Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Here's to Good Friends!

I really should go to bed, but what I want to do is watch TV and relax, but what I am gonna do is post something because it has been over ten days since I last posted. I know you must miss me, right? I feel like my butt is attached to the desk chair this week. I have been on the computer non-stop. So much to do! And more this week than others because I AM GOING TO MARKET IN HOUSTON AND I WILL HAVE A BOOTH! Yes! I finally got kicked good and hard (in the butt again) by Holly who owns the shop that I love here in Virginia Beach. She is going to work the booth with me, so how could I say no? My heart is aflutter, and I am hoping that is a good thing. Meanwhile, there are flyers to be made and patterns to be written. I spent yesterday printing oodles of patterns and today I stuffed envelopes. I am at a loss as to what to expect and how much to take. How do I display things when I am so far from home? Etc., etc. I am totally taking advantage of friends where ever I can. It is good to have friends!



 Now, on a totally unrelated subject, my cousin, also named Holly, just had her 50th birthday. To her it is a big deal, to me it is a walk down Memory Lane. Fifty was a great age, in retrospect, so enjoy it cuz, because it does not, or shall I say will not, get any better! Anyway, Holly has some wonderful friends that she has had since birth, I think, or at least since early childhood. They are all very talented stitchers and quilters. They made her the most amazing quilt for her birthday, and I want to share it with you. 


 I am seeing some really ugly fabrics that I adore!
Is there anything sweeter than sour colored fabric?


 True friends, indeed!
The detail in this quilt is wonderful!



 Beautifully designed--not sure by whom.


 Beautifully crafted by those named above.
Isn't it wonderful!

OK, now I guess I must go to bed with no TV. I feel like I am being sent to my room. But all is well!



Friday, September 17, 2010

Springville Quilt Show

OK, I finally added the Followers gadget to my blog. I resisted doing it for a long time, but so many of you were kind enough to sign up anyway (how'd you do that?) that I put it on. I guess with Bloglines closing down we will be needing additional resources to find our favorite blogs. I have really enjoyed Bloglines over the years and am sorry to see them go. Boo hoo, seriously!

While in Utah there was a quilt show taking place  at the Springville Museum. My son and daughter-in-law took me and my daughter Jennie to check it out. There were some lovely quilts, and I have a few to share.
 We fell in love with two family reunion quilts. Both were designed by design Lori Holt. Check out her blog--what darling things she makes! I hope you can get close-ups of these quilts because they have adorable details!




Here is another quilt that I was attracted to. Don't know for sure, but it looks like Blackbird Designs perhaps? I know someone will correct me if I am wrong. 

 Finally, here is my little buddy again, Isaac! He finally received the quilt that I made him! Isn't he adorable!  More to come!  (Did she mean quilts or babies???)
UPDATE: The flag quilt has been identified! It is from a book by Blackbird Designs called Women of Grace and Charm. An old book of theirs. They have so many great books and great designs!

Monday, September 13, 2010

Focus on Thirties

 

I am back home at long last! And I have quilts to share!  My friend and long arm quilter, Marae Harris, in Mesa, AZ has a log cabin quilt that her grandmother made, and she decided to reproduce it. They are so similar that I am not sure which one this is. I love them! All thirties prints, as you  can see. She has an enormous collection of thirties prints, plus she traded with friends. The only way! 

In this photo I placed the recent quilt on top of the old one. Aren't they remarkably alike? Grandmother's quilt is so finely hand stitched--absolutely beautiful! I am sure Marae will machine quilt hers, and it will be beautifully done as well. This makes me want to start collecting 30's prints!

 My Aunt Kathy is a quilter also, and she loves pastels! She began this string quilt several years ago and this year she finished it up. Tiny white rick rack separates each block, then on the border she used a wider rick rack on the seams. It is darling! She is making baby quilts to put away for great-grandchildren of the future.

 

This is another of Aunt Kathy's. She hand stitched the pinwheel arcs down and added the cute string border. Another adorable quilt! It is so fun to see what these ladies are working on when I visit in Arizona.

I was only in Arizona for two days while wending my way home from Montana. It was fun filled with family and a few quilts. You know I got some Mexican food in also! I feel like I am ready to move there, if only my husband would retire. He is getting closer every day!!
 
One more curiosity of which to make note. My darling granddaughter, Danielle, came home from a church youth activity the night I arrived. She was so excited and had so much fun. They split up into teams and went on a scorpion hunt. Yes, for real. Her team caught 20. They had black lights and leather gloves and went around in backyards of local residents searching for scorpions! You have to admit, not every church group could pull this off!





Tuesday, September 07, 2010

Adventures in Babysitting


What has become of my cooking skills? Last week I made Molasses Crinkles, a favorite cookie in our family. Turns out that I didn't add enough flour, and the first tray spread all over the pan into a burned mess.  I added more flour and the rest were fine. Kathryn, above, wasn't that enamored with them, however, and remarked to her mother the next day that maybe she should stay home from school and teach me how to make NORMAL cookies.

Next, I attempted home made pizza. I didn't grease the pan and it stuck so bad it was impossible to remove the pizza from the pan. Great. Now what's for dinner?

Today I decided to make brownies. Bad idea. The recipe called for two cups of flour and I only had 1-1/2. Well hey, there is some pancake mix in the cupboard. Maybe I should just substitute a half cup of pancake mix for the flour. How bad could that be? The batter tasted great, actually. But when the smoke alarms started going off I knew I had a problem.  The problem was that the brownie batter was overflowing the pan and burning. Great. So I pulled the brownies out of the oven and let them sit there until I figured out what came next. Images of scrubbing the heck out of another burned pan came to mind. Not a happy thought.



See the crusted edges of the pan? Not a good look. Oddly enough, after the brownies cooled, they actually tasted good! Even Kathryn and Jack approved! 



I think my cooking talents have slowly disintegrated. About  all I know how to do these days is cut squares and sew them together.

On another note, (remember that the parents went out of town and left me in charge) Jack was playing on his "rip stick" and fell and broke his arm on Sunday. We spent the afternoon in the hospital emergency room. Jack was very brave and I was proud of the way he handled himself. 



Does his shirt say "Wild, wild west"? Yes, that seems to sum it up! 

So my work here is done and tomorrow I leave for Arizona for a couple days. Another rotation as grandmother. Be warned little ones, Grandmother is going South! (In more ways than one!)

Sunday, September 05, 2010

Too much of a good thing.


Oh my gosh, I think I had one too many Diet Cokes today. Here it is 1:30 am and the children are long gone to sleep and I am still tossing and turning and yawning and having caffeine spasms in my legs and I just can't get comfortable in bed, AND I'm sleeping on a Sleep Number bed on somebody else's number! It is just me and the hamster that are up. The hamster, I have discovered, is nocturnal and races around all night, which doesn't help when you are seeking sleep. He seems like a happy little guy tho, so I can't fault him. 

I would have been fine, except I decided to take the kids to McDonalds because I have no idea what to make for them that they will eat. They had their Happy Meal and I had mine, which included the one too many Diet Cokes.

My daughter and her husband are gone for a couple days while they take their daughter to college in Rexburg, Idaho. After that they are going to Jackson, Wyoming for some R and R. They never get away alone together unless I happen to be around. Chris, my SIL, has been singing that he's "going to Jackson" for a week now. I think he has been looking forward to this. They will be back Monday, no doubt smiling.

Meanwhile, I think and hope that Hurricane Earl skipped over my house in Virginia Beach, VA. I don't know how bad North Carolina got it, but apparently it calmed down a bit as it swept north up the coast line. A very good thing.



I will leave you with a photo of Kathryn and her hamster collection as I bid you goodnight, and go off to bed to try again to sleep, perchance to dream.



Thursday, September 02, 2010

Touring Montana


Currently I am in Missoula, Montana at my daughter's home. My son-in-law wanted to take me to this quilt shop with a taxidermy shop in it. It was a nice drive with beautiful scenery and a river ran through it. (Hee hee). Well, when we arrived we found that there was no longer a taxidermy shop there. I really just wanted to find a good subject to blog about. The shop caters to those interested in western type fabrics and they also had a nice supply of batiks. I love the name of it: Blackfoot Trading Post. Definitely Indian country here. Lewis and Clark stopped here as well on their Journey of Discovery.


Now for your viewing pleasure I have included a video of my granddaughter Kathryn, formerly known as Plumpkin. Her father recently taped her at Glacier National Park giving a tour of park highlights. At age five, she is already developing a career path.  Enjoy!



Sorry about the sideways shot in the beginning. We seek further instruction. Also, in the beginning, Kathryn is saying that the little tree wants to get prettier. And in the end, she thinks that the "thingy" on the tree looks like a dragon's nose.