Greetings from Central Ohio!

Friends, I wish you:

I hope that this year finishes with happiness & love, 

and that 

brings you great health & prosperity, 

abundance & positivism,

time with loved ones, 

and plenty of time for pursuing your hobbies!

Do you love the busy-ness of the season?

 I do, and it's a good thing, because, 

this morning I have planned:

to attend a cooking class with my daughter.

After lunch,  I'm going to try to sneak in just a little time 

cutting some fabrics in preparation of a new quilt project.

Late afternoon, I'll prep a feast of foods, 

as I'm hosting a dinner and Bowl game/football party 

for about a dozen friends, 

followed by ringing in the New Year together!

Hope your time is just as blessed!  

And see you next year!!! 

💖💖💖💖💖

sharing meandering and the case of the misplaced camera

I've misplaced my camera...
not calling it lost just yet.
Without my camera, I seem just a bit, oh I don't know - unfocused. 
Yes, that was an intended pun.  Unfocused 😂
But I know that I haven't shared this quilt yet:

It's another by Janet for a niece for Christmas.
Just adorable.  Now I think I'll have to put a 30's quilt on my 'someday list'.

Here's a close up of some of the fabrics:

Perfect to quilt over! and I'm sure the niece loved it!

I also have a couple of my own quilts to share - 
but next time...
I really need to find the misplaced camera!
It's my way of documenting my fun/work,
and keeping me organized. 

Hope you all have had a great day!

Just a little Christmas Eve story...

Yes, it has a slight Griswold twist 😒😒 ( ← those are un-amused faces)
Let me set the scene for Christmas Eve:
I'd cleaned and prepped for
The Annual Christmas Eve Family and Friends Feast... 
including, seven appetizers, steak and chicken marinating, twice-baked potatoes and homemade rolls ready to heat, vegetables and salads made and chilling, table set and kitchen back to clean after all the prep... Even had the stockings filled and the gifts all wrapped and under the tree for the grand-kiddos.
It's going on four o'clock, and I have about a half hour before the first arrivals.
I decide I will just sit and put my feet up, awaiting our guests...
dear daughter gets herself a plate of appetizers, Sweetie grabs himself a dinner roll, and I have my big glass of ice water.  Ahhhh.  Half an hour of relaxation and the place looks great, and smells even better!
And...........
The ten foot tree crashes to the living room floor!!!

Daughter took the picture before we started the clean up.

Did you know that when a decorated tree falls, that 
all the lights and garlands shift to the floor side of the tree?  LOL
Oh My Goodness.  What a mess.
Broken ornaments everywhere, at least a gallon and half of water went all over the wrapped gifts and old, old quilt/tree skirt and carpet.  

The three of us who had just sat down for a little relaxation had the tree back to it's upright position and were cleaning up the shattered ornaments as the first arrivals (the in-laws) came in.  They thought it was the nights' entertainment and just sat on the couch in front of the disaster and watched cleanup and re-wrap. Wish I had recorded the commentary!! lol 

We all agreed that the 'Christmas Eve Feast 2016' story is one that will be told and retold in the coming decades, and thankfully no one was injured.  
Oh, by the way, the tree is now wired/tethered to the wall.

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday, and that there wasn't quite the excitement that we had!

To all my friends!!!

What a beautiful storm

I may have mentioned before that I 
LOVE Winter...
I snapped this picture this past Wednesday morning:

Snowy and blustery... but clear, blue skies...
just love it all! 🙂
And I MAY have been told this before -
more than once:

Funny, I think.  But I do love the snow and cold.
Snow storms and bitter temps means a little more stitching time here, usually.  So maybe that's why I like the snow?

I've not been working on my own quilts much, but finishing up some customer meanderings.
Janet asked me to meander over these two quilts for her twin nephews:

 I didn't realize they were actually TWIN quilts until I put the photos here!!! lol  EXACT twins for twins!

and a couple of closeups:

Funny, that I didn't realize they were EXACTLY the same quilt made twice, until after I'd quilted and returned them to her, and put the pictures here.  I did load one with the green stars at the top, and the other with the green stars at the bottom, so they didn't seem the same when I meandered over them.

She's such a perfect piecer and presser - its always a pleasure to meander over her quilts!
(I also have another quilt of hers finished and ready to give her, so I'll share it next time, after I get it to her on Monday.)

And I'll finish with pictures of my Christmas tree - 
first the family trek over hill and dale to find the perfect tree:

family tree trek 2016 - that's our tree behind the group

And how it stands right now, with lights and berries and popcorn:

Ladder and ornament trunk at the ready!!!
Thanks for visiting, and I hope you all are staying safe, 
toasty warm and getting in some stitches!!

Welcome December! and happy Friday!

That wonderful time of the year!
I'm anxiously awaiting...
the snow!! 
There, I said it.  
I love snow.
I love it all!:  the sharp bite of coldness in the air, 
the crunchiness underfoot when it's so cold that the snow squeaks, 
the sun glistening on the drifts 
making little rainbows of light refracting and twinkling across the meadows.

And, yes, I know that some people H A T E snow.
If I could, I'd gladly take yours that you don't want. 😊❄❅❆

I'm ready for the snow, 
but I've NOT started any holiday decorating around the house, yet...
There's the the long-standing family rule...
that rule is - no decorating until after the first of December
the day of my daughter's birthday!
So AFTER that we can start the holiday decorating.
All I've done toward that so far,
is to remove some of the Autumn decor and quilts.

The 2nd of December?
Fair game!!
Looking for snow and decorating time!!!
And I probably should get to work on those
quilting gift projects!! 

So.... what do you have planned for the weekend??
 
Happy beginning of December!!

Thankful, blessed, & happy Thanksgiving my friends

It seems to me that time is a whirlwind-
blowing through like a Derecho...
I can not believe it's already the end of November!!

So many things to be thankful for!!
In the last couple of weeks, I've enjoyed some quilting retreat time,
and so thankful for time with 117 friends.

Then home to cake baking and party for the now three-year-old grandson -
I'd asked him weeks previously about cake preference and 
he'd answered a 'red monster' cake...
Just the day before the party it changed to a 'green dragon' cake.
Glad I asked before I made the red icing.  😍

Then came Thanksgiving prep times two, 
including hosting my family on Saturday.
I love that all the nieces and nephews are now bringing their friends and/or future spouses.   It was a wonderful house-full of family, good eats, and laughter.

Table for 27

I don't usually share about health issues, but
I'm so very thankful for my Plexus (Probio5, BioCleanse & Pink Drink) supplements
and the great health benefits I've gained in the last year and a half...
they truly have been life-changing and I thank Lori for
all the information she's provided about getting my 'gut' healthy,
that I feel energized, younger, and I'm able to keep up with my grandkiddos and family activities!!   (Seriously - google your 'issue + gut health' ... it's all connected!!!!)

AND, I'm thankful for all of you - my blog friends!
I'm thankful for everyone that takes the time to read and comment on my ramblings.
AND for the opportunity to visit each of your blogs.
To me, it's like having the best next-door-neighbors/friends EVER,
instead of being spread around the whole globe!

Happy, happy Thanksgiving
I feel totally blessed! and grateful for winds that blow!

busy, busy

Happy middle of November already!
Do you ever keep thinking you'll sit down to write a little...
then it just doesn't happen???

I'm a list maker -
which I think helps me stay organized,
but when I started writing my list, it made me realize
how much I've accomplished!

Here's some of my recent list:
With the holidays approaching,
I've done a lot of my gift shopping,
pretty much planned my gatherings,
stocked up on foodstuff for the pantry and freezer,
and had the grandkiddos for sleepovers on the weekends quite a few times. 

I've quilted for others for their upcoming gift giving,
(but still have three or four more to quilt before the beginning of the December),
hosted the annual neighborhood Chili Cookoff/Bonfire on a beautiful evening the end of October.
Made birthday cakes, there were/are family weddings - one last month, one next,
plus two new family engagements - so excited for a nephew and a niece!

I have had some stitching time of my own, in little increments...
and am working on four different quilt gifts,
Also have on my list, five woolen stockings for Sonny boy and his family.
I participated in a block swap with blog friends through the Fun with Barb blog.
I participated in a sew-along with blog friends through Lori's Humble Quilts blog.
And in between all those times,
I exercised my right to vote,
and spent with family and friends, 
and cooked and cleaned, and, and, and!

That List! ^
Therefore, the title of this post! lol
You know how it is, I'm sure!!!
 
Good times! Good food! Good friends! Good life!

Hope your week is wonderful, and
happy middle of November!
Back soon with quilty pictures!!!

I've not had new magazines for a while it seems,
but look what came recently!!!!!
I love when I get a squishy envelope!

I like to shop locally, but when the local book store stopped carrying the Quilt Mania magazine, I got online and found a quilt shop that not only carried it, but would ship to me. I talked to the very nice ladies there and asked if they would add four reproduction fabric fat-quarters with each shipment, and they were happy to do so.  Because it's a bimonthly magazine, I receive a new shipment of fabrics every two months, also.  Win/Win!!!
Thank you Homestead Hearth!!! 

Also, I had a magazine on my want-to-read list - which I usually just wait and borrow from the library.  But since I was meeting a friend at the book store, I decided to look for that magazine while there.
I found it! -  the BHG American Patchwork & Quilting magazine and it came packaged WITH the Editors Favorites - Christmas Quilts issue, too.

Jackpot!!
I love the inspiration from Lisa of Primitive Gatherings Quilt Shop, so it was nice to see the Holiday Project magazine bundled together.

So, reading material for the evenings this week,
and great mourning purples and grays to add to my stash!!

Do you receive subscription magazines or pick them up while out shopping? 

End of October - THE COUNTDOWN

Oh my goodness, time is surely flying!
Can you believe, only four weeks until Thanksgiving & 
eight weeks until Christmas???!!!
I can not!
I don't know about you, but I'm not really a count down type of person
with my calendar filled with daily tasks to accomplish and check off.
I'm more the Down-to-Crunch-Time, Give-Me-A-Deadline type.
Though I do have more than a few projects to get done 
in the dwindling amount of time before the end of the year!

How do you do The Countdown?
By the number of sewing and quilting projects remaining to accomplish?
EG:  Only this quilted table runner to finish before turkey day,
and only three more quilts to piece, quilt and bind before end of the year???
Chuckling to myself here - my example is not far off that last mark,
as I really do have a whole lot of quilting on my list to get accomplished before the end of the year. 

So while I'm slowly plugging along with my own projects,
but I have had the pleasure of quilting for others!
I can't show the first couple, because they are mutual friends and read this blog,
but I can show what
Janet has finished from her countdown list, for her great nephews!
A cute Mickey and Minnie:

 And another cutie - Snoopy and Woodstock

And when I got those two quilted tops back to her, 
she had THREE more ready for me to meander over!

So, how about you?
Are you ready for the upcoming countdown?
And how do you tackle your project timeline?

Happy end of October!  Hope your Autumn is full of pleasant times,
and not just Crunch Time!

almost the middle of October!

Beautiful Sunday to you!

I'm still busier than ever, but enjoying it all!!!
Attended a wedding last Saturday, and a baby shower last Sunday.

Here's the baby quilt I did for the new momma:

I left the bottom/center area un-quilted so when the new little guy arrives, I'll quilt in his birthday and name.  Also, don't know if you can tell from the picture or not, 
but I didn't finish the binding on the bottom, left hand corner.  
That's where I'll put a label on, too.

So I was an Indian-giver at the shower. lol  
Gifted it, then took it back home with me.

This pattern is the 16-patch/X-block,
aka Goodnight Irene pattern.  
Over 60 different fabrics used (a 2.5 inch strip of each) 
to make it Eye Spy-ish.

Seems like this is now my go-to for baby quilt gift making.
Do you have a favorite pattern for a baby gift?

The weather is finally cooling down here - and just a touch of color in the leaves on the trees,
so Autumn weather seems like it finally has arrived.
Hope everyone is having a wonderful day!

quilting in the heat

Welcome to Autumn!!!
I love all the seasons and the changes brought by each.
I always think that my favorite season is the one that's here now...
then the next season comes in and it's my favorite! lol
89 degrees and humid here today, so definitely NOT Autumn-like.
In preparation for the change of seasons, 
I've not changed out a single bed quilt or quilted wall hanging, either.
With all the heat, it just doesn't feel like the time to do the change over to Fall.
But still nice to have the warmth and sunshine,
even at more than 15 degrees above normal.

My machine quilting slows down a little because of 
the aforementioned heat and humidity -
as my long arm machine is in the back sun room.
But just beautiful, early in the morning:

Even with the extreme heat, 
I do have a couple of customer quilts to show for the last few weeks, though.
First is a baby quilt that I got to meander over for Janet:

Just perfectly made and oh, so cute!!!

The second quilt is a larger-than-king-sized that I got to quilt for Jackie:

Flannels front and back.  And it was so large that it was hard to photograph - I had to take it out to the back deck!

It's pictured a little in the shadows, so the colors are a little dulled in the brighter areas, but you can see the great fabrics used.  She used the Disappearing Nine Patch pattern.

That's all for today... Hope you've had a nice welcome to the first of Autumn!!

Gwennie - late but better than not

Last month's challenge 'round' in the 
Gwennie inspired sew-along
was Stars...
I made stars.
I kept making stars.
I don't care for my stars. lol
The stars themselves are really fine. 
I don't like...... something about them WITH the medallion.
Maybe set differently,
or it needs a stopper/border.
Anyway, all that, and my lack of time this past month
what with all the fun family gatherings - 
IE: vacations, family birthday gatherings, 
reunions, and the normal day-to day activities,
means I slacked in the sewing department.
So, this is what I have so far:

 Or all straight set:

I need to decide soon, it's almost time for the last and final, 
fifth round/challenge!!!!

The final round design element was chosen by
Wendy of The Constant Quilter blog
and she said:

"Being from Maine, my theme choice for the final border is
“Something Fishy”.  As with those who have gone before me (Lori, Cynthia, Cathy and Katy), you can interpret this as loosely as you like. Here are a few examples:

Clam shells
Scallops

Seafood fabric or appliques

Sea birds (they eat fish!)

Marine mammals (they eat fish too!)

Lighthouses (they see fish)

Boats (they catch fish)

Ovals and triangles (i.e. fish shaped)

Tartar Sauce – what???

What a hoot!! and how fun is this going to be??? 
I have an idea, and ready to get going...
even if it's almost time to reveal the
Fishy addition.  LOL

welcome September

Yes, I know I'm a week late - that's my style... lol
August was a great month -
reunions, plural; 
birthday celebrations, plural;
vacations, kind of plural - 
we had a family/friend vacation, which I shared about previously,
then I kept the three grand kiddos for five days over the long holiday weekend while sonny-boy and sweet wifey vacationed/went to New Hampshire for a friend's wedding/camp.
So much fun to have the grand kiddos stay for sleepovers.  They are probably as excited as I am about the time!  Really, no kidding about this... I so look forward to making these memories!  :)
 
I can not believe that another Summer is winding down -
(I don't count it gone until the calendar officially changes to Autumn, though.)

So with all the fun family times here,
not a whole lot of stitching getting done...

• I'm sewing along on my Gwennie Inspired Medallion Sew Along, and that definitely suffered from the too-busy-not-enough-time-to-stitch, during the month of August.  I have stars and more stars sewn into blocks, but not attached as of yet for the previous 'round'/border.
•  I'm still stitching on my Circa 2016 blocks (by Temecula Quilt Company), which I don't believe I've shared any pictures to date.
• Still slow stitching on my Sweet Surrender applique blocks - with the emphasis on the SLOW!
• And, because it's been soooooo hot and steamy, our air conditioners (yes, plural - haha) decided it was time for them both to take a break, so it's been a little hot inside, too.
• With THOSE ^ air conditioner problems, came the additional issue of my Long Arm machine - BigDD, not wanting to work, too... I really think she decided if it was too hot for the airco to work, it was too hot for her!  So I've had fun trying to get that figured out while sweating away the days. 

some of my stars for the Gwennie inspired stitch along

Circa 2016 - I think these were the blocks from May

Sweet Surrender - slow stitching

But no worries, here - I'm ready to tackle the month of September!

Thanks for visiting, and hope your August was wonderful!

August is running out...

Not a whole lotta-stitching going on, but
lots and lots of fun times with the family this month -
we revived an old vacation plan and it was a blast.
(I think I've shared before that I love my family and friends?)
 
It started 20 years ago and every Summer for a decade,
a group of family and friends,
about 50 total, traveled about 5 hours south and
'roughed it'...rustic cabins, campers, tents, or boat living
on a lake for the week...

This time, this year, with all of us being 20 years older,
I didn't know what to expect...
There were 22 total that went.
Three cabins, two campers, and one couple that slept on their boat.
Also four ski boats and a few jet skis.
The cabins were a little more updated, 
but basically it was the same vacation experience that we had 20 years ago...
still good food, still good times, so many laughs and amazing relaxation.
Totally no cell phone service 
(which I thought might be a problem for a certain age group),
was not a problem, at all.
And, the week? It Was Fantastic, and Unplugged.
 

missing a couple, but for the record, Fun Times!

I did learn that this older body of mine
does not water-ski well any more.  At all.
But I tried and laughed and tried again and again.
And I'll try it again next year.
'Cause that's the plan - to go again next year.
Every single person that went WANTS to do it again,
from the two- and four-year olds up to us pushing-60 folks.
Even the ones that were leery of going in the first place.
Multi-generational vacations are just,
well, a wonderful and fun learning experience. 
For every age group.
Making memories. Making laugh lines. Bonding.
Learning skills or trying to relearn. lol 
Sweet times with family and friends.

Happy end of August!

surprise, surprise...

more quilt pictures!

I can now share the wedding quilt
that I was commissioned to make
as a surprise from parents
to their son and new daughter-in-law
for their wedding:

 Larger than queen-size, with pillow shams,

in navy and coral, their wedding colors.

The Crazy 9-patch pattern was chosen, and I used 36 different fabrics in the blocks, plus the border and backing fabrics. 
It was fun to make, and they loved it!
So nice to make people happy,
and doing what makes me happy!!! lol.

Now getting ready for the annual family reunion,
so back to work for me!
Hope your week is wonderful!!!

I miss big quilt shows; and living vicariously

Here in central Ohio,
we are no longer host to a big quilt show.
I'm bummed. More than bummed.  Almost depressed.
But it didn't really register with me that I was sad,
until recently seeing friends sharing photos online of
big quilt shows that they've attended.

This area of central Ohio has a great quilter presence!
and many quilt shops,
but...
I'd mentioned Many Times previously, 
to whomever would listen,
when the large show was hosted here locally,
that we were so blessed to have a great show
within reasonable driving distance.
And I may have also mentioned that we should all represent! and
attend in groves!!!

Alas, my words were not heard by enough people...
or we didn't represent well enough.
Now, I could drive the five plus hours north and visit a show this weekend.
Or in October I could drive the ten plus hours west.  But I have things to do here at home!

Many thanks to Rosemary, Judy, and Wendy, and so many others who have shared their
recent quilt show experiences in pictures (especially all the ones from the Sisters show!).
Love you gals and guys!!!

Guess I'll live vicariously through my friends' online pictures
to see what I'm missing, and for my quilty motivation and inspiration!

I'll finish with a couple of pictures of some quilty inspiration 
from previous shows and travels:

A Winner - from past NQA show locally

Good Wives from Ohio One Stop Shop Hop

The back of the bus fun - from Always In Stitches show road-trip

Gwennie inspired, round 3

I have the next 'round' done on my
version of the Medallion Sew-along!

The third part/round was to add my own version of
Log Cabins...
This sew-along is inspired after the
style of Gwen Marston.
She has a VERY free style of piecing that I really enjoy...
Whatever she comes up with is good.  
The seams don't have to match.
The points in blocks can be cut off.
No rules.
And that was my plan...
I thought I could do a freestyle version, 
with block centers and 'logs' of different sizes...
and found out that:  I. COULD. NOT.!!!
I even stitched up some free-style log cabin blocks 
with random width logs and random sized centers.
And promptly un-stitched them.  lol

Just couldn't do it.  

So, as freestyle as I could get was changing up the 
finished sizes of my log cabin blocks: 
there are 3.5,   5.5 and  9.5 inch blocks;
Then I got REALLY wild and put a couple of them on point(!),
and, I did purposely only put three borders of log cabins -
how's THAT for free-style?!
Though that last may change when I hear what the 
next month's challenge is. 

At this point, my quilt measures 
about 35 inches by 40 inches 
(I believe without going to measure it).

It has been fun to not have a pattern to follow, 
but just the idea for the month's challenge.  
And, I learned that I'm not so good at free-styling. :)

Can't wait to see what everyone else came up with for the month!!!
(I'll link up to those later.)

Happy beginning of August to all!
Debra