My Quilt Room

We saw beautiful quilts at the Houston Quilt Festival. It was so inspiring and breath-taking and you wished you could take a picture of everyone of them. This was definitely one of my favorites. As we were taking pictures an Asian woman came up and was screaming that this is her quilt. She was so happy to see it hanging and people there admiring it. We asked her to go beyond the tape and stand by it. She said it took her 6 months to make this quilt! She must not have done anything else during that time. The name on the information sheet was Yasukoito and Oharibako.

Rainbow

It has been a long time since I have posted. We have been so busy with sports and I have taken on a part-time job that has taken up a lot of my time. I am really loving all that I am learning and the lady I am working for is super sweet. I recently took this picture after one of our many storms this fall. We are about done with sports so I feel like I am almost to the end of the rainbow and can play with all the treasures in my sewing room.

Mountain View, Arkansas

We spent a week in Mountain View, Arkansas where they have done a great job of keeping things from the past. Each evening people show up at the town square to play music. Most of it is not planned as some of the people are just traveling through. It is really interesting to see these musicians and get to know them a bit.

Escadrille

This link will give you an idea of how big the Allen Band is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zNuqFFLwAw

March-A-Thon

Each year our high school band marches 10 miles through the city to earn money for their trips. The Escadrille consists of the tallenettes, color guard and band members totaling around 680 kids. My daughter plays marimba which is not a marching instrument so she got to carry the banner. They even marched through Tom Thumb and Lowes.

I am looking at my pictures from summer and thought I would post a few. We had a tremendous summer and are slowly getting into a schedule for the school year. This could not have been a better sign for my three girls. Although, they are different in so many ways, gardening is something they have in common. They all love to plant flowers and enjoy the rewards.

Working on a baby gift. Here is a sample of the heirloom train design.

Palm Trees

Our palm trees have gotten so big this year. They really do grow fast if you are looking for something quick.

Here is a quilt I did a couple of Februarys ago. It was from a jelly roll and I can't even remember the pattern. I think it was from a freebie that the quilt store was handing out.

These definitely are not my colors but I do love the way it turned out. Kelleigh wanted to make this quilt called the Kindergarten Quilt and I decided to do one with her. We had fun sewing together. She didn't finish hers yet because she went out of town and now she is busy with band so who knows when it will get done.

This one is a Disappearing 9-patch. I used a layer cake which made it super fast.

More quilts waiting to be quilted!

I really need to get my quilts to the quilter. They are piling up and I keep sewing more tops. One that I really like is a small log cabin that forms a cross. It was so quick and easy and I just love the way it turned out.

Time to Catch Up

It has been forever since I have posted. Summer has kept us busy which has been a really good thing. We took a trip to Kansas to do some mission work. Then my husband and I toured parts of Illinois and Wisconsin. Then we spent a week in Arkansas. The summer is essentially over since we are already doing band events. The days are getting filled with back to school activities. My daughter had senior pictures done today and I decided to take a couple myself since we spent time to get her ready.

Summer

I love summer! For the next two days I get to spend more time with some sewing friends. Seams Like Sisters are getting together for the first time in a while. We are all too busy with life to see each other but tomorrow is catch up day. We all come from different backgrounds but sewing brings us together. Can't wait!!! They are truly my Sisters away from my sisters.

Carol working hard on her project....

Ellyn's Red Letter Day quilt. It turned out stunning with the black borders and sashing. What a way to set off the fabric.

Recently I was able to attend a quilting retreat in VanAlstyne, Texas. It was wonderful! The home was roomy and clean and the owners were super sweet. It was extra fun since I had a couple of my best buds with me.

This is my son and his girlfriend posing for a picture. We were at the Water Gardens in Ft. Worth.

Here is another quilt that is ready to be quilted. It is way brighter than I like but my girls love it.

I embroidery lots of bloomers for babies. They are quick and so cute.

Bad Blogger!

I have been so bad at blogging but now summer is here and I should be better at posting. I have done a few things so check out the pics,

Winner

I was the lucky winner of an awesome art quilt book by Jane Davila. http://janedavila.blogspot.com/2009/04/upcoming.html It is such a detailed book and the techniques shared look like fun. I was so surprised to be a winner and am anxious to try something new.

I would love to figure out how to blog from my phone. My son has done it before but we are not having any luck with AT&T and Blogger. Grrr! If anyone has the magic key, can I borrow it? Technology is overwhelming! Is it too late to be Amish? I can't keep up with the world and the way it is changing its forms of communication. When will it end???

Hawaii

We had been anticipating our trip to Hawaii for nearly a year. We enjoyed the adventure with hundreds of band kids, directors, and chaperones. As the header picture shows, it was absolutely gorgeous. This was a view from our hotel balcony and you can see the beautiful pool and just behind that is the ocean. Out the front door of the hotel was a city with lots of action going on. It was just the best of both worlds. I was impressed with how kind the people were and how clean the beach and the city were kept. It was just a great place to spend our spring break.

Funerals

Well, I attended another funeral today. They sure make you rethink your goals in life. This one was for a dear sweet lady who loved everyone. The service was packed with lots of people whom she had touched in her life. She taught me how to weld which is definitely an odd hobby for a female. She also did ceramics and loved flowers. She sent out sticks of gum and a birthday card to everyone she knew - something all my children looked for in the mail. Today, along with the program, the ushers gave everyone a stick of gum. She has truly stuck to me like gum and I hope I can pass along just some of the love she has shown others.

Piece Love and Applique

Here is a block of the month I was working on. It will be sent to the quilter to be finished.

My girls got real creative after Valentine's Day and made these little flower dolls out of the bouquet of flowers my husband gave me. I don't like getting flowers because they always die but this was worth having them around.

Sewing Buddy

This is my sewing buddy. Liberty is always near by whenever I am sewing. She loves to race me upstairs to my sewing area and beat me to my chair.

Losing a Friend

I lost a friend yesterday who shared the same passions as me and that really makes my heart hurt. It is so amazing when you find someone who lives in the same creative circle as you do and you become instant friends and can go shopping and become excited over the same things. They steer you away from things that are going to get you in trouble by spending money you shouldn't.
They help you set goals to get your creativity going and check on you to see how well you are staying on track. They buy you gifts and make little things because they are always thinking of you and then surprise you with them. I encourage everyone to seek out friendships through their passions and cherish them dearly. I am going to miss my friend immensely but I will never forget her.

S'mores

This is a lap quilt I started. It is fabric printed with s'mores made by Moda. The fabric came pre-cut in 2 and a half inch strips and the pattern was designed with that in mind. I enjoyed sewing it since it was mindless and quick. I still need to add borders and quilt it.

Since we aren't too far from Valentine's Day, I thought I would post a picture of a quilt I did a few years ago. I still leave it up all year even though it leans toward the Valentine theme.

Mini-Mini Quilt

This is a mini quilt I have been working on. You will notice the sharpie at the bottom as a reference to the size of the quilt. It is definitely more difficult to work on a quilt as small as this. The black cornerstones started out as 1 inch by 1 inch. After you sew them they become 1/2 inch by 1/2 inch. I still need to add the backing and quilt it. Each square represents a different month by the print on the fabric.

The Brill Trolley

We recently rode the Dart train downtown to tour the city in the Brill trolley. A friend of Grants is the engineer and he was able to get it out one night for us to enjoy. It was such a special night since Grant had been wanting to do this for a long time.

Girl's Night Out

This is all new to me but I wanted to test some things out here. The cheesecake is a picture of a girl's night out at The Cheesecake Factory. It was way too much dessert but oh so good.