Taylor's First Triathlon

I'm the proudest mama ever! Taylor completed a triathlon on Sunday and had the time of her life.

Her age group swam 25 feet,

rode 1/4 mile,

and ran 100 yards.

Fortunately, they were allowed to wear a life jacket in the swim and have training wheels for the bike. She was the second girl to finish in her group, but I am most proud of the way she handled the race. She crashed her bike when her training wheel slipped off the wet pavement and scraped her knees, but she got right back up and kept going with a big ol' smile. She also did the race with her bestest buddy and the her first words across the finish line were "H, that was SO MUCH FUN!" I don't think the smile left her face one time (well, maybe just a second when she crashed), but she was in it for the fun. All the kids got a big metal when they crossed the finish line which was way cool. And, the proceeds from the race went to a really great cause: Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation. If you haven't heard of it, check it out.

Is that something crafty????

Oh, yeah it is! That's right, I made something today! And, it happens to be my favorite of all the seat bags I've ever made. My internet pal Kiley asked me if I could come up with something to go with her husband's bike (a beautiful brown/rootbeer color)... and tadaaa! 

Some of you already know that there's a coffee roaster called Kona Cloud in my husband's shop that keeps me stocked with coffee bean sacks. They can be a real bugger to work with, though, because they are super duper lint-y and ravel-y. But, I really wanted to make a seat bag with one, so I figured out how to work around all that. First, before I cut out my pattern, I traced it onto the sack and sewed just inside of that line with my machine.  After I cut out the pattern, I fused a piece of muslin to the backsides. You know, it worked really well and gave the bag some really nice structure. I still didn't want to try that with the smaller pieces where the zipper is, so I just used black canvas (should go great, since he has black bar tape). 

So nice to do something crafty and right-brain challenging today!

Success!

Our Bike to Work day was a success!  The 30 or so riders that showed up got a fantastic ride through Jonesboro.  I had hoped for a larger crowd, but considering that there was a good chance of rain and this was our first event ever, I won't complain. Our police escort surprised us by stopping traffic at every single intersection.... so nice to have cars yielding to us for a change! Taylor rode in a trailer behind her daddy and took photos along the way. Most were of herself, but she did manage to get a couple shots of the riders. I happen to really like this one (that I took) of her completely holding the attention of the guys (our mayor is the guy in orange). I'm not sure what she was telling them about, but I'm sure it was something very important.

My Media Debut

I had the honor of getting to give the guest commentary on our local news last night. The segment is called "A Better Region 8" and is usually done by the station manager. However, he offered it to me last week, which meant that I had to come up with a 90 second message super fast. That was some serious pressure... find

ing just the right words and just the right message to represent my group. There were about a thousand different things I'd have liked to say, and choosing one was the most nerve wrecking thing ever. Standing in front of a teleprompter in front of a green screen talking to myself was nothing compared to deciding what to say.

You can see the video here: A Better Region 8.... no laughing! 

Our Share the Road Signs are now on sale, and the Proclamation by the mayor last week was great. I can't wait 'till they start going up!

I did take a day last week to do some stitching.  

I'm working on a special butterfly embroidery project for Taylor.  It's alllmost finished and I promise I'll post pics as soon as it's done. I really hoped to have it done by now so that I could give it to her as a Pre-K graduation gift. (We took a trip to Build-a-Bear instead.) And, I still don't have a clue when/if my shop will be back. Honestly, I haven't been thinking much about it. I still browse etsy and lurk in the aretsy team thread, but I just don't feel any real pull to get back in there and list stuff. 

Happy Bike Month!

May is National Bike Month! Hooray!

Things here are moving full speed ahead. Tomorrow our mayor is making his proclamation about bike month, our Share the Road signs go on sale, and the 15th we are hosting a ride to work event. Here is a link to lots of other bike month events courtesy of the League of American Bicyclists. Even if there's not an event near you, you can still celebrate... just get out there on your two-wheeler and ride like you're 5 again.  

warp speed

Ok, maybe its tacky, but I really need a boast-y post. Last week, I had a meeting with our mayor about bike stuff.  Not only was he supportive, he put my group's plans into warp speed. In one fell swoop, he decided that at the next city council meeting he would proclaim May "Bike Month" in Jonesboro, announce that he would have the city install "Share the Road" signs if we would provide them,  announce that the signs are for sale, and buy the first one. If that wasn't enough, he wants to do the rounds with all the local media showing his support for our "Share the Road" program and attend our Bike to Work day. He even got us a police escort for the ride! I am just so totally thrilled about how things are going. And, I'm so so glad that I have Jason to keep me from freaking out too much! 

Anyway, these are the things that I've been up to and the only creative things I've done in the past couple of weeks have been to make that poster and make Taylor a headband. I have been thinking about crafty things if that counts. 

Catching up between sneezes

I love spring. I love that my yard is 

all pretty and green. I love that there are lots of birds and squirrels  and bunnies around. I do not love sneezing and having a congested, achy head. Ever since moving to the northeast part of the state, I have been in allergy hell. I have yet to find an over-the-counter that works without making me all loopy or sleepy.  Who knew such a small distance would make such a big difference.

I know I've been a bad blogger and haven't been updating very regularly. Sorry. Even though my etsy shop is closed for a bit, I have been doing some crafty things.

This little bunny's name is Janes. I made her for Taylor's Easter basket, but I gave it to her early. The night that I finished her, Taylor woke up scared from a nightmare so she got her new bunny a little early. Being pocket-sized, she got taken pretty much everywhere... which is why she's so filthy now. The pattern is available from My Little Mochi. Taylor also painted those wooden eggs in the background.

The beautiful bit of embroidery above is also Taylor's work of art. 

In other family news, my better half has started a blog! AsTheFreewheelTurns is sure to be an entertaining read. I'm super excited! I've been trying to get him to write for the longest time.. he's much, much better at it than me and always has an interesting take on things.