January Birthday Blocks

Ok, I know, I should be working on my UFO's, but I still have an obligation to get these done in a timely manner!! So, for Miss January (G-3, aka-Bonnie), this is your "woodsey" block. I hope it meets with your approval. I couldn't believe I found the perfect block in one of my quilt books. Of course, whoever has seen my sewing room knows, that I SHOULD find the perfect pattern with all the books that I have! LOL!And here's a close up. I've been appliqueing for awhile, but on the last couple of projects I have done, I've been using the "no template" method. I really like it.

And now for Miss January, part 2, this is for Laurie. She wanted a traditional block with Civil War repros. That is one line of fabric that I do not collect, so when I was lucky enough to be in Paducah, Ky this summer, I found a few at Hancock's of Paducah. I hope you like it Laurie and that is what you had in mind. Oh, btw, the pattern is from EQ-6 and is called "Old Scraps Patchwork".

I DID IT!

I scanned pics of all the blocks that I made for the 2007 Birthday Block Swap into EQ and made a label to go on the back of Lea's Mardi Gras Quilt. It looks kinda washed out here because I had to scan the label. Came out very good, if I say so myself. (Don't worry, I won't break my arm, patting myself on my back!LOL!)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

First of all, I want to wish you ALL a year of good health, happines in whatever you do, and peace. I hope you have a wonderful year filled with new experiences. And with a faith in God and faith in yourself, may you be able to handle whatever challenges are brought your way. Love and best wishes to you all.

MY SEWING GOALS
I did start this blog to keep myself focused on the things I want to make and to have a journal of my journey. So I guess there is no better time to do that, than on January 1st of a New Year!

The first thing I HAVE to get done, is to finish quilting and bind this quilt. (by the end of January)

It is a baby quilt for Joshua and Yvette's son who was born in July 2008! I do have a year to give them a gift, right!?!? Well, I also owe them a wedding quilt, that I haven't even started, but we won't go there right now! I want to think positive, at least for the first day of the year! LOL! BTW, if anyone is interested, the animal quilt was a free pattern put out by www.fatcatpatterns.com It's a wonderful site.

My next goal is to have this quilt completely finished by the time we go to Oregon for Lea's spring break.
I received these blocks from the about.com Birthday Block Swap. The swap runs for a year and you only make one block a month for the "birthday girl", and when it is your month to receive, you get 11 blocks of whatever theme you requested. As you all can see, my theme was "Mardi Gras". I imported the blocks into EQ-6 and came up with this layout. (I plan to put all the blocks I made for everyone else into EQ and come up with a mini quilt for the label.) Lea will have it for her "Mardi Gras" themed spare bedroom / scrapbooking room!

My third project to complete will be this quilt for Camille! It is all batiks and was truly a labor of love. I really enjoyed making this top. It's all hand appliqued, but I will be quilting it by machine. I am giving myself an April deadline!

While I'm doing those, I will have other projects that I will be working on. Last year, on the Today Show, there was a segment about organizing and the guest said "no one who does crafts should have more than 2 projects going at the same time!" WWWWWWWWWhat!!!! She surely doesn't quilt or scrapbook!!! LOL!

Till next time..................

Weird Weather Month

Ok, on Dec 10 we had snow. Mind you, not alot, but it was there on the ground for a couple of hrs!! We all loved seeing it. This is what the backyard looked like. BTW, the boards you see are holding the fence straight! At least the fence didn't fall for Hurricane Gustav, but it was leaning pretty good. As soon as work slows down for Gary, he will have to make a permanent repair.

We went from in the 30's to the high 70's, then back down to the 30's and this is what I woke up to one morning.

The water was still coming out of the top, but freezing on the way down! Now, our weather for the last few days has been way too warm for Dec! We had a record high of 80 on Christmas day. UGH! It reminded me of our 1st Christmas together when we lived in Tampa Fla. We went swimming that day! I'm really hoping we can start the year off with a little cool spell. I know what you're thinking, "be careful what you wish for", especially since most of the country has been hit hard for the past week with extreme weather conditions.

First Post, At Last!

Well, I can't believe after all this time, I'm finally posting my first!! I almost hate to admit that I set up this blog 2 years ago, and haven't done a thing with it.

I want to dedicate this post to LeLe, who has helped me to get a renewed interest in getting started. One of her favorite things at this time of the year is to remember Mr. Bingle, a New Orleans icon! So, this is for you!

http://www.mrbinglefans.com/

Oh, and the doll is yours too!!