Quilts are done...the piecing that is....

This was a very productive weekend and Monday. I was able to complete 5 quilt tops on the longarm and 2 of my own quilt tops are now pieced. I am still behind on one quilt for the longarm machine and I will be loading that this morning, but first I wanted to put up my two quilt tops!!!

The first is the French Braid!!! WOW did this one turn out beautiful!! Don't ya' think? I'm going to be teaching this one in the fall at the local quilt shop "The Village Quilt Shoppe" at Canterbury Village.
The shop owner asked me when I was going to teach the French Braid and finally said "lets do it!" so we picked out fabrics and I threw in the green centers and bottom triangles from my stash. I think this one is a beauty!

So I had to throw in a few pictures of it....lol
The second quilt is from http://www.quiltville.com/. It is Bonnie Hunter's "Jared Takes a Wife" the block itself I believe is called Blackford's Beauty. This quilt fought with me! But as you can see I won! LOL Actually, it was my fault...the original sashing..well I cut it 1/4inch too short. I was not a very happy quilter when I did that! So I had to rip out what I had sewn between the blocks because it was the sashing and corner stones that went in between the rows that I cut short. I had to change my plans and went with the fabrics that are in there now.

I'm very pleased with my work, now I just have to figure out what to do with these two quilts? I do have leftovers from the French Braid so I'm thinking of some table runners or banner quilts to hang in the foyer.
Yesterday was also an interesting day because our Pastor's wife and their daughter were in a head on collison. It was not their daughter's fault, she was the driver. The other driver fell asleep at the wheel!! My goodness!! Bonnie and Abby are safe and at home now, but that was a scarey evening for them. Bonnie has been through so much in the last several years with breast cancer, death in the family (her mom and Pastor's mom)and now this wreck. We know that the Lord is in control and will not hand you more than you can take. You just have to remember to lean on Him!
My sister Gail has gotten a good report about her colon cancer. Yes, it is stage 4 and it is in her bloodstream, but the only spot they can find that it has attached itself to is her left ovary. Chemo will begin in a week or so.

My Kate is coming home this weekend. I'm so excited to see her!!! She is trying to move back with us, yes, she is 24 but that is ok, we are one of the few parents that don't mind if our kids are still home...hehehe. She enjoys sewing so we will have a nice time together this weekend. I'm hoping she will begin pursuing her life long dream of being in the fashion industry. She is a very talented young lady.

Well it is time for me to get moving off the computer.

Later gator!

The Lord is Great!

I've been so overwhelmed with all that is going on, health issues, homeschooling schedule and church responsibilities....that I just shut down. Absolutely nothing was accomplished. I said a little prayer, talked with the Lord for just a few minutes and things are confirmed now. I feel somewhat relieved, you know we can't do it all by ourselves, even though we try.
I received a phone call two days ago about my sister, Gail. The cancer has only attached itself to her left ovary, just a small amount(still in her blood stream though). She is thrilled, she was expecting the worst. She will have her port put in in about 2 weeks, then chemo will begin. Her outlook is so much better now, I know she was scared. I was scared for her!
My nephew is having his knee x-ray'd today? for his knee cancer. He is only 16. Somehow he was diagnosed with the same knee cancer that Patrick Kennedy had. Christopher's outlook is "He is claiming victory in the Lord! He is saying after these weeks of chemo that the tumor is gone!" Praying that the Lord has healed him! Mom and Dad say he is walking like he used to, no limp and that shows them that the tumor has shrunk. Praying!!!
Quilting: I think I'm just gonna focus on enjoying the art of quilting, the art of creating. I truly can't homeschool, teach bible study classes, be a mom, clean the house and be a wife to hubby....man just too much to do. I want to do it all, I want to help, serve and share, but somewhere I have to enjoy the process of it all. Find a good medium, you know?
Doctor called last night about our lab results. John is good, no celiac, I'm good...no celiac. Steve, well he does not produce enough antibodies for the bloodwork test to show, so....he will have another type of bloodwork test done. Doctor gave me a choice, scope/biopsy or bloodwork...ummmm I think we are going to go with the bloodwork. If that does not work then we will do the scope.
Step-daughter Kate might be moving in. I'm hoping she does, I miss her terribly! But I want to make sure the timing is right for her to move back in with us. She is 24 and needs to figure out what she wants to do with herself. She has a fantastic job at the bank and she does want to make that work, but she has this creative side that she needs to explore. Coming here allows her space, quiet time for her to explorer that.
Time to get moving, just got an idea for a quilt!! LOL...Have you ever played with your fabric so much and pulled different pieces together, made piles all over your flat surfaces, put the piles in separate bins, with patterns? Oh my goodness, I've been doing that! I have 16 bins, they are slightly larger than a shoe box, enough for yardage to lay flat . I thought to myself, you know if you take all this fabric out of the bins and put it back in your stash...do you realize just how much your stash will grow? Oh my, I'm a fabricaholic! LOL I love it! Time to go create!!

Man it has been a while since I posted...

Life is getting to be a little difficult but we are adjusting. Chris officially has Celiac disease, biopsy confirmed. Now we are going to work on Steve's GI tract problems. I will say that Steve has had great week!
I've been working on a few quilting projects, but today I'm just feeling a little bit unmotivated. I need to finish several quilts, but I 'm just tired.
My sister, Gail, has stage 4 colon cancer. Hopefully we will have results by Tuesday to learn where the cancer has spread and if it has not spread at all! Let's pray it has not spread at all!!
That is all for now....oh I got EQ7 for my b'day!!

Later y'all....

My Design Wall

The beginnings of a new quilt. Shame on me for starting another project!! I just could not help myself though. I was looking for some blocks that I had cut a while back and thought I had put them in one of my plastic drawer bins. I opened up the drawer and there I found my original project of Northwind block swap and templates. This got me to thinking! I saw these fabrics stored away in a clear bin for a different project and decided that I needed to use these for my Northwind block. So off I go cutting my 9" blocks and into triangles....this is going to be fun! Except I got carried away and cut too many of the colored pieces to go with the polka dotted background fabric...darn it! This means I might have to make two quilts!! Oh no, what is a quilter to do?!

I began piecing and posting on my design wall. I decided that I am going to make this quilt like a "Blooming 9-patch" quilt. That is starting from the middle and going out to the edge, having the fabrics/colors bloom/blend. I just might have to go purchase more fabric!! LOL
So I have background fabric with some of the colors and some colors with colors...it will be a cool quilt when I am finished! I have the center completed, yet, I may swap out my center colors into the lighter sets so that the colors can explode!!

I've also decided that I just might have to add purple! If you can see the pink/red fabric there is a little purple flower/leaf pattern. Purple would be a great blender for that one. Also, I'm pretty certain that I am going to have to go purchase more of that orangey batik fabric because I want it for the border and i don't think I have enough left. The polka dotted background fabric is going to be my

binding...sweet!
I might have to put this aside and finish my french braid. I want to teach the french braid and this Northwind quilt....fun!

Monday Monday

Monday Monday...make you think of a song? Most Mondays I hit the floor running!! I always have lots to accomplish, so before I "hit the floor running" I wanted to post what I accomplished and somethings that I forgot to post.

This picture is of my mistake!! I was working on my Jarred Takes a Wife quilt from Bonnie Hunter's website: www.quiltville.com and I cut all my sashing strips 1/4inch too short!! I can't believe I did this!! I had all these pieces ready to assemble. Actually, these are the ones that went in between all the blocks, the sashing that was to be put in between the rows were the ones that were too short!! Needless to say I cut them on different days and I was obviously very tired when I cut the second set of sashing...sigh...these will now go into my new block Pineapple Tidbits seen next.

The next picture is two quilts that I am gathering fabrics for. I need to get them out of the sunlight so that my fabrics don't fade!! One quilt is going to be "Leap Frog", a child's quilt, don't have a child in mind, just want to make something out of brights and I found this pattern online for free. So that basket is dedicated for that project. I found in my stash, which I should have taken a picture of but totally forgot, a fabric that is electric blue with FROGS all over it...bright frogs!! This quilt will be fun.

The other basket on the desk is going to be from Bonnie Hunter's Leaders and Enders book "Bowdacious"!! I have a pile of bright pinks that I may or may not add to it...time will tell if they get to be a part of this quilt. I'm also, not included in the picture, going to piece another pattern from this book "BlueRidge Beauty". I have already cut some fabrics up for this one and I will be using blues. Bonnie is a fantastic quilt designer! Love her work!

The last picture is from Nancy Rink: www.nancyrinkdesigns.com This was her BOM Galactic Explosion. I still have to put the binding on, but she is quilted!! This quilt is going to hang up in my dining room and I am changing the decor to match it!

Well that is all for now! I have to get ready to go out for the day with some friends! The weather is beautiful and I will be some wonderful people today!!

~later everyone!

The HUMIDITY is GONE!

Finally!! The humidity is gone! I was able to work outside on 2 of my flowerbeds and guess what? I found flowers!! LOL Flowers that actually belong in the flowerbeds! I have not weeded in a long time due to the work my hubby is doing on the outside of the house. I figured that I would just be in his way. And the heat and humidity were just too high for me... so I stayed inside and played with fabric!!!
Today I was able to dig up 3 over grown plants, I honestly can't remember if they are called Russian Sage or catmint...oh well, either way they are now in the backyard. I have to figure out what to put in the flowerbed that now has a big hole...oops! I still have lots of weeding to do. There are several more large flowerbeds. The weeds are so high that some are up to my knees! That is just not good. I just got over heated outside and had to come in. I might go back out there later on, but I already came inside and showered....playing with fabric sounds better to me!
My pedimeter: I took over 8,700 steps yesterday and today I am already at 6,500...I do need to drink some water though.
Last night we were up for over 2 hours with Steve. I can't believe my 16yr old son is still having these problems. The GI dr. still has no diagnosis. I feel so bad for him, last night was scary. I pray we have a better night. Tomorrow is mom's day away. I will not be able to go very far, need to stay close by incase something happens.
Got to get a moving now....play with fabric or go back outside and pull weeds....or I could clean the house? decisions decisions...what is a girl to do? play obviously!
~later dudettes!

Weight loss

Last summer I went on nutrisystem diet plan. It worked, I lost 20lbs. Then life happened and stress hit and I gained it all back. sigh....
The other day I decided it was time to do something about this weight gain! I need to take it off! I called the local Jenny Craig office and made an immediate appointment. I knew if I procrastinated that I would not do anything at all. I joined yesterday! I have to say I really love the food! The salad dressings are fantastic! Last night's dinner was chicken alfredo, I'm not an alfredo sauce person...but I liked their entree. Breakfast was french toast, mmmgood. Lunch was a chicken corn chowder, very good and a spinach salad. Now my spinach salad consisted of fresh spinach chopped up fine, 1/2 cup of tomato and 1/2 cup of cucumber. Topped it off with their balsamic vinegar dressing, delicious!!
While I was at Jenny Craig I purchased their excerise dvd and a pedometer (I think that is what you call it). My goal is to loose 40lbs! That is a lot but I am trying to prevent surgery on my knees, exhaustion and hypertension...also type 2 diabetes. I have to take care of myself. Let's hope I can stick to it!
There is a friend at church who wants to do a study together, a bible study "First Place" it is a biblical study on nutrition. I think we shall do it! I'm excited! The Lord is taking care of us! I feel blessed that there is someone else who wants to do this with me!
~later gator