A Day for a Wedding

Yesterday was a beautiful day here in Northern Missouri. The sun was shining, the sky was blue, a light breeze blew, and the humidity was low! A perfect day for an outside wedding. Our friend's oldest son was married yesterday, outside on the family farm. Although one of the shortest ceremonies I have attended, it was quite lovely in the afternoon sun. Somehow, it made me feel so old when the little boy that use to run around my house and play with my son, grew up and took a family of his own!

We pray God's guidance on their marriage.

Much love to Ben and Molly!

Doing the Triangulation!

I'm working on another scrap quilt using my leftover Thimbleberries fabrics. The quilt is called "Cumberland" and is made entirely with 3" finished half square triangles (hst). Since I'm needing approximately 300 hst, I decided to use the Triangulation software to make the process faster and more accurate. You can get an idea of what the block will look like from the photo on the left. Just imagine it sewn together!!

Using My Noodles

I made this braid tablerunner over the weekend from a pattern I bought several years ago! I wanted to give it a try as it is a "quilt-as-you-go" style pattern. The borders were leftover fabrics from an apron swap I was in last fall, and the braids are from a 2.5" noodle swap I participated in from an online swap group! The "quilt-as-you-go" technique was easy and fun, but I did not like the looks of the finished quilting on the back of the runner. I used white muslin for the backing fabric, and I think a print fabric would have hid the quilting! Should I choose to make this again, I will know better!!

Sweet Sunshine

Just finished some sewing for the day! It's a cute quilt for ME!!! I think this will be a first! I made this from scraps from my Thimbleberries leftovers! That's right...this is a "freebie"! Just love it when I can get another quilt from my leftovers and cast offs. Sad part is, you cannot tell I used up any of my scraps! I used the "Sweet Sunshine" pattern from This & That patterns by Sherri K. Falls. The pattern is charm pack friendly, but I just cut nickel squares from my scrap drawer. The finished size is 60" x 60". Now, to get it quilted!!!

Yodel-Le-He-Hoo!

One of my husband's and mine's favorite places to go when in Washington is the Bavarian town of Leavenworth. Leavenworth is nestled on the eastern slopes of the Cascade Mountains, just 30 minutes from Steven's Pass. In the 1960's, this railway town was transformed into a Bavarian-themed city, in hopes of bringing in year-round tourism. Well, it worked!! Needless to say, not only did hubby and I enjoy the trip, but I think a good percentage of the state's population was there as well!! It was very crowded to say the least!

Leavenworth was just finishing up it's "Arts in the Park" series for the summer, so we were able to take in some of the traditional German music, as well as arts and crafts booths set up in the park.
Shopping in the shops was fun, too, but so many of them seemed the same!! Leavenworth does have a quilt shop, although quite small, but it doubles as a bed and breakfast that holds quilt retreats and such. I was able to find a fun pattern in this shop!




While strolling the streets of Leavenworth, we happened upon an ice cream shop that actually had "no sugar added" ice cream!! I was able to have a scoop of the Huckleberry Heaven! WOW...it was fantastic! "Heaven" was just about right on this one!! LOL!!! Huckleberries grow wild in the Cascade Mountains, and huckleberry products are found in almost all of the tourist-y places (gift shops, airports, Leavenworth!!). Huckleberries are yummy!







And, finally, what trip to eastern Washington would be complete without some Wenatchee grown Bing Cherries! These are soooo much bigger, and sweeter, than the ones in the grocery store in the Midwest! These little beauties were bigger than a quarter!

Oh, Washington, My Home...

...Yes, that is the state song!! Spent a week in Seattle...well, not Seattle proper, mostly in Woodinville, where my in-laws live, but most would not know where I was unless I say Seattle!! Woodinville is on the "east side" of Seattle. Before our big move to Missouri in 1994, we lived in Duvall, another "east side" community, set in the foothills of the Cascade mountains. It was a rural community, filled with dairy farms. Now it is a suburb, with all but a few of the farms still in existence. But it is still beautiful country! Just a 30 minute drive up the valley from Duvall sits the town of Snoqualmie. What makes Snoqualmie famous is the Falls!! Just had to go and take in their beauty. There is a wonderfull lodge (Salish Lodge) that you can see to the top, left of the Falls, that has a fabulous breakfast! Wasn't able to partake this time, but will make it a stop on the next trip!




I managed to get in a mini shop hop of my own while home! Went to quilt shops in Duvall, Monroe, Woodinville, Redmond, and Bothell. Keepsake Cottage Fabrics, in Bothell, was by far my favorite. This shop is small, but every inch of space was used! Lots and lots of great fabrics and quilts on display. They even had a room devoted to 30's reproduction fabrics!! I brought home lots of goodies!

A Sweet Companion

Our sweet "little" Merfie O'Gracie has died! Merf, an Irish Wolfhound, was our son's dog. She was such a love. Irish Wolfhounds are a large breed dog (known as "Gentle Giants"), and Merf was "small" for her breed at 140 lbs. and a little under 6' in height! But she was 140 lbs of lovin'!! She loved human contact, and would lean into you when you stood near her. If you were to sit next to her, she thought she was a small lap dog, and tried to sit on you! What a sight that was! She loved BIG trucks and tractors that went down our street. She galloped after them like a clumsy horse! She will be missed, and remembered fondly!