Friday Sew and Tell!

I love Fridays!  I get to see some of the most creative and lovely things on Amy's blog...click on the button on the side and find out what beautiful projects these incredibly talented women have been working on!

Me...well, after yesterday's comments, I realized I'm more of a perfectionist than I would like to admit!  Not so much about stuff for me or around the house (just ask KT about that...I fly by the seat of my pants most times!), but when I'm making something for someone else, I worry about all the little details.

Here's how I finished off the snowflake block.

Hubby bloke's (hint of where we're going for lunch!  Yippee!) grammy had this incredible stash of fabric.  I was playing around with it and liked the colors with the blue snowflake background.  I have this beautiful purple fabric and well...they spoke to me.

It's really quite soft and subtle...a lot like snowflakes themselves.  I'm going to keep the hexagonal shape and bind it with

the white on the bottom...which is just shot through with little, silver flecks.  Matches the blue snowflake background fabric beautifully.  Does anyone want the silvery, shimmery, see through snowflake material on top?

There's less than a fat quarter and I bought it with delusions of grandeur for this block...lol...I will send it to the first person who lets me know they can use it for something.

Progress on my bunny.

Hexes I whipped up to play with for the mini snowflake...and decided against.

What a 4th grader takes to school to play with and trade like Pokemon cards!  LOL

There is a string on the lid, which explaines why there is what I think is dirt (or chocolate) on the snowflake.

What is it with us and getting my minis dirty?

LOL

We have games tomorrow!

I get to wear my personalized "First Aid/Trainer" shirt!

Happy weekend!

Now What?

Argh!

I sewed the pattern faithfully, and I'm wonky in the middle...well, so's the snowflake block...my middle's waaaaay wonky...but look at what I've given birth to...yours would be wonky too if you had had them!

Do you have a wonky middle?

LOL

Help!

I have no idea how to finish this off.  It looks really pretty pinned up...from across the room!

I'm clueless.

(to those of you in the peanut gallery asking yourselves "what's new about that?"...watch it!  Santa is listening.  Close!)

Don't know.

Shameless plug for you to join in on being "real" in your blog life.

"Everyone else is doing it!"

Realizing how little all of this

and this

 and this

really matter when you have

and

family!  Meet the newest addition to our menagerie!

A cute little frog Bean made in school.  Here he is, just lazing around on his lilypad.  Hopping for a fly to pass by.

Updated to add that this afternoon, I hit the button to register our oldest, Javi, for college.  Where has the time gone?

Never Forgotten

A Veteran’s Day Prayer

Dear Lord,

Today we honor our veterans,

worthy men and women

who gave their best

when they were called upon

to serve and protect their country.

We pray that you will bless them, Lord,

for their unselfish service

in the continual struggle

to preserve our freedoms, our safety,

and our country’s heritage, for all of us.

Bless them abundantly

for the hardships they faced,

for the sacrifices they made

for their many different contributions

to America’s victories

over tyranny and oppression.

We respect them, we thank them,

we honor them, we are proud of them,

and we pray that you will watch over

these special people

and bless them with peace and happiness.

In Jesus’ name we pray; Amen.

By Joanna Fuchs

Thank you, one and all...

I wanted to share some watercolor quilting with you today.

This is a small pillow I'm still working on...well, it only needs stuffed and sewn shut...but I'm a great procrastinator!

This is a pillow sham for our bed.  I'm bummed about the color, because the fabrics are so beautiful!

Looking at them as photos (an idea someone from another blog gave me), shows me where I should have worked a little harder to blend in the fabrics.

These are all 2"x2" squares before sewing.  So, you see, the 1 1/2"x 1 1/2" squares I'm working with now aren't that new to me!

Yesterday, I took the mini quilt pattern to be copied again. I didn't realize there were two different templates. When I asked the person helping me to increase the size by 50%, I thought it looked a little big?

I got home and have two different sizes of templates.  So, it's back to the UPS Store to have more copies made so I can work on the snowflake paper piece project.  Argh!

Today is a med check for Middlest.  Routine 6 month to check weight, progress etc.  He's getting an A in classic Literature and an A+ in the science class he takes at our local middle school.  I would say an A in Spanish and B's in Algebra I.  I don't grade his grammar (also part of his Lit and Greek/Latin root word class) because we're working on writing essays...focusing more on the basics and form than a grade.  I'm also not grading him for US History. 

We're using a curriculum that's based on the monuments in and around Washington D.C.  So cool.  He's learning Washington's "Rules of Civility" right now.  We also just watched "Arlington", a PBS video about the national cemetary...its history, customs and importance to our nation.

Very fitting given today's significance.

Remember them all...pray for those still serving...and thank you to their families and friends who unselfishly serve at home while their loved ones serve us and them!

Hawthorne Threads Newsletter and Giveaway!

Last week, I signed up for Hawthorne Threads newsletter.  Yesterday, it was emailed out.  I love it when people go out of their comfort zone and try something new.  Especially when they're married and still in love after all of what Life slings our way!

To celebrate another married couple's "love birdness"...they're having a giveaway!

First place winner will receive a Firenze Bag Kit. This kit includes a pattern with instructions, fabrics, muslin, cording, color coordinated thread and zipper - all necessary materials except interfacing!

Wow!

Second and Third Place winners will receive a Fat Quarter set of Girly Girl in Sweet by Patricia bravo.

I just love the orange and pink together!

Sew, hurry on over to

http://www.hawthornethreads.com/giveaway

for a chance to win!

Okay...breakfast is eaten and the caffeine is starting to make its way south to be absorbed and redistributed throughout this tired, old, sore body!  LOL

Today, I don't feel so behind in everything.  We spent the weekend at basketball games and raking our front yard and getting the cars ready for winter.

All the boys pitched in (Javi up after 5 days of the flu) and hubby sweets' dad brought his leaf blower over to help.  We live in an older neighborhood with tons of trees!  Which I like for picturesque-ness and cooling properties in the summer.  But, man o' man...in the fall, I hate trees!  LOL

I'm working on Ansje's mini...more winter themed paper piecing! 

and a little project that finally proves, beyond a shadow of a doubt...that I am insane!

I am attempting to recreate in fabric, this cross stitch panel.  I have this thing for bunnies.  I'm almost halfway through the bunny on the left.  Using scraps from my scraps.  LOL  With the squares only ending up measuring 1"x1".  Sort of a postage stamp quilt, only of bunnies, a basket of flowers, hollyhocks, a garden gate and birds (more animals I have a thing for...sheesh!).

I understand if you want to stop following my madness now! 

But, I'm having a blast!

Happy, snuggly, Indian Summer day to you!

Sharing the Sunrise

I got a phone call this morning from hubby sweets.  He was on his way to work and I was getting ready for co-op.

He wanted to call and share the sunrise with me.  Now, this picture is not my sunrise.  LOL  My sunrise was shared with the roofline of my neighbor's house, but the colors are very much the same, and since I was nowhere near decent enough to walk down and get the camera...I thought I'd share what my heart saw sharing this moment with my best friend.

Very rarely does reality match what our hearts and heads see.  This morning, I wasn't watching the sun rise over the neighbor's black roof with all the wires we have to have for electricity...my heart soared above and took me to the place I live with hubby.  A beautiful and magical mixing of his colors (blues) and mine (everything else) where the horizon meets a landscape shrouded in mystery and promise.

Sappy, I know.  Not always a reality....especially when I've taken NyQuil and am grouchy or he's trying to tickle my feet at 2a.m. because he can't sleep...

but for the most part, this is what my heart and head see when I think about my life with him.  All the years we've shared.  All the joy and sorrow that we've shared.

Our future together is out there, joined just like the horizon and the land.  Misted with unknowns, but never alone or afraid.

Blessed am I.

Friday Finish!

Holey granola bars and Dunkin Donuts...It's Friday again!  Wow!  This week went fast!  I think I'm caught up enough to work on some sewing today.  Please?

My Friday Finish is "Snow Cat" for my STUD swap bud-Scootin' Annie.  Forget when I started it...LOL

But, here it is finished.   Well, almost.  I do need to wash it.  I'm not sure how...but some caramel dipping sauce got on the kitty's tummy.  Probably from my knuckle.  LOL  That's what you get for trying to put on the binding while having a fall, appley treat!

Miss Kitty (see her collar is pink!) is 9x10 3/4".  The picture doesn't show it well, but the border is chock full of browns, greens and turquoise in the shape of what I'm deciding to call snowflakes.  This is a December swap, but under the "Anything Goes" category.

I'm so diggin' the binding!  It has the exact same colors in a stripey stripe...but not from the same designer!  How cool is that?

I got out my DMC floss and stitched eyes, mouth, whiskers and tail...the nose was so much fun to draw on and then stitch into being!  Too cute of a pattern I found online Googling paper-foundation-piecing-patterns-FREE.

I used my hex paper templates to fussy cut three, white snowflakes.  I will put the date on the smaller one and a "To" and "From" on the larger ones (in the circle part of the snowflakes).

Your typical me swirling stippling.

I really hope she likes it...'cause if she don't, I may ask for this one back!  LOL

Today is the day I'm making copies for another paper pieced mini quilt.  I've met a super sweet gal over on flickr named Ansje.  We started emailing each other over our quilts and projects and decided to do a non-organized swap on our own for November.  We found we had done a lot of the same projects and liked a lot of the same patterns and colors.

You can see her work and world here

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30991293@N04/

Pop on over to amylouwho's blog by clicking on the Sew and Tell Friday button.  I'm headed there right now to look at how motivated we all were this week and what beautiful things we accomplished!

Have a happy day!

We Ate the Cow...Mopping Up...My Baby Loves Me...Falling Off the Wagon!

Hello out there in blogland!  It's good to be back!  LOL  I've spent the last three days recuperating from the basketball jamboree!  So much fun and I'm so proud of the boys for how they played!

We had enough sloppy joe's left over to take to the coach's house and feed our starving families!

All the ???dogs were gone and the brownies and cookies were sold!

We learned a lot and have some different ideas for next home game.

Hubby pumpkin was manning the camera and took some way cool action shots:

Middlest.

We always get comments on how tenacious he is and how fast at getting in and stealing the ball away from the opponents.  That he is fearless and strong.

We just explain he's also keeper for the soccer team.

*smile*

Bean, who is in the fourth grade, played junior high ball and was one of the smallest players out there.

He is eager, fast and ready to play!

After three days of wearing hip waders through the house...ahem...hubby muffin decided Mommy needed some encouragement and affirmation and came home with these

One for each boy still breathing at the end of the day.  LOL

Onto quilting business.

These are why I jumped fell off the wagon to not buy any more fabric this year.  Not even sure what they will be yet, but at least they're folded neatly and snuggled down next to the other babies in the stash stacks.

My STUD (Swap Til You Drop) bud sent me a beautiful paper pieced mini for October.

I think she did a fantastic job and the button in the middle has its own little "pieced" theme going!  Thank you Cyndi!

You can head on over to the Flickr group to see the other swap partners and maybe join us in the fun?

http://www.flickr.com/groups/877639@N22/

 November partners were just chosen.  And Scootin' Annie is my bud this month.

I have already started her mini.  She likes browns, greens and turquoise mixed together.

Purrfect.  Don't you think?

Sew-Fantastic is having a giftaway.

http://sew-fantastic.blogspot.com/2009/11/new-dot-com-site-launch-hawthorn.html

They're gifting away a 6, 1/2 yd bundle of fabric.  I'm so excited, I can't stand it this is such a great giftaway!

Not only the 1/2yd bundle, but a fat quarter set too.

You have to go here

http://www.hawthornethreads.com/giveaway?is_registered=TRUE

to view and register for that. 

Updated to add another giftaway going on to celebrate 100 posts for jaybird quilts.

1. a quilt kit for easy 1..2..3 of spring fever [quilt #2}

2. a charm pack from spring fever

3. a pinwheel & rubber ducky from me & my sister's booth decorations!

http://www.jaybirdquilts.com/2009/11/100th-post-giveaway-wip-wednesday.html

So scurry, scurry little fabric fiends!

Thanks all for the congrats on the win.  I'm watching my mailbox for two super sweet packages that should be coming soon.  One from Jenn (we did a swap on the side last month) and the 1/2 yd cuts.

Hope you all have a groovy day with lots of laughter and sewing!