Don't you want to play, too?

I've never met Em in person, but I can say without reservation that she is one of my favorite people ever. I just love her spirit and her creativity and her goofiness and her generosity. I'm hoping to have a chance to meet her next summer when we are hoping to take a family vacation out west. If you've never "met" her, I encourage you to visit her blog. And what a great time to be visiting as she is having a special giveaway - wrap yourself in a quilt, take a photo, send the photo to her and you are entered!

Jason is wrapped in the Spiderman quilt I made him several years ago. He is outgrowing it, and I need to make him a new quilt soon.


And here I am in the quilt that Em sent me last year. It lives on my recliner, and I love to wrap myself up in it and feel the warm embrace of a good friend.


Jason asked why we were taking these photos, what we could win. One of the quilts that Em makes, I told him. "Cool!" he said. "Her quilts are AWESOME!" I agree!

Second wind

I had been feeling a bit under the weather earlier this week, so not much sewing was taking place. Instead, I made homemade soup, slathered myself in Vicks Vapor Rub, and buried myself in blankets and sweatsuits before the sun even went down to read and rest and get well. I'm happy to report that it worked, and I feel fit as a fiddle now, but you know that inertia that sets in when you don't sew for a while? I seemed to have lost my drive to go downstairs into the sewing room and get back at it. My bed and my books had a siren call that I couldn't resist.


Well, there's nothing like getting fabric in the mail to catapault you back into the sewing room! Nancy, known on the blogosphere as Mamanance, sent me some homespuns from her collection for my Plaid Dresden Plate quilt (which needs a name, by the way; any ideas?), and that was all the impetus I needed. Thanks, Nancy! Every single fabric you sent is now in my quilt!

As soon as I made it back to the house from the mailblox yesterday, I finished piecing together the last two plates, which are now ready to be appliqued down during stolen moments this week - during lunch, waiting at the bus stop with the kids, in between karate classes this afternoon.

And I started piecing together the sashing strips and the 9-patch cornerstones.
To the unpracticed eye, it may seem like I haven't gotten much done, but believe me, I was a whirling dervish in the sewing room last night. And I feel so much more settled now that most of the quilt is off the floor and on the design wall - I hate building a quilt on the floor; I'm spoiled, I know.

So, goals are good, right? My goal is to have this entire top pieced together by the time I go to bed Sunday night. I'm really anxious to have these blocks be a top and this top be a quilt. When my sister and I spend our "twins retreat" up at her new vacation home in New Hampshire in April, I plan to sleep under this quilt!

And I'll leave you with an image that a colleague sent me - obviously the photographer is NOT a quilter - I would be THRILLED to see that many quilt magazines in one place!

Frightfully fun weekend!

I wasn't sure I was going to be able to fit any sewing in this weekend, but I did! It doesn't have a name or a purpose, but this 45"x48" lap/baby quilt can now come down off my design wall,

making room for the plaid Dresden Plate that is consuming my thoughts these days. Lots of scraps got completely used up in the making of this quilt, which makes me happy. And if I am counting correctly, 65 different fabrics appear in this quilt. Lots to look at.

While at a Halloween/birthday party this afternoon, I managed to start appliqueing down another Dresden Plate - just three of the nine plates left before I can start sewing it all together. I'd love to get all those plates done this week so I can start top assembly next weekend.

I fear my children and I should also do a sugar detox this week. They had Halloween parties at school on Friday. After I worked Saturday morning, we spent all afternoon and evening at a Halloween party. This afternoon we went to another party,

(the two Grim Reapers are mine) and then finished the night with some Trick-or-Treating. We've had so much sugar even my prodigious sweet tooth is screaming, "UNCLE!" I'm thinking fresh fruit smoothies for breakfast - we need something made by nature, not made by mixing corn syrup with artificial coloring. How was YOUR Halloween weekend?

Slowing down with some hand sewing and reading

This has been my first full week at home since Labor Day. Aaaahhhh! I thought I would spend lots of time in the sewing room with my machine and my fabric, but instead I have found myself hanging out with the boys, working on Halloween costumes and reading Halloween books and watching Halloween movies. Do you think they're excited about Halloween?

So, that means instead of a quilt top to show you, all I've managed to do this week is applique down two more scrappy plaid Dresden Plates.

It's going to be a busy Halloween weekend with pumpkin carving tonight, work tomorrow morning and a Halloween party tomorrow afternoon, plus a Halloween party and trick or treating on Sunday, but I really want to fire up the machine and do something that looks like progress. Check back on Sunday - I promise to have something to show!

I've also been doing a lot of reading lately. I love Emilie Richards' Shenandoah Album series of books, but I've read all of them and no new ones seem to be coming out anytime soon. Then I discovered her Ministry is Murder cozy mystery series - love it!!! I've finished the first two, and have the third at my bedside. And lucky me, she just published the 5th in the series, so I have a couple weeks of reading ahead of me. I also just read her book, Happiness Key, which I also enjoyed. I'm going to have to check out even more of her books!

I've completely run out of Beverly Connor's Lindsay Chamberlain mystery series. There were only 5 books, and I devoured them. I was an archaeology major in college, so these stories about a forensic anthropologist really appealed to me. The website says there's another book in the works, but I don't know how accurate that is. Beverly Connor has another longer series with another protagonist, Diane Fallon, also a forensic anthropologist, which I am going to try next.

And what have I been reading to my kids when I can distract them from Halloween? My two absolute favorite quilt books for kids, Sam Johnson and the Blue Ribbon Quilt

and The Quiltmaker's Gift.

If the young people in your life don't have these books, GET THEM! I love reading them, I love the artwork, I love the messages in both of them. They are wonderful!

And finally, I leave you with images of the two most special people in my life...

today is western wear day at school...

and who doesn't love hanging out in a wheelbarrow?

Happy Post - Wedding bells and Giveaway winnings!

My younger sister got married this past weekend. It was a wonderful, relaxing three-day affair. We rented out all of the Lydia Mountain Cabins for the 40 or so guests, and arrived Friday afternoon and didn't leave until Sunday afternoon. The weather, the food, the company, the activities - everything was great! What fun to happen upon a cabin to see this:

or to come across a pack of roaming kids enjoying the freedom this remote location afforded them:

or to come across a cluster of adults just relaxing and enjoying each others' company:

or fun times on the zip line:

(Um, Curtis, the zip line is for KIDS!)

It was an outdoor Quaker ceremony, which meant quite a bit of time sitting in quiet reflection. I was so proud of my boys for sitting quietly, but when I peeked over, I saw why they were so quiet - Donald had fallen asleep! Oh well, whatever works!

Once the ceremony was over and the band started to play, the kids danced the night away.

The beautiful couple!

Aren't her flowers gorgeous?

My mom, my sisters and me - so many cameras were flashing at once, we are all looking in different directions!

And not only did I come home with great memories, I came home with goodies from my sisters! Ericka brought me some bone china tea cups that she found in her new house that she is fixing up, and Kerry brought me some fabric remnants. Aren't sisters the best?

And when we got home today, there was a surprise in the mail. I won a giveaway from Rebecca at Our Busy Little Bunch in the Fall Into Fall Giveaway, and she sent aprons for my boys. Of course, they wanted to cook right away, so we scoured the cupboards and found the fixings for oatmeal raisin cookies, which we took to our Cub Scout Den meeting tonight. Thanks, Rebecca, the aprons are fantastic - I love the design, the durability, and the fabric!

As you can imagine, I am not only really far behind on reading blogs, but also pretty far behind on sleep. I promise to catch up with you all later - right now I'm off to catch some ZZZZZZs!

Daydreaming about the future

Remember these plaid Dresden Plates I worked on while traveling (before they took my needles away, that is)?

Here's where I am going with them.

I'm making quite a dent in my plaids and homespun stash, and since the blocks and sashing are so big (16" blocks, 3" wide sashing strips), it is coming together quickly. If I add one more row, it should measure 76.5" square. Notice I said "should", it won't, and I'm OK with that.


Anyway, here's the plan. My sister and her husband bought a second house in rural New Hampshire, walking distance to a swimming beach on a lake, just across the road from some hiking trails through the woods. They've spent the summer (and their savings) fixing it up with the idea that they can use it as a vacation home, but also as a vacation rental and retreat location. Her husband is an English teacher and a triathelete, so he was thinking of running creative writing and triathalon retreats. My sister is a knitter, so she was thinking of running knitting retreats. Guess what I get to do?


You guessed it! Quilting retreats! My head is spinning with the possibilities! I'm thinking of starting with a weekend flannel rag quilt workshop for beginners. I've not only made them, but also taught two other people how to make them so far, so it seems like a good place to start, as well as something that can be completed prior to the end of the workshop.


So anyway, back to the plaid Dresden Plates. I am making quilts for the beds in the house. It will take me quite some time, but what better advertising for the quilting retreats than sleeping under quilts by the instructor, right? (OK, there's probably better advertising out there, but humor me; I'm excited!) And since there will be retreats there that will attract both men and women, I wanted to make something that might appeal to both. The plaids say "masculine" and "cabin in the woods" to me, while the Dresden Plates say "a touch of femininity" and "an appreciation of pretty things." Do you think that works, or am I way off base?


And since I'm dreaming about the future, let me just tell you how my kids are making me realize that the future is rushing up and past me, despite my best efforts to slow it down. When I came back from abroad, Donald showed me how he now knows how to tie his own shoes! I am so proud! But gosh, that wasn't a milestone I wanted to miss, and it feels like one that just opens the floodgates for more independence.


Then yesterday, Jason was elected to student council. I don't even think we HAD student council in third grade. But he is walking on cloud nine. I must say, his poster was pretty,

and his speech was earnest and heartfelt. Again, I am so proud! I just hope he doesn't take this elected office idea too far and try to run for president one day. He just might win, and I'd really hate to have him have such a thankless job.

And finally, I'm worrying about my friend's future. Remember my neighbor who moved to a retirement community with her husband who has Alzheimers? Remember my recent visits with them and the adventures we had? Her husband died yesterday morning. I'm so sad, and so concerned for her. They were married well over 40 years, possibly over 50 years. I can't imagine being left alone after all that time together. I need to make sure to make a greater effort to go see her more often; she's only a little over an hour's drive away, but she's no longer driving, so it is up to me.

We never know what the future may hold...

The last 63 hours

Friday, October 15
6 AM: I woke in time to get in a run and some weight lifting in the hotel gym before my first school visit. Trying to run at 10,000 feet above sea level when you ordinarily live at 1,000 feet above sea level is quite a challenge. It took me 12 minutes to run a mile because I had to keep slowing down to a walk to breathe. Oh well, it is the thought that counts, right?


8:30 AM: I'm at my first school, starting my presentation and one girl in the front cuddles up with a friend and closes her eyes to take a nap. I stopped mid-sentence and said, "Don't go to sleep; that is rude," and then continued on with my presentation. Little twit! They were some of the rudest kids, as a group, that I've ever encountered. Ugh!



10:25 AM: Even though my next school visit was scheduled for 10 AM, and I was there 5 minutes early, the counselor didn't come get me until 10:25. Just in time, too, because I had told myself that I was leaving at 10:30 - c'mon, do you know how far I traveled to get there!?! Show a little respect! So I shouldn't have been surprised by the kids' lack of respect when I finally got to see them, since the counselor was so lax. They were eating, doing homework, talking amongst themselves; I couldn't wait to get out of there. I have a feeling I'll be cutting those two schools in the future - nowhere else do I experience such rudeness.


12:00 PM: My flight from Quito to Atlanta doesn't leave until 11:30 PM, so I ask my driver to take me somewhere I can try some typical Ecuadorian food. I can definitely say it is not my favorite type of food, although I do love that avacados are so pleniful there. Here's an example: I try the soup. It is passable. I recognize potato and onion and, "oh, what's this?" I ask. I thought perhaps it was calamari, because that is kinda how it was cut. Think again, it is pig intestines. "I'm full; let's be on our way, shall we?" Yeech!

2:00 PM: Since I have so much time to kill, I have the driver take me to Papallacta, a small town about 40 miles outside of Quito, known for its hot, natural, mineral springs. $7.00 gets me admission to a series of tiled pools. I tried them all, but spent most of my time in this one, the hottest and therefore my favorite.

5:00 PM: I'm paying the driver by the hour, so I have him drop me at the airport where I can kill time before my flight for free. It turns out, I couldn't even check in until 8:30, so I spent 3.5 hours just sitting in the lobby reading. And then, when I do check in and go through security, you KNOW what happens (read my last post if you missed it). Not the most pleasant 6.5 hours I've ever spent.

Saturday, October 16

1:30 PM: I'm finally back in Lexington, VA after 2 long, miserable, uncomfortable flights and a two-hour maintenance delay tacked onto my 3.5 hour layover in Atlanta. I was so glad to see my family, and the screech of joy the boys let out when they saw me was the loveliest ear-splitting noise I've ever heard.

8:00 PM: I'm finally back home. We couldn't come home once I picked the boys up from their father at the gym because there was a cub scouts cookout at 3 PM followed by a fundraising event at the elementary school at 6:30 PM and we wouldn't have had time to come home and go back out again. I am a walking zombie, but I am proud that I stayed awake through reading the boys a bedtime story.

9:30 PM: I'm showered with a fresh (home bathroom) haircut and swept floors. I crawl into bed with a book thinking I'm going to stay awake until my husband gets home from basketball practice. Think again.

Sunday, October 17

9:30 AM: I can't remember the last time I slept for 12 hours, but I feel great! I spend the next 3 hours cleaning house and doing laundry and unpacking, then spend a few hours outside with the boys enjoying a spectacular fall day. I'm so glad to be home!

9:30 PM: After a wonderful day, which included some belly laughs as the boys decide to give yoga a try,

I'm ready to head down to my sewing room. This week's goals include:

• 2 more Dresden Plates prepared for Wednesday's trip to Atlanta and this weekend's wedding festivities
• Finish sewing together the rows for the scrappy lap quilt currently on the design wall
• Sandwich and baste my great-great-grandmother's quilt. I'd love to have that one done by Christmas

What do YOU have planned for this week?