Today's Progress...WOW!!!!

Ever have one of those days when everything goes absolutely perfect? No interruptions, you actually have all the fabric you want and the thread. And you really do get to sew!!! Well that's what happened for me today :) I am so happy :) And, I didn't even have to cook (love those leftovers and the microwave).

I was able to get FIVE, count them, 1-2-3-4-5 blocks done today. That actually gets me caught up on my blocks...YES, YES, YES!!!! So here they are, I'm sharing, bragging, whatever. They're done & that's what matters :)

This is the December Basket Case Quilter's Block. I wasn't sure I was going to like this one, but I do. Now, I am waiting patiently for the January block :)... Well, kind of patiently. I'm really trying to be patient...Come on Rosa, I want the January Block NOW!!!!!! ROTFL

The next 4 blocks are for the Quilting the Psalms quilt that I am working on. These blocks are making me step way out of my little box. I am more of a pastel, earth tones girl, and to be using all these BRIGHT colors...OH MY, not really me :) But I am finding myself being persuaded, slightly, toward some bright colors. But definitely not all bright colors!!! (LOL)

And my sewing helper for the day was none other than Miss Sassy. As you can tell, she was really a lot of help!!!! (Yah, right, lots of help) She just changed positions about once an hour or so. But at all times she was right in the middle of what I was doing :) Too funny. But of course now that it's getting late and time to go to bed...she's up and running and wanting to play :)

You know, it looks like she's telling me to keep the noise down in this second picture. What do you think???

January Dear Jane Secret Pal Gifts Arrived!!!!

This evening when I finally made to the mailbox, and boy am I glad I did get to the mailbox, I found a package from my new Dear Jane Secret Pal. Such wonderful gifts there were in the box:) A beautiful hanging cross, which has now found a place right over my computer. A big yellow M&M tin with M&Ms inside, these will be "yummy to the tummy" *grin* She said she chose Yellow to send some Sunshine my way, how very sweet. There was also a really cute box called The Power of Prayer. This little box is filled with awesome Bible inspired encouraging thoughts. These will come in very handy, so they will be staying right here on my desk next to my keyboard!!! And to top it off...my gifts were wrapped in 1930's repro FQs. How cool is that??? Well, it is really a lot more cool than you might think; you see I just decided in the past month to start collecting the 30's repro fabric - now how did she know??? The gift box also included a lovely card with a wonderful little letter :) I found myself really wondering who my Secret Pal might be...but that won't be known, to me, until December!!! The best gift of all was finding out that my Secret Pal is also a Christian. How Awesome is that??? Two year's in a row I have been blessed to have Christian's for Secret Pals :) Pretty cool, at least I think it is cool. I can only hope that I am as good a Secret Pal to my lady :)

2010 BOM....or "Here We Go Again"

Okay, New Year = New Block of the Month, just what I need, another quilt project. (ROTFL)

My Dear Sister-in-law found this wonderful BOM and showed me.
It's Barns, what was I to do??? I have decided to redo the kitchen in "farm stuff", remember? I can't turn this one down (LOL) The name, Quilt Barns, even screams, "put me in your kitchen!"

This AWESOME BOM is from http://thegoldenthimble.com By the way if you haven't visited there you really should. Besides the BOM she has oodles & gobs of really neat stuff to look at, and ponder, and read :) I love visiting there!

Well, when I decided that this was definitely a "Must Have" for me...I had to find some really neat fabric for all those barns I'm going to be "constructing" this year, right? *grin* So for the fabric I took a little visit to McKain's Quilting Fabrics, (online store) and found these wonderful wood look fabrics for my future barns :) I'm so happy! It just doesn't get any better than this...chickens, roosters, barns...what more could I ask for??? Well let's not go there (LOL)

2009 BOM Wall Hanging :)

Well here it is, all put together :) I usually use sashing or alternate blocks between the pieced blocks, but I decided to try it without this time. I think I like it, Yep...I do!!! This will do. I don't know what I'm going to do with it, but I'm sure it will find a home somewhere:)

Well all that's left to do is figure out what I want to use for the backing, and then get it sandwiched and quilted.

2009 BOM

Well here is the last block of the 2009 BOM I was working on.
I'm glad to have this one finished. It wasn't quite what I had hoped for,
but it will make a fine wall hanging...I hope :)

New Kitchen, Coming Up!!!!

I have recently developed a liking for roosters and chickens..don't know why, but I really think they are pretty!!!! Sooooo my gingerbread and apples decor in the kitchen will be changing to roosters, chickens, apple, sunflowers, etc. You know "farm" stuff!!! I have a lot of "collecting" of decor to do, that means thrift shops, goodwill, yard sales, and so on. But that also means some NEW sewing projects, Oh Darn What A Shame!!! *grin*

Well here is my first fabric purchase: Looks like curtains to me, kitchen curtains, that is :)
Wish me luck, I'll keep you posted :)

Civil War Love Letters Signature Block Swap

Earlier this week I received my wonderful packet of signature blocks from the Civil War Love Letters Group ;) They are AWESOME!!!!(The blocks and the People) LOL Anyway, I wanted to share a picture or two with everyone. The first picture is of the blocks that I received. The second picture is of the blocks that I made for the swap:) Can't wait to get this quilt together!!!

Aren't they just absolutely Beautiful? A HUGE Thank you to everyone that participated, and a very special Thank You to our SUPER SWAP MOMMY. :) She did a Fantastic job!!!!

New Year = New Secret Pal :)

Yesterday I received my first correspondence from my new 2010 Dear Jane Secret Pal.
She sent me this beautiful quilted postcard:) In my "thank you" email I mentioned wanting to learn how to make these wonderful quilted postcards...and another sweet person sent me directions as well as a blog to visit with a great tutorial. I will be trying my hand at these very soon:) Looking forward to another super year with the Dear Jane Secret Pal group!!!!

Final Dear Jane Secret Pal Gift for 2009

I was blessed to have the most wonderful, awesome Secret Pal for 2009. She made me so many lovely gifts and wrote such nice notes each month. And of course there was the CHOCOLATE!!!!! Oh sooo Good :) She sent me items from her state of Texas (magnets, sewing kit) such cute and pretty things. Great fabrics and tools, note pads and note cards, and a bookmark, and did I mention all the CHOCOLATE!!!. She really out did herself & spoiled me completely!!!! And if that wasn't enough, the last 6 months she made a quilt block to send to me. Each block depicted something about Indiana, Texas, or Friendships. Well, tonight I was able to sew the 6 blocks together for a beautiful wall hanging. Now it is ready to sandwich and quilt (VBG) The picture doesn't due it justice :( It is absolutely gorgeous!!!

With the December Package I found out who this wonderful lady was; and I found out that she has been following my blog (hope she still is). Since I don't have her permission to reveal her name, I won't, but I do want to thank her, here on my blog. Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!!! You will never know just how much joy your monthly packages brought to me. They always seem to arrive just when I needed a little uplifting and blessing. My deepest heartfelt Thanks and God's Blessings to you.

Our Newest Family Member Update :)

Miss Sassy has finally "made", and I do mean made, our big cat, Samson, accept her.

She refused to leave him alone, she pestered him and pestered him until he gave in. It was really quite comical to watch. She chased, attacked, and used sneaky tactics (LOL), but she got what she wanted; and now they even nap together. We also have a big female cat named Patches. Uuummmm, that relationship is still in the let's say "beginning, refining" stage. (It has a long, long way to go!!!!) Patches is not quite so welcoming! There is still a lot of hissing going on. But thankfully all the confrontations are still "verbal" so to speak.

Now Miss Sassy didn't have to work very hard at all at winning over our grandson. (VBG) This is how they spend their nights...
So precious and peaceful.

So, Now It Snows....

These pictures were taken looking out my backdoor.

Did we have snow on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day?

Oh No!!!!

We didn't get this beautiful wintry scenery until December 27th.

So, Christmas is over and now it looks like Christmas...

Good old Indiana weather (LOL)

Gotta Love It!!!

Well... I'm not too sure these little

birdies are loving it so much.

My Goals for 2010...Well, Maybe!!!

Well maybe Goals isn't really the correct word...more like Hopes, Wants, or Wishes for 2010.



1. Get ALL my swap block quilt tops together, that would be a total of NINE!!!



2. Keep up with the BOM Calendar from Michigan Quilts (Caron Mosey).



3. Finish quilting my Names of Jesus Quilt.



4. Keep up with the blocks for the Quilting the Psalms group :)



5. Make the time to write in my 2 journals. One is a "Treasures of a

Grandmother's Heart" and the other is just an everyday journal.



6. Make sure that I make the time and take the time to read my Bible everyday and stay up to date with the Bible study I have chosen for 2010.



7. Start much earlier on the Christmas gifts for Christmas 2010 :) Yes, I have already began planning them!!!



Wish me luck on these Goals.



I am looking forward to a Blessed, Peaceful and Creative New Year, and I wish all of you the same.

Christmas Day

Christmas morning at our house, the kids were late getting up, so I was able to get the cinnamon and orange rolls baked before the house awoke:) We spent the whole day at home in a wonderfully relaxed state of being (LOL)...it was sooooo very nice. The only thing missing...NO SNOW, NO WHITE CHRISTMAS!!!!

A good time was had by all and I do believe everyone received most of what they wanted. I did get a very unexpected gift a few days before Christmas...a wonderful little "sassy" kitten. Since I am a cat-lover, Miss Sassy was welcomed with open arms, by me at least. The other 2 cats of the house, which are 5 years old, are just not real impressed with a young whipper-snapper, who is always wanting to "play"!!!!

"I SPY" Christmas Gift Quilts

This year I decided to make each of our 8 grandchildren their own "About Me-I SPY" quilt. The idea being that I would select fabrics that reflected their favorite things, colors, activities, etc.

Each quilt would be unique in it's own right, and would definitely be identifiable to it's owner! The alternate blocks would be pieced blocks using each child's favorite color. And each quilt has a different pieced block.

I have been collecting, swapping, and buying fabric for these quilts for 2 years, and finally I felt that I had a large enough variety to get these projects finished this year :) Now, I must say when I first started these quilts, I wasn't real confident that I would get all 8 of them finished for Christmas...but HUGE THANKS goes to several people for telling me they knew I could do it...I did in fact get them finished:)

The kids were very happy with their quilts, and I was very pleased with them too. I had so much fun making each and every one. As I was working on each quilt, that grandchild was my only thought. It gave me time to reflect on each child's life thus far, and time to ponder their lives to come, and of course time to talk to God about each child and offer up many prayers for each one.

A wonderful experience that I will cherish forever.

End of October...Already???? So Much to Blog!!!

Absolutely unbelievable, it's the last day of October, WOW, where did the month go? I have so much blogging to catch up on...whew, it might take awhile :)



October at our house is full of celebrations, 5 Birthdays and 2 Anniversaries!!! Sometimes I think I need to start an "October Club" instead of a Christmas Club just to fund the month :) Needless to say I have eaten more than my share of cake this month, and the proof of that is on my scales! No I'm not sharing that information (LOL)





October is also the month that my Mother comes to visit :) She lives in Florida and very much enjoys the change of season we have here. All the beautiful fall colors and the crispness in the air, and lots of good food. We always do her Christmas shopping while she is here (saves on the shipping costs). And I get to see what everyone is getting *grin*. Just a little background on my Mom, she is one of those that is out of her PJs and dressed before she leaves her room, well almost, but definitely before she sets foot outside of the house. No, I did not inherit that quality...no, no, no...I am happy to stay in my PJs all day, if I'm not leaving the house :) Anyway, back to my Mother, I caught her really "vacationing" while she was here this year...and the proof is in the picture. Gotcha, Mom!!!!! There's no denying it now :) Yes, that is my Mother, in her bathrobe, outside!!!! Gotta Love It :)



The other big news at my house for October is the engagement of my baby boy. I saw it coming, but I still am not quite ready to let go of him. But he asked the question - she said "yes" - so here we go! But not for at least a year, or so they say :) I hope they stick to the next October date. Anyway here's a couple pics of him and the ring :)

Well, that's it for October, along with the next few other postings I did today. Looking forward to November, Thanksgiving, and much sewing to be done!!!!

Bumble Bee Petting

This fall has been rather unique here in our part of creation. We have seen some really strange and unusual things... We have seen some very, very strange looking bugs, flowers blooming out of season, the baby rabbits nest in our backyard, But the "Bumble Bee Petting" was the Best.

These pictures show my granddaughter petting a bumble bee, yep for real!!!

During the afternoon the temperatures were warm enough for the bees to go about their usual business. Then it would cool down quickly in the early evening, and the bees would become like they were "frozen" on the flowers. They would move very, very, very slowly and the kids could actually pet them. It was an unbelievable experience to take part in as well as watch! You can click on these pics to get a closer look.

Quilting the Psalms

Well...I've done it again, I've started another quilt. Just what I need, right???
I joined Carol Honderich's "Quilting the Psalms" group. We will be studying 1 Psalm a week and making a quilt block to go with it. I am so enjoying it! Our first block (pictured above) was for Psalm 1 and it is called Prosperity.

Block #2 pictured above was for Psalm 19 and it is called Rising Sun. Block #3 (pictured below) went with Psalm 37 and the block is called Patience.

I love doing the Bible studies and making a quilt at the same time. In case you are wondering about my Names of Jesus quilt...I have it about halfway quilted, now. I am hoping to get it done by Christmas (fingers crossed). But I have several Christmas projects (gifts) to get done first. Yikes!!!!! My "Countdown till Christmas" tells me to "get it in gear" NOW!

Dear Jane Secret Pal Gift

My wonderful Secret Pal continues to spoil me, and I'm loving every bit of it :) I'm running really behind on posting, this is my September gift. Thank goodness for cooler weather, because there was chocolate in this package, yum, yum, yum!!!! Also a beautiful little sewing kit case that has the Alamo on it, and two really cute magnets from Texas, one with a chili pepper on it and the other has the state flower on it.

Now for the "mystery" quilt block... She gave me this clue to try and figure out the name of the block: "It's named after an important Texas emblem, she didn't know it had a relationship to the emblem, but was told by a quilting friend, "Oh yes, my uncle was one." Anyone out there have any ideas on the name of this block??? At first I thought Texas Ranger, but I don't think that is it. No matter, it is a beautiful block and she did a wonderful job on it. I am so anxious to get all the blocks and get them put together!!!! :) :) :) You can click on the picture to get a closer look.

Pumpkin Harvest

The pumpkins have been harvested and that means that my garden is completely done!

The pumpkin patch belonged to my grandson. He did very well for his first year of pumpkin growing :) He raised only the smaller pumpkins for pie making and did pretty well at selling most of them. Next year he plans to have a bigger patch, with bigger pumpkins, so he can sell more pumpkins!!! We will see *grin*

BOM Quilt Blocks Finished :)

These are the blocks for a 2005 BOM I am doing for a Christmas gift...so I thought I had better get them done!!! Especially since it is already OCTOBER!

The fall leaf block is for October.

This one is for November.

This is of course December.

And this is the finished top. This hand-quilting is also finished now. All that is left to do is add the binding.

Well, that's 1 Christmas gift finished :) Only 10 or 12 more to go!!!!