Work, work, work

Posted on June 13, 2010 by Barb

Seems that’s all I’ve done this last week.  Well, except for the day at Susan’s stuffing myself with good food.  I’m still full, by the way.  But I’ve also spent lots of extra time at work filling in for a few gals who had some time off.  However, when this is what work looks like:
 

And this is what greets you as you walk in the door:

All of a sudden work, work, work is more like fun, fun, FUN!

Look at all that fabric…… a quilter’s paradise, for sure!

Isn’t it wonderful?  Because for a quilter, if you can’t be stitching on your own quilts, the next best thing is helping someone else plan theirs.  And since that involves cutting and touching fabric all day, going to work is pretty much paradise for a quilter who works in a quilt shop.

One of my friends emailed me yesterday morning that she was going to “clean the garage and put up some fencing around pool equipment.”  It was 145 degrees out there!  And I ONLY got to work in an air conditioned shop, cutting and folding and petting fabric all day.  And getting paid to boot!  Ahhhhhh, I’m the luckiest person on earth.

And this afternoon I have the privilege of chaining myself to the sewing machine.  And sewing the hours away.  What a life I have!  I’m certain that there will be updates for all you blog readers.  Life is good.  And I am blessed.

May all your days be filled with fabric and fun………even if some people call it work.
Hugs,
Barb

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Bee Stitchin’ Day

Posted on June 11, 2010 by Barb

Yesterday was stitchin’ day with my Bee.  Always a fun day with great quilting friends.  I had high hopes of progress on preparation for a class I’m teaching next week.  Only there was a slight problem.  OK, I’ll show you….
 

Here is my stack of stuff to take with me.  The quilt on the right is the one I’m binding for my friend, Janet.  And the pile on the left is for the class I’m teaching.  Did I say I had high hopes?  Story of my life.  I always have good intentions of getting something done.  Just doesn’t work out that way.  9 times out of 10.  Could it be I’m too busy socializing?  Nah…… (stop laughing all you who know me!)  Anyway, I loaded all this stuff in a basket and a bag and headed off to Bee.  Boo helped, but I did not load him in the basket.

This is the stack of things that I unloaded from my basket and bag after I got home last night.  Slight problem.  The pile on the right grew while the pile on the left doesn’t look one bit different.  I now have two quilts to bind for Janet.  Thank goodness she’s going on vacation and I’ll have extra time now.  Which, of course, means that I won’t start the binding on that second quilt until the day before she gets back.  You know me too well.  And yes, Boo is still around.  Just not in the mood for posing with the “stuff” tonight.

But the best part?  That bag of coffee that got added to the basket.  One dear quilting friend brought me that.  I can always use a good cup of Starbuck’s.  And I’m going to need it when I chain myself to my sewing machine on Sunday afternoon and make class samples of that stack of fabric on the left.  Which, even though it sounds like a bad thing, is not necessarily so.  Being chained to a sewing machine, I mean.  Can definitely be a good thing to a quilt addict like me.

And the food today?  Amazing as usual.  And me with my camera along and not a single picture taken.  I blame it on sugar/carb overload from the day before.  I just wasn’t myself.  Blame the sugar.  I promise to do better next time.  As long as all my photography subjects don’t scatter when I get out my camera.  At least the food holds still.

Until next time…. keep on quilting!
Barb

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Friends, Food, Fellowship & Fun…… and Quilts!

Posted on June 10, 2010 by Barb

This is the bedroom that I want to wake up in every morning for the rest of my life.
 

But maybe you need to take a closer look at the nightstand…….

Yes, that’s cake.  Carrot cake to be exact.  With luscious cream cheese icing.  And nuts.  I want to wake up to that every day.  Well, I suppose only if I want to weigh 500 pounds by Christmas.

And that’s just a little of how my day was yesterday.  Just a small slice of the food that awaited me.  But I’m getting ahead of myself and I should probably explain a bit more.

Judy, Sally, Suz & I spent the day at Susan’s yesterday.  You remember Susan.  She’s the one who wanted to lick the syrup off her plate in this posting.  And she’s also the collector of wool.  She’s addicted to wool these days.  Remember?  And I now have the pictures to prove it.  Because we spent the day at her house.  And we were treated like queens.  Or princesses.  Queens or princesses that would weigh 500 pounds if we spent too many days at Susan’s house.  Because she fed us…… and fed us…….. and fed us. 

Did I mention she fed us?

Judy picked up each of us – early I might add.  Earlier than she said she was going to come.  But we were all ready.  We’d been planning this day and we were excited to get it started.  So we arrived at Susan’s early.

See?  This is the clock in Susan’s kitchen.  We were there early considering that Susan expected us at 10.  But that just meant that we got to see the final preparations for lunch.

And breakfast was in the oven.  Oh, my!  So we poured ourselves some coffee (or diet coke/water, if you’re Sally/Judy) and waited for it to finish cooking.  And we watched Susan prepare lunch. 

Did I mention that she fed us?

Susan was moving so fast that she was just a blur in the kitchen.  And the laughter began……. and continued on throughout the day.

She was preparing Spinach, Pesto & Fontina Lasagna.  She gave me the recipe to share with you.  But I guarantee you that you don’t want to make it.  It’s very complicated.  So just call Susan and tell her you want to come over for lunch.  And that you want this special lasagna that you heard about on my blog.  I’m sure she’ll be happy to make it for you.  Right, Susan?   Because if I type if for you here, you’ll fall asleep before you get to the end.  And that would really hurt my ego.  I need you to make it all the way to the end of the blog without falling asleep.

See?  Judy had to read the recipe to Susan to keep her on track and even Bella (the cat) tried to help.  It was very complicated!  And as yummy as it was complicated.

Layers in progress……. look at that yummy pesto!

And here’s how it looked before it went into the oven.  Just about the time that the bell rang for breakfast to come out of the oven. 

Did I mention that she fed us?

This was breakfast.  Apple Dumplings with Vanilla Creme and bacon.  And I can share this recipe with you.  Because Susan found it over at The Pioneer Woman’s website.  Even if you never make these little tasty treats, you absolutely must go read the recipe here.  Because Pioneer Woman (my hero) is a hoot and will make you laugh out loud as you read that recipe.  And then you will have to make these apple dumplings too.  Because they are easy, unlike the lasagna. 

And they were so good that I licked my plate.  So you are gonna want to make them.  I promise you’ll want to lick your plate too.

After breakfast it was time for a tour of the house.  Because Suz had never been there before and needed a tour.  And we all just had to tag along because we all love house tours.  And if we hadn’t all taken the tour, we’d have missed that cake on the nightstand in the bedroom.  Doesn’t everyone have carrot cake on their nightstand?  You’ll have to ask Susan about that one.  But I’m moving in.  I’m sure Dear Hubby will want to come with me too.

This is the view from Susan’s balcony.  That’s an airplane runway you see.  You can sit and watch airplanes take off and land from Susan’s balcony.  How cool is that?

The birds are well fed at Susan’s house too.  Apparently feeding birds is as important as feeding people at her house.

This is where I’m going to spend my time after breakfast at Susan’s when I move in.  Well, after breakfast and after I’ve polished off that carrot cake on the nightstand.  Won’t that pool be inviting on these hot summer days?  And perhaps if I swim laps I’ll only weigh 400 pounds by Christmas.

More of the back yard.  Looks a bit like Suz’ back yard, doesn’t it? 

And you can practice your archery skills there too!

And then Susan’s Dear Hubby can take you for a ride in this!  I’m telling ya…. my bags are packed.  I’m moving in!

 

Even little frogs love it at Susan’s house.  Can you see him?  He sort of blended right in!

After breakfast and the tour, we ended up in Susan’s wonderful sewing room.  What a great room it is!

Isn’t this a cute counter in the room?  Filled with little quilts and pictures and fun little touches.

There are great signs…….

…….. and fabulous piles!

And did I tell you about her new found addiction to wool?  Here’s the proof….

This wool Baltimore Album quilt was started after she saw Cindy’s wool project.  Susan is obsessed with working on this one.  I know that because she told me!

Next album block in progress.

And there’s this stack of wool for who knows what.  She’ll find something, I’m sure.

This project is waiting in the wings to be started.

And this little project was completed very recently too!

More wool pieces and swatches and projects.  See?  Obsessed.  Addicted.  If you want some of that fancy lasagna for lunch one day, you might consider offering her a new wool kit to add to her collection.

This is a beautiful applique project that she’s working on that is not wool.  We also had some show ‘n tell of Susan’s other quilts while we were there in her sewing room.

Like these beautiful roosters.

And these quilts……

And this wonderful flag quilt.  How many stars are there, Susan?  All appliqued by hand.

Even Baci and Bella got in on the Show ‘n Tell action.  See how enthralled they are with this spectacular Christmas quilt?

Speaking of Baci and Bella – I took loads of pics of them.  They are so silky and beautiful and they posed quite well for me!

They tried to climb into Judy’s bag and go home with her.

And Bella loved my basket.  I would have brought her home with me, but I was afraid Boo would not have been happy with that.

Baci checked out the view from behind the design wall.

And held down Suz’ beautiful quilt top that she brought along to show us.

“I’m just trying to keep it from blowing away with the ceiling fan.”  It’s apparently what cats are good at.

“Listen to me, Bella!  I’m trying to make a point here!”  Bella looks a bit nonchalant, doesn’t she?

So Baci gave up and took a nap on the ironing board.  It’s what cats do best.

There was intense sewing……..

….. and teaching…….

And then there was LUNCH!  Ooey, gooey, wonderful lasagna…..

With “Tony’s Toast” alongside.  We have no idea who Tony is but he sure knows how to make a fabulous garlicky, parmesan-y, buttery toast!

What a great group of friends!!!!

And then there was more sewing…. and laughing…… and chatting….. and laughing…… and sewing.

This is Suz’ fabulous quilt top that she worked on at our JSS Retreat in April.  Good job, Suz!  We’re hoping we see this one in our guild Quilt Show this year!

And there was a HUGE surprise from Susan and Judy!  Remember the little 50’s dresses blocks that Susan had hand embroidered and you saw in the post about the quilts on Bee Day?  Well, Judy secretly snuck over to Susan’s one day last week and they got that whole quilt top put together!

Isn’t it just the cutest thing?  They were quite proud of themselves for surprising us with it.

And then…….

There was dessert!  Remember the carrot cake in the bedroom?  YUM!  With homemade ice cream on the side.

Did I mention that she fed us?

Sally enjoyed her carrot cake………

……. a LOT!  Ahhhhhhhhhh…….mmmmmmmmmmm…….. I think she licked her plate when I wasn’t looking.

And when I got home, Boo fell asleep on the recipe he wanted me to make for breakfast.

Sorry Boo……

THIS is what we’re going to be eating for the next year and a half.  And maybe if we’re real good, we’ll even be able to put some dressing on the lettuce.

Still full,
Barb

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Reunion, camping & major relaxing

Posted on June 8, 2010 by Barb

Last weekend Dear Hubby, Boo and I went to Lake Murray State Park in Oklahoma for Hubby’s family reunion.  We went in our motorhome to enjoy a relaxing time.  Time slows down when you travel in a motorhome.  Lots of time for deep breathing and sighs of relaxation.  Are you sighing and deep breathing just reading about it?  I am.  Typing this just takes me back to the campground. 
 

Can you picture it now?  Just breathe in deeply and let it out  s l o w l y.  It was so nice in the big trees.  Shade is always a good thing when the temps are in the 90’s.

Doesn’t this guy look like he’s having fun relaxing at the lake?  I have no idea who he is or if he caught any fish that day.  But he looks very relaxed to me.  So much so that I fear he could tip that chair right into the lake any minute.  Not to worry.  He was still safe in his chair when we left the lake that evening.  I trust he made it home safely.  With or without fish.

And don’t these kids look like they are having a great time?  Forget the fact that the hottie on the dock is about to lose his drawers.  I just can’t get used to wearing the pants that way.  Now I’m showing my age, aren’t I?  I better move on……

Here’s some of Dear Hubby’s family – his Aunt Willadene is in blue – looking at old pictures and remembering good times together.  It’s what we do at family reunions.  It’s a requirement for attendance.  Don’t ask me who all these people are.  It is hubby’s family after all.  And just because I’ve been to this reunion multiple times is no reason for me to remember all these names.

But wait!  That’s Willa Mae on the left and Aunt Willadene on the right.  I know that because I can read Willa Mae’s name tag.  At least I think I can read it.  If I have it wrong, I know someone reading this blog will correct me in the comments.  It’s what happens when the names aren’t right.  There is always someone around to set us straight.  Don’t they look like they are having a good time?

This is Roberta on the left and Hubby’s cousin, Donna, on the right.  Donna is a writer and she likes my blog!  Hi Donna!  Roberta is a relative too, but don’t ask me how she’s related.  Just be happy that I remembered her name.  It is Roberta, isn’t it?

That’s Glenn and Franklin (at least I hope I read their nametags correctly – thank goodness for nametags!)  They are sharing stories of the good ol’ days…. that’s what happens at family reunions.  Pictures and stories…… required.

That’s Mark’s Uncle Thurman.  You can’t get a picture of him without a camera.  He’s the designated photographer it seems.  If memory serves me correctly (and don’t count on it), he is the person who got my Dear Hubby interested in aviation.  I don’t know whether to thank him or be upset with him.  Aviation is a very expensive hobby.  But then again, it is always nice if Hubby’s hobby is more expensive than my hobby – quilting.  He only has to go flying one time and I get to buy loads of fabric to keep up.  It’s a good thing.

This is Josh.  Aren’t those killer eyes?  He was very interested in showing me the rock that he found.  I was just interested in those eyes.  He’s gonna be attracting little girls by next week with those eyes, don’t ya think?  I think he stole my heart.

This is Josh’s little brother.  He was only interested in his cookie.  I can totally understand.

Josh’s parents had a message for the rest of us.  If I’d have had peanuts in any of my food that day, I’d have hightailed it back to the RV with them!  Or fed the fish.  No peanuts for Josh!

I’m still trying to figure out what this sign meant.  It was actually near a slab of concrete where I think there used to be a dumpster.  Wonder what kind of garbage was acceptable for the dumpster?  I hadn’t planned on bringing any garbage from home along, but wouldn’t the RV garbage be considered household too?  It’s a mystery.

And then on the way home, I had to play with the camera settings…….

This picture was taken with my camera color setting set to “vivid.”

And this one was just on the plain ol’ regular setting.  I think I might have to take all my pictures set on “vivid” from now on.  All of life can now be “vivid.”  Good idea, don’t ya think?

Boo’s favorite place to ride in the motorhome…… Mom’s lap.  Here he is getting a little neck scratching along the road.  See the quilt on the dashboard?  I really wanted to be sewing the binding.  But that is impossible with a cat who wants his neck scratched in your lap.  I know, I know.  Spoiled kitty!

And then when I got up to go use the bathroom (one of the many, many benefits – according to Hubby – of traveling in a motorhome….. not having to stop for bathrooms!)…….

THIS is what greeted me when I got back to my seat.  Is that a smile I see on that cat face?  More like a smirk, maybe?

He even turned around to face me but still wouldn’t give up the seat.  See the smile on that cat face?  I’m telling ya.  He’s feeling quite proud of himself.  And I sat on the floor and stitched my binding the rest of the way home.  I’m a sucker for a smiling cat.

Looking forward to the next trip – even if I have to sit on the floor,
Boo’s Mom

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Swappin’ Services

Posted on June 7, 2010 by Barb

Yippee!  Hip-Hip-Hooray! Yahoo!  You’re never going to believe this!  I finished the binding on two quilts this weekend!  And yes, I’m excited about it!  Well, one of them was not mine, but I’m still happy to have finished two projects.  But I’m getting ahead of myself.

Recently one of the gals that I work with and I decided to swap services.  She absolutely hates doing binding and she has a longarm quilting machine.  So we’re swappin’.  I’m doing binding for her in exchange for quilting for me.  What a deal!

Here’s her quilt that I finished binding this weekend.  I’m sure she won’t care if I show you here.  

 

“Hi, Janet!”  I guess it’s kind of late if she cares, isn’t it?  I’m following the age old “It’s easier to get forgiveness than permission” way of thinking.

And this is my quilt that she quilted for me.  Binding finished…..check!  (I’m checking off the things on my list.)  Doesn’t it look pretty for summer on my kitchen table?

So remember this pile from the other day?

Hey, hey, hey…… look at it now.

Whittling away at that stack of UFOs,
Barb

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