something to show, finally

Yes, I actually spent most of Sunday afternoon and evening piecing and I have pics to prove it! I'm making six ornaments. I tried to think what I would like...something that was Christmassy or something traditional? I opted for the traditional, being traditional myself. Here's an appliqued blue flower.... I also did a red one, you can just see it peek out from the underneath.

a cardinal...because what's winter without a cardinal?

a grouping of some of the others. I think a traditional block hanging on the tree will be prettier than a snowman or candycane, don't you?

I've been spending time with my flock of geese and am almost finished with the 64 of them. They're very pretty in black, ecru, white-ish and creams.

snappy children

Snappyfriends challenge a week or so ago was children and I'm late!

Our Cecilia's christening was last weekend. These are her cousins on her mother's side and our Elizabeth and Adelaide on the left. Charlie is proudly sitting next to Adelaide, who, by the way, thought something in the back of the church was more interesting. The baby was beautiful and sweet and didn't cry a peep.
And here we all are at our quilt retreat showing off our projects for the weekend. I must say WE felt like children all weekend. Playing, laughing, doing whatever we wanted whenever we wanted. Someone was there to cook our meals and make our beds and pick up our socks. We ate candy and cookies and drank pop. It was truly a weekend to be children again!

My gosh, I can't believe it's been so long since I've posted but it's been a particularly busy time and time is something I just don't seem to have lately.
This weekend I went on a much anticipated and planned for quilt retreat. Call it Mental Health Day. Call it anything you want but this place is in a stunningly beautiful setting. The weather
was perfect, the colors at or just past peak. We laughed, stitched, laughed some more. The only bad part for me was being there just Thursday evening and Friday. I had to leave Saturday morning for a trip to my newest granddaughter's christening that afternoon 3.5 hours away. But for the short time I was there ...

Part of the wonderment of this place, The Inn at the Rustic Gate, was the food. We had requested an ethnic meal one of our evenings and chose Polish because the proprietors are Polish and our chef Sharon is a master. So, we had kielbasa and kapusta (sauerkraut)

and golumbki

and pierogi - all made by hand, mind you.

There were groans of approval and appreciation and we waddled out of the room when dinner was over. After all of this wonderment there was dessert, too. Sharon feeds us well. We found this place last year and booked it again for this year on the spot. As we gratefully pushed back our chairs I made the remark that for a weekend, WE get to have the wife...someone to cook wondrous meals and make our beds and let us do whatever we wanted. Someone else commented this was OUR deer camp! Whatever we call it, we had a good and much needed time together.

This is the Christmas tree skirt Friend Marilyn finished for her daughter-in-law.

Sally does beautiful work. The navy blue/white snowflake design is gorgeous. I'm a real fan of navy and white.
One year ago, just after our retreat weekend, Val's parents both passed away within three days of each other. Her father flew planes so she is making a quilt for herself and her siblings and the airplanes are from her father's shirts. I love the starry sky they're flying through. Val is a meticulous quilter and this will be a treasure.

What did I work on this weekend? I had a pile of flying geese to make so I sat next to a good window and stitched geese. I'm making a border for a quilt and I had 64 of them to stitch together. Knowing I wasn't going to be there the whole weekend I took a small project - and still didn't finish them all (remember, I stitch by hand.)

Friend Marilyn finished her day with a toddy, popcorn and a book.

I know I'm behind on Snappyfriends and I don't know what the next set of 'assignments' is, but I'm working on catching up.

birthdays and cake and brightness

Our Adelaide turned One last week and we celebrated her birthday this past weekend. She's very proud of being one:
She was stylish in her birthday hat:
and dove in with both hands when it was time for cake:She had a big year - from being in the Intensive Care unit at birth, tethered to tubes, to a walking, climbing eating machine for her first birthday. One half hour spent with her tells us who the comedian in the family is going to be.

While at the party I saw my entry for "colorful" in the Snappyfriends challenge.

They have everything from feathered boas to tutus to lighted construction helmets, fireman helmets, fairy wands and a WonderPets cape. Oh, and don't forget the wings!! Elizabeth's play is very imaginative!

Quilting....what's that??? I am working on E's flowered quilt, the scrappy thing I was planning on using at my house but she claimed as hers. I'm hand quilting it with perle cotton and really having a fun time with that. I'm to the border rows so it's almost finished. I just don't have the time. It's a crazy life right now and trying to stay sane is the priority. Quilting is a refuge but there just isn't the time! Stitch by stitch, one stitch at a time.
The immediate to-do list includes a felted stocking for Cecilia, 6 ornaments, putting together the flying geese for one quilt's borders and a gazillion ideas for others. The stocking and ornaments come first.