Quilt Retreat

As you all know already, Thursday was my BIG 60th birthday.  

What you don't know is that it is also my annual retreat with 3 of my best friends.  

Every year for the last 3 years we have gotten together to celebrate my birthday 

(and my friend Cori's birthday, although that got forgotten this year, sorry Cori).  

She and I used to go out to dinner and then one year I suggested 

we make our own quilt retreat, so we did!  

I also invited my SIL, Mary and after the first year, my friend Traci.  

Traci is the only one that doesn't live in MI.  S

he flies in from Wisconsin.  

Traci arrived at the airport on Thursday.  

I picked her up and we went shopping at some quilt shops, at the grocery store and at JAF.  

THEN we got pedicures and then it was time to go home and pack up the car.

Here we are getting our toes done.

Much to no one's surprise mine are sparkly teal!

Next up was heading to the retreat.  

We arrived and got unpacked and settled in.  

I cannot believe the amount of food we brought for the 4 of us.  

Also movies, lots and lots of movies. 

 I forgot Bad Mom's Christmas, which they would not let me forget

I suggested that we make the Double Slice quilt.  It required one layer cake.  

Cori, Mary and I each made one.

I used some of my Vintage Sheets to make mine and made it a row longer.

Cori made one that used the blocks, cut yet again, into 2.5" pieces to make the borders

Mary's was the original pattern.  

Cori, that little over achiever, finished this quilt before making her Double Slice quilt top.

Cori had her needle come off and it stuck right in her fabric, still threaded!

Traci was helping the other 2 make an "easy" bag 

while I was working away on the infamous"Wedding Quilt". 

 Little did I realize how small the blocks for this pattern are.  

I had to make 670 blocks before I could even begin assembling the top. 

I sewed, and sewed and SEWED.  

This is about half of my trimmings.  

I can't even show you the blocks yet.  

I did manage to get all of the blocks made.  

I still need to trim the last 70 of them, but I thought I did pretty well!

 Cori made one more top too.  

They both finished their bags and Cori made a one hour basket.  

Traci finished her bag, and some other things. 

Mary also got started on some dresses for her grands, did some self binding blankets and 

finished her Winnie the Pooh top.

I made kabobs for our Friday night dinner and Cori brought the rice.  

We got to eat outside.  

It was so nice.

Mary brought her famous sugar cookies

(goodbye Ketosis for me)

Back to work for everyone.

Mary gave us all unicorn pinatas full of sewing notions.  Jack made a new friend.

Birthday gifts and cards were abundant.

Check out the science wine.

I even received a beautiful bouquet of flowers.  Delivered after I got home from my sweet SIL.

I'm pretty sure this was one of my best birthdays ever!  I'm hoping we can do this again next year.

Maybe the year each of them turns 60 it will be their turn to be showered with so much love.

Thank you my sweet, sweet friends for making this an amazing birthday.  

My sixties have begun with so much love, I hope the whole decade is the same.  

You guys are the BEST!

I miss you already

Is it February yet??

~XOP~

Birthday Continues

As if the TP machine was not enough, prior to that I had asked my friend if she was ever going to sell her white Featherweight machine.  

She said she would see if she could find it and then let me know what she would want for it.  

A day later the machine had been located and she gave me a price.  

She is SUCH a sweetie, she told me how much she paid for it. 

 I had to ask for the price again and she said, she just wanted what she paid for it! 

 I could NOT believe it!! 

 I never dreamed I would be able to afford one of the white ones, t

hey are usually much more than the black ones.  

So I had lunch with her the other day and she gave me the machine and I gave her the money.

This little beauty is now all mine!!! 

 I'm not sure how I won the sewing machine lotto but I am sure glad I did!!!

It came with a case,

And all the attachments you see here.  

I took her out and tested her stitch.  

My friend said she might need a new belt.  

I need to see an actual threading diagram but I did test her out and she sews a nice stitch!  

I am getting ready to go on retreat tomorrow so not as much time to play with her as I would like.

I will try to download a manual and see how to maintain and thread her.

Someone online asked me how many sewing machines I have.  

I took the time to list them all and 

counting the one that is coming in September (the TP) I will have 14.  

In my defense at least 5 of them will be ones I am trying to rehome (either sell or gift) 

but I need time to clean them up and oil them.  

One is done but I need to refinish the cabinet.  

Several are niche machines, like a Treadle and a serger.  

I will now have a Bernina 150 to sell if anyone is interested.  T

hat one could go out the door right now, if anyone knows someone that might be interested.  

Please contact me!  

She is a great little machine and has been serviced regularly!

Again, I say, happy birthday to me and Life is GOOD!

~XOP~

Today Is My Birthday!

Today I celebrate a milestone birthday.  

I turn 60 today. 

 I have a lot of mixed emotions going into my 60's. 

 More than half of my life is lived. 

 I feel blessed to be fairly healthy, to be continuing my weight loss journey and 

to have my healthy husband by my side.  

We are looking forward to my retirement next year.  

I am excited for the traveling we will be doing in the RV. 

 It is scary to think about potentially selling our first and only home to go on the road though.  

My family kept asking me what I wanted for my birthday and there really was nothing.  

I would love to go visit Ireland but not this year. 

(wedding and all upcoming).  

So I was struggling.  

Then, Bernina came out with a special Tula Pink edition 770 sewing machine.  

I was so smitten.  

Until I saw the price tag. 

 Nevertheless, I said "THAT" and sent the link.  

Chuckling the entire time.

On Sunday my husband and 2 of my 3 kids went out for dinner to celebrate my birthday. 

 At the end of dinner he asked me to close my eyes.  

And made me wait and wait, haha. 

 He put this pink pouch in my hand

I opened it up and this card was inside.

He went here and ordered one for me!!!

Ok, so funny story about how I was not totally surprised inserted here.  

I asked and did NOT, in a million years, think this would happen 

(Did I mention they are EXPENSIVE?).  

After I said I wanted the machine he went to the quilt shop and 

texted me that he had found a used 880 for $1300. 

 I was disappointed but actually said that I didn't need a bigger machine and if I was going to upgrade it would only be for the TP machine.  

It was kind of a bratty thing to say though as he was offering me a great price on that machine.  

So after careful consideration I told him I wanted to go to the quilt shop and check it out.  Meanwhile...

I pay the bills at my house, so the week before the first of the month I usually check the credit cards etc to see where we are at and make sure they are ok, no one has charged on them.  

Then on a day or 2 before the 1st, I go back in and pay everything that isn't on autopay. 

 His credit card was one of those I checked and say what???  

His bill had an additional $500 on it that I was not expecting. 

 I saw that it was to the quilt shop.  

So of course I put 2 and 2 together and assumed he bought the 880 for me and 

just gave them a deposit until he could take me there.

Come Tuesday we went to the quilt shop and come to find out 

that price was for the TABLE not the machine. 

 Ohhhhhhh that makes so much more sense, but then what did he spend that money on??  

A gift certificate??  

I started asking about the 880 and the 770 just to gather information.  

Then I asked about the TP machine like, what did it come with and how is it different etc.  

One of the owners kept telling me how much I would like a 770, 

(which I thought was odd, but I am friendly with him and his wife so just thought he was being helpful, since he services my 170).  

Then I asked when they had to be ordered by.  

Oh, last week, more disappointment.  

How much is the deposit and did you order extra.  

Yes they ordered extra and they would have to wait until all pre-orders were filled.  

The deposit was, you guessed it, $500!  

THEN and only then did the lightbulb go on.  

HAHA, it still could have been something else but I didn't think so.  

I dared to hope.

So when he handed me the pouch and I opened it I was not completely surprised.  

I was, however, elated and a little breathless to think that he loves me enough to do that for me. 

He went there and had to tell them all about a machine he had no idea what he was actually talking about and then get them to order it for him.  

He is just the BEST and I am so lucky to have such an amazing partner to go through my life with.

I am feeling extremely blessed, to have a wonderful family, my health and another year (I hope) 

on this Earth.  

(and soon a beautiful new powerhouse on which to create!!)

I realize this is long and wordy, but I wanted a record of this entire day!

Life is GOOD!

~XOP~