ALL DONE

EXCEPT for the labels!  Most quilts I give as gifts are labelled just before the quilting process is nearing completion, but, this time around I believed I had no time if I wanted these ready to take along with me.  I was not certain I could get all of the items I wanted to piece, quilt and bind ready so decided leaving the labels until the end would be all right, after all, I would be doing the bindings and could do the labels then.
I believe I was right this time to wait, now I know everything is finished and I still have time to do small quilt labels with meaningful quotes and information.  The final two quilts being the larger of all are done, these are not bed quilts but fair sized lap quilts which I am pleased with.  

My Best Friends Quilt

Close Up of Quilting Motif

Back of Friends Quilt with Canadian Flag

Cousins Quilt

Close up of Back and Quilting

Last picture of back which also shows binding and border

I am happy with how these eventually turned out.  Possibly these aren't what you may have chosen to do, but, I did what all quilters do, I chose the patterns and the end results.  My one wish is that I hadn't wasted so much time and frustration on my attempt to make an entwined border on the Double Irish Chain.  I confess, the resulting plain borders look much nicer and make the center of the quilt noticeable, whereas when I pinned on the entwined border (the three sides that actually fit) made it look too busy and I regret I didn't take a picture of that scenario so I could make my point about it being too busy.
19 sleeps left my excitement is mounting!
I believe my expectations were a bit too ambitious for the amount of time I actually had from deciding which date I would leave for my trip and the actual departure date.  Fact is I did it and I am well chuffed with myself, even though these wouldn't win any prizes in any juried quilt shows.
If your out and about another place away from where you live this summer and the coming fall, be on the lookout for lots of local quilt shows.  I see there is a quilt show taking place over three days in Hershey, Pennsylvania this weekend and from the web-site the details of the many events happening around that show are plentiful and filled with many wonderful quilt classes and lectures.  I am hoping someone will upload lots and lots of pictures of this event because I am betting there are some wonderful quilts being displayed.  I remember going to one in the early 90's and it was spectacular!  Those were the days when digital camera's were financially out of my reach and so my little camera was all I had, unfortunately I cannot find the snapshots I took then to share with you, but I do recall ooing and awwing over them all and being so very new to quilting I was awestruck.
Now, something new and exciting has been happening at one of my favorite Quilt Blogs, you will find out all about it over at Madame Samm's web site,  which is where your going to find WANTTOBEQUILTER Campaign and from all I have read this is going to be so exciting.  Why not hop on over and read all about it at "Sew We Quilt@ Stash Manicure" from the sound of it there is tons of fun to be had and a long list of sponsors for this fun filled campaign beginning August 1st.  Not long now and all of the events will begin and you too can get in on all of it from the beginning. 
Thanks for stopping by this morning, I hope your not bored by the many pictures of my quilts over this past month, but, blogging is sharing whatever is going on in your life and I am no exception to this.  Don't forget to leave a comment, even if it is just to say Hello.  I would love to hear from you, what it is you do, and the types of projects your currently working on.

I Can't Believe I Did That!!!

Surprise is what I got last night!  My family showed up a day early!!  Well early to my memory, but in all honesty they said they would be here Thursday and I thought it was to be this evening, Friday....that is what you get when your so wrapped up in what your doing that you very inconveniently forget your getting overnight company!  It all worked out well and they have come and gone, but, I admit I felt rather stupid. 
Only 20 sleeps left until I leave Canada and head off to Holland for my two months mental health break, which I can now see I really do need!  
My dear daughter-in-law presented me with a certificate for the fabric store and with it I am now the owner of a June Tailor Shape Cut Ruler.  What fun! I had ordered it and was prepared to pay for it myself, but, lucky me, I was able to pay for it with my gift certificate....  Now all of those 2.5 fabric pieces I will be needing to cut for my Hexies that I am taking with me to work on while I am across the ocean will be so much easier to cut and a much faster job than just using my 12 inch ruler and rotary cutter.  I decided that I needed that shape cutter because my cuts always seem to have a wow in them, no matter how careful I think I am, I still get several cuts I have to deal with because of those slight variances I always manage to get.
I decided to watch the video on the shape cutting system and I confess she made it look so easy, but realistically I know I will be watching that video more than some while I get the basics of how to use it down pat.  With my need for visual aids in learning, I am so very happy the internet offers video tutorials on all of these wonderful tools invented by very savvy quilters. 
Do any of you use this type of ruler?  Do you use it a lot?  Do you like it?  I would love to hear from those of you who do have it and use it, has it made a huge difference in your piecing?  I certainly hope it does for me.
I haven't much more to tell you other than I am busy preparing for my trip and living with my lists of things to put into my suitcase or chores and appointments that have to be kept before I leave.  Why didn't I put my childrens' arrival date on one of those lists I wonder?  Guess I am having the "one track mind" syndrome this year, really thinking about what I have to accomplish before I am finally let loose on my unsuspecting family and friends in Holland...LOL


Thank you for taking the time to stop and visit with me this evening.  I hope you will continue to visit as I blog from Holland, my best friend tells me of all of the nice finds she gets when she visits the market stalls,

 old bits of various provincial costumes and bits of fancy crochet as well as old fashioned lace or ribbons, and I can't wait to get stuck into the fray and make some wonderful discoveries of my own, maybe then I can get back into some crazy quilting.  

Thunder Boomers & Wonderful, Glorious Rain

I realize I have already posted today, but look, isn't it exciting?  The thunder boomers have moved into our area and it is raining nice and heavy now.  Finally, the gardens as well as those crispy brown lawns all over town will be refreshed and given a much needed drink of water....I realize some don't care whether it rains or not, but, after the scorching heat wave we have been through the last several weeks, this rain is so welcome.  

A GREAT GIVE AWAY is happening

No, I am not sponsoring a GIVE AWAY, but LAZY GIRL DESIGNS is!  This Summer Tote pictured above is the topic of conversation today.  Joan Hawley is a talented designer and her bag patterns are easy to follow and look great on anyones' arm.  I actually bought this pattern a few years ago and love it, and pulled out my pattern wanting to make a few to take with me.  My thinking that while staying with my best friend, a quilter also, we could each make one as a memento of this auspicious year.  Each time I enter the fabric cupboard I am auditioning fabrics to take with me and have selected a number of combinations, but, so far I haven't chosen any, but for certain this is going to Holland with me.  

No matter where is this world you live, women love hand bags and bags that are totes as well, nothing is more pleasing than being asked by strangers "where did you buy your bag" and nothing is as satisfying as being able to tell them you didn't buy it you MADE it yourself!!! 

Go ahead, treat yourselves to the possibility of winning the pattern and the accompanying items to make your bag a special edition. 

Disclaimer, I am in no way affiliated with Lazy Girl Designs I just happen to love them.

Guess what?  It is raining, and has been raining for the last two hours, we really needed this rain and the assistance it has been with cooling down the temperatures.  It is an even 70 degrees here and it feels wonderful.  None of that cloying humidity, though the weatherman says the hot temperatures will be returning by the end of this week. 

I'm off to complete the sewing on of the binding for the stretched stars.  Last night I was of the opinion that I was just whizzing along and was actually congratulating myself on how quickly I was progressing.  FOR SHAME, I see some of my stitches in the border which shouldn't be there, so now I must take out that part of the stitching and begin again, more carefully this time, I might add. 

Thanks for dropping by today I sincerely hope your weather is as great as ours is today, especially those who are suffering those extreme hot temperatures.  Leave me a comment and I promise to answer, I would love to hear from you!  

Finishing Projects and Counting Down

Sunday and the weather is a gorgeous 72 degrees, bliss after the scorching temperatures of the last few weeks.  I slept very well last night and because the temperature was much lower than it has been I actually turned off the air contditioner and opened all of the windows, mmmmm fresh cool air, it was wonderful. 
I'm back, just taking a break to let you know I collected two of the three last quilts to be quilted from my wonderful and accommodating Long Arm Quilter, Vivian.  Thank my lucky stars she doesn't live far from me. 
Vivian did a fantastic job on the quilting and I am a happy quilter, already had the binding for each quilt ready to put on once I got them back.  Yesterday after our company left I attached my binding on the smaller quit of the two I picked up and it is now finished and waiting to be packed into my suitcase...This afternoon I will be stitching down the binding for the stretched stars and then all I will have left to do a binding for is my gift to my best friend.  Just the many doctors and eye specialists appointments to attend to with my mother before I get to leave, and then before you know it I will be on my way.  My dear brother is going to get up and take me early in the morning so that I can catch the 6:30 a.m. bus to the airport outside of Toronto, then I have only to relax and wait out the hours before my flight is called and I am winging across the ocean.  To say I am looking forward to this trip is quite the understatement, thank heavens my health is such that I can enjoy every moment of my stay in Holland and really enjoy all of my getting reacquainted time.  I have once again been scouring the museum web-sites that I plan on visiting and the little towns and what will be left of the floral gardens.  I have all of my electronics ready to go, just need to recharge the computer so that I can use it while waiting out the hours before leaving Canada, and of course the juice to recharge my e-reader, should it be necessary. I think I am all set, and until I actually pack my suitcase and tick of the items on my packing list I won't know for certain, but, there is always something last minute and I will be most fortunate if I escape the "Oh No" I forgot something. So long as I have the major items, well, if I miss something on this side I will just have to buy it on the other side.  24 more sleeps to go and now I am actually anticipating the sleeps. LOL
Right now though I am looking forward to seeing my son, daughter-in-law and the grandchildren.  They're stopping off for the night before going on their vacation, the second to last long weekend of summer.  I'm excited because I have all of their birthday presents ready for them to unwrap and while I am away I will know I won't be upset for having forgotten someone.  My grandson is in the finals of the LaCrosse Tournament, this weekend and I am so crossing my fingers that he and his team will have fun while competing for first place.  My daughter-in-law is such a good mum, always with them while they participate in whichever sport of the season they're enrolled in and it is so good to know they are each enjoying their choices, sport, dance, no matter, they do so enjoy it and I am so happy they're getting all of the exercise and expending all of their energies which makes for a good nights sleep for their parents.  I remember my son didn't sleep through a single night until her turned 4, oh how I remember those sleepless nights.  You can bet my son sleeps very well now.  
My break is over, time to get back to finishing the binding on this quilt, once it is done I will be thrilled to share it with you, in the meantime, here is a picture of the little quilt all ready to be placed into my suitcase.

Binding sort of blends in.

The back 

Frugal Friday

It's Friday once again, seems like yesterday it was Friday and I was telling you about being close to the finish line with all of my quilt projects.  Well, in total disregard to my frustrations working on the Entwined border for my best friends quilt, I confess I finally discovered the error and why it just wouldn't come together.  It takes much longer for me to clue in to my own silly mistakes, but clue in I finally did.  The border must be divisible evenly by 3 and my dimensions just were not so divisible.  I wasn't willing to change the center and add more fabric sash to make it so because in my eye it would not have looked right, so, finally in defeat of my own personal challenge I abandoned that border idea and will keep the pieced borders for another quilt which will have the correct dimensions for the border.  Instead I put plain borders on this quilt and if you ask me it looks 100% better than what I thought it looked like with the entwined border.  Looking back I can now see the planned border made the quilt extra busy and took away from the center Irish Chain design, now with the plain borders, the center speaks for itself and the top looks decent and more polished.  Finally it is with the Long Arm Quilter now and once it is quilted and returned to me I will snap a picture of it and let you see the finished quilt.  I wasted two whole days on this challenge and in the end had to admit defeat.  All is not lost however, I still have the pieced borders and the top looks so much better.  Have you ever had to abandon an idea for a piecing project? If you have, what did you do about it?  Did you abandon the idea or did you make it to the finish line? 27 sleeps until I board that airplane and head off on my vacation, can you tell I am beginning to get excited?  There are still so very many appointments and chores that need doing before I leave, at least that is what my TO DO LIST shows me, not as much crossed of as I once anticipated.  Isn't that always the way of it though?  My fellow Lions Club members and I were to take the Retirement Home residents out boating and a visit to the Kenney Inn at Jones Falls for ice cream and picture taking, 

but, due to the extreme heat conditions of yesterday we have postponed it to take place on a more suitable day when it isn't near as hot.  If that should happen before my vacation date arrives I will gladly post pictures, I know appointments were switched around to accommodate this trip by some of the seniors, but it simply cannot be helped, better we don't have to deal with heat stroke or heart problems while out on the water, better to wait until the weather is cooler and much safer.
I ordered the June Taylor "Shape Cut" ruler and cannot wait for it to arrive at my local quilt store.  I see what I do when using only the Omni grid 12 X 6 ruler and it isn't pretty, some of my cuts are great, but some still have a wow in them and that irritates me as I am sure it would you, and having the perfect cuts would speed up the piecing process as well, don't you think?  So hurry up delivery person, I really would love to have that cutting device.
Since I am taking all those quilts with me to Holland and these are all finally finished, I thought seeing as I will have late evenings and early mornings time to myself without a huge project still left undone, I would make some seat belt and car seat belt covers.  Seems like a nifty little gift to throw in with the quilts.  I made these last year for the vendors market during the Lyndhurst Turkey Fair and sold out completely.  I enjoy going each September and regrettably I will miss the beautiful Quilt Show this year. These are such a neat project, small enough to do quickly and nice enough to give away without taking up much space in the suitcase.  We have some awesome quilters in our region. 
As for frugality, well this being the end of the week, and a Friday, it seems like the right time to declare fabric buying off limits for me.  When I saw what remains of my stash I just had to make myself a promise not to buy another bit of fabric, not one piece for any reason whatsoever until this is gone, more than likely it will take 3 to 5 years give or take a few months to use it up, but, then there are the bins with scraps in them too, who knows how long this will take, but, if I want a new sewing machine and a Tin Lizzie frugal is what I will have to be.  I will have to make a HUGE SIGN that says "NO MORE FABRIC PURCHASES"!  Well it's a resolution of sorts, help me stick to it PLEASE?  If I don't I won't fit into the sewing room anymore!  
For the moment, thanks for stopping by, here is hoping I hear from some of you, sometimes I wonder about who it is that visits, why not say hello and allow me to get to know you better.  No matter where you live in this beautiful planet keep cool, stay safe and enjoy the upcoming weekend, I know I will.

Arrrrrrgh!

Are you a perfectionist with your piecing?  Seems I am a bit too persnickety with mine, I am wrestling with this entwined border, so much so that I am making myself a nervous wreck over it, it is the last quilt I need for my trip home and it is the one that I am having the most grief over.  IF it doesn't finally go together properly I think I may just abandon that idea altogether and give that Irish Chain some plain borders and be done with it, but I hate being bested with my own personal challenge!
It is so humid here today and my 88 year old mum continues to play with the air conditioner, I turn it on, she turns it off, I turn it up and she turns it down.  Since I am upstairs the heat rises and it is sweltering up here even with my fan going. being overheated just isn't conducive to the brain operating on all levels as it should be either. 
Seems like I am not having the best of times with myself lately, possibly I have just left myself with far too many commitments and thinking about those is making me stressed and I am hurrying, haste makes waste so it is said and I am inclined to agree with that!  Wish me luck as I make my way back to the border that I am beginning to dislike very much, if I should manage to get it done and done properly it will be a true miracle. 
I hope your having/had a much better day that I have had and that your relaxing in front of the pool, cool drink in hand and totally cool, and if not, then I hope it gets better from here.
Come back tomorrow and see if I have managed to pull of this border properly, if not you'll probably read I have given up on this idea. 

How Kewl Is This?

If you have been reading along you will remember I went looking for just the right Rolling Back pack!   You will also remember I found one and bought it online!  I took possession of it yesterday and it was so worth the shopping and the choice, in my personal humble opinion!
Yesterday it was HOT and I needed to cross the border to go and pick up this wonderful gift to myself!  I waited in line like hundreds (no exaggeration) hundreds of cars were waiting to get through the toll for the bridge and that took near 1 hour in the blazing sunshine and humid heat it caused, then, once at the Border crossing another twenty minutes, which in truth was excellent and in another twenty minutes I arrived at my destination, paid for my order and was back home in no time flat!  This bag is a dream.  Remember it is a High Sierra Bag  and this is it pictured below.

This bag as of this morning has also become my sewing machine carrier!  Can you believe it, the entire project I need for finishing today while still away from home caring for my heart patient is in this bag and still roomy enough to take a more yardage of fabric, an extra spool of thread and my special "can't live without it" thread holder, my e-reader and all of my sewing tools required for this project!  Now how is that for a BAG!  Can you tell, I am so pleased with myself in the choice of this bag, and to top off the good great feeling, it was on SALE I save 100% of the suggested retail price and the company I bought it through was so helpful.  Irv's Luggage made me a very happy quilter, and  here I sit extolling its virtues all over again.    Not only is it the dream travel companion, but, it has now become the bag I will use to transport my sewing anywhere at anytime for any reason!

Today marks the last day I will be away from the house and watching someone else's parent.  Tomorrow begins the routine "before vacation" trials.  That means all of the 101 items to select, the chores that need attending to so that I may be away and enjoying myself for two months, the appointments I must take my mother to before I leave so that while I am away no one needs to take her to, the many checks and double checks for all of the items I wish to take with me and of course the arrival of my seat tickets so that I actually do leave the country!

Today also marks the proverbial real count down of the number of sleeps I will have before it becomes officially the first day of my much needed mental health break vacation.  It has been 16 years since I have been home and 21 years since my father passed and I have been full time caregiver to my mother.  No, I am not complaining, I am merely so looking forward to being away from home and unchaperoned. :) Can you tell I am becoming more excited that in previous posts?  30 SLEEPS just that and I will be up up and away...

I will continue posting while on vacation, at least that is my plan, while possibly not every day most assuredly I will post, so long as I remember on my "to do" list before leaving I set up my computer access correctly.  

One more small note for you today, I bought a Moda Layer Cake, "Dragonfly Summer" by Holly Taylor and received it yesterday as well, this I purchased through the "Daily Deal" from The Missouri Star Quilt Co. Oh my but it is so very pretty, these colors in this collection are my colors.  Now all I have to do is find just the right pattern to show them off.  Jenny Doan of Missouri Star Quilt Co. on Craftsy is so easy to listen and learn from in her Quilting Quickly classes, and her store video tutorials are easy to learn from too. Guess I will be visiting a lot of free pattern sites, did you know, Moda also offers FREE QUILT PATTERNS?  They allow those wonderfully talented fabric designers to show off their fabric lines.  I so enjoy visiting the fabric manufacturers sites.  Moda is no exception.  Their "FUN STUFF" section is really neat. Sew, if your not project sewing today and want to enjoy looking at all of those neat ideas and see new lines of fabrics not yet in the market place, then hop on over to Modas' site and visit with them awhile, or, to your favorite fabric manufacturer which ever that might be and take a gander at its site, I always discover something new while scrolling through those places.  

AGAIN I tell you all, I  am not affiliated in any way with any of the e-commerce companies I tell you about, I am a happy customer who believes in letting people know about items I buy that I use or will use and why I am happy and for no other reason.

Since this is Sunday and I am beginning to run out of time this morning, I will bid you a wonderful relaxed and beautiful day no matter where in this big beautiful planet you live and one of these fine days I may even be surprised that you might have left me a comment, leastaways I would know your out there and reading.

TGIF

Good Friday Morning All, here I am on my way to the finish line, one more Top down with a border and a back, the one I finished yesterday still needs to have a back but that won't take long, and now just to finish the Entwined Border, time, like I have written about before is certainly my enemy!  Possibly it isn't so much the time that eludes me, but that I haven't fully learned the aspect of saying "NO"!  At least these two are off to the Long Arm Quilter in the morning, then, one morning early next week I can deliver the third and final top for quilting.  

The border is really the exact color of burgundy which surrounds the blocks, strangely some of these digital cameras from just a few years ago don't take accurate color - I believe a new camera is in my future! 

So much still to do and so little time left with which to do it all in. 

BEAUTIFUL WORKS OF HOUSEWIVES ART WORK CAN BE FOUND AT BROCANTIE HOME

Brocante Home is where you will BEAUTIFUL art works such as the piece pictured above. A beautiful blog filled with interesting content and images, I just know you will thoroughly enjoy your visit there.  You can spend some time with Alison and her "Housewives In Art" Parts 1 and 2, she didn't just stumble on this subject, she has researched it and the resulting posts are wonderfully crafted.  GIVE YOURSELVES a treat, go and visit Alison today, and as a Disclaimer, I am in no way affiliated with Alison, the site, in any way whatsoever, I just happen to love visiting there to discover some new eye candy and interesting topics.

Only 32 more sleeps until I do VACATION!  Cannot wait to board that airplane and get hugged by my friends, it is what I need, a long mental health break to bring me back refreshed and ready to take my place once again in the production line of volunteering and quilting and housework and caregiving. Being a caregiver is the hardest work I have done since I began working almost 55 years ago.  So this vacation is a respite from the past 21 years of demanding your presence at every turn in a normal average day.  LOL  I know that some days I want to change my name legally and not tell anyone what it was changed to.  YEAH RIGHT LOL! 
Its time I got myself ready, or I will be late, gotta run, like the proverbial rabbit that Alice is always chasing about. 
Thank you so very much for visiting today, no matter where you live, what you do, or who you are GIVE yourselves a wonderful day today, sure as night follows day, tomorrow and more chores will be waiting for you,so enjoy yourselves today.

One Done Two To Go

Well, at least one top is finished!  Hooray!!!  How does it look?

Now to finish the next one which just needs the two side borders and it will be done too! Saturday is "D" Day - D for Delivery to Long Arm Quilt Day...

Its Thursday Already!

Happy Thursday, can you believe it, almost another week nearing its end towards a hot and summery weekend?  I have been progressing with the tops I am intending to have finished.  The pace however isn't as fast as I thought, so, it means doubling up on the time I still think I have, although time is rapidly running out for these projects.  With me away from home every day this week, will I make the Saturday deadline?  I certainly hope so, wish me luck in this endeavor!


In the meantime, this video clip was sent to me and I am thinking you might like to see it too. 

This really is a Kleenex moment.
Sadly, I am not writing another chapter today, just posting so you will know, I haven't forgotten you and to let you know I am hard at it.  No more meeting this week, but next week, myself and other members of my Local Lions Club are chauffeuring seniors from the Retirement residence here in town by pontoon boats to a place close to home called Jones Falls, and this year I will take my camera along and share with you.  Once we land at Jones Falls we will all troop up to the Ice Cream parlor and have some of their wonderfully famous ice cream and then make our way back to Seeley's Bay. It will be a nice time spending it with seniors and being out on the water, and a few hours which I will truly enjoy. 
Have a marvelous day today no matter where you are or what you may be doing.

Have you seen this?

Happy Monday Everyone


What a pretty day to begin the week, already it is 80F outside my windows, but, I am so fortunate to have central air and I at least got a good sleep last night.  While sitting outside last night I spied Mama Cat with her three little ones in the front garden, and while I cautiously tried getting near them, mam wasn't having any thing to do with me the big human, so, decidedly I sat still and just allowed them to romp and play while I looked on, all the time talking to mama cat very quietly.  I have begun feeding them, so hopefully when I sit near them each evening they might just begin to accept me and maybe them I can get to hold one or even any of the three.   Seems like such a shame to allow them to go totally wild and brave the icy cold and brutal winter weather.  Ah well one can but try.  


Listen up!  Have you seen this new product, I read about it in my morning mail and went to have a peek.  WOW for those who sew or quilt this is a wonderful new product, and, if you hurry you can get in on the GIVEAWAY too! 
Head on over to Lazy Girl Designs and meet Annie!!! She has a brand new product to tell you about and from the description as well as the photographs your going to love this!  By the way, I am not affiliated in any way with either Lazy Girl Designs nor with ANNIE who is the author of todays' post, I just found it very interesting and thought to share it with all of you.

Picture from Annie's post today go, see the rest of the blogpost and no this is not the Giveaway!

I worked so diligently yesterday, desperately wanting to finish borders on the three tops I have and want to take with me on vacation, but, as it is with summers here, people stop in and by the time they left I wasn't in the mood to go back and carry on, also, I noticed that while I had been working on a 4" stretched star for my one border, when I finally went to shut down the sewing area I noticed I had actually put that tiny block together incorrectly - now how do you suppose I managed to do that?  Being distracted I didn't bother to check my positioning and there you have it a frog stitch job.  I at least took it apart and resewed it, now it at least is correct.  Tonight I will go back at it again.  Do you have days when something you want to accomplish just doesn't get done?  Yesterday was such a day for me.  Thank goodness I still have this week to finish these, otherwise that long arm quilter is going to not be able to fit me in. 


Thanks again for stopping by, I hope someone wins the giveaway at Lazy Girl Designs, what a great product and one I can't wait to try.  I wish you a wonderful day today no  matter where you are, what your doing or who your with, may it be special.

Breaking With Dieting This Weekend

Its that time again in the dieting cycle when I capitulate and have something which is totally not conducive to good dieting practices.
My brother called last night and invited both mother and me out for a bit of a Sundae drive and I said to him, not this was Saturday, LOL, get it SUNDAE?   I know I should have declined, but, like all people who diet, the dieting cycle gets broken from time to time, and this was my turn to deviate from my 1,438 calories a day.  It has taken me close to one whole year to lose a measly 10 lbs.  You'd think I would be more mindful of the length of time it has taken me to lose just those few pounds, but the devil made me do it!   
After driving around a part of the country I live in and in three years haven't explored and seeing the massive new houses being built in a new sub-division we stopped at the DQ!  

Ten minutes later I sat in the back seat with a caramel sundae topped with lots of nuts and began digging in.  My sister-in-law had a cherry sundae - she just loves charries!  Anything at all which contains cherries and she'll have it.  My mother, bless her heart, she indulged in a chocolate fudge sundae, and my dear brother a huge vanilla cone. 

DQ Ice cream cones are sooooo delicious!

Don't these look absolutely scrumscious?

There isn't a member of my immediate family that are not ice cream lovers and Dairy Queen has always been the favored drive to treat place.

After having finished these scrumscious treats we were on the way home which is nearly a half hours drive from home. 
The road to home is very dark and we were moving slower than normal as the deer have been spotted coming out of the forests onto the road these pat few weeks and we didn't need to meet one of them on this dark road at night.  While we didn't meet any deer last night, we did see lightning streaking across the sky, huge beautiful streaks all compliments of Mother Nature.

When we arrived home I went in to close up the windows as the wind was picking up and with seeing the lightning I believed we might be in for a storm, my mother didn't believe me and decided then and there she'd water the flower beds.  I kept saying, it's going to rain, but nope, would she believe me?  After she finished that watering task in she came, locked the door and just before her nether end could come into contact with her chair the rain burst from the sky and came down in buckets!!  Not many times do I get to be right when it comes to my mother, but by golly this time I was right.  All that water used when it wasn't necessary.  

Oh well, now the flower beds are doubly watered and should last for awhile before needing a drink again. 

I finally came into the sewing room and completed a few more 4" stretched stars for the border of that Stretched Star quilt top.  Near 1 a.m. it really was time for lights out and a bed inspection, but before that, , I thought it best to make the rounds and make certain all windows and doors were locked, while doing that I looked outside and there they were, three little kittens romping through the front flower bed.  My goodness but they are so sweet, I am so torn as to whether or not to bring them into the house and look after them (mother included) or, to leave them be and let them grow and become a stray like their mother and more possibly their papa too. 4X trouble me thinks!
TONIGHT is our local Lions Club end of year party, oh boy!  BBQ chicken dinners all around and for some of the shut in seniors in town as well.  Every year our United Church puts on a Chicken BBQ and it is a great social event as well as a much needed fundraiser for the new steeple for the church.  The steeple was in sad need of repairs and they finally had to remove it from the roof rather than have a mishap or nasty accident while fundraising for much needed repairs. Watch this video of the steeple being removed, it is quite extraordinary.

Our Lions Club holds it year end party the same date as the church BBQ and nicely donate to the church while having a delicious dinner and get together all at the same time.  Two birds with one stone so to speak!  Seeing as I live across the river from where the party is being held I will collect all of the dinners and deliver them as well as mother and myself.  Can you just smell the aroma's coming from my back seat now?  I think you might.  There will be chicken, potato egg salad, coleslaw (all homemade by the way), hot buttered buns, and a side salad, then wonderfully home backed pies...now, here I go again, breaking out of the diet mode - you'd think by now I would have said no to the ice cream sundae last night know full well about all of wonderful food I would be eating tonight!  I will be taking the camera with me and making the good effort to get lots of photos, so, if you are not already bored, stay tuned for tomorrow's post when I get to show off what tonight's party looked like.
Now, have I told you more than you wanted to know?
Have a happy weekend and be mindful on those roads and by-ways if your travelling about, apparently the wild life in those woods are being driven to distraction by all of those huge and nasty deer flies that are biting them and so pose a hazard to vehicles especially around twilight. 

I Bought My Bag Finally!!!

Quickly, before I leave the house, I thought I would tell you, I bought my Bag!  YIPPEE.  This is the same one I was looking for and now it is on its way to me!
I am doing the happy dance for certain. 

High Sierra Powerglide Book Bag

Isn't it great, tons of room in it and in the colour I wanted.  Now, I am all set for my vacation, just have to get myself a haircut and I will be off to the races. 

Look What I discovered This Morning!

While waiting for my first coffee of the day to be ready I took a peak out of the kitchen deck window and look what I saw!

Sparring in the sunshine

I'm gonna getcha

Mouse Catching Practice

Hey, what are you two doing?

Say Uncle!

Your no fun!!

You go I caught that mouse!

This is mine!

Hey, where you going?

Three fluffy and sweet kittens playing on my kitchen deck in the morning sunshine.  What fun!  Now, who are they really, where is their mother, and are they living under my kitchen deck?  Oh my goodness, another problem to solve before my vacation, I know we can't have cats living in this house, my 88 year old mother will grab them if she thinks I am not looking.  It isn't as if I don't like cats, I do, but their a responsibility and vet bills can be astronomical for 3!  What to do?  There are so many wild cats living around here in farm country and most catch mice, but still, winter will come sure as daylight comes tomorrow and the thought of them living in harsh weather conditions has my heartstrings in a real quandary!  I am afraid if I have them caught and taken to the humane society they might end up without anyone adopting them and then what?  Will they eventually be put down?  I can't imagine living with that thought knowing they're going to be living under my kitchen?  Tune in tomorrow and I might have made a decision, right now is not the time as I will be late cause I am looking after a neighbour today and not at home at all.

Thanks for stopping by today and if you have any ideas please leave them for me, I need help with this one!

Have a happy day today.

THE COCHRANE MURAL

Something fantastic as well as quilt related and inspiring for you today!  The Cochrane Mural out of Alberta, Canada.  This is fantastic and you can definitely spend some time at this site, very well worth the visit.

THE COCHRANE MURAL

LOOK CLOSELY BY CLICKING ON ANY PART OF THE MURAL

For those not living in Canada, Cochrane is NW of Calgary and east of Banff, in the foothills of the Rockies.

This mural was unveiled recently at the Cochrane Ranch House.

Each tile is 1 foot square, is its own individual picture and each is by a different artist.

All of them together form this huge mural.  You can click on each of the tiles to see them in detail.

Check out, especially, the horse's eye.

 
Click on any square that makes up the mural to see what the square really is.

Thanks for stopping by to visit today, unfortunately I haven't yet finished the two sets of borders for the Stretched Star quilt top nor the Double Irish Chain top, which I am feverishly attempting to finish so that I can take these with me as gifts for my friend and my cousin.  I also have a doctors appointment and am arguing with a dealer for the rolling backpack I am attempting to purchase, somehow they don't understand about my US postal drop address!! Go figure!

This is the one I really, really want and do you think I can get it?  I can from other dealers at a much higher price, but why pay more when I don't have to?

Post comments on this absolutely fantastic Mural, it certainly is a wonderful creation and all those artists, wow, what they have created and accomplished...

Have yourselves a truly wonderful day. Come on back tomorrow.  

A DASH TO THE FINISH LINE

Happy Wednesday!
I have been busy since Canada Day celebrations have finished, only one more event to plan and have executed and then it becomes a race to the Finish Line (trip date), when all things on the "to do list" are either crossed off as having been taken care of, or, will wait until I return in the fall.  Don't you love the anticipation of a vacation only to be inundated with those lists of things which much be attended to knowing full well that these are really important or else they would not have landed up on that list?
Allow me to share two tops I finished and that still need borders.  I don't know about you, but somehow this year I seem to be stuck on borders.  I want something to show off the center of each quilt, and I seem to be taking forever to come up with a good plan !

This quilt is for my cousins and wonders of wonders I am now completing the border for this one - without the border this quilt top measures 40.5" X 47.5" and with the finished border it will measure out to be 47.5" X 54.5 and that should be completed and ready for binding in a few weeks.

This little quilt is for my cousins' first granddaughter who will turn 3 this year and according to my cousin, she loves her teddy bear - I just couldn't resit whipping this one up and because of the cheater medallions, it was a breeze and I am happy I made time to fit it into my schedule.   Currently it measures 29.5" X 43" and will because it is for the little one to hopefully drag around and enjoy the border will be very plain and easy and I am guessing the border size will end up measuring about 6.5 inches, which makes it a decent size for such a little one. 
Today I wish to share this photo with you, it is from one of the phenominal photographic sites I love to visit when time permits, I am always searching for that special photograph that those wonderful photographers around the world see, take and share.  This specific photo was taken by ANZE MALOVRH a 17 year old living in Ljubljana, Slovenia and this particular photograph is what I fell in love with he titled it "REAL LOVE" 

Doesn't this just say it all?  This tugged at me heart strings and I keep this one as my Screen Saver to remind me of how very prescious LOVE really is!
Now here is a photo I stumbled across this morning and so far I haven't gone looking for the photographer, but this is just so cute!

Thats' all for today, my list awaits and borders still have to be made, so with pen in hand, it is time to complete some of those borders I was telling you I need to complete so that these little quilts I am taking home with me become actual completed gifts and not those I.O.U. a U.F.O. !!
Thanks for stopping by and sharing some of your day with me, please, don't forget your comments are always appreciated.