This has GOT to give me more sewing time

So it has been 11 days or so since I blogged. That can't be good. I miss being on the computer. I really miss sewing! My craft room is a disaster. Oh I have sewing that I SHOULD be doing. The thing is I am STILL waiting for the previous owner to fix a hole in the ceiling in here. He did have some dude come by to patch it, but no one has come by to tape it and mud it and paint it. It is directly under where my sewing table should go. Of course it is. The first dude that cut some dry wall made a huge mess that he didn't' clean up. I am NOT setting my machine up under there and then letting dude #2 show up to make another mess. I can't set up my table until it is in place because it has these BIG and HEAVY drawers which are full of fabric and patterns. This situation does not make me happy.

We went away this past weekend, to see my daughter for her 19th birthday. We took a couple of her friends from here along. We stayed with friends, took them shopping, ate, partied, caught up. The adults went to a semi-formal event for Families Northwest where John Tesh was the entertainment. That was a lovely evening.

The day we took all the girls shopping hubby and I went to Costco and got this;

I have it on the charger right now. I can't wait to let it do its thing! I figure it is one less thing I will have to do. I am going to schedule it to clean every single day. Otherwise the dark wood floors that show everything are going to be the end of me. Anything to create more sewing time is a good thing...RIGHT??? :D

My son and the guys we visited all made a music video this past weekend. It was so much fun to watch. Any chance my son gets to make a movie he jumps on it. This is what he wants to do after all. Good thing his friends are all hams and enjoy being in the movies.

It was so hard to say good-bye to my daughter again. She didn't want to go back to school. She wanted to hang out with us, not have studying to do. I suggested she drop out, move back home and get a job in this podunk town. She figured she'd better go back to school after all. Thanksgiving break is coming up soon and then after that she has a couple weeks and then she is home for her winter break and Christmas!!!!

I had minimal time to spend in TWO Super JoAnns. They were having a huge sale but having just about 20 minutes in the one store and seeing the very long lines, and not much longer in the second store and having three bored young ladies trailing me....wahhhhh!!! I saw so many things I would have liked to get. Did any of you get to their sale??

I am still not totally out of the other house, or unpacked of the boxes and boxes that are now in this house. I'd best get a move on. I just wanted you to know that yes, I am still alive. I did get two aprons off in the mail last week! Those were the final items to be sewn in the old house and then my room could be packed up.

Praise for safe travel to and from the big city and for my awesome hubby who makes the drive basically alone while the rest of us sleep. Prayers for my daughter as she hangs in there for a few more weeks until the end of the first quarter. Prayers that my son would continue to be diligent with his schoolwork too.

It'll be over soon

Right? I mean the packing and the moving. Oh yeah, the cleaning of the new place BEFORE we move in and the cleaning of the old place once we are out. It can't go on forever. Can it? It just SEEMS like it is never ending.

Hubby and son got all of the dining room (hutch and table and chairs and bench) and main living room (couch, love seat, chair and ottoman, rocking chair, end table, lamps) moved yesterday. It is all set up. I like how it looks! I was putting stuff back into the hutch and came across a big leaf bowl so I set it on the table and scattered some silk leaves around it. Almost looks like home.

Last night while hubby and I were at Bible study my son went to the new house and set up the media 'stuff''. He was so excited to get that going. So he called and left a message on hubby's phone and when we got out of study we went to the new house and watched a movie with him. Finding Nemo on the big screen. I took us a bit to notice that the clown fish were blue instead of orange, and the water was a brownish orange instead of blue. My son switched a few wires and it was then in living color. On with the show.

Okay, break time is over. Back to the packing and moving. I really would rather be sewing.

Praise - the move is going well, my son did great on his speech yesterday and got a super score on his English essay. My daughter got the okay to do a classroom observation at a local elementary school next week! Prayers - for patience and good attitudes during the move. That we get travel arrangements figured out to bring college girl home for Thanksgiving.

Pumpkin Carving 2008

My son likes to carve pumpkins. Which is pretty funny considering that when he was little he hated to touch the gooey pumpkin guts (he got his ideas from his big sister ). But now he knows that if he is going to carve the pumpkin HE has to deal with the guts. It is a pretty cheap medium too. $3 at WalMart for a pumpkin! We got him two but the second one was weird. It was soooo hard he could hardly cut the top open. I got him another one today for another project and they had been reduced to $2.50.

So here is the 2008 pumpkin;


I think it is so cool! He is pretty patient and sure handed.

So Happy Halloween. A few days early ;)

Praise - tomorrow the house deal should be DONE WITH! We should have the keys to the new house. Prayers - that yes, indeed, it actually happens and then for the moving part.

I miss him

Today was my dad's birthday. He would have been 94 today. I really miss him. He passed away the year before I got married. I so wish he could have met my children. He would have loved them. They would have loved him.

This self portrait was taken in 1960.


Hug your fathers and grandfathers if you still have them to hug. Tell them you love them.

It was a Quilt Show Saturday

My friend and I started out early, after all we had a 1.5 hour drive ahead. My friend's sister who happens to be a quilter was going to meet us there. These gals were GREAT Quilt Show companions. They were funny, they were appreciative, they were very much into the detail and workmanship that had been put into the quilts. We looked at EVERY quilt displayed. Here are just a FEW pictures. The photo of one of my favorite quilts did not turn out so great so I am not showing that here. Taking photos was not easy with so many people there and the lighting was an issue as well. Anyway, on with the show!

Most of the flowers in this quilt have a raggy edge (some pinked) that is not attached. You might be able to see it better in the second image.


I call this one the tearjerker quilt. It is a lovely photo quilt that anyone could appreciate, then I read the entry card. OH.MY. The quilter's younger sister was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's at age 53. The quilter made this as a gift for her sister, to help her remember people and events. She stated on the card that it helped her to accept what was happening to her sister as well. She said making the quilt brought on many tears but also smiles and laughter.

I didn't get a picture of the whole quilt here but I just LOVED the border and the quilting!!

This is one of those itty-bitty, never in my lifetime quilts. It was MAYBE 12" across.

I just LOVED this quilt!! It is just so darn cute, little paper doll dude. It makes me smile. :D

The photo does NOT do this next quilt justice. It is called COPPER PENNY and it was just gorgeous! It had a beautiful depth to it as well as some shine.

I am not sure if this qualifies as a watercolor quilt but I really liked it. Each of those squares is a flower.

A log cabin with a tulip growing from the center. The center square is also not the traditional log cabin center shape. I loved the color scheme of this one.


I really liked this saying;


There were MANY MANY quilts featuring applique this year. I don't know if this is a new trend or if I just didn't notice them before. Another trend, machine embroidery featured on the quilt. It did not change my mind about selling my embroidery module.

I was a little disappointed in the vendors this year. First of all, I did not see ANYONE demonstrating the new Bernina 830. I was sure someone would be there to do that. I was wrong. I have seen the machine demonstrations in the past, even when there was not a big release coming up soon. Secondly the booths themselves didn't have that over the top inspiration that I usually love about them. I am used to seeing purses and totes and aprons and quilts just spilling over each booth, so much so that I tend to miss things on my first go 'round and discover more when I make the rounds again. I wasn't WOWed by anything in the booths that I can recall. Thirdly, the fabric. Let's say the LACK OF fabric. Oh there was fabric but really, nothing NEW and EXCITING! Some of it was fabric I saw at last year's show. There was not a whole lot of the new fabrics that I know others are able to get in their local quilt store. I was really looking forward to seeing it all in person. The one exception was seeing some of 'Recipe for Friendship' in one booth. I was surprised to see how big the paisleys were, not how I envisioned them at all. I still like that print but was just surprised. ONE booth had some 'Ava Rose'. Some. Phooey. None of the red or grey. I went with a list of things to look for and I didn't get one thing from my list. I'll show you later this week what I DID get! I need to take a photo.

It was a long, fun day. My dogs were barking after all that walking. I dropped my friend off at her son's house and then I went to a quilt store. They did not have 3 of the items on my list that I thought they might but they did have the miniature vacuum attachments for machine cleaning. I bought that. I stopped at a Hancock's after that and just spent time looking at pattern catalogs and home dec fabric. I did get some fleece that was on sale so it wasn't a total loss. ;)

Praise - that my trip to and from the Quilt Show was safe and uneventful. That my son had the time of his life helping out on an infomercial shoot. That my hubby was safe helping someone bring in their hay. Finally that my daughter had a TERRIFIC time at the retreat! Prayers - that we would get final approval, this week,to move ahead with the new house.

Sewing for Christmas

Yes, you read that correctly. I am sewing for Christmas. The thing is, these are not gifts for me to give to my loved ones. Nope. I am sewing these to auction off. This is the third or fourth year that I have participated in this auction. The funds raised go to help parents give their children some Christmas presents that they would not otherwise be able to afford. There is always so much participation and it is great fun. Everything must be handmade and there are so many talented contributors.

So yesterday afternoon and today, this is what I made;
from BHG Quilts and More Fall 2008, the Pick-a-Pocket Tote. I made the matching checkbook cover using the directions found at Amandajean's site.


This little Halloween purse was made using Amy Butler's In Town Bags pattern. I spent some time making sure the little kids would be centered but then...argh! As you can see I should have put that print at the bottom and the dots at the top. I had no clue until it was time to cinch up the drawstring. Yeah, I know. It was the first time I used beads too. I need some pointers on that procedure. If you have any tips please share. The ribbon that says 'Happy Halloween' is just fine in real life, the flash makes it look smudged.


Another bag using that Amy Butler pattern. Again I have to admit I have no vision. I was just happy to make a candy corn colored purse. It made me smile. I planned to enter it into the Candy Corn Contest held here. When I cinched it up. OH.MY. Now it REALLY looked like candy corn!!! Someone else, you know someone that had already made one of these purses (yeah, that would be ME) should have figured what the shape was going to be. I think all the head shaking and eye rolling has done some serious brain damage.


I also submitted this Metro Blue checkbook cover that I made and posted awhile back.

I feel like I could make a few more things but of course I waited until the last minute and I won't be home tomorrow. Where am I going you ask??? Well to the BIG, held at the fairgrounds, Quilt Show!! I love this quilt show and I can't wait. I have my camera ready to go. I am going to make a list of yardages needed for some of the patterns I have on hand and carry a little spiral notebook. This year a friend is going with me. I hope she 'gets' it. I hope she isn't ready to leave thirty minutes after we arrive. I hope she doesn't have to walk home. I hope she is still my friend on Sunday.

Fortunately for you I did NOT take a picture of my sewing room. It is insanely messy (and I am not talkin' 'Nanette' messy ;) ).

Prayers - for my daughter. She has a dorm retreat this weekend. I pray she can relax, have FUN, make some connections. Prayers for the big decision she needs to make. Also prayers for our house buying situation. It has not all been approved yet and it is really causing a lot of tension in this house. Praise - That we are in the situation to buy a house at all, that we have a roof over our head and food to eat and that we have good health. My son has an opportunity to help on a film shoot tomorrow and he is excited.

Two WEEKS??

How could I have gone TWO WEEKS without updating my blog? Sorry. I HAVE been busy though. Unfortunately it has not been at my sewing machine. Well I did sew one purse. An exact replica of the pink and brown purse that I made for my daughter. Other than that, I have been packing, deciding what to pack, what not to pack, throw it out, give it away.

This is a picture of the family room a few days ago. There are three times as many boxes in there now. Most of them are filled with books, some are filled with videos, others are packed with photos.

My sister who lives 6 hours from here decided to come for the weekend and help me pack. She drove over all alone - which is really unlike her and we packed. We worked on the kitchen, the laundry room and my daughter's room. Here is a picture of the entryway when we had done SOME of the kitchen.

There are MANY more boxes now. My sister took some things home with her and she helped me let some other stuff go. There is a trailer in the garage that we are filling with trash and giveaway stuff. It seems there is soooooooo much more to do.

My sewing room. Should I save that until last so that I can sew until the last minute? My son thinks I should pack it up now, along with my computer then I can't do anything BUT pack. Silly boy.

I am off to cut out an apron. I might get to sew sometime today. We shall see.

QUILT SHOW this weekend!! WOO HOOO!!

Praise - that my sister was willing and able to drive over here to help and that she had a safe trip here and back. Prayers - that my daughter would find her groove at school. She doesn't 'love it'.