Good friends! And big cheesy grins!

I'm thankful for my best quilting buddy!  Connie and her big cheesy grin!..LOL

This gal has become a wonderful role model and friend in the last 20 years.  She's been there for me through some rocky stuff. And has recently picked up my love for quilting.  She's newly widowed and wanted to make a quilt from her husbands shirts, and this is the pattern she picked.  She was told by a quilter of 50+ years that the quilt block was to hard for her.  So she turned to me, and together we figured it out.  We've been working on it now for about 5 months or so.  I think for the first quilt its coming along nicely. Pin It

I WON!

  And I'm very thankful!  I cant believe it!  A few months ago I posted a tip at Marcus Fabrics.  Totally forgot about it, and today in the mail I get a package.  I knew I hadn't ordered so it was really a surprise.  And here they are its not much but its FREE!

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How handsome!

This is my middle child, handsome little devil(I'm a little biased).  And he has a remarkable personality too.  A real catch if I do say so myself.  Being that this is "Be Thankful" week here at my blog, I'd have to say that I'm thankful for this wonderful kid.  As you can see he plays music(guitar, banjo, harmonica, and tries at the piano), self taught in each.  He was a premie, couldn't wait to get here and do it all.  Screaming at the top of his lungs and hasn't stopped since that first day.  At the age of 7 we found out he had a lazy eye, at the age of 17 we found out he was actually legally blind in that eye and the glasses we had been buying every year were useless.  He's lived on his own since he was 18(now 21), has a lovely girlfriend, and is starting college next year, finally.  Determined to do it on his own, pride, gotta love it. 

Derek and Kristi, Aren't they just adorable?!

His own made up super hero, I don't know where he comes up with this stuff!  Such a goof!

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How did I get here?

  And I'm not talking about the birds and the bee's(if you don't already know I'm not going to give you the famous "talk").  How did I get to where I am today?  Eight years ago I was newly single, 3 kids in school, cramped little apartment, with no quilting knowledge.  That's when I made this hideous quilt that my kids used to it almost fell apart.  My first real quilt and its okay to laugh.

I've come a long way from that in the last 8 years, and thankful for every minute of the journey.  Even the not so quilty moments of hard times.  At one point while being single I was rationing food and  heat in order to keep the bills paid.  So starting today for the next week I'm going to post about what I'm thankful for the most.  Looking at this picture and knowing where the I was when I made that quilt I would have to say I'm thankful for my best friend that has stuck by me for 30 years, no matter how low or broke, drunk, or plain unreasonable I was.  Love you Barb!  I encourage anyone who reads this to do the same.  Really look at your life and see where you are and where you've been, and thank those that held your head as you puked! Pin It

I'm nuts about this little guy

  Living out here in Podunk we have a lot of critters and few human visitors.  Today while taking my walk this little fellow took a liking to me.  After a few minutes of playing with him I had to stomp my foot on the ground to make him go away, he was getting a little to close for me.  In my mind I was seeing him attacking me and then I would be on the 6 o'clock news.   Ray Stevens wrote a great little song that also popped into my mind.  Heres a video of the song...cute!

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My BIG struggle!

If there's one thing that really gives me trouble its choosing a quilting design.  Most of the time it takes weeks, sometimes months.   That means the tops pile up while I try to decide how to quilt them, taking notes, making templates, marking and remarking before actually stitching.  You see quilting on a frame is new to me.  Four months give or take.  So this simple quilt was supposed to be a quickie and it has stretched out to over a month since I started piecing.  Its been on the frame for 4 days now and this is all I've managed to stitch.  Someday I hope to make that quilt that you almost cry when you see it.  Thats what I want, the "TO DIE FOR QUILT".  This quilt doesn't fall in that category, it falls under the "WHAT WAS SHE THINKING" category.  But it'll be a finish and practice.

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Let it snow ! Let it snow! Let it snow!

Boredom made these little pretties.  They would make a great little wall hanging using fusible webbing.  I found the tutorial while reading on a forum.....  http://jillilystudio.blogspot.com/2010/12/snowflake-tutorial.html , now I can't stop making them.  Takes me back to my younger years of the simple life of wonder and amazement that making these can bring to your life at that age.  Take time to stop and smell the flowers or in this case create a snowflake. 

 

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