Help Me - I am Blog Obsessed!!!

I have not been able to do much lately and have been doing little more than surfing on my computer.  I am amazed at the blog stuff out there.  There is a universe of information, graphics, opinions, links and so much more and the best thing is that it is all FREE!!

The hard part is not saving it all and trying to get off the computer.  I have become obsessed with blog freebies like backgrounds and headers and soooo many gadgets.  I just cannot believe the coolness of these things and more, that their creators give them away freely and generously.  Some favorites that you may want to check out are listed below.  If you make anything, have a child, just want to blog about anything, you will find something you love on these pages.  Be careful though - you may get hooked like me and it is so hard to stop!!
http://www.mystylebackgrounds.blogspot.com/
http://butterflygirlmsblogdesigns.blogspot.com/
http://www.shabbyblogs.com/
http://www.sneakymommablogdesign.blogspot.com/
http://bloggerblogbackgrounds.blogspot.com/

Fall is A Time to Celebrate!

I just LOVE Fall and I can't really believe it is here again!!  So many fun things go on during this time of the year and it is always so exciting!!!  Like the colorful leaves from the trees, ideas for new projects just waft through my brain.  If only I could materialize all of them, or at least some!  For me that is one of my favorite things to do - dream about all sorts of things that I could create!!

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and I want to recognize a very special lady - Vick Riley with DinkyBaby.com.  She is a breast cancer survivor and so much more.  Vicki works tirelessly to help others in any way that she can.  She donates patterns, materials, as well as profits from the sale of some of her patterns and way to much more to mention here.  If you are fortunate enough to know Vicki, then you will know what a huge heart she has!!  All of us in the DinkyBaby Yahoo Group would like to pay special recognition to her this month and hope you will too.  Stop by the DinkyBaby Fan page and leave a message for Vicki - she would love to hear from you all!  We can't thank her enough for all her support and generosity as well as sharing her secrets and knowledge!!

November is Prematurity Awareness Month for the March of Dimes and so fitting that we also recognize Vicki during November.  Vicki created a special pattern for us to honor preemies and she donates a portion of the profits for each of these patterns.  She also donated her prototype "Teenee Preemee" doll to SC Chapter of the March of Dimes and they use her in their teaching programs.  You can find kits for this doll on Vicki's web site at DinkyBaby.com as well as a downloadable version of the pattern at www.linniepies.com.

 Help us recognize Vicki and thank her for all of her efforts as well as recognizing her for all she does for those in need!!  Send her a shout on the DinkyBaby FaceBook Fan page, purchase a pattern and let her know we appreciate her, or just visit her blog and leave her a note.  Fall is our time to appreciate Vicki Riley and DinkyBaby.com!!

Exciting News..........

This is Riley - probably one of my most prized posessions and he is a 14 inch DinkyBaby!  He was a gift to me from Vicki Riley and she created and made him herself.  He is a "real" boy and he is helping me get ready for some exciting news about our relationship with DinkyBaby!  We will be making an announcement soon!!

He is also pictured with a new set for fall - a punkin hat and booties along with a security blankie - made just to size for Dinkies his size.  This little set will be available soon to raise money for the March of Dimes.  Riley is pretty excited to be our model this year!  Be sure to watch for more items we will be adding to the site and also our exciting news!!!  Visit our site often at www.linniepies.com!

Emmie is Ready For Her Close-Up!

This is little Emmie - she has a very big smile on her face because she is complete and ready for a diaper and clothes! Emmie was created from a little 6 inch DinkyBaby pattern and she is ready to play. I am definitely not an expert at cloth sculpting but Emmie and Tico are helping me to learn. She is wearing a handmade pink cap covering her sweet little bald head. She is giving me all sorts of ideas for her clothing and she will be modeling them very soon. If you want to learn this type of cloth doll creation, DinkyBabies are a great place to start!!

I Said Stop Procrastinating!!!

How many times do I tell myself this - every day, every week.......but then I procrastinate!

Little Tico sits on my desk and while he has a very sweet face and hair, his hands and feet are not done and he is not dressed! He wants to play football but with claws for hands, it is hard to say the least. He keeps whispering to me that he is not the only one! There are patterns all around me and dolls that are cut out, one that is dirty and needs to be cleaned and new clothes made, and etc, etc. and on and on. They all speak to me and know that their day may never come if I don't get back to working on them.

I tell Tico it is too warm for his cute new hat and booties and so he takes off the hat and says he still can't hold the football and round and round we go. I tell him I am outing myself by showing my friends his pictures and possibly that will motivate me to finish him up. My health issues do slow me down and make me forget but......I still need to get something finished!!! It is good for me, good for Tico, and most of all will be good for the babies we try to help through the March of Dimes.

It is so true what they say about doing for others - when you are so consumed with your own personal issues, whatever they may be, the best cure is to focus on doing something for others!! Right now it is saving my sanity in so many ways - Tico would agree! Hut - Let's play ball!

Getting Ready for Prematurity Month!!!

November is Prematurity Month with the March of Dimes!

We are gearing up for a great month raising money for the March of Dimes in November. There are many activities planned to help ensure that all babies are born healthy. We have several listings online and our Web site is dedicated to helping babies through the March of Dimes. Please check it out at www.linniepies.com! Our Ebay listings are at http://myworld.ebay.com/linniepies.

In our State of South Carolina the statistics are not good and nationwide they are very scary. We all need to work together to give all babies the 9 months they need!

Peristats for an Average Week on our State:

184 babies are born preterm

33 babies are born very preterm

121 babies are born low birthweight

22 babies are born very low birthweight

If you have healthy children in your lives, donate in their honor!

I'm Back!

I'm Back! I finally decided today to put on my big girl panties and get back on the March of Dimes fundraising! I have been a little down and out and haven't accomplished much for the last month or so. Well no more - I have to put my best foot forward - albeit a little wobbly at times. I have materials all around me and a small little room to work in - all I have to do is get motivated.

I have several partners in crime and they create dolls, patterns, etc. to help with not just this effort but also several others. Creating for a cause is our goal and our passion. Check us out at http://www.linniepies.com and see what we have been doing. Our babies Help us Help Babies! A portion of everything we do goes to the March of Dimes!

We only have one week left to raise money for the March of Dimes Walk for Babies!! This little cutie was designed by Vicki Riley of DinkyBaby.com. Vicki graciously donated her and she is our model for the Prematurity Project and she travels with the March of Dimes here in South Carolina to give others an idea of how small a preemie is. Also thanks to Vicki, a portion of every purchase of this pattern or kit will be donated to the March of Dimes. This is an ongoing project for us but we would love to increase our total for the Walk for Babies which ends on 4/25/09. Please consider helping out! If you have a child in your life or your family or friends have been touched by prematurity, please make a donation. Just click on the MOD link on the right. It is tax deductible and very easy to do. Any amount is appreciated!! Help us continue to Help Babies!!

Walk for Babies ~ March of Dimes

We are so excited - it is that time of year - time for the March for Babies! See the link below:

March of Dimes

Please join us in working to support the Prematurity Project through the March of Dimes! This is so important, especially in the economic times we find ourselves in now. So many new moms don't have insurance or good prenatal care which is the best assurance for a healthy baby! We will be loading new dolls to our site to sell for the benefit of this fundraiser - please check back often and help us help babies! They are the key to our future.

We're Moving!

We will be moving the Miss Myrtles site in the next few days. Due to the fact that both my husband and I were unemployed for the last 3 months, we are finding it necessary to cut every corner possible. I am sure lots of others are in the same boat. Anyway - we will be combining all 3 of our Web sites in one place. We will still be raising money for the March of Dimes and the Prematurity Project, we will just be doing it under our WordLee web site. The site should automatically send all visitors to that site within a couple of days. We have some exciting dolls to sell for the cause and should have them loaded soon!! Check back often to see what we have. Let us know your thoughts about the new site - it is under construction now.

www.wordlee.com

Still Working!

We are working hard to get crafters on board to help us with the Miss Myrtles Babies site and the Prematurity Project. Several have promised us dolls and we are so excited!! This week I received a huge box in the mail and inside was an assortment of the most wonderful dolls from Kate Erbach. If you visit Kate's Etsy site linked above, you will see that she makes the most wonderful dolls. I am surrounded by a monster, a pumpkin, a geisha, and so much more. You can't imagine the fun I am having with them visiting me until they are auctioned off for the cause. I believe my favorite is a tall thin man dressed in a red silky shirt and tie seated at a martini bar having himself a much deserved drink. I have had a rough time of it lately but these guys have more then lifted my spirits. The local March of Dimes Director has advised that they would like some of our dolls for an auction in November - I am sure these wonderful creations will bring in a good bit for them. Kate is also the one who donated the Keizi Matthews "Dear Ones" pattern to us for use in making dolls for the Miss Myrtles Babies site. Thank you so much Kate for all your help and support!!!

Carmen with Shweet Potato Designs is also keeping me in good humored graphics for the sites and much more. The two little girls above playing together made me think of how all things are possible when we work together. Thank you so much to Joann Bevan, Sandy Schodt and the other ladies of the DinkyBaby group - they have really kept me afloat!! Joann has sold two of her babies and donated the earnings and she allows us to use her babies for all sorts of things. She has some new ones in the nursery now at LinniePies! Sandy has made the most beautiful Baby to donate - she looks so real and huggable!! Theresa with Grammies Doll Nursery has created a layette for 8 inch babies and she will be donating a portion of all of the sales on that pattern to MMB also! We will have it loaded within the next day or so - it is downloadable!

We are very lucky to have such great doll making friends and we could not do this without them!! I hope to have pictures of all of the babies and dolls contributed posted soon! They are too wonderful for words!!!

Downloadable Pattern is Ready!!

You can now download the Teenee Preemee Pattern by Vicki Riley! Click here to purchase your copy and a portion will be donated to our cause!!! Be sure to read the instructions. Let us know what you think!! We think this is one of Vicki's best yet!!!

We are Getting Official!!!

We are getting official - finally. I was able to obtain a tax ID number for Miss Myrtle's Babies today!! We have put in the paperwork to open a checking account and received donation which came from Vicki Riley with DinkyBaby.com! We are pretty excited. We have also received emails from at least 4 doll makers who will be donating dolls for the cause. We will be posting them on the web site as they are available. The first one is little Caleb from Joann Bevan with Grandamas Crafts in Bluffton, near Hilton Head, SC. He is such a little cutie - you will have to go by and see him. He is dressed in a sweet little homemade diaper with a blue blanket and cap. He has a little dark brown wisp of hair and a sweet little cherub face. He is up for adoption and his fee will be donated to the cause. Visit him at www.missmyrtlesbabies.com under the adoption link. Joann has also donated a sweet little Monkey and he has his own little handmade bib and diaper. You can also find him under the adoption link.

Thanks so much to all who are working toward this effort - I know we can make a difference!! Please send us your stories about pre-term labor or premature deliveries - we would love to post as many as we can on the site.

Excitement is in the Air!

Teenie Preemie Almost Ready!!

We are pretty excited around here today!!

Well Vicki Riley of DinkyBaby.com sent me the picture of the prototype baby for the Teenie Preemie yesterday. You can see her here - she is just so adorable I can't believe it!!! She is our new poster child for Miss Myrtles Babies! My favorite thing is her little hand behind her ear. :) Vicki will be allowing us to sell this pattern on our site as well as donating some of the proceeds to our cause - the prematurity project!! Soon we will be adding some personal stories to the site about pre-mature babies and their families. One of the first will be my beautiful little Great Nephew Carson. He was born at 33 weeks after my Niece went through a very rough two weeks in the hospital trying to stall the labor. He is a beautiful little guy but she really went through a very scary couple of months. I can't wait to post his before and after pictures. He is one of the most beautiful babies I have seen and yes I am a little prejudiced!

Many of you know that I have 4 boys - two of them were difficult labors beginning at 24 & 26 weeks. We almost lost our 3rd Son during that ordeal and I did miscarry my 4th pregnancy. My fifth pregnancy was successful with my Son Philip - now 13 and healthy! He and Clay were born at 37 weeks miraculously after hospital stays, drugs, and so much more. My first two - Andy and Josh - were very normal pregnancies. Proof that you just never know. That is our goal - to help in research to find out what causes so many pre-mature labors and how to better stop them. Our State - South Carolina - is one of the worst in infant mortality rates and pre-mature births!! We hope to help work on that.

As I have droned on about in other blogs, articles, I worked in administrative stuff for the past 30+ years (now I am telling my age) and although this work does require some of those skills, I am so happy to be back to crafting and working for a cause. As many of you know, the past 3 years or so with my work have been very difficult and this year was very painful - sort of like a divorce with my contract. But........through pain and difficulty can come joy and that is what I have found. I just know that Miss Myrtle would be so happy to lend her name to this wonderful cause - if you knew her then you know that she was the most generous caring individual that I have ever had the pleasure of knowing!! I hope to provide more information about her and what a wonderful person she was as we go along. Many of you may not know that she was my dear friend Ann Epting's Mother.

Watch as we grow and move on with this most wonderful cause. Help us help Babies!!!

Miss Myrtle Up and Running!

Well Miss Myrtle's Babies Web site is up and running - finally! Annie with In A Pickle Web Designs saved me - I just could not get it to load for some unknown reason. :) It looks great and we are getting ready to start filling it with products and information to raise money for pre-term babies and research! The Web address is www.missmyrtlesbabies.com - I believe it may take some time to get it rolling but we are over the first hump. Now we have to file the paperwork for the non-profit. We have 3 board members so far - Ms. Carol Martin, Ms. Ann Epting, and myself. I would like to add maybe one or two more for ideas and points of view. If you drop by let us know what you think as we grow and develop the site and the group!
Lynne
www.linniepies.com
www.wordlee.com
www.missmyrtlesbabies.com

Changes! July 14, 2008

Well things are changing around here almost every day! This is my first entry onto the "Official" blog. In the past we have just used a page in our Web site to post the blogs but I thought it may be time to make a change!

We have also completely changed the Web sites to move them more to the craft side as I no longer have any active administrative contracts. I have been working very hard to get the Web pages some activity and start adding more dolls and babies!! We are also working on a new site which will be a non-profit to benefit BABIES!! My favorite topic!! The new site will be Miss Myrtles Babies in honor of a dear frind of mine that died a couple of months ago - Ms. Myrtle Baker. She faught a long battle with Cancer and she is now at peace. Watch for more info on this site - I hope it will do much good!!! This little guy will be our logo - he is "Thinking Andy" which is very appropriate since my oldest is named Andy! I have fallen in love with Shweet Potato Designs and Carmen over there worked this up for me. I just love her graphics and will be using them on all three sites. Change can be very exciting after all!!