Spring?

I took my Plan C quilt outside to take some long overdue pictures....

And look what I saw!

Crocuses definitely mean Spring must be on the way!

It's beautiful here in NJ...it's nice to have the windows open...

I'll enjoy it while I can, the weekend will be colder!  I machine quilted this on my Pfaff. I'd forgotten how awkward it is to quilt on a domestic machine after having the longarm.   I'm thinking about selling the longarm. I won't be able to set it up again for years and I don't want it to sit idle that long.  So, do you think anyone would be interested? 

Snow Day!

Our little 2" to 4" of snow that we were getting last night turned into a foot of heavy, wet snow.

All the schools are closed, the Boss and Andrew's office is closed and I'm staying home all day!

 

We decided we're not putting the house back on the market since we now have all the kids plus one at home, so we bought a sofa for our living room.  Now we have this cozy little space that we can relax in while they are in the family room watching TV.

On the table is my Plan C quilt top from Carrie Nelson's Schnibbles Times Two book ...I'm hoping to machine quilt it on my Pfaff today...with a day off I might as well play!

I hope you enjoy your day!

On the Side...

Sherri at The Loopy Ewe is having a First Quarter 2011 Cable Challenge.  The idea is to knit anything with a cable and finish it this quarter.  Yeah, by the end of March.  I decided to jump on in because Grace had asked me to make a scarf that matched the mitts I made her last year.  Easy enough!  I gave her a few options and she chose On the Side (Ravelry link) by Abby Tohline.  So far it's knitting up pretty quickly and is a simple seed stitch with a reversible cable down one side. I'm hoping I can finish it before the winter is over...I'd like her to be able to use it!  

 

I'm alternating working on this with hand quilting my nine patch quilt.  It was a Christmas present for Andrew's girlfriend Dayna and she's waiting patiently for it.  One of these days...

I also got back to my machine last weekend and hope to have a finished top by the end of this weekend...I'll post that when it's done!  I'll quilt this one on my Pfaff since my longarm is still in storage, which is where it will remain for the foreseeable future.  Someday it will see the light of day again...I hope!

Daisy Damage

I love my puppy, but she's a chewer. She has her own quilt, which sits on the floor in the living room.  She plays on it, sleeps on it and NEVER chews HER quilt.  Mine, on the other hand, is fair game.  So, over the holidays she did this...

I decided to fix it today.  First I found similar fabrics and sewed them together.  Then I appliqued the blue side into the nine patch.

Then I did the same with the white...

I tucked a small piece of batting into the hole, then appliqued an old Debbie Mumm Santa over the hole in the back.

I did a little bit of stippling to hold everything together...and I thought it turned out pretty good!  Now I'll pack it away for next Christmas.

And now it's a quilt with a story!  (And I do still love Daisy!)

Happy New Year!

I wish you all the blessings that the new year can hold. I've been blessed with this group in the photo...they've brought so many wonderful things into our lives.  Jake and Ellen are on the left, Grace is in the center and Andrew and Dayna are on the right.  They're all remarkable young adults and I can't wait to see what wonderful things they do with their lives. 

There are changes in the works here at Lakeside Quilting.  We've invited Jake to live with us, after a rough patch in his life.  He's been a welcome addition to our household and a tremendous help with Daisy!  I've given him my sewing room as his bedroom, so there will be much less sewing by machine in the new year.  I currently have 3 or 4 quilts to be handquilted, as well as enough yarn to keep me busy for several years, so I'll be content with whatever time I get in front of the sewing machine.

Andrew will be spending more time at home as well and I'm so happy about that too!  Of course, with all these adults living in the house, I'm cooking a lot more, which is a good thing.  I enjoyed focusing on home this holiday season and we loved staying in with the kids this year...there's something about having everyone under my roof for Christmas that makes me happy and at peace. It was fun when they were little, but even more fun now that they're adults...and adding Dayna and Jake to the mix this year was fabulous.

So, 2011 will be an adventure here at Lakeside...and I'm looking forward to sharing it with you. Thanks to all of you who have continued to visit, in spite of the fact I don't post as regularly as I used to.  Thanks to those who comment and let me know that you're still out there. Thanks to all of you who have become such a large part of my life!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from Daisy...

And from our "gingerbread" house to yours!

I wish you all the blessings of the Christmas Season!

December?

Time just seems to be flying by, so much to do, so much to see and not much time at the computer to share what's been happening! There haven't been any "finishes" for me, I'm still working on hand quilting the quilt (which will never be done in time for Christmas!) and I've got a few knitting projects sitting untouched.  I did get away for a few days.  There was a real estate convention in Atlantic City last week and my boss and I went from Tuesday to Thursday.  We stayed at Harrah's marina and this sand sculpture was in the lobby.

 After a series of little mishaps and inconveniences, Harrah's upgraded us to a suite in their Waterfront Tower, which was pretty spectacular.  I felt like royalty with our fancy bathrooom...

and our beautiful bedroom with an incredible view of the bay...

our lovely dining room, where we enjoyed our room service breakfast...

And even more beautiful views of the bay...

and our relaxing living room, where yes, I did sit and quilt for awhile!

We felt totally spoiled and enjoyed every minute of it.  Once I came home, I decided I needed a little Christmas. The Boss had suggested we go into Philadelphia to see the 'Christmas Village' which was set up by City Hall.  It was a collection of temporary shops which sold everything from mulled wine to German Christmas decorations.  It was set up around the city Christmas tree...

I just love City Hall...it's such a beautiful building!

Grace also wanted to do some shopping at Tiffany.  We did look at all the displays in the store, which was great fun!

Then we had dinner at Max Brenners...the food was incredible and the service was first rate. I was impressed that when they brought me the wrong food by mistake, they not only corrected it, but comped both my meal and my husband's. I'll definitely be going back.

Now I guess I should make some preparations for Christmas!  Most of the shopping is done, the tree is up with lights and the packages to far off places are mailed. We're not sure that we're decorating the tree this year, Daisy likes to chew most everything...furniture, kitchen towels, and I'm guessing that Christmas ornaments would be a real treat!

Happy Thanksgiving...

The rolls are baked

The apple pie is ready... 

The stuffing is made, the green beans cleaned...all that I'll have to do tomorrow is bake some cranberry bread, make mashed potatoes and gravy, and, oh yeah...roast that turkey!  We're staying home this year...the kids are looking forward to a quiet day filled with football and feasting.  We have another reason to stay home this year...

Daisy was spayed on Monday and she needs rest and relaxation so she can heal. Poor puppy, she does NOT like that collar around her head! But every time I take it off, she starts licking her incision, so on it stays.

I wish for you, my friends, a blessed Thanksgiving, filled with family, friends and all good things. Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Birthday Andrew!

Today is Andrew's 23rd birthday...I can't believe he's that old. Seems like yesterday that he was just a little guy, toddling around the house with his stuffed giraffe.  As you can tell from the picture, he might have grown up, but he's still a little kid inside!  He and his girlfriend Dayna dressed as Ash and Misty from Pokemon for Halloween.  Andrew, I hope you have a wonderful birthday!

It's the small things...

That make me happy! Today a customer stopped by with a copy of a just published book for me...Vivacious Curvy Quilts by Dianne S. Hire.

Inside was her quilt "Life on the Technicolor Highway", which I had quilted for her.  Here it is, on page 19...and not only mentions Jane as the creator, but me as the quilter! This is my first appearance in a book, although I did have a mention in McCall's quilting years ago, when I quilted a quilt for Michelle Scott.

But I guess it's always a thrill to see your name in print!!!

Saturday Stitching...

Enjoying the  process...but so much more left to stitch.  Think it will be finished by Christmas? Only 48 more days...

Help?

 A friend of mine stopped by yesterday with this quilt.  Her sister had gotten it years ago at an estate sale and gave it to her.  She was cleaning her home office, found it and decided it was one of those projects she'd never get to...so she offered it to me.  Sight unseen, I said I'd be happy to take it off her hands!  It's in beautiful condition, the flowers are hand appliqued and it's machine pieced. 

My question is, what is the name of this block?  I thought it might be a dahlia of some sort, but haven't found anything but the giant dahlia quilt, which it definitely isn't.  Any ideas?  Here's a closeup of one of the blocks...

And just because she's cute, here's a picture of Daisy.  She's growing up so fast!

Oddly Fascinated...

 I had two plans for my recovery...to quilt and to knit.  Okay, I also planned to do some computer work for the real job (which I've done).  I started my Lily Cardigan from Marie Grace Designs and have found myself doing more knitting than quilting.  I find that I'm oddly fascinated with how this sweater is constructed and find it amazing that I can follow the pattern...I'm not so good at following knitting patterns.  Or patterns in general.

But I'm in love with these raglan increases.  They're just so much fun and I made them!  They may not all line up perfectly, but then, neither do I, so I'm okay with that at this stage.  Once the sweater is done I may not be quite as happy with them.

I'm having the boss take me to my favorite yarn store this weekend, as my 24" circular needle won't cut it for a sweater that will have over 300 stitches on the needles by the end. It's already getting a little hard to work with, so tonight I'll spend some time quilting.  Unless those little raglan increases start calling to me again.

And how about that Phillies game last night?  Awesome...

It's been a long time...

since I basted a quilt by hand.  I kind of miss having my longarm handy!

The road much travelled...

We spent Friday and Saturday running up to Vermont so we could move Andrew back home.  I have to admit, it was a little sad to move him out of his apartment.  But, Vermont put on a show for us, so I felt much better about it!  The color in the Ludlow area was beautiful, although not quite at peak.  Here is the bridge, which gave Bridge Street its name.

Behind the apartment...



Saying goodbye to "The Hole"...

One last look at Okemo... 

Back at home I've finished two of my September/October Projects. The banner for church is completed and just needs to be dropped off tomorrow.

I also finished my socks...finally!

On the drive to Vermont I also knitted a dishcloth and a half...finished them when we got home!

Next up will be basting and quilting the 9 patch quilt.  I'll have some quiet time to quilt in the next week or so, since I'm headed to the hospital on Friday for a little surgery.  Nothing major, it's an outpatient procedure, but there will still be a few weeks of recovery time.  Now to get that quilt basted so I'm ready!!!