November 2017 wrap up

I managed to get a lot of sewing done in November!  Felt good too! Put together 3 quilt tops and dug out an unfinished project or UFO! Had worked on it during one of remodels. Easy to work on blocks while in a motel. Made the last 15 blocks. No pictures yet, have not laid it out  on the design wall.

Can only show one today and that is the Barn Dance quilt top. It is now at the quilters.
The top is large, 98 x 98 and yes I am keeping this one! Will be great on our guest bed!
The pattern is from   justquiltin with Denise


                                                                     Barn Dance

In between sewing I froze 12 more containers of pureed pumpkin for pies. Did up several containers of squash. And yesterday got started on making sauerkraut. The small crock is full of shredded cabbage. Will get the rest of the cabbage today to fill the larger one. They will need to work or ferment about the whole month of December. Will be good and not check for at least 2 weeks. But one should be ready before New Year's day. Not sure if it is a German custom or a PA. Dutch one but must have pork and sauerkraut to start off the New Year! Some customs came south with us!

Yesterday morning we went to our favorite local nursery and bought our poinsettias. Had a table of gorgeous ones to choose from.

                                                          We came home with these 3

Now to decide where they will go! The inside decorations will go up this weekend. After that we will figure it out.

Another thing that happened this month we had our trees trimmed. It has become an every 2 year event. One to keep them off our roof and also to let a little light get to the grass!

In the next picture if you follow the rope upwards you can see there is someone up there. And this is why Galen no longer does his own trimming! Some times it is much better to have the pros do it!

We also were able to get away for a few days. Our friends were out of town so we stayed at their place in Brady, TX, Galen did some hunting and I worked on my laptop. Trying to get the files organized. It was a nice get away. Some nice sun rises and sun sets which we rarely get to here for the trees!

I do love being out in the country!

Mid-November catch-up

I have been keeping busy and actually getting a little sewing accomplished. The secret quilt I have been working on is at the border stage. That is great progress as the on-point blocks were giving me some trouble! But I think I can turn it over to my quilting friend early next week!

Several of us saved a quilt along pattern last year from https://justquiltin.wordpress.com/
It is  Barn Dance. One of my friends is off this week from school so we decided to start it.
                                            

           If you don't follow justquiltin with Denise check out the link above this picture. She has lots of fun patterns

As you see it is 4 different size blocks. We decided to make the 6 inch first as that was the blocks needed then work our way up.  My 37 blocks.

Next the 12 inch blocks

Dug into my scraps of batiks but did have a good amount of the background fabric. So am using that

We have been watching a Monarch Chrysalis for a few days. 

Yestereday while checking out the solar light to see how things were progressing we discovered a Caterpillar on the other side

This morning it looks like this

                  We think the one on the right may be getting ready to become a butterfly. Will be keeping                       a close watch.  Love Mother Nature!

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Design Wall 11-5-2017

I was able to get back to sewing this past week. Decided this was the perfect pattern to get me sewing again. 12 FQS from dark to light and 1 yard for the stars. Got into my stash of batiks

                                            

                                                                     the line up!

my test block

And my finished top!

I am working on another quilt top now but can't show it. The wrong person could see it and that would spoil the gift!

Feels good to get back to piecing again.

I also wanted to freeze pumpkin this Fall for pies. 

 Enough for 20 pies. Mom's recipe makes 2 pies.

Hoping to get cabbage yet so I can get sauerkraut made. In the meantime I have pork defrosting to be smoked for bacon and other dishes! Will be staying busy for a while!

What have others been up too?

October 2017 Wrap Up

It was a busy month of binding quilts for Quilts of Compassion. The Scrappy Courthouse Steps was the last to be bound.

This is a picture of the 8 quilts I sent off this time. 6 by my friend Wendy and 2 more from me.

Got them sent on Oct. 24th as we were leaving on the 26th for South Texas-Rio Grande Valley.

Janice posted a picture earlier this week of over 1000 quilts that had been collected and now they have 1900 packed and ready to make the trip to SE Texas. 

They will be picking up more on the way. Hopefully these will bring a smile to the recipients.

My husband is into taking pictures of birds, butterflies and dragon flies and the Valley is known as a good place for that very thing. We spent several days in Pharr, Texas and then on to Mission, Texas. These are all close to McAllen. Went to Santa Anna Wildlife Refuge, The World Butterfly Center and Bensten State Park. The park is strictly for viewing birds etc. No cars in the park. Lots of blinds and walkways. You can take a tram to get to places or rent bikes. It was a good few days away.

I should have more to post next week. Did cut out fabric for another quilt after we got back!

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October 16, 2017

Not a lot was accomplished this past week as far as actually sewing something!  Did a lot of removing batting from extra basckings. Will need to cut into scrap sizes when I am finished with the quilts. This one is done and ready to go.

This is another one from my friend Wendy that I need to bind this week.

Not sure what why I didn't accomplish much but I did get a little cleaning done. And we were busy with yard and doing other things. 

Tomorrow would have been my Dad's 100th birthday. He had planned to make 100 but 98 was all. We will celebrate his 100th anyway tomorrow and with friends on Friday. Still have some of his favorite scotch here.

I need to dig out my Halloween quilt. Think I gave a way all my Fall quilts. Sounds like a good project for 2018!

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Design Wall Monday-October 9, 2017

This past week has been one of finishing things! Shock! In all serious having a project and having a deadline really does help. I spent the week making bindings and binding quilts that I need to mail off to Quilts of Compassion in about 2 weeks. These 5 quilts are from a friend in MO. She had tops and wanted them to go to this group. She was mailing some others to me for a different group so she added them to the package. I got the backings and the batting and my friend quilted them. Spent last week working on the final step-binding. I enjoy the last step of binding by hand. Once the one side was sewn on I could sit outside and work on the hand stitching. More fun to listen to the birds and witch the hummingbirds come in to the feeders. Kept getting buzzed one day-yes had on a red shirt!

                                             
Will have to get another picture of this one later today. This I took while it was on my lap and I was working on it.

I have one more of my friends and some of mine now to bind as soon as they come back from Kerry.

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End of September 2017

Looking back over the month of September I did manage to get a lot of sewing accomplished. Don't ask about cleaning etc! That always needs to be done and done. Clean only last for a day or two!  Quilts, when completed I can move on to another quilt!
Early in the month I made another Arkansas Crossroads.

                                  Made the Candy Land quilt.

Completed the blocks for the String-X quilt. Top is together.

 Made 7 more blocks for the scrappy Courthouse step quilt top and got it together.  

Got 6 more blocks made for the long term swap I am in on another group. Those were mailed off this week. Forgot to take a picture of the whole group with the new ones

Also made the Shuffle Quilt. A free pattern from Sparrow Quilt Co when you sign up for their newsletters. Fun quilt using a layer cake.

It was raining the day day I took this picture. Tiki did think I had put it on the couch for her. Could be why she looks a little sheepish!

A friend also sent be some tops to be quilted and then sent to Quilts of Compassion. Put together the backing and batting for those and gave them to Kerry along with mine to quilt .

Kerry's website

I have the binding made and ready for several of the quilts. Will get the rest cut and sewn so as I start getting the quilts back from Kerry I can get them bound. All but the Shuffle quilt will be heading to Quilts of Compassion for the trip to Texas.

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