Merry Christmas

Happy Birthday,

Jesus!

Tu-tu Cute

What do you do when it is a very cold, snowy day and you have 6 yards of tulle??? Why, make a beautiful princess tu-tu, of course!!

My little Sweet Pea helped with this no-sew project, selecting all the colors of tulle, and then, their position on the elastic waistband. She embellished her tu-tu with ribbons and ribbon rosettes. I believe I hear the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies waltzing in my living room!

Tu-tu cute!

Christmas Lovin'

For a number of years, I have participated in a retreat with women that I met through an online quilting e-Group. The retreats are wonderful, and I have met many great ladies that I now call my friends! This year, it was decided that the retreat group would do a little bit of Christmas Swapping amongst ourselves, drawing names and being matched up with those that wanted to "play". I had 2 names...which meant 2 boxes of goodies arriving at my house! The goodies on the left (snowman, lavender sachet, pink zipper bag, and faith sign) are from our retreat hostess, Angela. She is such a talented artist on so many fronts, and sells her original designs and patterns on Etsy and through her web store at www.thecountrycellar.com. Check her out...and maybe order a hand-did item or two!!!

The items on the right (hand dyed yarns, handmade soap, knitting needles, and dish cloth) are from Penny. Penny is one of Angela's sisters, and is quite talented in her own right. I'm excited to start a new project with the yarns Penny sent.

Thank you, both, for sending the lovin'! Looking forward to our retreat time in May!!

Where Does The Time Go?

November was such I busy month! I celebrated another year, and my son announced his engagement to his beloved Rachel. She is so sweet, and a real blessing to our family. The above photo of my Mom, Rachel, and my son Jacob, was taken at my birthday luncheon at Honey Creek Resort on Lake Rathbun in Iowa. Oh, and guess who else joined us for the festivities...

...yep...my sweet little bundle of joy!! Do you know how hard it is to get a 4 year old to smile for the camera!! For some reason, she just wants to give a "posed" smile. Oh well!

Autumn Friendship Swap

I recently participated in an Autumn Friendship Swap with an online group. Kate' from Washington state was my partner, and she made me some beautiful hand embroidered dish towels with coordinating crocheted dish cloths. They are wonderful, and great examples of fine workmanship. Also included were some fabulous recipes that I am anxious to try. Thank you, Kate'!! In return, I made Kate' the following fall wallhanging and apron. The apron had matching potholders, too, I just forgot to take a picture.

Needlebooks

A few months ago, I participated in an online needlebook swap. The swap required participants to make 3 needlecases per set, and then send in your sets to be swapped. I just made and sent in one set, and the 3 needles case I received are posted at left! My needlebooks came from Holland (basket of flowers made from wool), Maryland (30's bowtie wallet style), and Texas (cute chicken...the wing lifts up to store your needles!)! The needlecase that I made and swapped, below, is made from 30's reproduction fabrics and was an original design.

Happy Birthday to You!

Look who's having a birthday today!!

I bet you can't guess how old the birthday boy is!

Let me see...

Is it his first birthday? No.

Or his 7th birthday? No.

It's his 24th birthday!!


Happy Birthday, Jacob!

Who Loves Ya, Baby!

It's not Kojack!! It's me!! It's me!!! Love you bunches!

(She was having some fun at her local county fair over the weekend!!)

Sing A Rainbow

This picture was taken outside my back door a few weeks ago. It was one of those days where the sun was shining, and it was raining at the same time. Just knew there had to be a rainbow!! If you look carefully, you can even see a double rainbow. This had me thinking about, and remembering, my sweet granddaughter who was just here for a month. Every day she wanted to sing...and we had quite an extensive list of songs to sing! And ALWAYS there was at least one song about a rainbow. "Red, orange, yellow, green and blue. Don't forget there's purple, too! Rainbow colors for me and you!" was her favorite. I'd sing her several other rainbow songs, but for her, there was only one...HERS!! "Over the Rainbow", "Sing A Rainbow", "All the Colors of the Rainbow"...none of these would do! And no matter how hard I tried to teach her another one, she would sing loudly over the top of me to drown out the incorrect rainbow song!! LOL!!! "No, Grandma, it goes like this..."!!!

She also sang the cutest version of "Baa Baa Black Sheep". Her version went like this..."Baa baa black sheep, heavy heavy world..."!!!

Lions, and Tigers, and Cheetos! Oh My!!

Have you seen these new Cheetos? They are huge! They are shown, at left, next to regular Ritz crackers and string cheese. They remind me of golf balls. I don't know what Chester Cheetah was thinking, but my sweet little granddaughter had a hard time taking a bite out of one of those monster snacks. However, she did manage to eat them all!!

Mini Road Trip

We recently took a little trip from our home in northern Missouri to St Stephen, Minnesota to pick up my father-in-law, who was visiting from Seattle. On the way home, we paid a visit to some relatives in Iowa. While traveling across northern Iowa, I was amazed at the number of wind farms that have sprung up and now blanket the landscape! I know these have been in California for years, but to see them by the hundreds in the middle of the beautiful corn fields was a little disheartening. You might even say ugly!! I wonder if the farmers will regret allowing these on their land??

We ended our little trip in Columbia, Missouri where we met up with my son, Jacob and his friend, Rachel. (I think I caught Jacob with a very wide-eyed look!! Was it too much coffee??!!! LOL!!! Sorry, son!!)

Summertime!

Guess who's back!! My sweet little Tootsie Roll! We are having oodles and oodles of fun. From swimming to playing in the fountain. She's even modeling the little dress I made her!!

I Love You Beary Much

Another UFO finished...well, almost...it's not quilted yet!! The bear blocks were some of the first blocks that I made when I started quilting. They are hand pieced 9" blocks, and have been sitting in a plastic bag for more than 13 years. I decide this week that it was time...time for these bears to be a quilt and bring joy to a child in need. There are 6 blocks, but only 4 made it into the top. The other 2 will be used on the back.

UFO Finale

I finished my final UFO, "Fallen Leaves", today! It is my 8th finished project of the 15 on my list. Not a bad finish...just over half of my listed UFO's are now complete, some have even been given away as gifts. The UFO Challenge ends on Tuesday, but none of the 7 remaining items will be done before then. In addition to these 8, I have also completed numerous other UFO projects. It feels good, and as Martha would say, "It's a good thing"!!! Hooray!

Dress Up Day!

Earlier this week, I made a dress for my sweet granddaughter! I had purchased the fabric while I was in Arizona in April for just this dress. The fabric is Moda's "Summer Fun" by Deb Strain, and I used a pattern I purchased for cutting out the bodice, and then did my own thing for the rest of the cutting and sewing. I even did some "fussy cutting" to cover the buttons on the dress. Allyson will be here in a few weeks, and then we will be off to Seattle for a family reunion. I thought the "Summer Fun" fabric was a perfect choice for the event! I will be making her a matching purse for all of her little girly-girl needs! I tell you, it's like playing dolls all over again!

Progress

I finished another UFO today! Hooray!! It is not one from my UFO Challenge List, but one of the many that would not fit onto the list of 15. This one was made entirely from scraps, in patriotic colors (I know, the photo is so dark - I even went outside to take the picture but it was overcast, so still not the best!!). The patchwork sashing around the stars are 2.5" squares cut from various red, white blue, and cream/tan fabrics. The inner border is red, and the outer border is blue. This quilt will be donated to the child of one of our fallen soldiers through Project Linus.

Blog Prizes

I recently won a prize from My Creative Corner's Blogiversary!! I was thrilled to receive in the mail this morning this lovely tatted cross for my Bible! How did Vicki know that I carry a very special tatted cross in my Bible...one my Grandma made for me when I was a child! It is one of my prized possessions!! So receiving this one was extra special, and will be at home in my Bible with the one from Grandma! Grandma's tatted cross is on the left with a red (my favorite color) ribbon through it, and the beautiful white one, on the right, is from Vicki!! This made my day!

Also in the envelope was loads of charms squares!They all have gold metallic thread in them, and will make for a pretty quilt!!

Thank you so much, Vicki!!

Small Finishes

This weekend, I finished a couple of small quilts...finished, at least, to the "top" stage! They still need to be quilted.

The first is from a pattern called "Bloom" by Renee Plains of Liberty Star patterns. It measures approximately 25" x 29" and was made with 30's reproduction fabrics. It is sweet, and I made this almost entirely from my stash...almost!!

The second mini quilt was a kit I received while at retreat. We had a Brown Bag Swap, were one or more items of $15 to $20 value were placed in a sealed bag, and then swapped among participants! You didn't know what you were getting until you opened your bag!! It was so much fun, and the bags were filled with oodles of quality quilting stuff. My bag contained this kit, a spool of thread, and a package of cute cupcake note cards. The kit is called "Pat's Fresh Farm Flowers" by Pat Sloan. It was quick and easy to make, but I'm still trying to decide how I want to quilt it.

Finished Objects

I've been working away at my UFO's for the challenge I entered into in January. So far, I have completed 7 of the 15 named UFO's. The first one is called "Jolene Star" by Laundry Basket Quilts. It was from a kit of Civil War reproduction fabrics I had purchased from Backdoor Quilts while at the AQS show in Des Moines, IA last fall.

The second finish is tablerunner. It, too, was a kit I had purchased from Prairie Star Quilts while at the AQS show. The kit was actually a one star wallhanging, but there was enough fabric in this kit to make 3 stars! So I put them together to make a tablerunner for my long dining room table! This also was made with Civil War reproduction fabrics.

The third UFO completed is a homespun snowball quilt. Most of the blocks were acquired through an online swap many years ago. I added a few extra blocks to make it a usable size, and then added a piano key border.

It is a good feeling to have completed 7 of my UFOs. I may be able to complete one more before the challenge ends on June 30th.

Duty Calls

We are taking our sweet granddaughter home today...early!! I've been summoned for jury duty, and have to report next week, so home she must go! For her "farewell" luncheon, Allyson chose Pizza Ranch (or Pizza Branch, as she calls it!!)...her favorite!! G.G. joined us and we had a great time! I so hate to see her go, but know that she will be back again in July for a longer visit! And jury duty should be over with by then!

Out of the Sawdust

Just returned from a very memorable retreat! This was the best retreat...the fellowship was fabulous, loads of laughter, and so many fun projects were made!

The first night of the retreat, a typical spring storm moved in, including thunder, lightening, rain, and straight-line winds. The winds moved in and out very quickly, but not before pushing a large maple tree onto my car! As demonstrated by the photo at left, the car was a total loss. I continually thank God that only the car was damaged and all human life was spared! Just 20 feet in another direction, and the tree could have fallen on the retreat center with all of us in it! My insurance company set me up with a rental car, and I was able to resume my time at retreat and them head home.


This is my new car! It's a PT Cruiser, and it is so much fun! (Yes, Jacob, it's an "old lady's car"!!! LOL!!) This baby will hold lots of quilting stuff for the next retreat! Ladies, I'm so ready...but I get the parking spot farthest away from the trees!!

Burned Hard-Boiled Eggs

Yes, hard-boiled eggs, do, indeed, burn! As I was attempting to get myself ready to head out for a retreat tomorrow morning, I was making sure my sweet husband had some food prepared in my absence. This included some chicken, and 9 hard-boiled eggs. I put the eggs on to boil, and headed upstairs with a load of "put away" items, then I'd come back down stairs and set the timer for the eggs to boil their allotted 10 minutes. While upstairs, I found some binding for a quilt ready to be sewn together, so I quickly made the binding, and then decided to apply it to the quilt. That didn't take long, either. I was feeling pretty good about the entire process...only an hour to do the binding and the "put aways". I had laid the quilt out on the floor to admire it's beauty, when I heard a loud "pop"! I thought to myself, "Wonder what that was?"!! Then, the smell of burnt toast was enveloping the room. I thought to myself, "Wonder what that could be? Is one of the neighbors burning tree limbs again?". So, I decided to investigate. As I made my way to the staircase, it occurred to me what the smell was!! I panicked, and ran! THE EGGS! I had completely forgotten about them! The loud "pop" I heard was the eggs exploding! The pan had boiled dry, and was not far from catching fire! I turned the gas burner off, and thanked my God for sparing me a house fire! Think I might have to buy a new pan, too!

Bunny Update!

Here's a little update on the bunnies...there are 5! The Momma moved them this week...a whole 2 feet north of their birth location!!! Still in the middle of the lawn, next to the dog pen. They are not under the the clothes line anymore, but beside it. LOL!!! The Momma Bunny has been spotted tending to her young, and they are growing rapidly. I find it interesting that the only protection these babies have is the taller grass around them. Nothing over the top to shelter them from the daily rain we have been having.

Bunny Fever

It's spring in Northern Missouri, and that means new life on the farm...including the rabbits! A wild rabbit decided to give birth to her new babies right in the middle of our lawn! 10 feet from the dog pen. Under the clothesline. In the middle of the back lawn. These are brand new babies...they're still furless! The baby bunnies (in the picture at left) are hidden under the fur-lined nest their Momma made them. She was nowhere in sight when I took the picture, but I'm sure she was watching nearby. My husband is out mowing the lawn this evening, and I told him to be sure and skip that part of the lawn for a while!! Usually, these little bunnies are born in less obvious places..not sure why the Momma decided to choose a very open, visual spot. It will be fun to watch them grow and leave the nest!

All Dressed Up

This is my second "cuddle quilt" for the retreat I'm going to in May. The pattern is called "Darci's Dress Up" by Quilted Quickies. There is also a modified version of this pattern in the current issue of Quick Quilts magazine. I used Mary Engelbreit's "Recipe for Friendship" fabric (layer cake) to make the quilt. The little purses in the corners were my idea!!

I'm off to Arizona in the morning to visit my sister, and to quilt my large stack of quilt tops!!

He Has Risen Indeed!

A Joyous Resurrection Day to You!

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who according to His great mercy
has caused us to be born again to a living hope
through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
to obtain an inheritance which is
imperishable and undefiled
and will not fade away,
reserved in heaven for you,
who are protected by the power of God
through faith
for a salvation ready to be revealed
in the last time.

1Peter 1:3-5

Cuddle Quilt

I've been working on a couple of baby quilts for a retreat I will be attending in Indiana mid May. As an "entrance fee" to the retreat, we are to make and bring a baby quilt for the local crisis pregnancy center. I have made two -- one for a boy and one for a girl! The baby boy quilt, shown at left, is made of flannel, and is so cuddly soft! The little girl quilt needs the borders sewn on, and then it will be ready to be quilted. Will post a photo as soon as the borders are on!!

I am so looking forward to the retreat in May! It is with a group of wonderful women from an online quilting group that I have been a part of for many years. We come from all corners of the U.S., as well as one from Canada, to Indiana for 4 days of quilting and laughter.

Spring Shop Hoppin'

Yesterday, I participated in my first Shop Hop of the year! It was a small Shop Hop, as most of the stores are very rurally located, and travel between the shops was long. But the weather was great, and I managed to hit all 6 shops, and submit my card for entry to win some great prizes.

At left are a few of the goodies I bought on my Hop! I'm planning on making a tote bag with the "Fresh" charm pack and coordinating fabrics, and a quilt with the Mary Engelbreit "Recipe for Friendship" layer cake and coordinating fabric. The pattern, called "Bloom", is so sweet, and I will make this one up using my 30's reproduction fabric stash.

Each of the participating shops on the Hop were giving away packets of quilt seeds...twenty 2-1/2" squares of coordinating fabrics! In addition, each shop gave away a free pattern representing their take on the "Springtime Garden" theme using the quilt seeds. I came home with several really cute embroidery and wallhanging patterns. I'm ready to get started on a few, but they will have to wait until I finish up a few more UFO's!!

Lessons From Mama - Block #4

Month four from "Lessons from Mama" is complete! I picked my kit up yesterday, and made the block this morning. These are not difficult blocks, and I'm so glad to be completing these, in a timely fashion, as I get them. In the past, when I've participated in BOM programs, I would procrastinate on getting started, only to have the blocks pile up and become overwhelming. This is why last year's Thimbleberries Big Quilt BOM is still sitting on the floor in my sewing room, incomplete. I am working on it, and plan to have it completed by year's end.

Because He Loves Me

My sweet hubby
sent me this
bouquet of tulips for
Valentine's Day...

...because he loves me!

For the Love of ME

...Mary Engelbreit, that is! This is one of my UFO's (not on the challenge list), and it is now a quilt top! This is just a panel that I put several borders on, and paper pieced the little pinwheel corner stones. Quilting to come soon, as I hope to give this as a gift to a friend.

Yesterday, my local quilt shop hosted a "Quilter's Rumble" at a local community center. This was an all day event for those of us who are Super Bowl widows or non-football enthusiasts. It was a time to sew on any project you wanted and share in some good fellowship. So, I brought my ME fabrics that I purchased several years ago, and started on my top. I finished up the last border this morning.

An Honest Tag

My friend, Angela, recently tagged me for the "Honest Scrap"! It is my duty to reveal 10 honest things about myself that I have never blogged about, as well as list 5 addictions. Then I'm to tag 5 of my blogging friends to do the same.

1. I meet my husband on a blind date. We were married 10 months later.

2. I love bread...especially homemade bread. Had to quit making it though, as it seems the bread loves me back just as much!

3. I used to be very skinny! My nickname in school was "Twiggy", and I weighed 107 lbs when I got married.

4. I cut my fabric using the lines on my cutting mat!

5. I have a fear of heights. Consequently, I don't like to fly, or go up into tall buildings, etc!

6. I'm a "saver"! My daughter was recently surprised to learn I still had her Popples and Trapper Keepers from her childhood!

7. I have always loved dolls! I still have most of my dolls from childhood, too...Barbie, Mrs. Beasley, Chrissy, and numerous others.

8. I play the guitar.

9. I wanted to be a forest ranger.

10. I'm, technically, a high school drop-out! Yes, I have a high school diploma, but I had to drop out of high school in order to graduate a year early!!!

Five addictions: fabric, granddaughter, antique sewing cabinets, Bath & Bodyworks glycerin bar soap, and bread!!!

So, now I tag Peggy, Michelle, and anyone else who would like to share, honestly, about themselves!

Sewing Some Love

This morning, I made this little tote bag for my sweet granddaughter. It was so much fun to make, and took no more than an hour of my time! I will fill it with other goodies that I have been collecting for Valentine's Day. My granddaughter is such a little girlie-girl...and a pack-rat!! What better than a new purse to carry all her treasures in! The tote/purse measures 7.5" x 6" (not including the handles), and was made with the "Strawberry Lemonade" fabric line by Moda.

Red Roses from the Garden

This morning, I have been working on a very old UFO. (And this one happens to be on my UFO Challenge list! Yay!) This is one of my early quilting projects, and I had originally planned on making this quilt for my bed. But, I was still new to quilting, and I did not buy enough fabric, and, as you may have guessed, the fabric was no longer available (it was a WalMart find). So, I put it away for many years, and came across it several years ago. I almost scrap piled it!! I'm glad I didn't! I like the little quilt (it's lap size), and I'll be even happier when it is quilted, bound, and on my quilt rack!

Thanks, Jacob, for the "EV Settings" suggestion on my camera. I have been playing with it, and it has helped! I will need to play more, but at least I know there is a solution! This picture was taken with the new setting, and although one side of the picture is still dark, it is mostly due to the fact that the top is not laying flat and creating its own shadow.

Lessons From Mama - Block #3

Here is the January block from the "Lessons from Mama" BOM. The colors are pink and green (not the peach and brown that they look in the picture!!) This was a quick block to make...just a nine patch variation!

Does anyone have any tips for taking better pictures?? I sure am frustrated with how the colors turn out so dark when I take photos indoors. ~sigh~