Will Work for Fabric

gratitude - choices

As you can tell, I have gratitude on my mind.  How can you not this time of year?  With the holidays are upon us,  I thought I'd take these two weeks before the big day of Thanks to express some of the big and little things that I am grateful for.

Today is a big one.

Today I am thinking about and am grateful for choices.  It might not sound like much, but it's HUGE.

I live in a country where I get to choose where I live, where I shop, who I marry,  what religion I practice and I get to vote!

I have been able to make choices in my professional life because of a supportive family and a good education. 

And nearly 30 years ago, I made the best choice ever, when I married Mr. Right.  

Now I know I don't always make the right choices.

Like practically every clothing pick and haircut from 1973 - 1985.  But they were my choices.

So today when I am picking out fabric, or driving to work or helping my kids fill out school applications, I am accutely aware and over the moon grateful for choices. And having the faith to make them, come what may.

Oooo, speaking of choices, want to see some from Houston ?

these are most of the patterns

and I picked up this book cause there was a mini quilt in the book that I MUST make. (p.s.  I think Primitive Gatherings and Bird Brain were the two most crowded booths- naturally I added to the crowd)

oops, found more patterns...

How about you?  What did you choose today?

Hugs and Stitches!

Megan

gratitude - tool types

Oh thank goodness for the tool types.  Those geniuses who think of way to make our lives, and more specifically, our quilting faster and easier.

I tried out a new tool and bust my buttons, it to soooo easy.  This was the tool.

Well, within an hour, I had it cut out and the top finished for a little miniquilt.

So here's out it goes:  

You piece the quilt top together ( I did mine smaller than the pattern to try it out)

and then you use the template to put out the blocks:

 then you are left with a little pile of leftovers (please don't make me save these)

and then sew those cut out blocks together and you are done!!!!

Not being the engineering type, the people who come up with these tools and templates always amaze me.

So thank you, to all you tool types , you masters of the mechanics, the rulers of the rulers.  I applaude you all for your ingenuity.  Keep up the good work!

Hugs and Stitches!

gratitude - sunday sweats

You know it is going to be a crazy next 6-7 weeks right?  cooking, shopping, wrapping, pulling hair out, cleaning, hair replacement procedure, etc....

So today, I am so grateful for a day where we have no plans.

Ok, I lie.  I have a plan, it involves me, and my BFF du jour- the couch.  Need I say more?  

The crockpot has been assigned the dinner duties.  The dress of the day is sweats.  We have scheduled Harry Potter viewing and then on Giants football.  Goodness, hope I can squeeze a nap into my very busy schedule.  Thanks to my BFF, I am assured of some quality nap time.  

But before I retire to the couch, I finished up one of my take-along projects from last week, this is wool sewing case kit that I had from so far back I can't even remember...

and here's the inside

and now on to my scheduled day of no scheduled activities.  These days are few and far between, so I am very grateful for the smell of the dinner cooking, the warmth of the fire and the peace of a pre-holiday madness Sunday.

Hugs and Stitches!

Megan

gratitude - circles

the circle seems like a simple shape, right?

oh no, the circle has so much to show us....you can have many layers, many parts, many colors....

 
c

and we don't always see a beginning or an end, but the beauty is in the journey....

so thank you circle.....see you 'round.

Hugs and Stitches!

Megan

gratitude - awe

There were some many things in Houston that were amazing....the size of it all, the number of people, the amount of giggling 6 ladies from NJ could do and how much stuff we could jam into carry-on luggage.

But there's a particular row of quilts that leave you breathless.  You know that row....that front row with all the award winning quilts.  At Houston, it's a whole new level of temporary paralysis.

And I am so very grateful to these artists for this experience.

These are just a few of the front row...

And behind each of them a wonderful story of dedication, hard work and passion for the piece.

And on this side of the plastic tape....awe.

Thanks to these artists for  moments of breathless-ness.

Hugs and Stitches!

Megan

gratitude - Wit

You can't help but think about our many blessings during this season, and blessings come in all sizes--large and small.

Today a small, which I think will be a large later in life.

We went to the mall to get some video game that "everyone else has and I'll be so lonely when all my friends are playing it and I don't have it" and so on and so forth.  This from the twin who always has alot to say.

At the mall they were doing a repaving project and they had a section marked off with an inordinate number of cones.  The cones were to keep cars out of the section that they were paving tonite.

the twin who rarely has something to say taps me on the arm and points to the section of the parking lot with the cone barrier of doom and impishly says:

Cone-y Island

A giggle, a tear, and gratitude that all three of my boys were blessed with a quick wit.  Something that I think will serve them well in their lives.

And gratitude for staying quiet long enough to hear it....

Hugs and Stitches!

Megan

Recovery Mode

oh, I'm tired.

I'm exhausted from the laughter, the excitement, the shopping, the schlepping, the time changing, the time zone changing.

I have so much to tell you about our most fabulous trip to Houston.  But you will have to wait just a little bit while I collect my thoughts.

In the meantime, I will just tell you this, some of us were better behaved then others.

as my father would say, I'm not saying who, I'll just look at them and whistle.

Hugs and Stitches!

Megan

Capital O Capital M Capital G

The Sisters are on their way to Houston for the Nuns Gone Wild Tour.

We're taking along Sized Down Sister, because one of us is staying home to hold down the fort.

Wish us luck!

Hugs and Stitches!

Megan

indoor camping

well we did not intend to go camping, but Mother Nature had other plans...she sent some snow and did a little tree trimming around us so we were without power for 4 days.  Now normally I don't mind camping, but when I have to be presentable for work and prepare for a trip and worry about keeping the house warm, it gets on your nerves....

But there were some bright spots:

we played board games

we used up all sorts of freezer foods (cause the supermarkets were without power too, so no place to buy supplies)

no phones were ringing 

no internet or video games

and during daylight hours I started a little redwork project

seems appropriate, right?

and at night we snuggled under the weight of quilts made with love, knowing that this too will pass...

goodness, am I glad that only lasted 4 days!

Hugs and Stitches!

Megan