A Time For Everything

We're winding up our last couple of weeks here at the mission so I wanted to finish up this little quilt that I started earlier in the summer - Paganini by Carrie Ross (Schnibbles).  I have the book, which is one of my favorite night time browsing books, and a couple of individual patterns.  Love her stuff!  Last summer I made a couple dozen pincushions from one of her patterns and gave them away before I left here to folks who work at the mission.  I loved making this and when I get home and get it quilted I'll scallop the border and bind it and use it on a small table beside my husband's recliner.  And before you ask, yes I'll put glass on top of it because he's notorious for spilling coffee!  I did a little more hand quilting on the pillow I showed you last time but ya'll....my fingers are sore!  I had to stop quilting last night because of it.  My thumb and forefinger feel bruised.  :(  Not to be stopped from stitching I started the bottom panel for Twas The Night Before Christmas - it didn't hurt to do embroidery.  Not sure what's up with that.

This week will be bittersweet - the last week we'll be here for the summer.  We're coming back for one week in September with our church team, but in this job, well it will be another year before we do this again.  I love it here.  I know I've said that over and over but it's true.  It is truly sacred ground and lots of good work is done for people all over the world by people from all over the United States.  

The other side of that coin is that I miss my children and my grandchildren, I miss my friends and neighbors, I miss my house and my sewing room and I miss my routine.  I also miss my bathroom which I don't share with DH.  I miss that a lot.  :)

But like it says in Eccliastes 3 there is a time for everything...which means there was a time to come here and there's a time to go home.  The time has come.

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:  a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

I'm a Six

I am a 6.  A pretty consistent 6 really.  Well, except when I'm a  5.5.  I used to be a 10.  I know some people who are 12s and once I even saw a 14.

This is a whole cloth pillow in the making (it's not really blue - that's a shadow).  Part of my problem is arthritis in my hands which results in very little strength.  And part of the problem is that I prefer not using a hoop of any kind because of the arthritis (see previous sentence).  Hoops make my  hands hurt worse.  When you use a hoop you can rock the needle and get smaller stitches.  If you don't use a hoop you pretty much have to do a running stitch.  I like doing the running stitch, really like it a lot actually.  It's relaxing and I don't have to think about it.  And I guess I don't really mind being a 6 too very much.  After all it's not about the numbers, right?  It's about the process.  If I say that often enough maybe I won't think about the fact that I'm a 6 these days.  I can't hand quilt large quilts any more either because of the weight of the quilt.  I'm more than okay with that because I'm enjoying the machine quilting but on the other hand, there are some quilt tops that really cry out for hand quilting.  Sometimes the aging process makes me shake my head in frustration and sometimes it makes me laugh out loud at the things I have to do to compensate for what I can't do any more.  Being a 6 makes me do both.  I bet when I get to Heaven I'll be a 20!!!!

Anybody else a 6?

More About The WantToBe Quilter Contest

I've had some questions about this WantToBe Quilter campaign so I'm going to attempt to answer them the best I can.

Everyone is eligible!  There are two categories:  the first is for the new quilter, the person who wants to be a quilter but who doesn't have much in the way of equipment or supplies.  There are prizes that will help you get that start you need...everything from thread to rotary cutters, from rulers to sewing machines.  The second category is for the "old" quilter, the person who's been quilting for a while but who would love to win some great prizes to add to their stash.

Both groups of quilters register in the same way - you send your name, e-mail address and telephone number to a blogger who has the Wanttobe Quilter Campaign button on their blog, like the one I have posted.  You must follow or subscribe to that person's blog as well as to Stash Manicure (www.stashmanicure.blogspot.com).  Then beginning next Monday, August 1, Stash Manicure will begin giving away prizes, five days a week for three months.  Three months!!!  On Monday, Wednesday and Friday all you new wanttobe quilters should read the post and COMMENT so that your name will be entered into the drawing.  If you sign up with me you must leave my name in your comment every time...that's so I will also be eligible to win.  :)  If you're an experienced quilter you must comment on Tuesday and/or Thursday's post, also leaving my name.  If you don't comment you don't get entered that day.

Because all of the prizes are being shipped from Madame Samm (that's where all the sponsors are sending the goodies) you will have to pay postage because heavens, with that many prizes, there's no way she could afford all that postage.  I'm just so thankful that she has come up with this wonderful giveaway and is donating her time and labor to coordinate it - what a blessing that is for all of us!

I've got lots of followers out there that I haven't heard from and I know you all want to win some of these prizes!  So e-mail me your information (I promise not to share it with the world!) and then be sure you follow Stash Manicure so you can comment and win.  You can e-mail me at mbushretiredotgmaildotcom.  I want some of my friends to win...and I'm hoping to win something too.  :)

This Is So Exciting!

Hello friends and followers!  I would love to welcome you

to a Wantobe Quilters Campaign over at Stash Manicure ( http://stashmanicure.blogspot.com).

 They will be giving away quilting supplies 5 times a week for 12 weeks!  That's right, 12 weeks! 

These supplies will have you quilting

before you know it...everything from sewing machines to irons, to die cutters,

to mats, to rotary cutters, sewing baskets, scissors, batting, needles,

rolled sewing machine bags, patterns, books, magazines...everything

you could imagine to assist you in being a NEW Quilter. 

Even if you are already part of this community you can win

quilting stuff too...Tuesday and Thursday are days for us..

All you have to do is give me your name and phone number 

and email sew I can submit this to the organizer, because if you win

anything I can win something to!  (And I love winning!!) 

All you have to do is be my follower and a follower

over at Sew We Quilt @ Stash Manicure....

That is all! There are over 49 Sponsors involved.

I am pretty excited to be part of this, sew should you.

I love being a QUILTER! 

( p.s you will not be eligible to win anything if you do not register

with a blogger where you see this message)

Ya'll please, please tell your friends, tell your sister, tell your neighbors....send them here to my blog, show them how to become a follower, and then have them send me their info (name, e-mail, telephone).  I'll e-mail them with a few more instructions and reminders along the way.  We all love winning and I did the math, if they are giving things away 5 days a week for 12 weeks that's like a million chances.  Well, that might be an exaggeration.  :)  It's more like 60 chances but that's a lot!  Join the WantToBe A Quilter campaign - you know you want to.  :)

A Gray Day

My husband and I took a little drive today.  This little town in south Louisiana where the mission is and where we are working right now is only about a 30 minute drive from the Gulf of Mexico.  We've never been to Cypermore Point, which is a state park where you can swim and fish and picnic.  I forgot to take my camera but managed to get these three pictures on my phone.  Unlike much of the nation the temperatures here haven't been too awful for the last week or so, and in addition to the temps in the low nineties we've had rain almost every day for a week.  My office window looks south and each afternoon I can see big clouds rolling in off the gulf.  It rains for 20 or 30 minutes and moves on.  Today it was cloudy and gray but we still enjoyed the scenery.  I was amazed that there are wildflowers blooming alongside the road this far into the summer.

This is a view from my car looking out on the gulf near a fishing pier.

See what I mean about a gray day?  What you don't see here are the families having a picnic near by and you don't hear the children squealing with laughter.  It reminded me that we make our own joy....the day doesn't have to be sunny to be happy.  Our lives don't have to be perfect for us to have a positive outlook.  It's all about attitude!
I've forgotten the name of this tree/bush but it was really lovely.

It had beautiful blooms on it but as much as anything I loved the shape of it.

I got to do a little sewing this weekend.  First I made this quilt top.  I don't have a child picked out yet for Hooty Goes Night Night (Riley Blake Designs) but I bet I can find one!

And then I made a bunch of these:

I'm hoping some time in the next few days to turn these into a top using a Schnibbles pattern, Paganini.

And finally, as promised, I picked a winner for the giveaway today:
Sharon from Camp Gramma you're the winner!  I'll be e-mailing you to get your address.  Congratulations!

It's Four O'Clock

This little bush is what my husband's mother called four o'clocks. I have no idea if it has another name - surely it does.  She had one beside the steps outside her back door for all the years I knew her.  It looks like this all day and then late in the afternoon, about four o'clock, the blooms open up and it looks like this:

There are several of these here on the campus at Sager Brown where we volunteer in the summer.  They get huge and have to be cut back, especially when it rains enough to water it frequently.

Something that has surprised me this summer is how many people from "up north" get out of their cars upon arrival and immediately ask me what this tree is:

To those of us raised in the south this is an everyday sight.  It's called a Mimosa tree and when it blooms you'll likely see hundreds of hummingbirds drinking from it..it's one of their favorites.

The little apartment we live in is small but comfortable.  Each time I come I try to do something to brighten it up a bit.  This year they put new carpet in the bedroom and this week they added this:

We had a microwave before but it sat on the counter to the right of this.  With the old microwave, the coffee pot and the toaster we had about 12" of counter space.  Now we have about 36"!  It's amazing at the difference it made - it looks like a real kitchen now.

I finally finished the last of the right panel of Twas The Night Before Christmas.

I can't decide whether to start on the left side, which is as long as this one and might take me another year to do!  or to do the top and bottom panels, which are much smaller and would be not-quite-but-almost-instant-gratification.  I do love finishes....they make me feel like I'm making progress.  So maybe the small ones.  I wonder--if you have a big project and a small project, which do you do first?  And why?

And last, but I hope not least, this is my 600th post!  Oh  my goodness, I never dreamed I had that much to say.  Well probably I didn't....I just say it anyway!  That means that I need to have a giveaway so if you're interested in this little wool candle mat with holly leaves and berries, just leave me a comment below. Oh and this is just for my followers and/or subscribers so you don't have to blog about it.   I'll draw a name on Saturday, July 23rd.

Bulldozers and Brights

Last weekend I got this cute quilt top put together - My 2 1/2 year old grandson will get this for his birthday when he turns 3.  It will probably take me another 6 months to get it quilted but since his birthday is New Year's Eve I should make it.  :)  And what little boy doesn't love dump trucks and bulldozers!

I went to The Borne Quilter in Lafayette last week to spend the $100 gift certificate I won....fun, fun, fun.  When I went in my eyes went immediately to this quilt they had hanging on the wall:

I have this pattern at home - I have no idea what I was thinking when I bought it because 99% of my quilts are not these colors.  I do dark.  I do reproductions.  I do wool.  I do navy, forest green, burgundy, khaki...get the picture?  But I fell in love with this quilt!  Every once in a while I go in the sewing room and just look at it.  Why do I just look and don't start?  Because I have no bright fabrics.  None.  So this is what I spent my $100 on:

This is a good start don't you think?  Of course I need more...many more.  Anyone have any bright scraps they want to share?  :)

One Thousand Blessings - Day 26

856.  Freedom
857.  Red, white, & blue
858.  The Flag
859.  Patriotic music
860.  Fireworks
861.  Family picnics
862.  Children running through the sprinkler
863.  Glasses of milk and plates of cookies
864.  Iced sweet tea
865.  Hot dogs
866.  Fireflies and children with jars chasing them
867.  Mosquito spray!
868.  Sunsets
869.  Summer rains
870.  Friends who use the back door
871.  Sanitation workers
872.  Friendly clerks
873.  Pedicures
874.  The sight of a teenage granddaughter holding the hand of her grandmother and chatting as they walk
875.  Birthday cards
876.  Little boys playing baseball
877.  Afternoon naps
878.  Blank pages in a journal
879.  Soft sheets dried outside on a clothes line
880.  Family reunions

I'm On A Roll!

It all started about a month ago when I won a Lapel Stick from Judy at Patchwork Times.

Then earlier this week Bonnie from Calamity Jane's Cottage let me know I'd won this wonderful patriotic table runner!

And, oh my goodness!, last night I got a call from The Borne Quilter in Lafayette, Louisiana ( the shop I went to last week) to let me know I'd won one of their door prizes.  I was so excited...I figured a charm pack or a few fat quarters....but then she said, "$100 gift certificate" and I did a Happy Dance.  And visions of sugarplums danced in my head!  Well, maybe not sugarplums but Carrie/Schnibbles, Robyn Pandolph, Amy Bradly, Riley Blake, Jillily, oh so many more!  How in the world will I choose?