I'm here!

Well it has been crazy around here this past week. People coming and going constantly! Lets see if I can keep it all straight and get caught up on what we have been doing!

We start back at Wednesday, Linda dropped off Allison to spend a few days with us while she and Nat headed to Arcata. Nat's All Star team made it to state playoffs. Delaney and Allie loved having a slumber party!

Thursday was full of swim lessons, finishing my first 9-patch a day quilt, quilt guild meeting and shopping at Target. Thursday morning before swim lessons we stopped at Gymboree to spend my Gymbucks and to get Allie an outfit to wear to kindergarten this year. Ang also came to town on Thursday to stay the night before heading up to Redding for the weekend.

Friday was full run too. We started at Gymboree to spend the last of the Gymbucks before picking up breakfast at the Boudin Bakery. One of the bakers gave Delaney a sour dough turtle roll. I ended up eating it in the afternoon, YUM! Then off to swim lessons. We love Teacher Brian! Then on to Linda's house to get Allie packed for camping with my parents and get the bike and scooter out for my dad. Ang left to go to Redding then. I had to hurry home to pack Delaney for camping and to get her back to my dad by 3pm. Then I went to get my nails done! First time in over a year! I rounded out my Friday night with dinner with my friend Jim.

Saturday I decided to get my hair cut and colored. Never did I think it would take 5 hours! It does look great. Then it was off to Sarah's 4th birthday party. Once the party was over I had to head out to feed the horse. Which lucky me meant climbing a 6 foot fence 8 months pregnant. Thank you Dad! After that wonderful experience I got to meet Heather and Kymn for coffee.

Sunday was spent hanging out at home reading a book! That's all. I went to pick up Delaney around 7pm.

So far this week has been slower. I think I have a touch of the flu. I haven't felt well at all. We finish swim lessons this week and Delaney is sad that there will be no more swimming with Teacher Brian. Other than that nothing is planned.

I am hoping to finish sewing stars onto my quilt. They are time consuming and there are 60 of them. I refuse to take the thread out of the machine. I know once I do it will be a long time before I put it back in.

Here's The Question...

I should have the top of the first 9-Patch A Day Quilt done by the quilt meeting tomorrow night. The question is should I bring the top for Show and Tell? The camera is still broke and you know it will be a long time before I get to quilt it so do you want to see it now or when hell freezes over? I am going with the popular vote by 5pm Thursday.

I do have some finished projects to also show.

Y'all Know What's Comin? Right?

I did it! I am doing Round 2 of AmandaJean's 9-Patch A Day. You knew I would. Be Honest. You Knew!

This time I am trying some things the same and some things different. First the same is using my SCRAPS! This quilt eliminates almost 4 yards between the 9-Patches and the pieced border. That should be a lot from a scrap stash. Not mine though. Also I am cutting a bunch of blocks, 4 to 7, at a time and chain piecing them in one sitting instead of doing only one a day. Now for the different, since you cut 5 squares of one color and 4 of the other I am cutting the 4 squares out of white scraps, either solids or tone on tone. As for the 5 squares I want them to read more solid and be a rainbow. The other different is I am going to cut a square for the pieced border as I go, instead of trying to pull out the fabric again and cut a square. The last different thing I am doing is trimming my blocks to 6 1/2 inches as I make them instead of doing all 70 at the same time.

Anyone else going to jump in with the 9-Patch A Day Project. It would be a great way to use scraps and the quilt could be donated.

Today I am also cut out the last of the novelty prints for I Spy A Swap. I am hoping to get mine in the mail this week. I have to go to the post office tomorrow for Scott so I am hoping to kill two birds with one stone.

9-Patch A Day Quilt Along!

Making process on my 9-Patch A Day quilt. Tonight I am finishing putting on the first border. This weekend will be spent working on the pieced square border. IF I get that done I can add on the last border. The first and last borders are plan Kona Snow. The middle border is 2 inch squares. It is going to take some time. Of course I am annal so I have to make sure my directional prints are going the correct direction.

For those of you that didn't do the first round of the 9-Patch A Day Quilt Along there is going to be a round 2! You can read about it on my other blog Stash & Scrap Elimination Project!

I have also gotten one piece of mending done and I am hoping to get the other 2 pieces done this weekend.

Current Count 17 - 0

No I am not watching baseball. This is the current count of finished found quilt blocks and mending. Which means the current count on the unfinished found quilt blocks and mending is 2 - 3. I am not done cleaning out the sewing studio so this count may go up too.

I need a trip to JoAnn's to work on 2 of Delaney's things in the mending pile. I need a button for her PJ top and some seed beads for her Roxy sweatshirt. I am hoping by the end of Saturday the count will be 19 - 3.

I am also busy working away on my 9-Patch A Day quilt. I chain piece everything, so I have been using this to get my blocks out of the machine to press. All the vertical sashing is sewn in and I am working on the horizontal rows now. I am hoping that by the end of Saturday I will be ready for the first of 3 borders! Border number 2 is going to take some time since it is pieced with 2 inch squares. I will need to find and cut more first.

Linda is supposed to be my way sometime this weekend. Which means hopefully pictures!

Quiltin' Tia Closing Sale!

Quiltin' Tia is closing and having a HUGE sale. If you are looking for fabric or have money to spend go to her site and have a look around. Fabric, books and patterns are 50% off,many other things are 40% off and a few items are 20% off.

I was able to get Alexander Henry's flame fabric for only $4 a yard. I picked up 4 yards. Shipping was a flat rate of $5. That means only $21 for 4 yards of fabric!!! What a great deal. I needed this for my Rings Of Fire quilt.

The good news is they are updating the site as they sell out of items. So if it is sold out, it is out of the site. The other good thing was when I placed my order I was given a few options if they could not complete my order:
1. Send what they had
2. Cancel that item
3. Contact me first to see what I wanted to do

I really liked that I was given some choices. They also notified me, by e-mail, that they received my order and again when they shipped my order.

More Than 10 Less Than 100

While I was cleaning out my Sewing Studio I found MANY part way done quilt blocks. How does this happen? I mean really how do you sew half a block and leave it, for months?

This week I have been trying to get some of the blocks finished. Now I am not trying to finish the whole project right now I just want the blocks done and with the project they belong too. So far I have finished 12 blocks. There is still a pile on my table to work on too.

I have decided that I can't work on any UFO'S or other projects until the half finished pile is gone. Lucky me I also found 3 things that needed mending. So they are in the pile too. I REALLY want to work on my 9-Patch A Day quilt.

With any luck by next weekend the pile will be gone!

Another One Bites The Dust!

I just finished binding another quilt!!!

This one is for my niece Allison. I started the blocks 6 years ago as part of Horsefeathers $5 quilt. I started quilting it about 5 years ago in a class with Kathy Sandback. It was supposed to be a Christmas gift 2 1/2 years ago but I didn't make it. So into the pile it went 90% quilted.

In getting stuff ready to move out of the Sewing Studio I went through the basket of quilts to be quilted, there is a lot of quilts! I have a few that are close to being done. The $5 quilt needed 3 of 12 blocks quilted, the other 9 blocks, sashing and borders were done.

I am going to look in the basket for the next one!

OPAW Baby!

I-Spy Swap!!!

I finished a swap last week so I have joined another one! This time it is I Spy A Swap! What a great way to get some extra Novelty prints to make your own quilt!

The swap is open to 18 people, some people have already joined so there are fewer spaces. All you have to do is cut 20 4 inch squares from each of 10 novelty prints and send them in. You will in turn get 200 different prints back!

I have 20 prints pulled so now I have to narrow my selection down, cut and mail.

Red, White & Blue Swap Received!!!

I received my Red, White & Blue Swap package last week. I was hoping to post pictures of my wonderful package but the camera is STILL broken!

Carrie was my wonderful partner and sent me and Delaney some great stuff. First she made Delaney a t-shirt with her name on it in Red, White and Blue with a matching hair clip and a red glow in the dark stick. Of course my kid took off her clothes to put on her new t-shirt, she loves it! Then I got for the kitchen 2 small bowls, one red and one blue, along with the Wilton 4th of July Cupcake Party Pack and the set of 3 star cookie cutters!The bonus is the cookie cutters came with the Wilton Sugar Cookie recipe, I love that recipe and I have lost my copy of it! Next I got some Bath & Body Works product!!! I got RED Midnight Pomegranate Pocket Bac, WHITE energy body and shine shampoo and conditioner and BLUE scalp massager and Anti bac hand towelettes. I also got a RED Island Orchard candle. Last but not least was a HUGE jar of WHITE bath salts. I love my package! Thank you Carrie!

I can't wait for Mamarazzi to post her favorite things swap this next month!

Name Calling

Okay I told you if you didn't list yourself I was going to start calling out some names. I know I am not the only one with UFO's sitting around my house. I know way to many quilters for that to be even possible.

1. Mom-Your Challenge is the top of Bella Bella.
2. Nikki- Your Challenge is the four patch triangle class you just took.
3. Barbara- I know you still have the Tessellations quilt form Peggy's class 4 years ago.
4. Sandra- Give me the oldest thing on that list of 25 UFO's you just made.
5. Kymn- You need to Digi Scrap New York, Print them out and put them in an album for your girls
6. Heather- You get to make 2 albums, one for you and one for Harmony, for her wedding this last weekend.
7. Linda- Scrap the first 3 years of each of your 3 kids life's
8. Margie- I have seen your HUGE piles of sorted photos, Get 2 inches worth in an album.
9. Lisa- I am sure you have something up their in Idaho, What are you going to do?
10. Sandy- Do you have all of your Block Party Quilts done?

I decided to stop with 10 people. But the rest of you reading, log in and tell us what you are going to get done by Labor Day. Remember Labor Day I will be haunting you again. My goal is my Stars and Stripes quilt. The top isn't done, I am piecing the back and planning on quilting this myself!

Gina? Rosemary? Teresa? and all the rest of you?

De Nile!!!

In 24 Hours I have had about 50 hits and only one of you took up the UFO challenge! Give me a break. Now I know there are more of you out their who have a project you have been putting off. I am giving you until Monday the 5th at 9pm to get it listed. Come on we're in this together!

On Monday I will call out some of your names. I know some of the classes you have taken and haven't finished. I know the trips you have been on and haven't put the photos in an album. I know your kids and their albums aren't started. So who will be first on the list?

My UFO to finish will be my Stars and Strips Quilt. I am close to having the top done. Labor Day I hope to have it displayed finished.

Half Way...

We are half way to many things or we are half way behind many things. I guess it is all in the way you look at it. I am trying to be an optimist about things and not a pessimist. So here we're are Half Way their!

First the year is half over. Since I didn't really make any resolutions I don't need to check how I am doing. I did set a goal of trying to bust 104 yards of my stash this year. The catch is every time I buy fabric I have to subtract that from my busted total. It is a constant game of adding and subtracting. I am doing REALLY well. I have been keeping track on my Stash and Scrap Elimination Project blog, most Sundays I post an update. As of last Saturday I have used just under 55 yards for the year.

Next Scott's leave is half over. We are no where near half finished with the projects that needed to get done. The biggest of the projects was packing my living room up and into the garage. Moving my sewing studio into my living room. Last setting up a nursery in my sewing studio. The other project is putting baseboard in the hall bathroom. I was hoping to have 3 quilts out of the" Crap I Don't Want To Do" basket before he leaves. I finished Andy's wedding quilt, it will be dropped off this weekend. I have out Allison's quilt and Peggy's Tessellations quilt. I am close to finished on both of them but they both need binding!

Summer is half over. Can you believe that! We haven't really had summer weather here yet either. Not that I miss 110 degrees everyday. What did you have planned for the summer? Did you get it done? Are you half way to getting it done? My plan was swim lessons for Poop, we finished the first set and we will start the second set next Monday. My other plan was to live through the summer without going to the hospital. Half Way Their!

Here is my challenge, complete ONE UFO before Labor Day. You ask "what is an UFO?" UFO is an Un Finished Object. You don't have to be a quilter to have a UFO, if you are a quilter you have 100. The rest of you it could be anything, cleaning out something, decorating a room in the house, photos in an album, scrapbook you want to finish, anything is possible. Leave a comment here about what you would like to try to Finish and how long you have been working on it. We will revisit this on Labor Day to see what we all got done.