

Now how come I didn't see that?

Trudy vs. James Street Hill - March

Trudy 2 - James Hill 1

March - I didn't do the hill in March. I blame it on the weather and busy Saturdays, I know that's no excuse!

Feb. 21 - 40 minutes (temperature about 58 degrees)

Jan. 31 - 39 minutes

The goal is to walk up the hill starting at the Chevron on Central Ave. up to the pedestrian walk-way at the grade school and back down the hill, a minimum of once a month this year.

What I've Been Reading

I just finished two books by Gregg Olsen who is a local Washington state author. He writes both fiction and non-fiction books. First I read a true crime story called "Starvation Heights". It was set in Washington State in the early 1900s, about a woman doctor who believed the cure all for all health problems was fasting of course she also had her patients sign over their money and property to her before they died of starvation. The story focuses mainly on two sisters and the trial of the doctor when one of the sisters dies. It is very well written, somewhat unpleasant to read at times because of the details of what the patients endured.

The second book of his I read was a fiction book called "A Wicked Snow". It is the story of a young girl who witnesses a horrible crime when she was younger. She is now grown up, married and has a daughter. She works as a CSI agent and her husband is a police office. She learns that you cannot hide from the past forever and it comes back to haunt her as she is forced to face what really happened.

Switching gears big time in a completely different direction, I just started a book I bought on eBay that was recommended in a seminar I took recently at the Sewing Expo. The seminar was on organization and the instructor Libby Lehman highly recommended the book, "Getting Things Done, The Art of Stress-Fee Productivity", by David Allen. Who doesn't need that in their lives? I just started it this weekend.

Tag

7th picture from the 7th folder and tag 7 people.

Say hello to my great nephew Ethan Matthew and his Daddy John and his Grandma Sue. He was born on February 27, 2009.

I tag Goldie, Rachel O., April, Kelsey, Lindsay, Rachel M., and cousin Marla.

Sunshine on My Shoulders

Makes me happy. You've got to be old like me to remember that John Denver song! First of all it was Friday, gotta like that. Second I got my raise today and third we did out taxes and we get a refund.

And we went out to lunch after getting our taxes done.

Then this afternoon I got my bicycle out of the storage shed, dusted it off and put some air in the tires. Then I did a short trip (only 3 miles round trip) to go to Curves to work out. My bike has way too many gears and before I left the neighborhood the chain fell off when I was shifting. I was able to get it back on and go on my merry way. It was great being outdoors.

Sewing Expo

I spent the entire day at the Puyallup Fairgrounds attending the Sewing Expo. It's an annual event and quite a big deal. My sister and I bought tickets well in advance and signed up for nine seminar classes over the two days.

Well it turns out that my sister's grandbaby (who was due last week) had a schedule of her own and as of this writing she hasn't appeared yet, so my sister sits in anticipation, waiting to meet the new baby girl. My sister picked out the seminar classes and she did a good job. I really enjoyed them today.

The Sewing Expo (http://www.sewexpo.com/) is for quilters, seamstresses, knitters and more. There is so much to see. And every year I am amazed that they can still be coming up with new stuff. This year the new to me thing is called "Angelina" heat bondable fibers. When I get playing with it I'll post pictures. The only way I can explain them is that they are bundles of fibers that when heated bond together and you use it like appliques. Here is the website: http://www.embellishmentvillage.com/.

I learned more about machine quilting and I think I'm brave enough now to try a little bit more of it. And of course I had to buy another table runner pattern, it seems I just collect the patterns, I have yet to make a table runner.

It's fun to see how many people there are with this same interest and the people are all so nice. It was a fun day. I'll return again tomorrow for more classes (and hopefully less shopping).

Trudy vs. James Street Hill - February

Trudy 2 - James Hill 0

Feb. 21 - 40 minutes (temperature about 58 degrees)
Jan. 31 - 39 minutes

The goal is to walk up the hill starting at the Chevron on Central Ave. up to the pedestrian walk-way at the grade school and back down the hill, a minimum of once a month this year.

Pay it Forward

A friend of mine is doing this and I feel like I need to be more giving but its hard for me to know what to do and who to give to. So... This is my opportunity to serve I guess!!!

The Rules

1. Be one of the first Three (3) bloggers to leave a comment on this post, which then entitles you to a handmade item from me.

2. Winners, you must post this challenge on your blog, meaning that you will Pay It Forward, creating a handmade gift for the first 3 bloggers who leave a comment on YOUR post about this giveaway!

3. The gift that you send to your three Friends can be from any price range and you have 365 days to make/ship your item. This means you should be willing to maintain your blog at least until you receive your gift and have shipped your gifts. And, remember: It’s the Spirit and the Thought That Count!

4. When you receive your gift, please feel free to blog about it, sharing appropriate Linky Love!

If you are not one of the Top Three Commenters on this post, you can still play along. Post it on your blog; start your own Pay It Forward chain, and encourage your blogging friends to do the same!

I will need your address if you are one of the first three bloggers. This should be fun to see who wants to play along.