The Herd Has Been Delivered

I couldn't be more excited...Jami got the Herd quilt quilted for me just like she promised...she is amazing...I got the binding on Saturday night and finished stitching it down Sunday morning. We delivered it to the other half of the herd's mom and dad last evening...they LOVED it! It was just so much fun...thanks Buggy Barn for such great patterns.

This is short and sweet...I need to be packing and getting ready to get out the door in the morning...I picked up mom this morning and she's all ready. I'll be almost to Birmingham tomorrow at this time. I'll be back the 30th...Have a wonderful, wonderful holiday everyone! ENJOY!

Christmas Mail Goodness

OMG...I went to the mailbox and there was a key in my box...oh my favorite thing...that means there's a package too big to fit in my regular box...YIPPEE! You know how I LOVE mail. I couldn't wait to get around to the back of the mailbox kiosk to get to the package boxes...key in...open...there it was...a package from Sharon. Well I was so excited I flew home and got right into the box...Sorry I was so excited I didn't take a picture until I had it all opened. Look at all those goodies......a Brighton earring tree...I've looked at those so many times in the Brighton store and never bought one for myself...Sharon was reading my mind. Look at those post it notes in the little basket and the Vera Bradley pad for my purse...OMG...does Sharon ever know me...my lists have lists...a little tin with the longest tape measure I've ever seen...will make measuring those backs and borders so much easier and the sweetest little glass dish with my absolute favorite saying in the bottom..."Live, Love, Laugh"...I have it right next to my sink to put my rings in...thank you so much Sharon...what wonderful treats for me...but wait there's another gift... little pink hats for our new Little Miss...Hampton's baby sister that will be arriving around April 22.
Sharon you thought of everything! Thank you!

The Herd and Hospice Quilt

This is a quick post...just wanted to show you the herd...it's all together and going to the quilter at 8 o'clock tomorrow morning. She was so sweet when I called her and told her how life had gotten in the way...she said..."Don't worry, I'll have it done for you." I'll show it to you one more time after it's quilted and the binding's on...before we give it to the "visiting dogs" people for Christmas. This sure was a fun quilt to do...love Buggy Barn patterns.

And here's the Hospice donation quilt...simple pattern, beautiful fabric (MODA...Heritage... Collection for a Cause) and spectacular quilting...makes for a perfect quilt...the fabric and the quilting do all the work.Can't wait to get the binding on...but it has to wait it's turn. Again, a very big THANK YOU to the quilter that donated her time and skills to quilt this for me...a very special person!

WOW! 3 posts in 3 days! I think that's a record for me! Back to binding...one more side to do tonight.

Keeping My Promise

I promised yesterday that I'd be back today with pictures of Hampton's first haircut...Josh and Katie decided that they wanted to take Hampton out to Disney World for his first haircut...there's an old fashioned barber shop on Main Street...The Harmony Barber Shop...they make first haircuts very special...and since Josh and Katie met while they were both working for Disney so it seemed only appropriate that Hampton get that special haircut there and get his very own Pixie Dust...Here's the first cut...they gave Katie a whole strip of Mickey stickers to entertain him...

All done and we're all telling him how cute he is...look in the mirror...His dad and his Mamie taking pictures.Before she could put the Pixie Dust on his head...he had to check it out.He's officially Pixie Dusted...

It was such a fun day...I'm so glad that we got to be part of this big event. Mom was with us too and she just loved it.

I'm going to try and post again tomorrow...I have all the dog blocks done and I'm putting the rows together...and I'm taking it to the quilter on Sunday...so I'll take a pic tomorrow when it's all together. I also will take a picture of the Hospice quilt that came back from a very giving and caring quilter. It is awesome! See you tomorrow!

All I Can Say is.....LIFE!

Now I know I've never been the best at posting regularly...but I've NEVER been this bad...the title says it all...LIFE! I'll give the shortest version possible so as not to bore you to tears. Two weeks ago Wednesday I was up in my sewing room, standing on the steps that go down into the storage area...I thought I was on the bottom step...nope there was one more and down I went with a THUD! Andy and the dogs came running up to find me on the floor with my left foot in an interesting postition. Andy got me up and downstairs to the couch...ice and elevated...I was going to be fine...didn't get much sleep all night and when I tried to get out of bed I couldn't put any weight on it...Andy decided we were going to the Doc in a Box and get it checked...6 x-rays, a blow up cast, and crutches later we left with a very sprained ankle...orders from the doc...stay off of the ankle...3-4 days on the couch. Well, I was good until Sunday and I made my way upstairs one step at a time...I had to do some sewing and I knew that starting Monday I'd get nothing done...Hampton was coming. I pretty much stayed upstairs all day...Andy even brought me lunch so I didn't have to come down. What a sweetie!

Monday, was my birthday and what a fun day it was. Sharon posted that it was my birthday and I got lots of e-mail birthday wishes...thanks Sharon. I also got some wonderful mail goodness for my birthday...look at these goodies from Sharon...The cutest honey pot, a wooden Santa box, thank you notes, birthday tissues and one of her wonderful bags...Love that bag! Thanks Sharon.

Look at these birthday goodies from Tammy...Sorry for the glare on the picture...It is sooooooooooo cute...all wool...and look at this little bag full of goodies...here's what was inside...Coasters, a snowman notepad, a bookmarker and stickers for holiday fun. And also in the package was this box...OMG, if you live near a Trader Joe's, love Oreo's and candy canes...I'm telling you, run, don't walk, and buy yourself some of these YUMMY cookies. I have them hidden in the pantry...I did give one to mom, but I hid them from Josh. Thanks Tammy!

Monday I went and got mom and brought her home to await Hampton's arrival...they got in around 10 and the excitement began. We tried very hard not to get him too wound up, but you know that wasn't easy. We got him to bed so that we could celebrate his birthday on Tuesday...little Hampton is 2! Hampton loves acorns...so when I was in Williams-Sonoma and they had this wonderful cake pan that made acorn cakes I didn't even have to think twice...acorn cakes for Hampton's birthday breakfast.

This is my good friend Carol Ann's daughter Anna holding Hampton so he can blow out the candles. Anna and Carol Ann stopped by to wish Hampton a happy birthday.

Hampton loves Handy Manny from the Disney Playhouse...so we had to go see him at the Disney Studios...

We actually saw the character Handy Manny, but Hampton was a bit overwhelmed...but he sure loved the show and the picture on the side of the building. When we got home Hampton opened his gifts and I'm just going to share this one...opening his Wild Things quilt that I made for him...Where the Wild Things Are was Josh's favorite book when he was 2, so this was a must along with the book. He loved it. One last picture...Hampton with his Handy Manny birthday cake...Josh baked it and Katie did the decorating.It was a wonderfully fun day! This post ended up longer than I planned so I promise I'll be back tomorrow with Hampton's first haircut day...see those curls in the back...they won't be there tomorrow.

Simply Sophisticated Month 2

Yippee...Month 2 of the Simply Sophisticated BOM came in the mail yesterday and I got it all done today. This month we had 2 blocks and 6 alternate blocks...they are so pretty...so 2 months so far and I'm up to date...WhoooHooo! This is going to be one pretty quilt! That's all I've gotten done for 2 whole days...I did something to my back yesterday morning and I was one miserable girl...I couldn't do much of anything but sit on the couch with a pillow behind me. I did get some binding done on Hampton's birthday quilt...but oh I hate to waste all that time. Yesterday I remembered that Andy's ortho guy told him he could take 4 Advil for pain if he needed before his shoulder surgery...well then I didn't do anything about it and I was chatting with Tammy and she said the same thing...so this morning I took 4 Advil and I have to tell you, it's like a miracle. I was able to sew some today...and I could sneeze without crying. I still not moving real fast but I'm a zillion times better than yesterday. Thanks Tammy! I'm off to go sit in my jacuzzi tub and see if I can work the rest of this out.

I Came Back

First and most importantly... we finally got the report...the EKG is perfect. Thank goodness...They were supposed to hear yesterday and after Katie calling many times they finally got them today... But the wonderful news is that he's fine...he just needs to eat. Oh I should have that problem. LOL! Thank you to all of you who sent along good thoughts...you all are so great...I can always count on you!

I finished the binding on the Roman Holiday Stars quilt and got my man to hold it up for me today...He asked me who was getting this one...we are...we're keeping this one...I just love it!

I got the quilt top done today for our local Hospice...I used the Collection for a Cause fabric, Heritage...it looks so old...this is one beautiful group of fabric.And as I promised...here's my cute little snowman ornament that Lynda gave me on Saturday.

Isn't he a cutie!

Tomorrow I need to get back to my dog blocks...need to get the other half of the herd done, so I can get it to the quilter. There's never a lack of things to do!

I had the Best Intentions

I really did have the best intentions to post yesterday...well, you know what my mom would say about intentions...I have no clue what happened to the day but it disappeared before I got to post...so here I am today.

We had a scare Thursday...Katie called to tell us that Hampton passed out while they were at the Botanical Gardens...they took him to the pediatrician immediately...she checked his blood sugar and it was quite low...he hasn't been eating much the past couple of days...he's getting his 2 year molars plus his canine teeth all at the same time and his mouth hurts...she felt pretty sure that was what it was, but sent them over to the Children's Hospital for an EKG...we're waiting to get the word from that. I've talked to her many times since Thursday and she says he's acting just fine now and back to eating again. Poor Katie...scared her to death...she said he was out cold. She scooped him up and ran with him to the front of the gardens and there's a little cafe there...the seating hostess is a lifegaurd and she took him from Katie, put him on the ground and did something with his arms and he came right around...OMG I can't imagine. The EKG report is supposed to be back today, we haven't heard anything yet, but I really think it his blood sugar was down...no more scares!

Saturday I went up to Lynda Hall's to help her sew quilts together from blocks that she had collected from all over the US and Canada. We got a lot done and had a great day...we laughed, sewed, ate, laughed some more. Lynda made us lunch and I took a cake...the most yummy pumpkin spice cake with cream cheese frosting...

Here's the recipe if you'd like it...it came from my friend Debbie Busby...

PUMPKIN SPICE CAKE
1 package spice cake mix

1 package (3.4 oz) vanilla instant pudding mix

1 cup canned pumpkin

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup water

3 eggs

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp ground ginger(optional)

1/2 cup nuts (I put mine on the top)

MIX all ingredients in a large bowl. Pour mixture into a lightly oiled cake pan. Bake for 32 min at 350 degrees. Frost with Fresh Orange Cream Cheese Frosting.

Fresh Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese at room temp.

1 stick butter at room temp.

3 cups powdered sugar

2 tbs orange juice

1 tbs orange zest

MIX cream cheese and butter in bowl until creamy. Add powdered sugar. Add orange juice and zest. Beat until mixed well. Spread on the cooled cake. ENJOY!

We worked in Lynda's sewing room...I love her room...

Lynda and her SIL Donna just working away...I was slackin'...taking pictures. Our friend Jeanne was here too...but somehow she stayed out of the pictures.Look at all these cute fall goodies on the top of Lynda's computer cabinet.

Donna made us all these cute tomato pin cushions...they're wool and she filled them with alpaca wool...oh my pins are going to be so happy.Lynda made us all the cutest snowman ornaments...I forgot to download that picture from my camera so I'll post that tomorrow along with a picture of the quilt top that I am going to finish...it's a quilt for our local Hospice's big fund raiser of the year.

See you tomorrow...OK I've committed! I'll be here!

Happy Halloween

Well I wish I could tell you that there was tons of sewing going on here...not so much! Even with Andy gone to San Francisco this weekend, I just haven't gotten much done. For some reason I decided today was a cleaning day...I must have been nuts. I scrubed and cleaned the kitchen until it sparkled...then I moved on to our bathroom. Again, I must have been nuts. But tonight I plan on getting some things done...

Katie just sent me the latest Hampton pictures and so I just had to share...Here he is in his Halloween costume...have you ever seen a cuter Dumbo?

He found just the right pumpkin...He loves stickers...I love to send them to him...Remember the car I took him when I went up in June? He now thinks it's the most wonderful to go really fast, and up and down the hill in their front yard...

Josh says that he would do this for hours, except mom and dad get tired! Doesn't he just look like a little race car driver...

So now he thinks he's ready for the real thing...LOL! I'm not sure where this is...sure looks like an oldie.

Half a Herd Plus 1

I worked on the dog blocks while Andy was in Utah the last couple of days so I wanted to show him the blocks that were done...half of the ones I need for the whole quilt. Got them all laid out on the floor and Zack decided he needed to put his seal of approval on them. He says they're OK!

Nine more blocks and I can start putting it together...it really is a fun one!

Where Did the Week Go?

The "visiting dogs" as Andy calls them came on Tuesday morning...this was the longest visit we've had with them and all went very well. The boys all had a great time...they love walking...but as you can imagine we are quite a sight. Our next door neighbor stopped on his way home yesterday afternoon...we had seen him in the morning when he was leaving for the office...his comment was "Is this what you do all day? You were walking when I left and you're walking when I'm coming home?" We assured him that we hadn't been out all day. Another neighbor stopped to ask if we had gotten 2 more dogs..."Oh no" Andy said quickly "These are the visiting dogs". As we were walking with all of them this morning down the main street of the neighborhood, several men came by us in their golf cart on their way to the golf course...can you imagine...I heard them laughing out loud at us. It's very quiet now...their dad came and picked them up at 7.

Jeanne quilted my table topper that we worked on when we had our sewing time at her house...she sent it to me on Wednesday and I got the binding on Thusday and on the table today. Thanks so much Karen for your inspiration!

I started working on a Christmas gift for the "visiting dogs" mom and dad today...it's a Buggy Barn pattern from their book Crazy Dog Days...I haven't done a Buggy Barn pattern for while and I'm having lots of fun. Andy leaves for Utah on Sunday and I'm hoping to get all 18 blocks done while he's gone. Here's how it starts...cut and shuffle
Then sew the pieces back together. It's like a puzzle.I'll post more pictures when I get the blocks done.
Enjoy the weekend!

2 Posts in 2 Days...WHEW!

I'll bet you're just shocked...2 posts from me in 2 days...you probably thought your Bloglines had gone nuts...well you know, now that I have this "compose" tab figured out, it's a whole lot easier and you may just hear more from me. LOL!

I got upstairs for a little while today, did a little cleaning, straightening, organizing and a bit of sewing. I got my blocks for Simply Sophistcated done for this month...

I just loved this fabric and knew I wanted to do something with it, but I just didn't know what to do...I had seen this BOM on Fat Quarter Shop and I really liked it...but then when Vicky talked about it, I took that as a sign, it was what I was supposed to do with this fabric. This month's installment was in my mail when we got home yesterday so I got it done today. Went together perfectly! Thanks Vicky for getting me going.

While I was sewing, here's what the boys did...

Actually this is what they did most of the day. Howie (in the front) heard the camera so he opened his eyes...Zack could have cared less.

A while back I mentioned that I was doing some secret sewing for a designer friend of mine...well, she sent me a picture of the front of her new book that she will be taking to Market with her in a couple of weeks. This book is so fun...brings back lots of good memories of games that we all played as kids. Even if you don't need a little person quilt, these patterns are so wonderful...there are a couple that I want to make bigger...I had so much fun working on these quilts. Thanks Lynda for letting me help you with this fun project.

Andy's working tomorrow...so I'm hoping for lots of sewing time. Hmmm, maybe I'll have something to show you then...3 posts in 3 days...OMG!

The Boys are Pooped

We're home from St.Louis...It was a quick and great trip. The wedding was really nice...and the reception was great...it was a very fun reception...the bride and groom had a blast...and their parents really enjoyed the evening. Good times! We picked up the boys...Susan said they all had so much fun. Running and playing constantly...here's what they've done since we got home at 1:00...it's now 8:00...they did get up to eat their dinner...but not for another thing. They are pooped!

A Light Bulb Moment

Sit down, get a drink of your choice and get ready for a good laugh...

After my last post when I mentioned that Blogger wasn't playing nice and wouldn't let me download anymore pictures...Tammy e-mailed me and said that she downloads 5 at a time, and then just moves them where she wants them. Well, I was scratching my head trying to figure out how she did that, cause when I downloaded pics I would get all this Html gibberish...I was clueless...we decided maybe I had an older version of Blogger...so I started going through the Help tabs, checking Frequently asked questions, after about an hour of fiddling around this I gave up. I went to the "Create" page and I happened to see 2 tabs at the top right...Edit Html and Compose...now for most of you out there, this is a no brainer, for me, the not at all techno girl, I realized that if I clicked on the Compose tab and downloaded a picture I could see the picture, no Html gibberish. OMG! The lightbulb came on...now I ask you? How in the world have I blogged for well over a year...189 posts and I never knew that. I am just a pitiful techno girl.

We had the "boy's" friends over the weekend...here's my man getting ready to walk the "'herd"...I actually walk 2 of them and he walks 2 of them, but he had them all waiting for me...I had to get the camera. We are going to St. Louis in the morning for Kelly's wedding...Kelly used to watch the "boys" when we went away, so they're going to their friend's house for a sleepover. Susan and Ray will have our two through Saturday...the "herd" will be at their house.

I was reading Christine's blog...she was telling about a project that she is working on...Home of the Brave...making quilts for fallen soldier's families. What a wonderful project, sad that it has to be done, but wonderful...so I've been making 9 patches...I put some in the mail today and I'll be doing blocks for her each month until she doesn't have to do these quilts anymore.
Have a fantastic couple of days while I'm gone...I'll be back late Saturday.

P.S. I added pictures with no Html gibberish for the first time ever...OMG! Was that ever easier! I am a very happy girl...thanks Tammy for getting me on the right track!

I'm So Excited I Could Pop!

I woke up this morning and had a post ready to go in my mind...the title was "I've Been Cleaning Again"...and then the phone rang...I knew it would be Josh, he always calls on Saturday morning to chat. First he told me that they would be coming to our house for Thanksgiving...we had talked about it when I was there last month and they were pretty sure that they were not going to be able to come, because he didn't think his work schedule would work out...but he found out that he will have vacation that he'll have to take, so they'll be coming...YIPPEE! Thanksgiving and Hampton's second birthday is also that week, so we'll get to have a party. Then as I was jumping up and down and telling him that he had made my day, he asked what I was doing in April...well, silly me, I said I'd check my calendar but I didn't think that there was anything there yet...he was laughing like crazy...went on to have to tell me that I would be needed there to watch Hampton while they are at the hospital...YIPPEE!!!!!!!!!! Yes, I'm going to be a grandma again. I am floating on a cloud. You've heard me say it before, LIFE IS TRULY GOOD!

Now, here's what I was going to post this morning before all the excitement...I was cleaning in the sewing room again and came upon some older, out of print fabrics that would love to go to someone else's house, where they'll go into a quilt.
As always, I'll just charge you whatever the shipping will be...just send me an e-mail.... goodhomequiltco@aol.com

22 Fat Quarters of Ella's Linen Closet by Blackbird Designs $33
SOLD- Thank you

29 Fat Quarters of Aunt Luci's Cottage by Blackbird Designs $40 SOLD-Thank you


2-2/3 Yards Aunt Luci's Cottage $15 SOLD-Thank you

I want to share the wonderful gifties that I got from my swap group...I showed my wonderful angel from Darlene several posts back...there was a delay in posting the others until everyone got their packages. This darling little quilt came from Judy...she used the leftovers from our swap fabrics...

Look at this tote bag from Wendy...

And Sharon made us all these little bags... I have my stitchery tools in mine...it has a zipper so I never have to worry about anything falling out...I'll never lose another pair of scissors.

Thank you so much girls...this was an absolutely wonderful swap and I can't wait to get my quilt together. It's going to be beautiful and full of lots of good memories.

Blogger's decided it doesn't want anymore pictures for now...so I'm going to say "Have a great evening!"