Visitors...

We've had visitors this week...coming to say good-bye to Tag. And, to say good-bye to me. 

Kristen worked with me in CCU at the Vet School...she has known Tag all of his life.  She is a very special friend...

Paul, Rachel and Devin came for lunch today.  I will not see Rachel and Devin again before I move, but Paul will be here to help load the truck on the 14th (ohmygosh...that is just 9 days from now!). 

Here are some photos...

Contemplative...

  

Of course, he did...he had to poop.  Thank you, Devin, for doing poop patrol.

Paul is Tag's favorite brother.

Tag is taking a little break with his warthog

A bit blurry, but a good photo of Devin with Tag.

Goofy face on Rachel, but I love this photo, anyway.

As I am typing this, I look up to see the brown boy watching me.

Time is quickly passing...the days are numbered.  



"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.". Jeremiah 29:11

Christmas Day and Linens...

Have I mentioned that I love linen?  Yes, I believe I have...here and here and here...and a few more places, but I don't want to bore you.  ~grin~ 

I gifted my friend, Kim, with a few linen items.  She's my guinea pig...trying things out for me to see how they work out.  For her, I made a washcloth and hand towel for the bathroom, two bread bags (one for normal bakery bread and the other for longer loaves such as baquettes or french bread) and I decided to give her the chocolate linen napkins I talked about in a previous post.

natural linen bread bag

transparent yellow linen washcloth and hand towel

loop on hand towel for hanging

chocolate linen napkins I decided to give to Kim and not keep for myself

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I had a wonderful Christmas Day with my boys and their families.

Matthew Glenn

Matthew's fiance, Tiffany, and her daughter, Sam

Grandson Conlan

Paul Gary and wife, Rachel

Devin was sick and Kaylynn was unable to be there...otherwise, it was a perfect day.

Tag opens his own gifts, you know.  Here is a small part of his video...

I need to take a few days to clean up my mess and get organized in my sewing area.  Not looking forward to it, but a clean workspace is good.

Have a great weekend!



"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.". Jeremiah 29:11

Started...and Finished!

Two weeks ago, Rachel of ps i quilt fame shared with her readers that a project she designed was in the 'Quilts and More' quilt magazine.  A thread catcher!  Dang cute, it is!  Go here to see that post.   She also supplies a direct link should you desire to download the pattern.

I did download the pattern.  And, today...I made one!  Took less than an hour from start to finish. 

Just so you know, I made a mistake when cutting my fabrics.  The light floral that is at the bottom of the thread catcher is supposed to be the body and the dotted fabric is supposed to be at the bottom.  ~sigh~  I caught my mistake right away, but didn't want to cut up more fabric.  Because, of course, it is for me and it doesn't really matter.  Too much, anyway.  

(FYI...had I been making this for someone, I would have cut more fabric so that it looked the way I had planned it to in the first place!!)   

At any rate, here it is...

The finished size is approximately 7 x 3 x 3 inches.  The perfect size to sit next to Naomi Janome!  And, the perfect size to catch all my threads!

Thank you, Rachel!

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.". Jeremiah 29:11

Happy Birthday to ME!...and a Giveaway!

Happy Birthday to me!!! I actually love my birthday.  Gotta love a day that is 'all about me'!  ~grin~  Every year, me Mum reminds me of the year - I was a young child - when I became very upset because my Dad had to work on my birthday!  Actually, I always thought that, but it seems that one year I made a particularly big fuss about it.  That makes me smile.  Because, of course, everyone should be available to help me celebrate MY day, don't you think? 

What am I doing to celebrate my special day?  Well, for one thing, my son, Paul, along with his wife, Rachel, will be stopping by.  They picked up a tv that I bought and will be delivering it.  (I am so excited about this...but more on that at a later time).  We will have some time together and then will go out to eat for lunch.

For those of you who are wondering, I will be 61 years old at 12:12 today.  And, not a minute before!  ~grin~  One year closer to retirement is the way I see it.

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Later...

So, I had written all of the above this a.m. and, for some reason, my laptop shut down.   It's now almost 10:00 p.m. and I am just getting back to it.

I had a great day.  Paul and Rachel came...as planned.  Paul got my tv and blu-ray player set up and then we went to Outback for a birthday luncheon.  Very nice waiter and great meal!


I had one of these...

we shared one of these...

served by our waiter, Ben.

I didn't take a photo of our dinner...too hungry or something, perhaps.

Here is a great shot of Paul and Rachel...

 

and another one... 

We had a great time.
    
It has been a great day.  YAY!

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On to the exciting part of this post...the Giveaway!

I made this little mat before Christmas and did nothing with it.  I thought it might make someone a nice little gift.  The fabric is Jovial by basicgrey for Moda and the mat measures about 13 1/2 inches square.  I quilted it with little loopy-loops.  

front

back

No tricks or hoops to jump through...just leave a few nice words for me.  I will use the Random Number Generator at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 20 and will email the winner.  Please ensure that I have your email address...either through your profile or left in the comment.

Good luck to all of you!

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.". Jeremiah 29:11

My Family Christmas...

Yesterday was the big day...

my sons & their families were all here.

What a wonderful day.

Here's my little helper, Kaylynn.

Kaylynn with Daddy and her stepmom, myRachel

(that is what Kaylynn calls her).

Matt's family.

Paul's family.

Conlan...

Devin...

Jasmine...

Kaylynn and her silly Daddy...

 

Beautiful grandchildren!!!

Thank you for the wonderful day!!

Congratulations...& 4 Blocks Done.

Paul (youngest son) and his fiance, Rachel, dropped by.

They've set a wedding date!  Finally!

Been together for 5 years...

It's official now...she has a gorgeous ring!

New Year's Eve civil ceremony.

Congratulations!!!

We had a really  nice visit.  I sent stuff home with them...
a dresser I needed to get rid of, plus a few other (small) items.

ohyeah, and guess what they would love for a wedding gift from me?  Yup...a quilty gift...a double-sized lap quilt for snuggling on the sofa while watching tv.  Made of primitive colors.  hmmmm...wonder where I can get me some of that fabric?  {grin}   

(Paul is Kaylynn's daddy...she is so much like him.) 

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Needless to say, I didn't get very far with my sewing.

I did get 4 blocks done...and am happy with how it's going to work out. 
(Holy Schmoly, are those bright or what?)

They will be sashed with blue to make 12 inch blocks and 
will be bordered by the hot wheels flames fabric.
This quilt be will for Devin...
Rachel (of Paul & Rachel) is his Mom.

RED ALERT...BRIGHT COLORS AHEAD!!!!

You may need sunglasses!

(Kelley, shield those prim eyes!)

Here's a sneak peek at my Old Red Barn Co. quiltalong quilt.

I finished the quilting tonight and

machine stitched the binding on.

Now to handsew it.

Almost done!

Before I go, I need to point you to Rachel's blog...

she has a little tutorial on making fabric necklaces...

how fun is that for summertime fashion!!!

Paul's Family Visit...

As I said in my previous post, Paul & family stopped by when my sisters were here. I don't see them much, so it was a great surprise!

My son, Paul, with his fiance, Rachel...they're watching a video of cousin Tony.

Great Aunt Joyce immediately took Kaylynn Marie and held her on her lap. Kaylynn is now 2 1/2 years old...she's wearing the apple hat that Great-Gram knitted for her. Isn't it cute?

Devin, Rachel's son, loves Tango!

Kaylynn and Devin think giving treats to the dogs is great fun! The dogs had just finished eating when they came...they were out of their crates and playing together with the kids before long.

This picture is a bit blurry...but I love having a photo of me cuddling with Kaylynn!


Too short, but a nice visit! Come again, soon!!