A Mini Trip and Some Christmas Stitching

Hubby and I took off last week for a day and drove to Shipshewana Indiana.  

We love visiting there.

So many neat places and we had specific things we were looking for.

Christmas shopping was happening, people.

One of the first places we go is the Davis Mercantile.

First stop is Jo-Jo's Pretzels for pretzels and there sweet mustard.

Then I am off to Lolly's

I decided to look around and see if there were any purples/blues that I could use for my daughter's upcoming wedding quilt.

It is, of course, peacock themed.

Yes, thanks, these will do nicely.

Great beginning.

This is the pattern I am planning on trying to make. 

 I am sure there will be modifications but this is the starting point.

What is a trip to Amish country without seeing some buggies?

Funny story about these "J's".  

We were in the bulk food store several years ago and I was looking at the sprinkles for cakes/cookies.  I had the alphabet on my mind so when I picked up this container, I looked at it for a bit and asked my husband why it only had J's in it? 

 To which he replied, "Ah, I think those are candy canes".  

Well DUH, of course they were.  Sheesh, my blondeness was showing. 

 Now everytime we go one of us picks these up and remembers the "J's".  

LOL  I hope this makes you all laugh!

Which brings me to what I am furiously trying to finish for Christmas.  

I'm sure that from this peek you can tell what this is. 

 I have been working on a pair of pillowcases for you know who.  

I am soooo close to being finished with them!

I am linking up to Let's Bee Social and WIP Wednesday.

What are you working on??

Is it secret sewing?

~XOP~

Happy Father's Day

YEAH!!  It's Father's Day here in the US today.  I called my daddy last night to wish him a happy Father's Day.  Now on to my own husband's Father's Day.  DD1 and I took him to the local airport for the EAA sponsored pancake breakfast.

This is what it looked like. We went around 9 and we were able to walk right up and get our food. It was awesome. Here is DD1 with DH, although it was a bad picture of him, lol, sun in his eyes.
   

  We always see the mom of a boy my DD2 went to elementary school with when we go. Her son was in my daughter's kindergarden class the year they all went to the airport hanger to see the airplanes my DH flies. From that day forward, Nick had always wanted to be a pilot. Through the years they have stayed in touch and after talking to him mom today, I found out that he is an air traffic controller in the city I grew up in! Small world huh? It was that day and my husband that influenced this young man for the rest of his life. So, if you ever wondered if you made a difference in someone's life you very likely have done. We are just fortunate enough to know it.

Unfortunately, the rest of Father's Day did not go so well for my DH. He got roped into going out to the farm with DD1 to help build her peacock enclosure. On the way to the farm they saw DS walking down the road. Why, I hear you ask?? He drove our Wrangler in a field and put a stick through the radiator. So he was walking home. They picked him up and made him go to the farm and work, LOL, joke was on him. DD2 came home for dinner and the burgers are on the grill as I type this. I guess it was not too bad of a day after all.

I know you are all sitting on the edge of your seats waiting to hear if I got that embroidery finished aren't you? Well, I not only finished the one I showed you but...wait for it...wait for it...I got the second one done too!!! WOO HOO!!! Now, I can put them in the mail on Monday and BE DONE WITH this commitment!!!! Oh, you wanna see them I suppose, right?

I had to ice, ice, ice, but I am so happy to be finished with them. I really love the In a Purrfect World one. I will stitch that for myself someday. Now I feel like I can start working on the pattern for Jacquie.  I have been pulling some fabrics already!

How was your weekend??? ~XOP~

Lest You Think I Sit Around Doing Nothing

We could not have that now could we?  I have a lot going on at the moment.  You know I will be working with Jacquie and I am getting a pattern of hers to test.  In fact, I have the pattern now I need to choose colors.  How hard is that?  I keep picturing different color schemes in my head and discarding them.  Then last night, as I was *trying* to get to sleep, one popped into my head that I think will be the final one.  Sorry, can't say yet, but trust me it is gonna be GREAT!

I took on a project for robin at Bird Brain Designs too.  I am embroidering a shop sample for her of one of her patterns.  I love the pattern.  "In a Purrfect world, Every home should have a cat and every cat should have a home."  It is quite detailed and I am about a third of the way done with the BIG design (there is a picture frame one too).  While I love the saying, I like to stitch, and I am excited that the proceeds of the sales of the patterns go to the ASPCA, I'm ready to be done.  Stitching is NOT my first love.  I believe this will be my first and only venture into this!!  OK, stop sniggering out there, I hear you all laughing at me!  I wanted to try it.  You never know until you try it how you are going to like it, right?  RIGHT???  QNQ is doing the dog version and she is already done  (show off).  Now Robin did not give me a deadline so I need to email her and ask her when she needs it by and to see if she wants/needs both of the designs done (oh please dear God, I hope not).  So I am madly stitching away trying to finish this up, because apparently this is all I should be doing ahem, and nothing else until it is finished, but if you know me at all, I don't work like that!

What's that?  You want to see what I've been doing instead of embroidering like I should be?  Ok  I made another chenille blanket this weekend.  I love these little things! Front and back pre-washed:

Along with my special little label. I had these printed and then I figured out I can make my own! I ordered a rubber stamp online with what I wanted on it, bought some twill tape (when I was in NYC last fall for CHEAP), and use fabric ink stamp pads to ink it. TA-DA!! I have my own at a fraction of the cost, can I can make mine different colors.

Then I washed it and wowsa does the front ever change!!

Hey, that big goofball holding the blanket is my baby boy (not really so baby anymore though) You don't see many photos of him. He is kinda like the dog, you will always see more cat pictures as my girls are around and allow more photos of them just like the cats but here he is in all his scruffly goodness too = )

If you are dying to see the animals up close and personal here is a peek at them too.

I am very pleased with how it came out. Now I have to get back to the embroidery, before I receive 10 lashes for not having it done already and doing something else.
I'll finish it but I am probably going to begin Jacquie's project very soon. hehe

~XOP~

Good News, Bad News

Yes, you guessed it. My morning was filled with both good and not so good news. I did the weigh in and gained 2 pounds! TWO WHOLE POUNDS!! ACK!! I'm so depressed about that. I worked so hard and I just can't seem to get past this whole up a little down a little plateau. So that was the not so good news. On the other hand, I did lose inches. From the last measure to this one 5.5 total inches, 4 of them from my abdomen! I gained half an inch in each bicep. My body fat index went down by 1.5 too. I am told that this means that I am gaining muscle and still losing fat but that muscle weighs more than fat. I know this but it is still discouraging to see the scale number go up. I know there are many of you out there struggling with weight issues too. It's so difficult, isn't it? I have been working on it since January and have lost 41 pounds and 41 total inches so far. It sure goes on quicker than it comes off and with lots less work! I just feel like I let my team down and I hate that feeling. I am ready for the challenge to be done and not to have to feel that pressure any more. OK, that's it, enough whining! Moving on.

I told you I had a top secret project I am working on too but I can show you part of it, although I can't tell you what it is going to be used in until later. I will say I am designing a quilt around it. Some of my readers may figure it out and that's OK, I just can't state it outloud. I found this wonderful pattern, free, on vintage hoop transfers on Flickr. I love that group! They have some adorable, vintage patterns available there. You should check it out.

I got all of this done in about an hour while watching the Harry Potter marathon with DH last night! I got the chance to use the red Cosmo thread on the spool (2 ply) for the first time and it is WONDERFUL! It is more expensive than buying it in the skein but it sure is a dream to stitch with! I hope to have this part done soon and then be able to design the quilt in my head around it.

Hope you all have a wonderful day, the sun is shining and the birds are chirping and life is good!
XOP

The Rest of the Weekend

Now we will go on to the things I managed to get finished this weekend. I sewed together the back for the JRQAL top using the green I showed you previously. It needed to be slightly longer so I cut it in half and took ~ a 10" strip of Kona Snow and bordered it with left over pieces from the Verna JR. Then I sewed that in the middle of the green and voila, my back was finished. No photo, I forgot to take one and I am handing it off today. I also got the binding made for this quilt. YEAH, one down!

Then the MSU football game was on so I felt like I needed to do some hand work while watching the game. I tried embroidering on the IKEA towel, but the weave is so loose I didn't like the results, although I did get one finished. So I picked up my Rabbits Prefer Embroidery and finished one of those blocks. (Sorry about the bad photo, but at least there was one!)

Another finish!!

Next up I had pinned a Texas fleece panel to some black fleece and I needed to sew around it to actually finish it. I sewed, turned and top stitched and now this one is finished and waiting for Christmas to be a gift for my DS!

Yeah, another finish!! Don't you just love it when you get stuff done??

Next up? I had the body of the crazy rail quilt done and it just needed the borders, so I got those put on, seamed and back and again, another finish!

I just love this quilt, so easy to make and so forgiving! Off to LTW's house now! I cut the binding but did not sew it together yet.

I kid you not, I literally had this quilt folded up on my sewing table, I turned around to pick up something and when I turned back this is what I saw.

Autumn was already playing quilt inspector! I think it passed, LOL.

So my Sat and Sunday were pretty productive. I feel pretty good about that. I have decided to go to NYC with my DH for the week. As my BFF PTM said, since I am driving I could take it with me to work on. We will see how far I am by the time we go.

Now I have a question for you all. Remember Matt? The soldier friend of mine that we made a quilt for after he was injured in Afghanistan? Well he is getting married in December in Vegas. There will be an engagement party this weekend. I want to give them a quilt. What about the JRQAL quilt? Do you think this would be appropriate? It turned out to be a little smaller than a twin, more like a throw. They will live in Hawaii where Matt is stationed so I thought it would fit in well there. OK or too girly? Thoughts?

Aunt Shelby's Wedding

I meant to post this last week when I got it done but so many other things have been happening I haven't had time! I finished the mermaid for the doll quilt. I will work on the quilt once I get the top done for the challenge. Here she is


One of my oldest and dearest friends got married yesterday. There was a party for them on Friday (also my 27th wedding anniversary). It was at his sister's house and it was fabulous!

Yesterday was the wedding. This is my friend, Shelby (yes, my oldest daughter is named after her and she is DD2's Godmother)


Isn't she beautiful?? Eve nher feet were adorable! This was pre-wedding. We have been friends for around 28 years now. We met when I moved into the apartment under hers when we both lived in Kalamazoo. I needed to borrow a phone so went upstairs and used hers. We have been best friends ever since! We don't always see each other as much as we would like, although we are trying to change that, but we have been through LOTS of life with each other. Her husband, Mike, passed away around 6 years ago. Very suddenly and no saying goodbye either. VERY traumatic for her (and all of us). She was devistated, but life goes on whether we are ready for it or not. She never thought she would be happy again. Then she met Don. He has made her sooooo happy again. When I walked into the bedroom where she was getting ready yesterday morning it was all either of us could do not to burst into tears. Remembering her wedding to Mike (I was a very pregnant matron of honor) . I looked at her and told her all the new happy memories were about to begin again and we had to look forward not backward. We both kinda sucked it up and no more tears.

The wedding was outdoors at a dear friend of Don's. It could not have been more beautiful.

So here are 2 of my children all gussied up too. I thought I would show you a pic of DH and me too.


The sad news? I dropped my camera and now it won't turn on! I will have to see about sending it in for repair. = ( Luckily DD1 has the same brand and I was able to put my photo card into her camera and download all the pictures from this weekend!
Now off to clean, laundry and sew.

PS Just in case you were wondering, I made them open the quilt and they loved it. Here is how I ended up doing the label. Oh and the whole quilt and then Aiden "helping" me wrap it up.

See? I told you there was a lot going on this weekend!