As Promised

Here is my latest quilt-in-progress: The blocks are in a random arrangement, some are "side blocks" and "corner blocks", so that there will be secondary pinwheels throughout the quilt. I am also going to add some purple, to spice it up a little.This is "Quick Strip Paper-Piecing" from a book by Judy Martin. I took this class at Quilt Festival and it was very informative! I am actually going to make a WHOLE quilt with paper-piecing! (Which I NEVER thought I'd want to do - folding, ironing, trimming and then starting all over again with the next little piece!)
You just cut your fabric into strips and go to town, no folding, minimal pressing and trimming - very quick indeed!

P.S. (The Cutest Pumpkin in the Patch)

Grandbabies!

I just got back from a quick trip to Missouri to visit Brooke and Ben and the perfect grandchildren...

Here is the Bear:

The Boy:

And, Babygirl:

I got to babysit them while Brooke and Ben had a fun date (we had fun at home too), we went to the park, read stories, went toy shopping and just generally hung out and snuggled up! The night before I left, Babygirl was crying inconsolably and begged me to "just go home and get Grandpa and come back". I went to the airport and watched all of the little videos I took of the family and got a little teary at the airport. We need to go back and visit soon!

Quilting News - I am making a beautiful quilt with a new technique I learned at Quilt Fest - I will post pictures and details in a couple of days...

Marital Relations...

I've been married to Mr. Handsome for coming up on 30 years this spring. He makes me laugh, he takes great care of me and has been a wonderful provider, husband and father, etc., etc. (I could go on). We just got back from a wonderful weekend at our little condo yesterday - we went hiking, shopping, to the movies (RED - I highly recommend it!), eating out, sleeping in (for me) and golfing (for him). I have noticed that a lot of our humorous times revolve around sexual innuendos, sly smirks, and flirty remarks. It is a lot of fun. It's not anything you can share with others, because frankly that is gross, crass, inappropriate, etc. Sometimes friends and I touch (very) lightly on the subject of how much fun it is to be married - nothing too personal, because that would be gross, crass, inappropriate, etc. It is just another thing that binds you to each other - something private and special. I think that many, many married couples really enjoy each other and that aspect of their relationship and I'm glad for all of us! I love being married and highly recommend it to everyone I know. That is not to say that it is easy, always fun or even right for everyone, but I am grateful that it is working out for us. I was 17 when I got married and I am amazed that it has all worked out (work being the operative word here).

P.S. Please don't think we have a 'perfect' marriage (whatever that is) - I couldn't even write this post on certain days of the month, if you know what I mean - but most days it's pretty great!

You Might be a Quilter If...

I was at Fabulous Quilt Festival this week and it led me to ponder:

You might be a quilter if...

You laugh at 'quilter humor', such as:

"Eleanor Burns made a Stripper out of me"

"A Fat Quarter is NOT a body part"

You might be a quilter if...

You curse like a sailor when your needle breaks because you forgot to change the presser foot when you set your stitch on zigzag.




You might be a quilter if...

You are asking about layer cakes, honey buns, and jelly rolls but you're not at a bakery.

You might be a quilter if...

You know the difference between a Quilt Festival (classes, hotels, vendor mall, spending too much money, staying up too late and getting up way too early for previously mentioned classes.)

A Quilt Fair (classes, vendor mall, spending way too much money when the auctioneer gets you all excited.)

And a Quilt Retreat (hotel, eating too much, staying up way too late, and giggling uncontrollably because you stayed up way too late.)

You might be a quilter if...

You sigh with satisfaction after spending hours on a quilt block and it's all finished. Then you start on the next 44 blocks.

You might be a quilter if...

You know how to chain piece, the sanctity of a quarter inch seam, you worship at the altar of 'points', you know what a stash is (nothing to do with drugs) - and you have a substantial one, but are always on the look out for more.

You might be a quilter if...

You see quilt blocks in everything: Windows, carpets, tile floors, house designs, etc.

You might be a quilter if...

You own at least 4 sewing machines, 3 irons, 7 pairs of scissors, 3 rotary cutters, 16 rulers, countless patterns, books and yardage...

You might be a quilter if...

You can't just relax and watch TV without having a binding to sew on or applique to work on, etc.

You dream of quilt designs, patterns, quilt season (fall-winter+). You still participate in 'Show & Tell', even though it's been awhile since kindergarten, you iron all the time, but you NEVER iron clothes, your family knows not to bother you on Quilting Day, and I could go on forever, but I'm sure you have other things to be doing besides reading this blog!

(The great quilts in this post are an ABC Quilt Display put on by Liz Teerlink - it will be displayed at HMQS in Sandy in the Spring, here in Utah. I made the "Bra Quilt" myself.)

First Concert!

Tonight, thanks to my awesome nephew, Nate (and my sister-in-law Denise), we got to go to a Styx concert at the Salt Palace. It was the first concert I've ever been to - what a blast from the past! They played quite a few songs from my youth and it was great to stand up and dance to them! It's funny how I can remember the words to every song - from 30+ years ago, and I can hardly remember last Christmas! Even though it was way past my bedtime, it was totally worth it! It's been a great week - Quilt Festival, out to dinner (twice!), followed by this fun concert. (I will be looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow for sure.) "Oh, Mama I'm in fear for my life from the long arm of the law..."

Another Simple Quilt Finished

I finished this little quilt for my other fabulous sister, Debi - for when her grandchildren come to

visit:

It's a simple 'stacked coin' design - got the pattern from the Moda Bake Shop blog - I've made it before. I finished it up while watching "The Phantom of the Opera" and it's official, I love Gerard Butler.I am making it a goal to complete 5 quilts before the end of the year. (I know, I don't DO goals - but I am feeling awfully behind in my quilting - my projects are piling up and I want to just enjoy my projects, not feel like I'm lagging.) I was at Quilt Festival yesterday and I didn't even buy much (I know, gasp!) cuz I feel like it's just more to do and I'm not doing what I have already. That said, Quilt Fest was really fun yesterday, the luncheon and lecture were very yummy and entertaining and I can't wait to go back tomorrow and Saturday!

P.S. We're getting rid of the house phone today and going to cell phones...

We're Jammin'

So today I thought I'd tackle making peach (freezer) jam:

Ta-da!!

Those little marks on top of the containers are numbers - for the batches they are from. 1 & 2 are probably not going to be very good. In batch #4, I used a little too much fruit - will they set up?? Batch #3 is your best bet. I followed two different recipes from two different brands of pectin - one had more fruit. I learned how to boil peaches for a minute, then slip the skins off - a very handy skill I have now mastered. Notice that it is full daylight in the first picture and it is after 9 p.m. now and I am tired! I also made 2 peach pies, well one is a pie, the other is a square thing-y - (I only own 1 pie pan). The pies turned out very tasty, but not very pretty - thus they did not make it onto the blog -poor things.

I also got the windows washed today!!!! Goody for me, they look amazingly clean (That's why I only do them once or twice a year, if I did them more often I wouldn't appreciate the amazing difference!!).

(Yes, I am feeling very Utah-Mormon-y today)