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I have finished my third square for my quilt. It turned out better than the others. I think I like this design better also. I have two more squares to go and then I can start piecing it all together. I am anxious to see my final product. I have so many more patterns that I plan to do as well.

My Second Quilt Square

My Second Quilt Square
Originally uploaded by deanaarcher.

Here is my second quilting square. It is a little better than my first one (not as crooked). I have three more to make before I can start piecing my quilt together. I am really enjoying learning how to quilt even though I get very frustrated at times.

Greg, Mark, Tim, & Dad on Their Journey.

Greg, Mark, Tim, & Dad on their journey.
Originally uploaded by deanaarcher.

Check out this website to see the details of the journey that these two sets of brothers have made this week. The riders are my dad (Phil Archer), Uncle Mark Archer, Uncle Tim McClain, and his brother Greg McClain.

Joshua's First Day of Kindergarden

Joshua's First Day of Kindergarden
Originally uploaded by deanaarcher.

Joshua was sooo excited on his first day of school. When I picked him up he said, "Mommy, I didn't get in trouble today." It was as if he was shocked that he did not get in trouble for once. I was a little shocked too. He did not cry when I dropped him off. I kind of figured that he would. He said that he likes to color and play outside, but he is not going to sing. I am not surprised, he would not sing in preschool either.

My first quilting square

My First Quilting Square
Originally uploaded by deanaarcher.

This is the first square for my quilt. It is very crooked and lopsided, but I am excited. I don't think that I did too bad for the first time using my sewing machine. At least it was all attached. I have four more blocks to go and then we will begin putting all of the pieces together. Wish me luck!! I will need it!!

Last night Dad and I went to meet the teachers night at Tyler's school. He was so excited to show me his desk and his new books. His teacher seemed very pleasant and eager to teach the kids. I hope that she can find new ways to challenge Tyler. He seems to be bored by some of the homework that he brings home. I still find extra things for him to do to keep him motivated. I ordered a subscription to Mathmania. It is published through Highlights. They send him two books a month and he seems to really enjoy them. It keeps math exciting and that is his favorite subject right now. He must get that from his mom!! By the way, he is bringing a fundraiser home this week so watch out!

We went to our quilting class again on Tuesday. Our homework for the week was to have our first block cut out. I cut out the first three blocks because I was anxious to get started. I finally taught myself how to thread a bobbin and to thread my sewing machine. In class we started piecing together our first block. Elicia is showing off her first steps. I am having a really good time learning how to do this. I have always wanted to learn how to make something but I did not figure that I would be very good at it. We'll see how it goes. I am going to put together the rest of my block this weekend and I will post a picture of my progress. There are more pictures on my flickr site of our class. Click here to check them out.

We went boating Saturday and Sunday this weekend (pics on flickr). Boy was I worn out! I took it pretty easy at work Monday and Tuesday (video games) and now we are cleaning alot! It is sooooo gross. I guess somebody needed to do it.

I started my quilting class last night. I was so nervous. I could barely cut through the fabric. I hope that I am able to do well with it. I want to be able to start making a bunch of quilts. Mom joined me for the class but she is not making her own. She is supervising. There are only three girls in the class which is good. That will allow for us to have more one on one with the teacher. The lady who is giving the class is doing it for free. She just wanted a chance to meet other women who liked to sew. I mainly wanted to learn how to use my brand new sewing machine that my parents got for me two years ago. I will post pictures as I progress and you can decide if this is a hobby that I need to continue with.

I signed Joshua and Tyler up for school. Joshua is so excited and I hope he does well. If not we will do kindergarten again next year. He is still young so I know it will take time. Tyler is ready to go back to school so that he can get away from Joshua. He is going nuts. He is starting third grade at TZ this year. He has a lot of potential and I hope his emotions do not get in the way of his grades. Zach is moving on to fifth grade this year. The teenage years are just around the corner!

On Friday we went to Evan's Monster Truck birthday party. Joshua loves to go over there and play with the boys. Evan looked like he was ready to dig into that cake! He is such a cutie!! Joshua told me that he had to pick out Evan's birthday present because I did not know what was cool! I am already to the point where the kids don't think I am cool anymore. How sad is that?

Wow! We have been busy lately.

I met up with mom on Friday night to do a little bit of shopping. We really had a good time. She was making fun of me while I was shopping for a new bikini. I told her that I could not buy one unless the top already had boobs built in. I need all of the help that I can get. Then she made fun of me when I tried on a pair of clogs. She said that I looked like I was walking on stilts. Needless to say, I did not buy them. This is the reason why I do not wear anything with a heel.

We took the boys out on the boat again on Saturday. They had a lot of fun. We did learn that if Joshua says that he has to "poop" then you had better be ready. I told him to wait a minute, so he jumped back into the lake to swim. Next thing I know he is screaming. Apparently he decided to go ahead and start to take a crap in his suit. I pulled him out of the water and sat him on our on board potty. Then I shook his suit out in the water. I warned the other boys that they might want to move and they asked "Why?". I decided I was tired of hearing them ask why every time I told them to do something so my response was, "You will figure it out in a minute." That is what they get for not doing as they were told!!

Sunday we took the day pretty easy. I went to Leann's baby shower and Steve took the boys over to Josh's house to ride their bikes. I joined them later and we walked down to the creek. The boys were having a lot of fun splashing around down there. We decided to see if Sable (my 7-year-old weiner/pekinese dog) could swim. She didn't seem to like it but she swam very well, straight for the shore.

Anyways, I am about finished with my cross stitch project that I have been working on forever. I have a few more details to finish up and I will post some pictures of it. I have already picked out my next cross stitch project. I am also starting a quilting class next Tuesday. Mom may be joining me with that. I believe that I am starting to sound like an old lady. I just enjoy doing quiet things since it is not usually too quiet around our house. Do boys keep getting noisier as they grow older? I hope not!

Also, I started a flickr.com account. It is easier and faster for me to post photos there. Check out the link on the left for more photos.