I Like Thurs #108

Thursday is a Like-able day. Let's get smiling and, if there isn't enough for you here, you can check out more HERE.

How about Birthday Ice Cream sent to me from my daughter? Oh my! Look at those flavors!!!'

These will go nicely with the Black & White Cake from Rock Recipes that I made. It was so good! The marshmallow frosting had me nervous to make but it came out perfectly and tasty! Pretty sprinkles too!

And from my son, daughter-in-law, and grandsons I received this sweet bird feeder. The boys painted it and each side of the rooftop has a handprint!

Speaking of grandsons, here's Jacob sitting up all by himself. That giggle just cracks me up but oh! That hair! Grammy wants him to get a haircut!!

My wish was my command! Haha!

Look at that sweet face!

Of course Gracie & I like our walk and there is always fun & interesting things to see while outside.

I spied this kitty in the bushes. Gracie did not. Ha!

Daffodils starting to bloom around here

While on our way into P/T, Mom & I looked up and saw these beautiful formations of geese on the move. There were so MANY and they were so gracefully swerving in the sky! (Ugly-looking sky, though)

I really like retreats, especially this group that gets together once a month. We sew all day Friday, go home to dinner and sleep in our own beds, then sew all day Saturday, and then go home for good. Last weekend I said good-bye to my friend Phyllis. She works every month on the same quilt that only comes out for retreat. I've enjoyed watching her piece this one and have lamented with her over a couple of oopsies she made along the way. We've shared a sewing table several times and she & I have gotten to know each other pretty good. We both like to chat a little and sew a lot, which is good because we are both slow at the sewing machines. I wish her well!

Atomic Starburst by Violet Craft

Here's a wonderful Halloween quilt made by Karen. I just love how the birds overlap into the piecing. The pattern was called Blue Jay Way by Abbey Road Quilts. You can get the pattern on Connecting Threads HERE.

I put together the twelve 24" blocks of the Illusions Sampler BOM that I constructed all through 2022. There are two borders left to go and this beast will be done .... then will need to be quilted obviously.

We went out to lunch the other day. I'm not sure if I LIKED or didn't LIKE this. An older couple were each playing on their phones. Great that they're still "young" enough play with smart phones. Sad because they are communicating with each other the way I hate seeing young families communicate today.

I'm still enjoying the book "Murder in the Secret Garden". I do find this book to be a little "Hallmark-Channel"-ish. With just under 100 pages to go, I should be done this week.

As for TV watching, I happily watched all two hours of Survivor last night! Yay! Love that show and this will be the 44th season. I will confess that I didn't watch this show in the beginning but I have liked it for lots of years.

No picture of the 1500 HARD puzzle that I'm still putting together, but progress has been made. I hope to finish it before summer! Ha!

One last "sweetie" picture and I'm outta here.

Have a great week and I'll see you next Thursday for more "Likes"!

Not Much RSC

Since I returned from Cleveland, I haven't really sewn as much as I would have liked. Just mostly trying to get into the swing of things again. Mom will be coming up this afternoon and I know we'll have a "grand reunion"! Haha!

I did finish up the November block for Uptown while catching up on Blue Bloods before watching the season finale later. Here she is ... Another strange looking block but they should all blend together perfectly?

Earlier in the day I worked very hard at getting the Illusions Sampler November block completed too. The construction of the main part of the block was really cool. I think this would make a great block for RSC2023!

Yesterday I was so inspired by the I Like Thursday posts that I set about and made Snickerdoodle cookies. My recipe yesterday made 46 so they'll likely be gone before next week! Cookie Monster had nothing on this group! You can find my recipe HERE.

There were a lot of recipes shared on the I Like Thursday blog. LeeAnna prompted us with "Christmas/Hannukah Cookies" for this week. You can jump to her page with recipes HERE and then leap-frog to the other posts at the bottom of the page. Just scroll on down.

I'll leave you now with a sweet, sweet picture of our little Jakey. Just look at that hair! and that smile! and check out how that big toe is curled under to help hold him upright! Haha!

Have a great week!

FNSI and a Bit More

Last night was the third Friday of November, meaning Friday Night Sew-In with the virtual ladies. Unfortunately I was too tired to stitch since I'd been up since WAY before dawn. My hip (did I mention I think I have bursitis?) was really ailing me, enough that I couldn't lay still. So I got up. It may have been since I'd sat in the car all day Wednesday to go to A to Z Quilt Store to get my All-Illinois Shop Hop prize, the AccuQuilt Go! Baby cutter. Or it could've been that walking all over the Scott AFB BX and then the commissary the very next day was just too much hard-floor walking. Might also have been a combo, right?

So earlier in the day I finished the "innards" of the next Illusions Sampler BOM. This is October's block. Did I ever mention how much I dislike sewing square-in-a-square blocks? Haha!

Later that evening it was all I could do to knit a bit on a sock I'd started earlier in the week for FNSI. I'll look up the particulars of the pattern another time. Last night I started the gusset after turning the heel the night before. I'm using a pretty gray yarn that I got from Invictus Yarns. I'd won a $30 gift certificate through a Ravelry knit group called Verybusymonkey Knitters. I love Stephanie's patterns and she's behind Very Busy Monkey. Anyway, here's my progress.

Right now I'd also like to give a shout-out to Aaron for the fabulous job he did cleaning and tuning up both of my Berninas. He used to work out of Batiks Plus in St. Louis but the shop is closing or may already have closed. He's currently working on landing in another shop. In the meantime, he picked up my machines on Tuesday, cleaned and adjusted them, and then returned them to my door on Thursday! A 2-day turn around! Amazing!!! If you're in the area and need your Bernina to get a spa-treatment, contact him through his email, aaronsmachinerepail@gmail.com . Correction: aaronsmachinerepair@gmail.com .Your machine will thank you!

So that's my latest! Have a great weekend!

Linking up with Wendy @ Sugarlane Designs for Friday Night Sew-In and also with Angela @ So Scrappy for Rainbow Scrap Quilters.

Eureka! I Have Found It!

First things first. After probably about two years, while looking for a misplaced pattern, I found the missing Awesome Land blocks. All 81 of them with a side sashing attached!!! I was sure I must've left them at a retreat because that was the last time I saw them. These blocks were listed on my 2021 UFO list so I presume I made the blocks during RSC2020. Here they are laid out on my living room floor yesterday. I am so doing my happy dance! I will work very hard to have the top done by year's end.

Yesterday I worked very hard finishing Block #8 of the BOM at my LQS. It is called Illusions Sampler.

Block #8 Illusions Sampler

I don't quite know why I did Block #9 before this one but now I have the first nine blocks done. These blocks are 24" square - HUGE! Here they all are, in no particular order.

I have to tell you a "funny" story. At my quilt group the other day, one lady had all 12 of her Illusions Sampler blocks put together and the borders on. When she showed it at show 'n' tell, I couldn't believe I saw a HUGE boo-boo right in the middle. It was Block #8 which I had been working on so the mistake was glaring to my eyes. I now had quite the dilemma -- do I say something or not? Well, since it was only a top & not yet quilted AND because it was right square in the middle, I braved it and told her. Now it's on her to fix the mistake or not. Has this ever happened to you? Not making the mistake but letting someone know that they did when they were so proud of their work?

The other big news around here: This morning I woke up to SNOW! So pretty! Just a heavy dusting but the grass is covered up so it counts in my book. Hard to believe but a few days ago we broke the High Temp record with 83 degrees. Crazy funny!

Gracie & I have a FUN walk ahead of us this morning. Wishing you a great week!

Linking up with all the RSC quilters HERE!

FNSI & RSC & More

Last night was Friday Night Sew-In with my virtual, global friends. We're brought together each 3rd Friday of the month by Wendy at Sugarlane Designs.

What kept me busy last night? FNSI and RSC2022 combined! The June Illusions Sampler block is complete. It even had a little purple in there!

That was followed by a bit of hexie prepping. The fabrics were chosen, the hexies were basted, and the layout decided. So many purples!

In the background, I've been madly sewing Positivity 2022 Twistie blocks. Only the center seam needs to be sewn on this last pile. I sure hope so anyway. I've counted my blocks several times over the course of making them but then threw out a couple of yucky blocks, only to find a few more prepped blocks that hadn't been sewn (or counted) yet! Whatever number these make, it's bound to be close to the 80 needed.

Have a wonderful week! You'll find me with my foot on the pedal, sewing like a crazy woman!

Sharing with SoScrappy for Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC2022) and with Sugarlane Designs for FNSI.

RSC Dark & Bright Blues Wrapping Up

The month of June is coming to a close. Next Friday will be the 1st of July and the new Rainbow Scrap Challenge color will be announced. So how far have I gotten with the blues? First up is my zigzag border. It has joined its other friends in the pile.

I also finished off the two Dresden plates last night while watching "Top Gun" on Prime. Hoping to catch the new one soon.

And with its friends.

I'm also joining in the Positivity 2022 QAL with Preeti @ SewPreetiQuilts. I'll tell you more about that another time. In the meantime, the Positivity 2022 block was revealed. Since I had plenty of dark blue fabrics out this month and it was suggested to have good contrast, I decided to go with them and make scrappy dark blue blocks. As for a background, I decided to keep it consistent and I chose a pale gray paisley I just happened to have in the stash leftover from a backing. Who doesn't love paisley, I ask??!!

I prepped my fabrics and got started. Ten blocks made lickity-split and dark/bright blues used again! There's a pile waiting to be completed for another 14 more blocks! So easy! So fast! So fun!

I managed to get the middle of the Illusions Sampler BOM completed too. There's a hunk of bright blue in there too!

I think that's all the blues for me today. Hope you've got sewing plans this weekend or you'll might end up singing the blues!

Linking up with Angela @ SoScrappy and all my other scrappy friends!

Teeny, Tiny Dark Blue

I had a sewing day on Friday. Wouldn't that be a good day to start Remembering Betsy SAL with Pam Buda? I thought so!

The center of the little piece consists of four 6"  5"churn dash units. Here are mine:

I also finished up the May block of the Illusions Sampler. It has a bit of bright blue in it. Not sure if I should call it a bit since this block is HUGE! 18"!

Mom passed her driver's license test Thursday afternoon. No problems whatsoever! Life is good.

Thank you, Angela, for keeping us on track with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. I'll be linking up at So Scrappy to share my accomplishments.

FNwF & RSC Dark Blues

I truly have the "blues". I sewed up the dark blue strings for my zig zag border. Trimmed them down to make my HSTs only to discover that I trimmed them down too small! Arrrrgh! So I've started making more, of course. Man, and I had high hopes that I'd have them already finished up 100% to show you today. I did get the center of the May Illusions Sampler finished. Right now it is 12-1/2". I hope to make more progress this week and get on to the June block.

May Illusions Sampler Block
Check out that dark blue! Score!

So that's my Rainbow Scrap Challenge report for this week.

For good news: I have to do a bit of cleaning up in my sewing space due to getting a new HVAC installed next week. Both the HVAC and my sewing space are in the basement. When my neighbor moved last month, she gifted me a cabinet with a few shelves and a door that closes. I told her I could probably use it for fabric. So I measured the shelves, bought a few baskets to fit, and started sorting in the basement yesterday. I plan on using the baskets for strips. I'll update you on my weekend progress.

As for Friday Night with Friends, I did manage to fit a little embroidery in. Don't know if I mentioned to you that last year or the year before (or could it have been the year before the year before? Ha!) I picked up a UFO embroidery kit from my guild for a few dollars. It included the stamped top and just about all the floss needed to complete. The original owner had barely started it.

Cover of Project

The Lion & Puppy Block Was Started.
(Oof! Do you see where the stitcher left her hoop in too long.
Yup! There's a little rust. I think it'll be OK for a donation quilt anyway.)

I Worked on the Heart Border First & Got Bored.
So I Started the Zebra & Kitty Block.

My Progress Yesterday

The Whole She-Bang!
(Check out Polly about to run through here! Haha!)

That's where I am right now. It's a great TV-watching and Take-Along project.

Wednesday I took Mom in for her Mohs surgery. The picture looks bad but she said there's not much pain. She'll be staying with us through the weekend so I can change out her bandage and keep an eye on things for her.

Teeny, Tiny Stitches From Her Eye to Her Nostril
Mom Says It Looks Worse Than It Feels.

While Mom & I were at the surgeon's, Hubby was at the dentist due to much pain & some swelling where his tooth had been extracted to get ready for a bridge. Yup! He's got an infection going and is now on antibiotics. He'll be fine in a few days but in the meantime, sleep doesn't come easy for him.

That's been my week here. Hope you have a great weekend!

Linking up with Angela @ SoScrappy for RSC and Cheryll @ GoNe StItChIn for FNwF.

EWSI and a RSC tease.

So Bloglovin is down again. That means I can't catch up on my fellow bloggers and their progress. Oh my! I'll go ahead and show you what I managed to do this weekend. Wendy, our lovely hostess of FNSI (Friday Night Sew In), changed it up for the entire Easter weekend. She's calling it EWSI (Easter Weekend Sew In). I'll be heading over to Sugarland Designs if and when Bloglovin returns so I can see my cyber friends' posts. I'll bet a lot got done this weekend!

I finished up the first Woodland Sage Mitten (pattern by Very Busy Monkey on Ravely) on Wednesday.

Time to start on mitten #2. I'm actually a little further along than this picture shows but not much.

Mitten #2

I also made a couple of pillowcases that will be gifted later next month so no pictures. As if that wasn't enough, I also completed April's block for my LQS BOM, Illusions Sampler. They are 24" blocks and there are a lot of pieces. Not only are they interesting blocks, but they are quite challenging too! Such pretty fabrics too!

If you thought that was plenty to accomplish, I also managed to prep 14 hexis during a Zoom meeting on Saturday. I hope to get them sewn up for RSC next Saturday ... that is if Bloglovin is back up & running! UGH!

This afternoon I weeded & prepped a small section of the garden and got some lettuce seeds planted. We were expecting rain later in the day and for once the prediction was correct. Ha! Hopefully we'll have fresh lettuce in about a month. I went heavy on the arugula seeds because I love arugula the most!

Hope you had a wonderful Easter weekend!

March Wrap-Up: Retreat, Sprinkle, and Home Again

This month has been a whirlwind of activity with not much quilting to report. Was it a great month nonetheless? You betcha!

My sister drove up from Texas to spend time with all of us. Midway through her visit, we sisters got to spend SPECIAL time because we went to Sprague's Kinderhook Lodge in Illinois. To give you a little better idea of its location, it is about 20 minutes due east of Hannibal MO, home of Mark Twain and two quilt stores with another quilt store about 30 minutes north. Heaven on Earth!

Linda and I had a great time and I sewed a cloth book, The Pokey Little Puppy. I already gave it away without taking a picture. Drat! But I get to count a yard of fabric gone for the Stashbuster Challenge run by Carole at From My Carolina Home.  I also completed the March block for the Illusions Sampler, my LQS's BOM. The drunkard's path blocks were fun!

I also finished the top of this Spring wall hanging by Kathy Schmitz. The embroidery was completed a long time ago but all of the piecing (including the little paper-pieced quilt in the middle) was finished at the retreat. Once I get it quilted up I'll be able to report that fabric in the Stashbuster Challenge too! Need to get a move on this one!

Four days after my sister left, we left for Maryland to attend the "sprinkle" (mini-shower) for my grandson, due April 27th. Here are a few pictures from the "sprinkle" and our visit.

Of course we had to give a St. Louis Cardinals onsie!

Brody loved the Hooters Hider, made & given by Mom's hairdresser Mary.

Jared got a new clock to keep everyone on time.

Sarah & I enjoyed watching the antics from the only seat we could find!

Brody was exhausted from all the excitement.

Another highlight to the sprinkle was my cousin Fran & her husband John drove down from NY. What a surprise! It is always wonderful to see them and my mother was thrilled beyond belief!

The day afterwards, we went to Sarah's condo to relax and enjoy some peace & quiet. Penny made herself at home in Fred's lap.

Gus is pretty sure that the recliner in the nursery is there for him!

We always enjoy seeing Amanda's family
(from L to R: Sharon (mother), Lucy (niece), and Emily (sister)

We got home on March 30, in time for Mom's doctor appointment on the 31st and to get Gracie "out of jail"! Haha!

So you can see that not a lot of time was dedicated to quilting. I did accomplish a little bit for March's RSC Yellow & Gold.

A couple of hexis

I also worked on String-X. The yellow block is in the middle of the quilt so I couldn't do any of the scrappy zigzag border. Instead I grabbed a piece of yellow fabric from my stash and used it up for a narrow inner border.

For my March PHD report, nada. Nothing finished but several in the works! Wish me luck on April progress! I'll be linking up and checking in with my friends after a long absence. Can't wait to get back in the swing again!

Linking up with Angela at SoScrappy for RSC, Gail at Quilting Gail for PHD, and reporting stash enhancements & depletions with Carole at From My Carolina Home for the Stashbuster Challenge.