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I know it is wrong to have a favorite Christmas present.  I truly love all the gifts I received.  I know my family puts a lot of thoughtfulness into each one, and I appreciate that.  But, that being said, I am going to break the rules.  There is something about a hand made gift.  Maybe it is because I am creative and I know how much work it takes to pull something together.  My daughter-in-law Ashley decided to go on Shutterfly and make a personalized calendar for our family.  This thing is AWESOME.  For each month, the top of the calendar has photographs of family members who are celebrating something that month.  Then on the dates themselves, there are smaller pictures of the person who is celebrating.  I picked October to show, because my birthday is on the 9th and Beckham's is on the 21st.  Ashley did a great job and picked out some wonderful photos.  This is truly a keepsake.

That's Hot....

Pink, that is.  My daughter-in-law has a pink/black kitchen.  During the holiday season, she has a small, hot pink Christmas tree in her kitchen.  Last week she asked me if I had some fabric (now there's a laugh).  She wanted some pink fabric to wrap around the bottom of her tree to resemble a tree skirt.  I told her if she would give me a few days I would be glad to make her a real tree skirt.  This is the fabric she picked.  The tree skirt is roughly 20 inches in diameter.  I hope she likes her hot pink tree skirt.

Happy Thanksgiving 2010

Thanksgiving dinner for 2010 is now just a memory.  But, those turkey sandwiches are going to taste so good tomorrow.  My niece brought this yummy "turkey" appetizer to the festivities today.  The body of the turkey is actually a dip covered with bacon bits and nuts. 

Today and everyday, my blessings are plentiful.  I try not to take them for granted.  And, I try to remember to share with those less fortunate, because I am so blessed.  My life is a work in progress. 

The Big Blue Bear

Jack and I spent part of this week in Denver, CO.  This Blue Bear art statue can be found in downtown Denver.  He appears to be peering into the Denver Convention Center.  The bear is 40 feet high and is made up of 4,000 interlocking triangles.  Now that's one BIG BEAR!

I Am Soooooo Lazy

You're not seeing things.  This is a Valentine's Day pillowcase, actually there is a set of them.  It was on my "to do" list.  I needed to get them done because I have black thread loaded on my serger.  My serger is old, dinosaurish even.  Changing thread on it is challenging, to say the least.  So, there you have it.  I am lazy and won't be changing that thread until all the "to do" projects needing black thread are done.

Happy Halloween

In between all the birthday partying today, Becks found time to trick or treat.  Obviously, since he only has two bottom teeth, he won't be eating much candy.  But, he had the best time dressing in costume and hanging out with all his little cousins who were "teaching him the ropes".  Grandma's little monkey sure had a big day!

Grandpa's Gift

When I was a child, my father made a rocking horse for my sister, brother and me.  Then, when all three of us had our own children, our kids rode the horse too.  The rocking horse now resides with my niece.  We asked her if we could borrow it to make a pattern from it.  My husband traced the pattern pieces, cut, sanded and painted the wood.  If you ask me, I think it turned out awesome!  This new rocking horse will hopefully be an heirloom to a new generation.

Love That Serger

Look familiar?  Since I gave Beckham a quilt for his birthday, I figured I better whip up a little pillow to go with it.  Now that my serger is working like a charm, it took me no time at all to make this matching pillowcase. 

Beckham's First Birthday Party

Happy Halloween.  Today we celebrated my Grandson Beckham's birthday.  Beckham turned 1 on October 21st.  I started this quilt for him months ago.  Then my cancer came back and I started chemotherapy and the quilt got put to the side.  I finally finished it last week.  And yes, it even has a label on the back!

Did I Hear That Right?

I spent the weekend in Door County with some friends. Fish Creek to be exact. Quilting was on the agenda, and quilt we did! The fall foliage was a bit past prime, but it still made a lovely panorama.

While quilting, we either listened to the radio or tv. One particular commercial announced on the radio got our attention. At first we thought perhaps we hadn't heard it correctly, so we listened intently when it was repeated. Sure enough we had heard the information correctly. An area jeweler was advertising, "buy a diamond, get a 12-gauge shotgun FREE". Now there's a deal you don't want to pass up. So run, do not walk...actually, with a 12-gauge shotgun involved, that might not be a good idea.

I HATE Mending

I guess because I am a quilter, people assume you must also like to mend. WRONG! I hate mending. Oh I do it, mostly out of necessity, but that doesn't mean I like it.

Last year, when our dog was a puppy (and in the chewing-everything-stage), she chewed a hole in this pillowcase. I just couldn't bear to throw it out, just because the fabric was so cute. I thought I could replace just the fabric panel that she chewed. Of course not, that would have been too simple. I had more of the fabric. Unfortunately, it was 3/4 " short of what I needed. That meant I needed to replace both sides of the pillowcase. So, as long as I am "unsewing", I decided I would take it back to the point where I could serge all the edges.

I am hoping the dog is out of her "chewing stage", because I really hate mending!

Almost

This is Beckham with his "aide". He isn't quite ready to walk on his own, but you should see him scoot around with this toy. I'm guessing it won't be long before he "lets go" and takes that first step on his own.

Comfy

This is Beckham's new comfy pillow. It is one of those small travel pillows. I sewed a flannel pillowcase for it. Whenever we go to restaurants, Beckham gets put in a high chair. The problem is, there is a big gap between where he sits and the back of the chair. I made this pillow to fill that gap. We tried it out tonight and it worked great. Problem solved!

The Only Mouse In My Home.....

....better be the ones on this bib! Although I know some people are lovers of rodents, I am NOT. The closest pet my family has ever had to a mouse is a guinea pig. This fabric was just too cute to pass up. Another addition to Matthew's bib collection.

Like Riding A Bicycle

I haven't quilted/sewed in so long, I almost thought I forgot how to. So, I wanted my first project to be easy. Like the back of your hand easy. No thinking easy. Of course, I resorted to a table topper. Easy peasy and very colorful, wouldn't you say?

Doggie Dip

Yesterday, quite a few of the Milw County Parks closed their swimming pools for the season. However, before they close completely, the last evening is set aside for "the dog days of summer". You bring your dog and, for a $5 fee, they can take a dip in the pool, with or without you. There are dogs everywhere. Big dogs, little dogs, dogs of every breed, having the time of their lives. Doggie delight, indeed.

Beckham's First Fourth of July Parade

My Daughter-in-Law sent me this picture of my Grandson, Beckham at his first Fourth of July parade. The weather here is in the 90's today, and with me having had chemo this past Friday, I figured I better not chance an outing at this point. You absolutely MUST click on this picture and see his two front teeth...they just appeared in the last two weeks. Happy Birthday America!

Lucky Me

This past weekend, I attended a quilt retreat in Lake Geneva. There was a choice of two different classes or open studio. I chose open studio, keeping in mind my already-too-many ufo's. Saturday at lunch, there was a drawing for door prizes. I was lucky enough to win this board game. Everything associated with the game is quilt related, even the markers. I had a wonderful, productive time and hopefully in the next few days I will have some awesome photos of finished projects!

That Time of Year

This lovely young couple is my Godson Zach and his girlfriend Lid (Lydia). Oak Creek High School is celebrating Prom tonight and these two will be in attendance. I was lucky enough to share a little time with them on this special day. Have a wonderful evening you two!

Oldest First

Last year I started a scrapbook for my Grandson Beckham. It is a scrapbook of his first 12 months of life. Beckham was born in October of 2009. I created the first 6 pages in anticipation of his birth. I haven't touched his scrapbook since. Time to get the oldest of projects done first. The three new pages are devoted to Beckham's Baptism, his first Halloween and his first Thanksgiving.

Everything But Sewing

These last two weeks have been crazy beyond belief! My family has been sick with this virus that is going around. All of us have had it in one form or another. Matthew even spent an evening in the ICU at Froedtert Hospital. I hope we are done with it.

Then there was all the household hubbub. I had wallpaper stripped in my foyer (my foyer extends upstairs and downstairs). Our wood floors, which flow from the dinette, through the kichen and half bath into the foyer, were sanded, stained and recoated. That means we "lived" upstairs for 4 days.

Maddy was spayed. Since the floors were being done, she was also boarded for the first time.

So now, hopefully, you can understand why there have been no posts. I need my sewing fix. I have my list (if you know me, you know I live by lists). I need to get going on my State Fair entries.

Since St. Patrick's Day is Wednesday, Matthew just has to have a bib to celebrate.

Time to get busy with that list!

Busy Day

We had plans for dinner and a movie with some friends of ours, so that didn't leave much time for sewing today. This afternoon I found time to make Matthew another bib. His favorite color seems to be red, so I am sure he will like this one. After we got back from dinner, I cut, pieced and ironed the binding for Beckham's quilt.

It Was Bound To Happen

A table topper for St. Patrick's Day. Pretty soon I will have one for every holiday. Plop a candle in a holder, place on top of the topper and you have a great centerpiece. My daughter-in-law places her toppers under her living room lamps. These are so versatile, you can find lots of uses for them.

Valentine's Day Bingo

Happy Valentine's Day. Today I held a Valentine's Day Bingo game at my house. I had 13 ladies who came for lunch and FUN! One of my neighbors held one of these a few years ago and it was a blast. Each guest is asked to bring a new, wrapped gift (something they would like themselves) valued between $20 and $25. After we have lunch, we play bingo. When a person gets a bingo, they are allowed to go to the gift table and select a gift. They need to unwrap the gift and show it to everyone else. When all the gifts are opened, we take a short break for dessert. Then the real FUN begins. I set a timer for a specific amount of time. Only I know the amount of time. Then we play "take away" bingo. We play fast, since no one but me knows when the timer will go off. There is always one gift that everyone seems to want. This year it was a pearl bracelet. That bracelet really gained some mileage before the game ended. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and it was a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

More Valentine's Day Goodies

Wow, I just noticed, from looking at this picture, how bad my front door needs to be sanded and restained! This post was supposed to be about the wreath I made. Isn't that how it goes though? You start with one project and pretty soon you are involved in another one before you realize what is happening. Oh well, with the freezing weather we are having, the front door will just have to wait until spring. Sheesh, another thing to add to the "to do" list.

Valentine's Day is Fast Approaching....

And that means, break out the decorations! Since red is one of my favorite colors, I can really get into this holiday. I made these two table toppers over the weekend. Previously I have made these same table toppers for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Therefore, a Valentine's Day table topper was in order. I have a few more projects in the works. Tomorrow I will post a picture of another completed project.

Doggone Cool

First up is a picture of my Grandson Beckham. He is sporting his new doggie hat. Although he doesn't look too happy about it, he sure does look adorable in it!

The next picture is a scrapbook page that my Goddaughter Ashley created (with a little help from me). After looking through the scrapbook that I am making for Beckham, she decided she wanted to try her hand at some scrapbooking. I think she did an awesome job.

I'm Back In The Saddle....

Again, as the saying goes. I'm finally back at the sewing machine. Saturday my quilt guild had a get-together at the local library. The purpose was to make things to be sold at our quilt show boutique. Our quilt show is in October. I had to bring my sewing machine.

At this point, let me back up. I stopped quilting right before Christmas so that I could concentrate on the holidays. You know, decorating, cooking, Christmas cards, etc. Well, when I went into my studio to get my sewing machine, I knew why I had not resumed quilting. It looked like a bomb had gone off in there! My entire sewing table was covered with fabric, notions, scrapbooking stuff, beads---you name it, it was there. I had to "dig out" before I could even begin to think about sewing.

With everything back in some semblance of order (my studio will never be totally organized), I could now proceed without guilt. I packed my bags and headed for the library.

Once back home, my sewing area clean, I made these two man bibs for Matthew.

Thursdays :)

Beckham is now 2.5 months old. He is starting to recognize people and has started to smile and babble some. What an exciting time. I love Thursdays. That is our day together. Life is good.