Sunday, November 28, 2010

November 2010 - Finished!

You know, I don't get near as many quilts finished as I used to. Some years I'd get 4 or 5 done, and now, I'm lucky if I get 1 finished. In a year. But this actually makes my 2nd one of 2010, and I'm planning on having another one done in the next week or so.
This one's for Sofie - and it's only 5 months late! It's a scrap quilt made of 1930's repros and white ric-rac. It's quilted with a panto by Dave Hudson called Security Blanket - perfect, and way cute! I gave it to her on Thanksgiving.




And here's the pretty girl trying out her first quilt from Nana.

And her 5 month picture


And speaking of pretty...how about this Thanksgiving Banana Pumpkin Meringue Pie? Yes, it was very yummy!!


Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Speaking of New Homes...

We were, right? Well, we were a few months back, anyway. I'm still getting my studio in order and it should be picture-perfect in another week or so. I hope.
But for now...I've got two other moving-related things to share. Guess who's moved in with us? No, not any more of our grown kids (for a change).
Mr. Collins and Angelique!



Mr. Collins is wearing the blue collar. Angelique has a pink one, which she promptly lost outside somewhere. They were strays living at the quilt shop in town, and after a week or so, they came to live with us. They're Snowshoe cats which are a relatively new breed, a cross between the American Shorthair and Siamese. He's full grown, but she's an older kitten. They don't talk nearly as much as Siamese do, and are very, very cuddly. Neither is afraid of Libby, our 150lb English Mastiff, and they taught her to back off in the first 30 seconds after meeting. They walk right under her chin to antagonize her, and she struggles to ignore them. They've settled in nicely!

Moving-related item Number 2:
Remember I said my oldest daughter and family moved into the log cabin? Well, they moved out again...and into their own house!

They bought a beautiful 3 bedroom, 2 bath, 2.5 car garage that's just perfect for them. Lots of wood flooring, 14' ceilings, formal dining room, state of the art appliances, and an attic that has a stairway not a pull-down ladder! Oh! And a Christmas Closet! We had no idea that it was anything other than an oddly-large hall closet (the size of a bedroom), until my friend Shirley saw it, and told Megan that it's for storing your fully-decorated Christmas tree, along with tons of shelves and cubbies for storing wreaths, garlands, and ornaments. Who'da thunk it?!
And look how big Baby Sofie's gotten! And that Jack is such a cutie! It's not as much fun not having them in the cabin, but it's a good move for them, so we're happy.
Anyway - almost all their stuff is out of the cabin now, so Andy and I have been pondering what to do with it. It sits right in the middle of our 16+ acres, so we don't want to sell it.

Sooo....we've decided to fix it up and make it the retreat annex, the "Cabin Too." (Name subject to change depending on what I can come up with - suggestions welcome!) Some of the logs need to be replaced, and the inside needs some spiffing up, but we're hoping that a year from now, we'll be able to handle more retreaters. As it stands now, our calendar is almost totally full, including weekdays. Usually only holiday weeks are open. And most of my retreats are repeat bookings, which makes it really difficult for new groups to squeeze in. We're thinking we'll just use the downstairs for now (since nobody really likes to haul their luggage upstairs), and we'll be able to sleep a max of 5-6. That'll still give plenty of room for sewing, scrapping, beading, etc, and some of the smaller groups can book it without worrying about the 6 minimum required at the Quilter's Cabin. I'm considering not having a minimum number at all for the Cabin Too. So, rather than settling into a predictable schedule, we're back to planning, budgeting, working with tradesmen, redecorating...the same thing we were doing almost 3 years ago. I'll post updates and photos when we actually get started. And we really hope a year is a workable goal. Wish us luck!

Monday, November 1, 2010

November 2010 Desktop Calendar


Click to expand image to full size, right-click and choose Set as Wallpaper or Background. To really jazz up your desktop, right-click on your background and choose a color that coordinates with the calendar - you'll be the envy of your cubicle!