11 years ago today...

I married my best friend.



Thanks for taking me along on this crazy cool ride!!!

Paris, France 1998


Trafalgar Square, London, England, 1998


Our Wedding Day (the happiest day of my life!), Florida, 2000


Madrid, Spain, 2000


Cordoba, Spain, 2000


Seville, Spain, 2000


Tangier, Morocco, 2000


Montreal, Canada, 2002


South Beach, Miami, FL, 2006


Coco Cay, Bahamas, 2007


Yes, that's us!!!


Illinois, 2009


Here's to a lifetime of wedded bliss! Let the good times roll!

Will you still need me,
will you still feed me,
When I'm sixty-four?

I'm Baaaack!

Thank you all SO much for all your warm wishes regarding our 10th Wedding Anniversary. Jon and I had an AMAZING time last weekend. We were greeted at the hotel with a bottle of wine...



And some chocolate-covered strawberries...



I mean, look at these!



LOOK!!! The printing is edible... it's not a piece of paper you have to rip off! YUM!



The staff was so courteous and attentive. Everywhere we went -- the front desk, the spa, the restaurant, the bar -- we were greeted by "Happy Anniversary, Mr. & Mrs. Young!" and presented with cards and gifts...



They even printed a special menu for us at their restaurant...



At the spa, all we wore were these super plush robes and fuzzy slippers. We felt like royalty! :)



I could've stayed there for weeks! But alas, we had to get back to the real world eventually.

This week has been pure madness for me, trying to catch up with work. On Wednesday evening I had my presentation for the Quilt Guild in Peoria, IL, and it was such a fabulous time. I met some amazing local women and we had such a great time chatting and getting to know each other. This is what my little set up looked like...



Michael Miller Fabrics donated a couple FQ Bundles to give away as door prizes and those were a HUGE hit! They donated the Mezzanine and Flora & Fauna bundles you see on the top of this stack and I supplemented the giveaway with an Andalucia bundle and a couple of sewing pattern bundles. All in all we had 5 awesome door prizes, so congratulations to the lucky ladies who walked away with these bundles of goodness.



And thanks a bunch to all the local peeps who came out to see me that night!!! :)

Well, I'm sure you are all on the edge of your seats waiting to find out who was the lucky winner of my Flora & Fauna bundle, so without much further ado, the randomizer picked.... drum roll please...



Comment #86 out of 237 comments is Sandi from Litchfield, IL
Sandi said...

Gosh, it's so hard to picka favorite! There are so many good ones. :) My favorite prints are dandelions, ta dots and blossoms, and my favorite colorways are the turquoise and stone. So how's that for narrowing it down?!

Have a great time on your trip!

Congratulations, Sandi!!! Please email me your mailing address at info@modkidboutique.com and I'll get you this little bundle of happiness right away.

It's off to work I go... toodooloo

Blue Monday

I'm feeling quite blue this morning (but in a good way!). I started seeing quite a few color parallels as I was editing my photos so I thought it was time for a wacky-fun blog posting.


(Photo courtesy of Caroline Devoy.)

The ribbons you see above are fresh in from the manufacturer and ready to be worked into some happy little spring-time projects. The top two are from Jessica Jones and the bottom 4 are mine. But check out how well Jessica's aqua/chocolate bloom ribbon coordinates with my aqua/chocolate birdie damask! If anyone out there makes something using these 2 together, please share a picture!

These ribbons are the new jacquard collection available by the yard and by the roll at jcarolinecreative. I'm just giddy to get some of my Andalucia designs in the aqua colorway... and I know a lot of you out there are too, based on the amount of daily requests I get! ;) The kiwi/greens in these ribbons will be a perfect match to the kiwi colorways in Andalucia and the little splashes of pink will match the Petal colorways, so have fun with them! (I'm thinking: Easter!)

The color blue has followed me around this past weekend too. Jon and I celebrated our 9-year anniversary (yes, this time we didn't forget it!) in the windy city, sans kids! WOOHOO! We dropped off the girls at my in-laws' place in Chicago then checked into the Wyndham near the Magnificent Mile. Those of you who follow me on Twitter got my tweets from the Apple Store, where Jon & I drooled over the latest & greatest, and later from Borders where I tried to find the elusive issue of Quick Quilts featuring my article (I still haven't found it, by the way! haha!)

After window shopping in sub-zero temperatures (brrrr!) we headed out to Greek Islands. Jon wore a blue shirt & jacket... and we had blue menus.



And even our Greek waiter with the sexy Greek accent wore blue... OPA!
(haha, check out the guy in the back!)



After dinner we caught a late showing of the ... you guessed it: Blue Man Group!



All this talk of blue is making me really crave Spring/Summer weather, how 'bout you? But since I can't have that right now, I'll be content with listening to this song over & over again this morning (the Weimaraner in that video looks exactly like the one Jon & I used to have in FL years ago! His name was Blu. I miss him.)

Pardon Our Dust

I am playing with a few fresh looks for the Summer so it might look a bit messy around here for a bit. Let me know if anything looks totally off on your end. I work on a Mac and sometimes what I see is not what the rest of the world sees.

While I put the finishing touches on this blog make-over, don't forget to leave a comment on my 2 Year Anniversary post to be entered to win a fabulous prize. There is still time! You can also win a prize by purchasing my 100th item sold in my Etsy store... we are dangerously close!

MODKID 2nd Anniversary SALE!

OK, so our 2nd Anniversary was actually on May 20th but that was my first day back from Portland so I don't think I was in any shape or mood to do much but sleep. So, here we are... better late than never, eh?

I have decided to celebrate our 2nd Anniversary by having a HUGE SALE on our Etsy store. I just finished listing several ready-made items and I have priced them really low. But the catch is that once they're gone, they're gone and there's only 1 of each design in small & large sizes.

As of right now, I have 92 sales on Etsy and I've been told that hitting your 100th sale is a big deal over there, so what I am gonna do is reward the buyer of my 100th item with a special matching surprise item. Since I don't know which will be my 100th item sold, this surprise item will be custom-made after the sale, so please allow an extra couple days for completion. :)

And since I am feeling happy & generous, I will also reward one lucky blog reader with a surprise package in the mail from moi. Since I know some of you don't have small children (or girls), I will give the lucky winner their choice of: a sewing/crafting care package from my extensive collection of fabric/notions OR a custom-made MODKID surprise item.

All you have to do is leave a comment below this post and let me know what your plans are for this Summer. Are you traveling, hanging out at home, taking on a new project, learning a new skill, sleeping a lot??? Tell me, tell me, tell me.

I will draw the winner in 1 week.

Leap-ing Away...

What better way to take advantage of an extra day in the year than to leap away with your family and friends on a 4-day weekend mini-vacation? We are leaving early tomorrow morning for the Wisconsin Dells. It's about a 4-hr. drive from here, but with 4 small children needing to go potty every hour or so, it'll probably turn into a 6 hr. drive... but, who cares! We're on vacation! (yes, only 2 of those children are ours... the other 2 belong to our friends who are coming along with us).


Jon and I need this vacation very BADLY! How badly do we need it? Well, you be the judge: this past Tuesday, February 26th, was our 8th Wedding Anniversary and... we both forgot! :( Eeeeek! Yep, I was sitting here on the computer blog surfing or something when my cell phone rings and it's my parents, so I answer and they both sing in unison "Happy Anniversary!!!" At first I was like, "What?" and within a split second I was like, "OH MY GOSH! Uhmmm.... Thanks!" So I made some small talk and got off the phone in a hurry and ran over to the family room, where Jon was playing Wii with Sophie. I sat there and just stared at him for a few seconds until he turned around and gave me one annoyed "What?!?!", so I just said in a sweet voice "Oh, nothing... just wanted to wish you a H A P P Y A N N I V E R S A R Y, honey!" He literally dropped the Wii remote and stood up with a look on his face like he had just seen a ghost. He quickly glanced at his watch and asked redundantly "What day is it?" and I quickly responded, "February 26".... then his face started to turn red, so I had to confess that I too had forgotten...

See, we have both been so busy lately... Jon working at his job and helping me re-design my website, and me doing everything under the sun which includes, but is not limited to, designing clothing, designing fabric, designing a new website, opening an etsy store and keeping it stocked, designing pages for Sophie's school yearbook, preparing & packing for this trip, etc. etc. etc. that we haven't even had time to talk, let alone remember what day it is.

But we will make up for it tomorrow night. We'll be leaving the kids with our friends while we run off and have a romantic dinner at this steakhouse in the Dells that supposedly was redesigned in the 50's by a protégé of Frank Lloyd Wright. I love Prairie style architecture ... and a good steak, so this should be fun! :)

So... anyway, we're off! But when I return, I have a huge list of to-do's which includes getting my website finished so I can move my etsy inventory over there. Also, I do have a couple of launches coming up on eBay. Yes, you heard (read) right! eBay. I had a few prior commitments (prior to my departure) that I just cannot dismiss. I am doing a guest launch with the fabulous ladies of the boutique group Anthology, Inc. That will be on March 6th. Then on March 25th, I have a launch honoring Sandi's Ginger Blossom fabric. I also have a couple of LimeVine surprises, but that will be announced in due time.

Have a great Leap Year day/weekend, everyone! I will be splashing in the water for 3 whole days!

And the winners are...

WHEW! That was fun! We had 216 entries in the basket, and lots of you had multiple chances to win because every bid on my auctions was worth 2 entries and every winning bid was 5 extra entries. First, Jon put all the names into a database and printed them out for me. Some entries were just email addresses, because they came straight from my mailing list and other were eBay id's because we pulled them from my auctions. So I apologize in advance for the names appearing in 2 different formats below.

Then, Sophie & Sydney took turns pulling names out of the basket as I photographed the whole event.

So, without much further ado, I will begin to announce the winners (click on the pictures below to enlarge if you'd like to read the names on the cards). The grand prize will come last! ;)

A set of 4 limited-edition Disney lenticular postcards goes to mamigirlboutique. Congratulations!!! You are going to love these!



A custom-made lotus flower pin goes to emaglero. Congratulations, Dana!! These have become quite popular since I took a few with me to Salt Lake City for the "Girls Getaway Weekend". Hope you like yours. :)



Another set of 4 limited-edition Disney lenticular postcards goes to annabella*design. Congratulations, Aida!!! Your girls are going to love these!



A second custom-made lotus flower pin goes to themainebaby. Congratulations!! I hope you like yours too.




My third and last set of 4 limited-edition Disney lenticular postcards goes to butterflybaby25. Congratulations, Angela Hutchens!! You are going to love these!


A $10.00 gift certificate good toward any future MODKID boutique purchase goes to... pam@molliefearing. Congratulations, Pam! I will mail your certificate soon. Happy Shopping!



A $25.00 gift certificate good toward any future MODKID boutique purchase goes to... cocowee2005. Congratulations, Lauren! I will mail your certificate soon. Happy Shopping!


And, finally, the GRAND PRIZE winner of a custom made 2-piece original set by MODKID Boutique is....

saudishoppingqueen

YAY! Congratulations, Michelle!!! How exciting! I will be contacting you shortly for information regarding this custom-made set. I look forward to making this for you!

Thank you all again for your continued support. It has truly been the best year of my life. I have met some incredible people and had some amazing experiences. If I could I would reward each and every one of you for tagging along with me on this crazy, wild ride! :) As always, I will offer FREE shipping to anyone on my mailing list... it's the least I could do for putting up with my blabbering mouth for so long! LOL!

I will contact all of the winners shortly to get your mailing addresses and any other information needed. The gift certificates are actually printed, so you will receive those in the mail as well, with some little surprises! ;)

Thanks and good night, all!

Today is THE DAY!

MODKID Boutique's One Year Anniversary! WOOHOO! Thank you so much for all the wonderful email wishes... you are all so sweet and I feel so blessed to be surrounded by such a wonderful group of women.

Part of me can't believe it's been a year already (seems like just yesterday I listed my first boutique set on eBay!), but part of me feels like we've been at this forever. Maybe it's because this "business" was really a long time in the making. My mom & I had been designing & making clothes for my girls for quite a while and had even made some for other people and we talked for a while about doing this "professionally" but it wasn't until last year around this time that we decided to "take the plunge." I came up with the name, the logo and a shell of a website before we even had any work to show. I sketched out a few prototype designs and flew to FL in early May to discuss them with my mom. And 3 weeks later, we had 4 custom auctions up on eBay. 3 of them sold, so we were pretty proud of ourselves. And here we are now...

As I announced before, the contest is TODAY! You can enter until 12 noon eBay time (so in about 2 hrs.) and then we will tally the entries! You can enter by either signing up for my mailing list or placing a bid on my auction.

This event will involve my whole family: I am putting Jon in charge of database because he is the nerdy, er, tech-savvy, one and Sophie & Sydney will draw names this afternoon. I will blog the whole thing tonight. Each winner will be announced on a separate blog entry (yes, I'm probably over-complicating the whole thing, but that's ME!) LOL!

So, I'll see you all tonight! GOOD LUCK! :)

Just Listed! Third and last...

... design from The Costa Rica Collection (at least, I think so). I am moving on to some new projects with new fabrics, but I thought I would squeeze in one last design from this collection. Lots of you have said how much you like the vibrant colors and fun designs from this line so I thought I would offer one more before I retire it. And if I shall say so myself, I think the collection is making a big splash on it's way out! But again, my latest design is always my favorite! ;)

I love this design... I sort of dreamt it up and it turned out exactly as it looked in my dream. It has a clever little bodice with two inset shirred panels... love this look because it means that it will grow with you child! As she gets older & taller this dress can be used as a top with a cool pair of jeans or capris underneath. I have included a sweet shirred peasant top as part of this set that can also be worn alone with a pair of pants. And the whole set is topped off with a coordinating skinny head band and a removable hair flower ... wear the head band alone or the flower barrette alone for a different look. Or wear them together as Sydney does in these pictures. Such a fun set!

The best part: it is a custom auction! I will recreate this one time only in any size between 18 Month and 5T.

This auction can be found here.

Oh, and don't forget that each bid placed on one of my auctions until May 20th will give you 2 extra entries into the Anniversary Drawing. I have added more prizes so there will be lots of chances to take home some fun stuff... more on that later! ;)

patty

Happy Birthday to MODKID!



All winners will be notified via email on Monday, May 21st, 2007. First prize winner will need to provide measurements for the custom set. This set will be delivered 2 - 3 weeks after receipt of measurements. All other prices will be delivered on the week of May 21 - 27.

Names will be drawn from the MODKID Boutique mailing list. If you are not signed up for my mailing list and would like to be, just fill out the form below. It is a double opt-in form, so you will need to verify your subscription via email.

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Night at the Cirque

Tonight Jon and I went to see Cirque Du Soleil's new traveling show, DELIRIUM. If you haven't heard about it, it differs from their previous shows in that it is more musically-oriented (so, not as much circus-y stuff). So I was a bit skeptical at first, because I like the circus-y stuff. But the show was amazing! I totally surpassed my expectations and it rivaled every other Cirque show I have ever seen. They still had some acrobatics mixed in with the dancers, singers and musicians, so it was like sensory overload! Of course, the minute we got there they told us that the use of cameras was strictly prohibited, so I couldn't get any pictures of the show itself... just the stage before (the blue one) & after (the orange one). And of course that goofy picture of Jon and I waiting for the show to begin... doesn't he look enthused? LOL!

The whole show was done like a dream sequence and we (the audience) were all part of this wacky dream. There was this guy (the dreamer) who floated above the stage suspended from an oversized blue balloon (that sometimes changed colors according to the scenery on the stage). The music was entrancing ... at times it sounded like something right out of Carnival in Brazil, and at times it sounded more like a cross between Dead Can Dance and Massive Attack. Drums, drums, drums. There was everything from tribal chants to Gregorian chants. The singers had amazing voices and they sang in many different languages. The costumes were gorgeous and of course I was drooling and trying to take a mental picture (since I couldn't take an actual picture) so that I could maybe try to incorporate some of those elements in my designs. Check out this gorgeous willowy mermaid-like dress that was like 50-feet long (this is not my picture... I swiped it from their site, but I just had to include it here because it was breathtaking!)

But my favorite part, and you guys are gonna think this is totally weird, was this guy that walked around on stilts through the whole concert. Now, I have to interject here and inform you all that for as long as I can remember I have had a strange fascination with stilts. Could it be because I am only 5-foot-tall? Probably! But, nevertheless, it's always been a fantasy of mine to walk around on stilts and I become totally entranced when I see stilt walkers. So of course, as soon as that guy made an appearance, my eyes followed him everywhere he went. He wore these super flowy pants that had layers and layers of colorful gauze in different lengths and he babbled incoherently but in a very comical way. He was also mighty talented with a hula-hoop.

All in all, a very pleasurable experience and a wonderful Valentines/Anniversary gift that I will never forget!