WHERE HAS THE TIME GONE?

Sorry, no pics in this post. Just needed to sit down for a few minutes and try to get back on track. Since my last post........
My brother was in the hospital and very, very ill, so I went back and forth to TX the months of Sept and Oct. He is mostly recovered now, still not at work, but hopes to be at the first of the year.
I finally started (in Nov.) my nephews graduation quilt, a little late, since he already graduated (sorry, Andre), but it is coming along great. I want to keep it under wraps until he sees it, so there will be no pics, yet!
I had plans to make about 20 pillowcases for Christmas gifts, but have only gotten 5 done. I need to have those done by the time we make our next trip to TX.

I am planning on starting the new year with my usual list of things to accomplish. Hopefully, I will be able to stratch more off the list this time around.

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year!

THE ONLY WAY TO GET CAUGHT UP....

...is to write 2 post in one day! Hopefully, I will not let myself get so far behind again!!

This post will have lots of pics. of quilts and vacation.

Gary and I flew to Portland at the beginning of August. Lea picked us up and we went straight to Multnomah Falls, my absolute favorite place!! That was the first time we had such a hard time getting a parking spot. (of course, we've NEVER gone on a Saturday!!!)

Then we went to Ikea. Love that place. Got fabric to make some bags. I may have get some more online. Really impressed how well it washed and dried and absolutely no bleeding. Then we went to Fabric Depot for a couple of hours. Needless to say, the extra suitcase I brought was well on its way to getting filled up. (Please don't remind me that I said I was trying not to buy any more fabric this year, I'm not listening!)

This is the quilt that was in the "extra suitcase". In case you don't know about this "Mardi Gras" quilt, the blocks were made for me in the Birthday Block Swap on about.com 2 years ago.

This is the back that I made completely from my stash.
And here is the label showing all the blocks that I made for the other particapants in the swap.

Here is the latest baby quilt I made for Baby Andrew. (the S is for his last name!) We were able to visit Andrew and his mom, Kaye, in Salem. Kaye even took us to Greenbaums, The Quilted Forest. Great shop in a building with a wonderful history. I loved their original brick wall and all the original cabinets.

After our day in Salem, we were off to Seattle for a couple of baseball games. Definitely got our money's worth with one of the games, Mariners vs. White Sox. It went 14 innings with Jr, as in, Ken Griffey, Jr. making a hit and getting a runner in. Great game.

The next night, we saw Mariners vs Yankees. It starting pouring a couple of hrs before the game, so we got a little wet trying to get in the stadium. I had a guy sitting next to me, that took up his seat and 1/3 of mine :-( and the Mariners lost. So we really didn't enjoy the game as much as the night before.

This was in one of the corridors of the stadium. They took license plates from the states of each team. It was really cool.


We also rode "The Duck" in Seattle. That was a blast! I had pics to post, but I just lost them!



On our way back to Portland, we stopped at the Museum of Glass in Tacoma. It was real interesting. We watched them make a complete piece, about 2 hrs to make. It can also be viewed online. Check them out.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum_of_Glass

Our time went much to fast. Lea is already planning our trip for next year when we will be going back to Canada!

Now, I hope I am back on track! Till next time..................

I'm trying to catch up!!!

Sorry I've been MIA for so long. I've been busy with pillowcases, applique and quilting and LIFE!! But I did want to share some of our vacation pics with you! Lea came home for 2 weeks in June and we spent some of that time in Austin. My family lived there in 1965 for 9 months and I had never been back. So Lea and Gary surprised me with a trip there. We would have all enjoyed it much more had it not been so HOT and dry!!! And of course, most things we did was outdoors.

We toured the capital.

These are the door hinges. Very impressive.

And I fell in love with the flooring in one part of the building. This is a reproduction of the original. There's a quilt in there somewhere!!

We took the "100" steps to the top of Austin! The view below was beautiful, but it was soooo hot that day, that we couldn't wait to get back down and get something to drink!!

A great view from the top.

We even made time for BBQ at the County Line on the Lake Restaurant. After you eat, you can walk out on the decks and feed the multitude of turtles. Great BBQ!

Then we ended one of our afternoons by the river waiting for the bats to go out on their nightly hunt. I tried to upload a video that I took, but I couldn't get it to post. If you want to read about it, you can find it here. http://www.austincityguide.com/content/congress-bridge-bats-austin.asp They just had a story about it on HLN an hour ago!!

We did find where I had lived, but all that was left was the sign for the trailer park! The section has been closed off and is a "green" area. It was nice to see Austin again!

THEY'RE FINALLY ALL DONE!

I am very late with this block for Jeri, but now my commitment to the Birthday Block Swap is done! I hope it will go with all the other blocks that she has received.

In case you're wondering, this Brown Pelican from South Louisiana, is standing on a piece of driftwood, that has been in the water since Hurricane Katrina, but has finally made it to a cleaned up part of the shoreline right at sunset! That's my story and I'm sticking to it! LOL!

LAST BIRTHDAY BLOCKS, WELL, ALMOST!

Where has the time gone?!? I can't believe it has been almost 2 months since the last post! I haven't really done a whole lot of sewing, but I do have 2 of the last 3 blocks that I needed to fulfil my obligation. I STILL owe Jeri her block. I had hers almost finished until I made "snip" in the wrong place and have to start all over again. I promise, Jeri, it is in the works!!

This is Michelle's shoe block. I had the paper piecing done before I left on vacation, but knew it needed something else, so this is what I came up with. I love, love, love all the shoes she has gotten so far, so I really hope this will play well with the others.

Next, is Libby's. She wanted "ferns and violets" and this is what I came up with. I didn't see anyone post any of the blocks they made for her, so I just kinda went with my gut and this is my block. Libby, I hope this is what you had in mind.

My apologies for being late with your blocks.

I STAND CORRECTED! LOL!!

Ok, when DB was here this week-end he set me straight about his new machine. It's a PlasmaCAM Cutter, NOT a laser cut machine as I had previously posted. Evidently, there is a difference. For all you sewers out there, think sewing machine vs serger!!! Anyway, it is a fabulous new toy for him and he and his BFF since high school are going into a business together to supplement their retirement, hopefully! With all the things that I want him to make for me, it will end up delaying my DH's retirement in order to help my DB!!! Just kidding, Sarge!!

Anyway, this is one of his first, if not the first cut he made on his new machine. Isn't it fabulous?!? I haven't seen it in person, but hopefully,

I will soon. You can see from the step stool, how big it really is. I have more pics from our visit, but will add that later. Just wanted to make this correction before I forget to!!

MY BROTHER MADE THIS!

My brother just recently invested in a "laser cut" machine and is experimenting with it. He and his friend came to New Orleans this weekend and he brought this for me!!! My maiden name is "Boudreaux" but my husband had come up with this spelling of it when we first got married and has always called me "Boodro". I even have it for my license tag! This plaque is gorgeous and I couldn't wait to hang it up! Thanks again to my brother! You made my day!

I'M ON A ROLL!

I've finished all of my May blocks!! WooHoo!! First is Janet's block. Easy-peasy! She wanted a 12" log cabin done is black and white with red center. She will be making a quilt for her 14 year old son. It's gonna be very striking!

Next is Debbie's "Dream Vacation". What would represent a dream vacation to us! That was so easy for me. My block is called Alaska! Now, for those who know me, know I have been there 3 times already, but when I dream of a vacation, I always want to go back there!! I am lucky enough to have a SIL and her family that live there. I envy their life there (but just in the summer months!!) Don't know if I could hack it in the winter! LOL!

And when I was making this block, all I could think of was "purple mountains majesty"--hence the purple mountain in the center! Deb-I'll write my story when I send the block.

Lastly, is my birdhouse for Connie. I had to add the cardinal because every night at 7:15 we have a pair of cardinals that come to our birdfeeder. You can set your watch to them. It is truely amazing! And now, if anyone is saying that I didn't put an eye on the bird, all I have to say is--you try appliqueing a circle that is less than 1/16 across, then we'll talk! LOL! Connie didn't want any embelishments, so if she decides it needs an eye, she can maybe add a small bead or button. (I actually like it the way it is!)

Now I need to get back to my April block for Jeri!!

Till next time.....

ANN'S BLOCK-LATE, BUT DONE!

Well, Ann was supposed to get this block in April, but I didn't get it done in time. I was trying to do a more involved block for someone else and ended up making a cut where a cut shouldn't be! I HATE when that happens.

Anyway, back to Ann's block. She wanted a 9" Churn Dash block done is blue and cream. Hope this works. I felt so bad being late, I made her 2!! Now to get them to the Post Office in a timely manner. Hopefully on Monday.

Now to get going on more blocks. Till next time......

GARY'S PRIDE AND JOY!

No, it's not a fast car or fancy boat! It's his backyard full of rosebushes! Every spare minute Gary has, he spends in the backyard. It is finally back to the way it looked before Hurricane Katrina. The bushes really took a hard hit from the storm even though we didn't flood. This is just one of our recent "picks"!! And yes, I still use handmade crochet doilies!

DECISIONS, DECISIONS, DECISIONS!

I have been putting off making a baby quilt for one of DD's best friends who is due in June. I talked to DD last night and had a couple of ideas, one being a "snowball I spy" a

nd the other done with Dick and Jane fabrics. BUT when I got into the sewing room today, I really wanted to make something fast and easy and use my stash, so this is what I came up with in just a couple of hours!! The pattern is from American Patchwork and Quilting (June 2006) and is called "B is for Baby". (That's because the original pattern has a fancy "B" done in script lettering, which I will not do for a boy!!) I will probably do a block "S" applique for the baby's last name! I am hoping to get this quilted soon. Will post again when it is done!

Cheryl's Birthday Block

Wow, I think Cheryl is gonna have one great quilt! She requested the "Int

erwoven Diamond" pattern from Quilter's Cache and wanted the blocks to be done as scrappy as possible with Asian fabrics. She didn't want these 6" blocks to be sewn together so she could work with them as is, instead of a 12" finished block. I sure hope it won't be in her UFO pile for very long. This was first time working with all Asian fabric. Now I have a little stash, which I'm looking forward to adding to. LOL!

MARCH BIRTHDAY BLOCKS And One Late one from February :-(

Ok, I think I will start with the late block! This was for Wendi-the February BD girl. She asked for buildings for her "town" quilt, which, "Nell" was eager to name "Wendiville". And the name has stuck!! This is my take on our local Post Office. I'm still not 100% satisfied with it, but Wendi was happy to have it to add to her town. She has received so many wonderful buildings, a library, mall, and a quilt shop, just to name a few. I can't wait to see the finished quilt!

My first March block was for Lisa. I had made her block months ago. I always have a project to work on while I "watch" TV and this is one of them. Lisa wanted us to think "Hawaiian". So what else would I make but an Hawaiian appliqued pineapple block!




Next on my list was Paula's basket. She wanted it scrappy, on point, and done in Civil War reproduction fabrics and shirtings.

I think I hit the mark with this one. I have never used Civil War repro's before this swap. They are starting to grow on me! Their tones are so deep, I might
start collecting a few to do a scappy sort of quilt. Oh, wait a minute, I promised myself to use up some of my stash before I buy more fabric. I'll let you know what happens!!

The last block I did was for Kristen. I just finished it on Sunday and it's not in the mail yet! She will be getting this a little late, for which I am sorry for. I hope to get back on track with April's blocks! I don't like being late for anything! Kristen requested bright modern fabric using flying geese pattern. When I bought the fabric in July I didn't remember about the "bright" part of her request!! So I'm really hoping with will do!

CATCHING UP

It's been awhile since my last post. As most of you know, we had a death in the family. Gary's niece/goddaughter lost her dear husband of 20 years a few weeks ago after a long battle with cancer.

Rohn was a loving husband and wonderful father to their girls. He will be missed by so many people. I will be making quilts for the girls from some of his clothes that I hope with help to always keep their father close to them.

Visit to the Insectarium

WARNING-----NO QUILT TALK ON THIS POST!

Gary and I went to the Insectarium a couple of weekends ago in downtown New Orleans. I haven't been able to write about it because we didn't have computer access (darn bugs) for one week. Thanks again, Geek Squad!

The Insectarium has only been opened about 7-8 months. There really wasn't too much to see. Was very disappointed with the "Butterfly Garden". The plants looked like they were all dying and all the butterflies were either on the walls (about 20' high) or the windows :-( Hopefully as time goes by, the plants will start thriving and fill up the area, so the butterflies will be around the plants and not on the wall!!

There was a room that we both liked very much. They had different displays of bugs from different parts of the world. Most of the bugs were different beetles and some butterflies. I just loved the way they were displayed.

On one wall in another section, there were handpainted plaques that had the "New Orleans history of the ROACH"!! I know for alot of you, that sounds disgusting, but here, it is a way of life, no matter how clean your house is. you WILL see them in your lifetime if you live in the south!

So if you dare to look and read, here are some of the pics......

Now, that wasn't too bad, was it? Aren't you glad you looked! LOL!

SHERRY'S BIRTHDAY BLOCK

I finally got another birthday block done and have one more to go for the month. Sherry wanted a black and white 12" block, so I found this pattern on Quilters Cache, appropriately named "Birthday Cake". Now on to make my "Wendiville" block.

PAT AND RANDI'S BD BLOCKS

Well, I finally finished the January block for Pat. So sorry this will get to you late Pat. I got a very late start and it went downhill from there. :-( But I hope you like the final result.

I was planning on going to Texas this week, but Rohn (nephew-in-law) will be in Houston til Sat. having chemo, so I have put the trip on hold for now. We will see where it goes from here. Things are still not looking good, so I thank you all for the thoughts and prayers that are going his way.

Since I was able to stay home, I did get Randi's block done also. I love the colors she chose. I am just hoping that this is what she had in mind. I think the golds look a little more yellow than they actually are. I am in love with this block ( geez, can't believe that I am thinking about putting that block and colors on my LONG to-do list!! LOL!)

Mardi Gras Quilt Backing

I didn't have enough fabric to make a solid backing, nor did I really want a solid backing for this quilt, sooooooooo this is what I came up with.

The good thing about it is, that it's ALL from my stash. That is quite an accomplishment in itself, as all you other quilters can attest to! I'm really trying to not buy too much fabric this year and use what I have. Now pay attention, I said I'm trying, I'm not promising! LOL!

FIRST UFO FINISHED!

For those of you that don't talk "quilt" UFO stands for UnFinished Object! I'm so glad this is done. I decided to make the binding random colors used in the quilt and I think it added a little zing to the quilt. As you can see the baby was born last July so I needed to get this done and to him before he is a teenager!

I made the label in EQ-6 and printed it on a printable fabric sheet. It's a quick and easy way to make a label.