B-day present

My sister in law Anita gave me these for my B'day, I think they are really pretty. She noticed my tree is a little bare this year so she got busy and painted . The kids told on me though......I have a bare tree because I didn't put all the ornaments on this year, ran out of energy. I don't think it looks to bad with a few on it, it's a pretty tree on its own.

after affects

The after Christmas rush is going on around here now. No sewing and its starting to get to me....ugh! Spent the weekend at my families in Co. Bluffs with the kids and came home Sunday night late only to deliver puppies bright and early Monday morning! I am now the proud Grammy of 4 sweet shih-tzu babies. They are doing well and Sadie is doing well also. I'm sure pic's will follow......

Merry Christmas

I'm waiting for Santa right now, the kids are supposedly going to sleep. I always get them new Jammie's to open Christmas Eve and then I take their pic in front of the tree. Sadie wasn't to thrilled this year with the whole take my pic thing, we really had to make her go near those children...ugh! Sammy loves to have his pic taken but he's always just a big black blob, poor boy. Well if Santa would hurry up.................I could go to bed!

Cat Christmas

Sara and Snowball are dolled up for Christmas eve, we had fun putting the ribbon on the cat but once it was on she was ok with it. I took their pic and then made Sara take it off, didn't want the cat choking or getting caught on something with her ribbon. It truly is a holiday around here with three cats in my kitchen, usually the orange one don't get to stay in, but since it's Christmas Eve what the heck, and it was fun to watch them chase and play.

B-day presents

My mom makes me the most awesome presents! The top pic is a little wall hang, I have it hanging on the side of my fridge right now, I love Christmas Cats! The basket is filled with cat fabric, I think my favorite is the Halloween Kitties in the back, or maybe the orange and aqua cats......or the really pretty panel of sewing cats........I can't decide. All I know is I'm gonna have fun sewing it all up into things just for me! She also made me a thread catcher/pincushion in pink, I think it's the prettiest pink batik and I was even with her when she bought it.

Christmas Eve

I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas! The countdown is on around here but no one is worried except ME! Oh well I always say Christmas comes whether your ready or not.

cookie time!!!

Miss Sara and I made gingerbread cookies the other night, I had some cookie sheets in the freezer so we got them out and used her fancy Pampered Chef cookie cutters. I didn't realize they were miniature when I bought them for her so her cookies are bite sized.

We did red, green and white frosting and candy with sprinkles. I even let her use the 'lard ball sprinkles' since it is a holiday. The star cookies are hers and the flower cookies are mine. I really like the ones with kisses on top!

gift basket

I made a Wassail punch gift basket for my dad and stepmother. Her kitchen is sage green and she decorates everything Christmas in gold. I made a liner for the basket before I got the basket so it was a little big and hot pads to match. I added apple cider, honey from Kev's bee's and pineapple juice with cinnamon sticks. (I'll add the orange when we get there) The optional ingredient is brandy, I don't like the brandy in mine because it makes me feel like I'm having a hot flash but everyone who is adult liked it. I never know what to do for my dad and stepmother for Christmas so I think this is a great idea, food is always good!

Mutant Cat

Snowball is kind of naughty as you can tell from this pic, she likes small places to nap and I was shocked to find her in my mixing bowl on the counter. (she has also taken to sleeping in the goodwill box) I call her Princess Mutant Cat now, her brown eye has a slight problem. The membrane under it swells up all weird and it actually popped once(gross!!!) it has affected the size of her pupil also, it is never the same size as the blue eye anymore. I wonder if it affects her sight but I can't really tell. She is quite sweet most of the time and quite spoiled too. Yes I did wash this bowl after I kicked her out of it and off the counter.

small gifts

These are a Lazy Girl Design called the Wonder Wallet, they are a wonder! The directions were easy to follow and I made all 5 in an afternoon. 4 wonderful women on my list are receiving these this year, I wonder if any of them read this blog? I wonder if they will like them? I wonder why I worry......?

These pillowcases are for my brother, yes he is sometimes a drunk little devil....hehehe! I am making him a quilt to match but I thought I should get these done just in case I don't get it quilted before Christmas. Kristin said she thought it was disturbing I was making a quilt with Satan on it. I explained it wasn't Satan, just an ornery drunk who was a little devil when drinking. I told her sometimes ya just gotta have a little fun with things and she then agreed maybe the fabric was fitting for her uncle.

I work tomorrow and then I think I have the weekend off, not sure yet. I was thinking to myself today would be the perfect time to start my winter nap and not wake up for two weeks!

Hotpads

Ok I'm on a hot pad roll here, bear with me....I bought 3yds of fabric and some insulbright at work yesterday, I demonstrated how to make these to the few customers I had in then came home and assembled the rest, Kristin turned and tacked them for me tonight while I quilted a quilt. Everyone will get a set this year I guess, I might even keep a few for myself cause I always keep the uglies or the rejects so this year I'm going to treat myself and keep a favorite or two. (now if I can decide which I like the best)

These match the soup labels for Sara's Friendship Soup she is giving as gifts this year. We have enough for 15 jars of soup mix and she gave them for teachers and such, I made extra to give also, hopefully I will remember to take a pic of the finished gift set.

trying to catch up

I'm trying to finish a few gifts, I'm not sure it's working but I'm going to keep plugging away at them. I went out to my studio today, got it all warmed up and ready to quilt then it was time to take Josh to the Dr. oh well maybe Thursday......I work tomorrow and Friday so this weekend will be it for making anything else. I think I'm to the point of not caring, I get like this every year around this time so I should be used to it and be more prepared but I never am. The kids are getting excited, school is out Friday and Kristin will be home tomorrow, I'm looking forward to seeing her!

All I want for Christmas....

All I want for Christmas is a beer! Hehehehe! Ok maybe not but it sure makes a fun tree for a bar! This is what I did on Turkey Day night when I had to work. (can you tell it was a Busch Light night?) The paper chain garland is Keno tickets, no I have not a clue how many I strung together, I was afraid to count, they are the losing tickets and I think it is probably the $$$$ garland ever made. I am a true crafter at heart as you can tell, I even craft at the bar! ( there is one Diet Pespi can on the tree, my best customer don't drink and it's a special ornament just for him) I love decorating tree's for Christmas but I hate setting them up, good thing this one came thru the door in one peice!

Aprons

I didn't take many pic's of Turkey Day so I thought maybe I should show off Mom, Sara and their cute aprons. I tried to guilt a kid or two into taking pic's of everyone but no one would cave into my heavy suggestions......

Baby gift

My mom made this for a baby gift, I love it! Check out the finished quilt on her blog http://flicshasews.blogspot.com/ as you can tell we overlap gifts and sewing a lot, she does my binding and I do her quilting. (I'm getting the better end of the deal!!!) She has been much more productive this year in her sewing than I have. I am out in the studio today, its been tough getting it warm enough to sew today, I finally got the main room warm and now the heat is blowing in the quilting room, just in time for me to leave for Sara's Dr. appointment......ugh!!!

just because....

A friend of mine from church lost her husband in a grain bin accident a few months back, they have 3 girls and this quilt is for #2, I have the other's done so the binding fairy is busy finishing this one today. I'm planning on wrapping them and placing them in her car as a surprise from Santa. The soup supper benefit is Saturday and I'm not going to make it because of work but I'm sure I can find an elf to deliver them for me.

pillowcases

I made a couple QOV pillowcases for Heartstrings last week, mom gave me the red and blue fabric and I sewed these up quick and got them sent off. They put quilts in them and present them to soldiers when they return home. I've done so much in RWB that my stash is limited so mom's fabric came in handy for this little project.

I am hauling corn today if I ever get out of the house. Yesterday was a waste....I had a headache that I thought was going to kill me, tried to sleep it off, got rid of it last night finally then couldn't sleep so I read and watched TV till 3 a.m. Today I am shaky and a little worn out from it, so it's a slow start to the day. I'm glad Kev has the truck loaded for me, he is rather sweet sometimes......

Hotpads

I work on small projects while I'm waiting on the studio to warm up after I start the wood stove and these are a few that I've finished lately. Some are Happy blocks gone orphan, some are 'foster' blocks. (Kristin always said orphan made her sad and she thought foster blocks sounded better, they were just waiting for me to give them a new home) so I think Kristin will be impressed I gave these small foster blocks new purpose and soon they will have new homes.

Hats and Scarves

Hats and scarves for Kosovo kids, they went out in the mail this week and Deb already has them, they will go with her boss's husband next week back over there. I made a few that boys would wear because I know its more fun to make things for girls and I don't want boys to be left out. I think my cat Stormy posed well for the pic!http://debscrafts55.blogspot.com/ this is who inspires me to crochet, and she is the reason I bought round looms to make hats.

just a peak

Just a peak at a few quilts I quilted this week, these are gifts for Luanne's grandkids, the teal/brown is so pretty, I love the colors!

Jennie's tote bag

Yes I named it something stupid....hahaha! This is a present for my friend Donna, she was my secret sister for FCE Club and we had our Christmas party last week. She loves RWB so she was easy to make a gift for. I always draw her name for SS and I sometimes wonder if she gets tired of me making her table runners, potholders, pillows, etc....the food was great at the party(thanks Jana and Steve!) and the company was excellent!
I will be having a class on how to make this bag at work in January, we are having "Bag a Month" so I better get busy and make a few samples, it seems the ones I have made are all gifts for Christmas.

I thought....

I thought I would blog everyday in December, Hahahaha! I think time is getting away from me again this month. I spent Thursday quilting and catching up out in the studio, unfortunately I just made more work for myself....oh well...the kids can fight over it when I'm dead.(fight over who has to dump it I'm guessing) I'm ready to put up the tree mentally, physically I don't even want to deal with it, it was a long week and I still have to work tonight so I better make the most of this afternoon...ugh!
I twisted wrong getting out of the hot tub a few nights ago, now my hip/leg is sore, it's slowed me down on quilting, can't stand and twist behind the machine for long periods of time. I did get some sit down sewing done, and I cut something up wrong and now have to figure out a way to 'save' it. I think I can it's just going to take a little thinking on my part and right now thinking is just out of my comfort zone.....(I might just have to go shopping instead of sewing for the rest of my presents)

Turkey Day

Just a few highlights from Turkey Day, guess I should of put them in order cause the sleeping after dinner shot should be last..............Kelsey and Helena, he napped, she watched TV with the kids.

Sara and Helena before dinner, I think they are excited.......

Sara carved her first turkey, she is going to be an excellent cook! (notice the fancy new apron!!!)

Christmas presents

Just a quick peak at Maxine's Christmas presents here....she does such nice work! I've quilted a lot of Husker quilts this year, I love this one set with the black!
I have not done one lick of sewing this past 4 days, work and company has kept me busy, Kristin went back to college this morning, I was sad to see her go but I know she likes it there so that makes me feel better. I watched TV with the kids and Kev last night and worked on dishcloths for gifts while Indiana Jones was saving the world yet again.......Today I head south about 2 hours to pick up a grain bin dryer, our corn is still to wet to sell so off we go to buy more parts!

time?

Who has time to blog on Turkey day? I do when I'm in between coloring my hair and making scalloped corn (ok I'm not making it, I'm supervising) Sara is collecting ingredients as I type. Things are going pretty good besides not being able to yank the neck out of the turkey this morning, good thing Kev was around to help. The veggies were chopped last night and the dips made. Stuffing is in the crock pot and the wassail is on to simmer. Potato's peeled and gravy 'stuff' is boiled. Kristin mopped the floor and the extra dishes are washed. I'm going to go wash the color out of my hair as soon as my brother gets out of my shower and maybe even have time to have Kristin highlight it..........ok that might wait till after dinner. I work tonight at the bar, I think all the out of town people will be drinking tonight, tired of hanging out with family kind of thing......who knows, if I'm slow I'm decorating the Christmas tree.

I work at the Quilters Candy Shoppe Friday and Saturday, I'm hoping to be busy! I hung the new sample quilts Tuesday because I didn't want Roseann climbing the ladder. I'm looking forward to the holiday season there.

quick and easy

This is my quick and easy baby quilt. I fell in love with this FQ in the middle and thought it would make a great boy baby quilt. I tried to do it all with FQ's as a challenge to myself.....almost possible. I have the directions written down and the steps photographed, someday I will type it up all fancy....I think it makes a great gift size or would be simple enough to mass produce as charity quilts. I have made another just like it and have 3 or 4 more cut out. I love to do simple quilts in different colors just to see the possibilities.

I'm tired of cleaning for Turkey day.....tomorrow will be a looooooooooooooong day!

busy-busy-busy

Today has been a busy day! I spent most of it in the studio quilting and sewing. I got 6 quilts quilted (ok most were baby or throw size) and a top pieced. All of them were quilted rather simply as the ones with puffy batting look better with larger quilting. I always say why put puffy in if your gonna quilt it flat? Well anyway I don't have a darn thing to show off in this blog, I didn't take any pic's of the quilts I worked on and the top is not ready for pic's so this entry will be on the boring side. I did cut a few pillowcases for QOV and the pillowcase party on Heartstrings this weekend. Mom gave me some RWB fabric and it's ready to sew up now.
I am toasting bread for stuffing right now, Sara got bored with it so I'm finishing it, burnt half of it already! Oh well I'm sure there will be plenty....Brad thought I was burning up the house so he came out to check on me, I think he just didn't want to go to sleep yet. Sara and I watched a Turkey day special on Food Network, not sure we learned anything but it was fun to watch. I'm sure we will have our own TV worthy moments between now and Thursday!

Oh I do remember vaguely a lesson on crochet when I was 9 or so........I think the memory of my little brother and his buddy using my project for a Spiderman web kind of warped me, I do remember chasing them down with my found project(in the neighbors back yard with the dogs) and beating the tar out of them! Hehehehe maybe that's why I really suck at crochet!

weekend

Not a lot going on this weekend I guess, heading to the grocery store with Sara. My little Turkey day hostess needs to learn how to shop for her groceries I think. Check out mom's blog for Sara's hostess present, it's so cute! http://flicshasews.blogspot.com/ My mom is awesome! I am looking forward to having company but not looking forward to cleaning house!
I will lock myself in my studio later today for some power quilting, lots to get done for other people's presents! I have a few ideas I want to do also so I better get moving on it! I watched TV again last night with the family (sci-fi night) and made another scarf, this one is dark grey. I'm down to putting fringe on it and making a hat to match. I timed myself and with watching TV and a snack break it took 3 hours to make the scarf. I don't think that's to bad for almost self taught not sure what I'm doing kind of crochet. All I know is I can sew a heck of a lot faster!

just a few....

This pic is some of the many quilts that have been donated to charity by me or my friends. I really wish I would of kept track over the years now, I know the numbers are in the hundreds for all the charity quilts I've had a part in creating. Tonight I set and watched TV (not normal for me) and I made a scarf to send overseas to Kosovo. I also finished a bright pink one that I need to make a matching hat for a present. I work tomorrow at The Quilters Candy Shoppe and then the weekend is free. I'm hoping Kev gets all his repairs made and they can finish picking corn without me. Right now the grain cart is broke and so is my truck so the only way to haul corn out of the field is with the gravity wagon and the bins are so close to full that there is no way the rest of it will fit in them. Kind of crazy around here this week......

Nice weather

Today is sunny and clear, big change from the last week or so. I guess it's back to picking corn today, I sure will be glad when we're done! I've been working the last two days and I'm getting worn down, today won't help I'm sure. I love my job at Quilter's Candy Shoppe, its great to play with fabric and help people pick and choose when they need it. Had a very nice lady in yesterday who was wanting to match some pink floral she was given, we changed the pattern from a green quilt to a pink and tan quilt and it's gonna be really pretty when she's done and just a tad more modern than the 80's mauve and mint.........hehehe! I got really busy in the afternoon and it was great, I ended up putting over 30 bolts of fabric away after closing time.

Sara will be hosting Thanksgiving this year so I have been collecting recipes for her for the basic things we all just 'know' how to make, today it was mashed potato's. I think she is really looking forward to cooking and such, I'm not looking forward to cleaning house though! http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/ This is a fun blog and most of the stuff sounds really good, I get a kick out of what the gal's kids will and won't eat, sounds like my house!

whats going on today...

Today I am working off a smoke headache(spent to much time at the bar last night working) so I decided to make up a list of things for my kids to write about at Thanksgiving. A few years ago we had a book about Christmas and it was full of questions, really made a person think about things and what to be thankful for and memories and such. So I thought with Kristin being home it would be a good time to repeat the fun. (did I mention they loved it the first time but were 5 years younger?) My topic is Reasons you are Rich. I think it will be a good Thanksgiving writing.
The last two days have been very productive, 5 quilts for other people have been quilted! Whooohoooo!!! Only 8 or 10 to go...........ugh!!!! I did quilt the cutest Husker quilt though, loved the red and white. Today I will do the black and red quilt, that way I don't have to change thread in the machine, then on to blue thread.....then black....then brown.....green.....pink.....wow I think I better get moving!!!

Zoo

I guess I should of mentioned where the animals went in my earlier post. Most went to Colorado Springs to a refuge. Fred the Camel is moving to Wayne with a nice family with kids and I haven't heard where the last three tigers are going, just waiting for final plans to be made. I'm very glad they have found new homes, AND the boss can get some much needed rest. He has been working everyday for the past few years thou everything and he needs a break!

It's snowing........put a stop to harvest for the day, this has been a long fall and I'm ready to be done with it all. Lots of breakdowns and my jobs have put us behind. Today I'm going to go to the studio and quilt my brains out, not that there is a lot to quilt out so I better be careful and not overdo it...hehehe!

Pictures of sewing?

I can't find my pic's I took of my latest projects......got interrupted and don't think they got saved after I downloaded them.....hmmm guess I will have to make the projects pose again, hehehe! Sara is going to the Zoo in Omaha tomorrow with her class and she is taking my camera. Now she has a wonderful camera that she got for Christmas but I don't know how to take the pic's off of it and Kev was working so I just gave her mine, after I deleted the pic's on it, oh well it's not that hard to retake them, just can't show them off on here tonight. I have been busy working on Christmas things, nothing I'm going into detail about though. I'm on tractor break because of the weather, there is a dusting of snow on my studio deck, just about slid off the steps because of the rain we had before the snow, gotta love the ice! Tomorrow is another sewing day, I will do a few paid jobs and maybe some more presents....

Zoo Nebraska

O'Ryan just wanted to be petted this day, he rubbed the fence till I scratched his shoulder and back. Hard to get a tiger to pose for pic's, they pace and I keep missing their faces, I have lots of pic's of backs.

I can't remember her name to save my life, I've always called her Pretty Girl. She is a Lucistic Coyote. That means she is not an albino because she has blue eyes. Pretty Girl is 17 or 18 years old I'm guessing, we got her from the Grand Island Zoo when they closed. She was found by a Western Nebraska rancher as a pup and given to the zoo because she would of never survived in the wild due to her color. She is so old that she is blind and deaf, I couldn't get a good pic last year because she would see me and run, this year she didn't know where I was so I could get her pic if I walked up slow and quiet. I hope she survived the trip to her new home.

Arthur is my favorite King of the Jungle! He seems to like me for some reason, I sit with them a lot and he lays by the fence in front of me, if the tigers come near he fights them away, its awesome being that close to such wonderful animals! Victor, William and Cassie are in the background, as I said before it's hard to get them to stand and pose because they are always pacing.

I will miss the wolves a lot, they are wild and spooky creatures. I am impressed with the way they never got used to me and never trusted me like my other wolves did. I really miss Denali and Whispers the most....they were like pet dogs.

And Fred is just Fred. What can I say, Fred loves me so much he is always to close to take a good pic, he wants me to scratch him all the time, he follows me everywhere and I even had to bribe him with 6 loaves of bread to keep him busy while I got around to take everyone's pic. He is such a big pet it's pitiful!


I am really sad the zoo is closed and the animals are gone, I loved working there and really got attached to them all, its been almost a week and this is the first I've been able to write about it because it has bothered me so much. I know it's best for them to be where there are more people to see them and love them but I still am going to miss them....

Combine

Today we spent money, tomorrow there will be a new (newer than the last) combine in our fields. Kevin spent the morning patching holes in the grain pan of the old combine, the metal is so thin he had a hard time welding patches in and making them hold. I'm scared to think of how much corn got left in the field by falling thru the holes! I am waiting on the weather now to hold off just a little so we can play with our new equipment, they are talking rain then snow.......ugh! I think I will go out to my studio and play awhile, ok I will probably start quilting, I didn't quilt a single quilt the month of October and Christmas is sneaking up on me!

Halloween

Halloween was quite eventful around here!!!! The bottom pic is Kelsey and his girlfriend Helena getting ready for Chad and Shannon's wedding. Yes they had a Halloween wedding! Kelsey was the undead bridesmaid and Helena the undead groomsman. I wish I had a good pic of the bride and groom but I don't. I was helping pick corn so I snuck in and took a few pic's of them getting ready and then when they came to the bar (I had to work) after the wedding. The middle pic is them with my kids before trick or treating. The top pic is Chad, Kelsey and Ricky trying to pick up truckers as they drove by the bar.........hehehehe

Harvest

We are finally picking corn! Ok today I'm not, I'm the official cook....but tomorrow and the rest of the week I will be in the field driving the tractor/grain cart. I am amazed how little this old combine leaves in the field, I really have to search for ears of corn for goat snackies! Only a few breakdowns, one we thought was going to be major but Kev fixed and so far it's working. Last night I helped him fix the tractor, well I held the light, and he put on a new water pump. His mom ran for the part while I was at work and she even brought him candy! (thanks Mom!) Today Kelsey and Brad are helping, it's nice when the guys are all busy and everything is working like it should, even Sara is out riding on the combine today.

New puppies

Sammy is a daddy again! Nikki had babies a week ago and Anna brought them up with her for the football game. (Orchard played Arapahoe in playoffs) Nikki is a Yorkie and Sammy is Shih-tzu so now we have Shorkie's! I don't know if they are all spoken for so maybe they will need homes in 7 weeks.

Kitty Christmas Quilt

Here's the finished Kitty Christmas Quilt. Ta-da! With a little help from the binding fairy it is home and in the finished pile in the living room. Oh man does it scream cheap 80's fabric!!! I don't care, I like it and it was fun to use up someones leftovers. I have a couple more kitty Christmas fabric's I want to get made up before Christmas but time is running out and I would rather make gifts and do some more charity projects. I think corn picking will start sometime in the next week, it looks like the rain has ended and the sun should shine over the weekend. Brad and Kevin went to pick up the last of the bee's today, with the rain all week it was hard to get up there. They also stopped to activate Josh's phone, yup the 16 yr. old gets a phone. I think if he's going to be driving I would like him to have a phone with him, besides the girls can call him instead of the house phone now....

just because...

This is a just because quilt. I made it just because I could. It's a small baby quilt, the center was handkerchief I found is some stash I had. The squares were from a trade I did a long time ago and the black was out of my stash also. The only thing I bought was the back and the binding. It's a red check type and I just love it. I have no idea what I'm going to do with it, I'm sure some baby will come along that needs a quilt.

Not much going on today, I'm hanging out in the house and doing a little house work, Josh has friends over for his B-day. Tonight I work awhile at the bar and tomorrow I go to my new most best job ever.....Quilters Candy Shoppe!!!! I'm still in shock I got a job at my favorite quilt shop! I love it there and I know its going to be great fun!

Heartstrings #10

Heartstrings Project Pink #10 is done. The center strip is a Pink Ribbon batik fabric, really cool, makes a nice soft focal fabric. I am slowly making progress on this project. I love these pink quilts!

two tote bags.....

Mary from Heartstrings sent me the nicest package of FQ's for a prize this week. I participated in the sewing bee for green string blocks. I decided to make tote bags out of them. Not a great pic but the wind is blowing, it's rainy and getting dark. I am keeping one to carry my yarn projects in and donating one to the FCE Christmas Tree at my Library (lucky Bright Horizons). I am really impressed with Mary and all she does for Heartstrings so if anyone who reads this blog wants to check hers out its Maryquilts.blogspot.com and no I don't know how to link this to her page so don't be lazy, you have to type it in yourself! http://maryquilts.blogspot.com/ ok try that........maybe I figured it out...........hehehe!

Special Olympic Scarf Project

I got three scarves out of a ball of the delft blue yarn that is the special color for the Special Olympics being held in early 2009. I found on the Internet were they are looking for donations of scarves for all the participants and the officials, felt good to donate to this cause.