A Little Philosophical Today

Sometimes we just have to admit that we are not in control of our lives. I am very grateful that God is ever present and watching out for me and mine. We make decisions daily not really giving them any importance when really they will affect our lives for years to come. Decisions that we think are so trivial like our first born taking Tae Kwan Do, we find now was God-led in order to save his life one day. That day was yesterday and I'm overwhelmed with gratitude for God's answer to my many, many prayers for his protection.

As I ponder all this today, I find myself so grateful for the many people God led into our lives who have influenced my children for good. They are just too many to name but God knows who they are because he put them there. I am asking Him to bless them all today but most especially Bro. Ronnie. He is a treasure!!

Are We There Yet?

I have told you before how much I LOVE to travel. That call to scour the internet for low fares to just about anywhere is always ringing in these old ears of mine. So just imagine how excited I was when my sweet hubby (yes, the very same one from yesterday) called to say that he needed to go out to Wyoming for work. My response - When do WE leave?

Unfortunately, the trip isn't until mid-June but all the reservations are made and I have already found several quilt stores, yarn shops and needlework shops in the cities where he will be working. I have to find something to do with my days while he's off working! I will just be in heaven going on my own little shop hop around the northwest corner of Wyoming.

The picture above is one from Flickr of Grand Teton National Park. We will be spending a few extra days in Jackson Hole after his work is done so we can explore this beautiful scenery. We will have time over the weekend while he's working in Cody to explore Yellowstone National Park.

I can hardly wait!!

His Mercies Are New Every Morning!

It's a brand new week. A fresh start! Another beautiful day is forecast and lots to be done.

Last week was a hard one for us. Tragedy struck our daughter's high school for a second time in three months. Four of her classmates have been killed in needless accidents. When will they learn that alcohol and driving (especially at such high speeds) do not mix? It is a hard lesson for those left behind that these kids are not invincible. They are not untouchable. It was a very hard week.

On a happier note, I just have to brag about my sweet hubby. He is an amazing artist. He works with colored pencils and, if I may repeat myself, is amazing! You can check out his website here. He has been working on pictures of our sweet kids. Here are our oldest and our youngest.



He is just beginning on our other son's drawing. For those of you who know our sweet kid #1 you will agree that this is sooooo him. Such a perfect expression. I just love it! And then, our baby - she's just a beautiful person - inside and out. I can't wait to have all three framed and hanging in our entryway. Their pictures, that is, although there were days when they were growing up when I would have liked to hang them by their toes!! Now though, I'm so proud to be their mama.

Thanks for stopping by!

Spring?

It seems that spring may have actually come to our part of Ohio. Little green shoots(like this one) are popping their little selves up all over our flower beds. It is so exciting. Temperatures are actually in the '50's and we are wearing sweaters and not coats. YEAH!!! I am so ready for spring!!!

We are finally able to get pictures from our camera to the computer so I have no more excuses for absenting myself from posting. I will be catching up on all of our activities soon. I promise.

Thanks for stopping by!

Little Quilts

Hey there! I hope you all had a nice weekend. Ours was full of activity since our Sweet Kid #2 and his girlfriend came home for a visit. It was nice to spend some time with them again but as usual it wasn't long enough to suit me.

Not much else going on here. I have been working on several projects but not finishing much. The last finish was this little log cabin mini which I used scraps to complete.

It's about 25 X 25 and came from the Little Quilts book I bought when I first began quilting back in 2001.

I'm working on another one from the same book and here are a couple of blocks from it.

I have finished 4 of the 6 little Overall Bill blocks as well as the four patch blocks that surround them. All are from scraps again. I love using my scraps!! And I seem to be stuck lately making little quilts. They are such fun and almost instant gratification.

Thanks for stopping by!
Happy Quilting!!

Fabric, Fabric, and more Fabric

My gracious, where has February gone? I can't believe it!! Whoever said that the older you get the faster time passes was sure right. Not that I'm getting old, mind you, time just keeps on speeding by while everyone else ages. ;-)

Last week heavy snow was forecast for the weekend. Now we all know that means you have to make sure ahead of time that you are well stocked with all the necessary items to make it through for a few days in case it gets really, really bad. You probably think I headed right out to the grocery store, right? Wrong!! I headed up to The Door Mouse in Bettsville, OH. It was an hours drive but I had a couple of pieces of fabric I needed to finish off two different projects that are already in the works and if I was going to be snowed in then I was going to be sewing.

You just would not believe this place. They have been in business for 30 years and to commemorate their anniversary they gave me a nice ecology bag for the next time I come in . The staff were all very helpful. But most importantly you will not believe the selection of fabrics they have. Here are some pictures taken by a fellow Ohio blogger, Lisa over at CandleLite Quilter (yes, my camera is STILL broken). Thanks Lisa for letting me steal(borrow) your pictures.
This is what every aisle in the place looks like. The fabrics are grouped by color, as you can see. Here are just a couple of the aisles and a corner as the back wall is filled also. And yes, there are fabrics behind all those bolts sitting on the floor. (Not much room for walking!!)





Did I mention this place is in a barn? Yes, there is even a second floor loaded down with all the flannels and Christmas projects. There are projects for all their kits all over the place. And just let me tell you how surprised I was when I went to the bathroom. Yes, that is where all the patterns for all Carrie Nelson's Schnibbles. I think I even laughed outloud when I saw that. I wonder how many of those patterns they lose with ladies just dropping a few of those in their purses or shopping bags? No, I bought mine already kitted up. (I'll show that to you another day.) It was just a thought but we also know that quilters are VERY honest people!! These next pictures are of the upstairs and the view from upstairs.


With all the fabric crammed in this store can you believe that they didn't have the two specific pieces I was looking for? I promise, they didn't. I just could not believe it. I had to have those exact pieces since one is for sashing that I ran out of on the last row and the other was some of the Thimbleberries for this year's project that I cut wrong (silly me!!!). Well, not to worry I bought the little Schnibbles kit and a couple of repro shirtings to put into a mini log cabin. (Again, enough pictures today. I'll show that one another day.)

Thanks for dropping by!
Happy Quilting!!

Happy President's Day

I hope you had a great weekend and enjoyed your Valentine's Day celebrations, whatever that might look like at your house. We had a quiet weekend and that is always a good thing.

Today is another holiday for us here in the States. The celebration of two of our great presidents - George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. I don't know about you but I really didn't enjoy history much as a child. I have, as I've grown older, also grown in appreciation for all those who have done so much to enable me to live with the freedoms I now enjoy. Much could be said about both of these great men but today as I think about our new and current president, I am reminded especially of all the great work of Abraham Lincoln. It also helps that we spent 7 years living in the "land of Lincoln" state of Illinois. Honest Abe may have had his faults but you have to appreciate his persistence and his ideals concerning the issue of slavery. No matter how you may have voted in this past election, you have to have great pride in our nation and how far we have come since Lincoln's days in office. I know I certainly am.

And now, on to much less serious subjects -- I have been doing a great deal of stitching lately but not much at the machine. Below are some of my finishes.
Sorry for the blur. This is month one of my snowladies BOM. It is finished and I am currently working on month #2(pattern shown below).





































In fact, I am getting close to being finished with this one. And I need to be since I have already received block #3 in the mail. I'm not sure they are waiting an entire month on these. I'm really trying to keep up with all of these.












I have also finished February's block on Ellie's Country Calendar BOM. These are fun since they work up so quickly.






But then there are Anne's baskets that I have not even started. They are so adorable and I want to make sure I pick the right fabrics for them that I find myself hesitating to choose anything. You should see some of the ones completed already. They are fantastic, especially Monica's over at the Happy Zombie. She never ceases to amaze me with her choice of such colorful fabrics.


I could go on and on but I'll just stop here and say --
Thanks for stopping by. Happy Quilting!!