Polka Dots Anyone?

I went to the local quilt shop at my sister's.  On purpose.  To buy fabric.  Cotton prices are going up - I've heard anywhere from 30-40% in the new year.  The owner of this shop says she's boycotting any going over $9.99 a yard but I suspect she won't be able to for long.  If she does she might not be able to buy any new inventory!  I've got a lot of fabric in my stash, but like many of you there's a good bit that's so old I don't even like it any more.  I won't get rid of it but it will be mixed in with newer pieces as "blenders" or some of it made into just plain scrap quilts.  I find that my tastes haven't change a whole lot in the last five years...I still love Kansas Troubles fabrics...but I also am attracted now (I didn't used to ever be!) to brighter colors.  I love teal and raspberry, for instance, when five years ago I wouldn't have looked twice at those colors.  And polka dots seem to call my name.  :)

A couple, well maybe three, layer cakes, a jelly roll, 3 fat quarters, a quilt kit, some yardage, a couple of patterns and a big spool of thread.  I'm looking and looking at it thinking, "is this really enough to keep me from buying any more fabric for the next six months?...or more...or less?"  Do you get panicky thinking about not buying fabric?  It kind of makes my stomach hurt.  :(

One Thousand Blessings - Day 17

561.  Time with my sister
562.  Local quilt shops
563.  Wearing boots with jeans
564.  Bible verses that appear just when you're looking for them
565.  New blog friends
566.  Quilt kits
567.  Junk/antique shops
568.  Thanksgiving dinners
569.  Family
570.  Natural springs that make beautiful lakes
571.  Safe travel for people I love
572.  Good books that teach me more about God
573.  Quiet prayer time
574.  Salvation Army bell ringers
575.  Hallmark movies
576.  Walking trails
577.  Ear muffs
578.  Friends who miss me when I'm away
579.  The wonderful people who pick up my trash every week
580.  Neighborhood watch groups
581.  Country roads with trees on both sides
582.  Christian book stores
583.  Cute coffee mugs
584.  Fresh country eggs
585.  Toast made with real butter
586.  Dark chocolate
587.  Milk chocolate
588.  White chocolate - anyone see a trend here?
589.  Dogs with big brown eyes who lay on my bed
590.  Wool socks

My New Roommate

When I opened my bedroom door the first morning I was at my sister's house this young lady came running in, jumped up on the bed, and snuggled right next to me as I did my morning devotions.  When I got up and turned on my computer she opened one eye, looked at me, closed it back and didn't move.  I went to shower and dress, came back, and she was in the same place.  She actually is my nephew's dog but she is visiting Nanny for a while so that her master and family can look for a new house.  But I think she was pretty at home, don't you?

Pit Stops

I traveled last week to my sister's house - 400 miles from my door to hers.  I've made that trip about a hundred times I think and I know exactly where to stop, meaning where I think it's safe for a woman traveling alone to make bathroom stops, or food stops, or even a stop for a short nap in the car.  One of my favorite stops is a state park in Mammoth Springs, Arkansas.  There's a natural spring which forms a lake and the water goes over a dam, where they make electricity.  There's a path around the lake and since this park is about halfway for me I usually stop to walk the mile around.  If I don't stop to walk I'm really, really stiff by the time I get to my destination.

Of course there are about a million geese here so you have to walk carefully to avoid the goose droppings.  And there's another small problem here as well.  When you go into the visitor center to use the bathroom the attendant stops you to ask where you're traveling from and to and how many are in your party.  I've told them before that I am not comfortable saying I'm traveling alone with a half dozen people that I don't know standing around listening - I think that's dangerous.  They looked at me like I was insane.  They still ask - my protest had no impact.  I'm not a rude person but I try hard to totally ignore them.  They're quite persistent.

Another favorite stop is, of course, this one:

This particular McDonald's has a big parking lot for eighteen wheelers so I can park right there and there are people in and out all the time.  I've always hated their hand soap because it smells bad so if I could wait to go to the bathroom I would but this week they had a new soap that actually smelled good.  Yea!

But this trip this was my favorite pit stop:

This is Marshall's Dry Goods in Batesville, Arkansas.  It's a warehouse type place with row after row after row of fabric.  This isn't what I call quilt shop brand name fabric...it's the fabric you find at WalMart or Alco's or maybe even Hancock's or JoAnn's.  I don't know enough about those chain places and their fabric to know but I think I recognized some.  They had Christmas fabrics for $1.99  a yard, regular fabric $ 3.99 a yard, 108" wide quilt backing $5.99 a yard.  I bought a few pieces that I will use for scrappy quilts.  Mixed in with other fabrics they will be perfect.  And the people were so nice and very very friendly - it might be a regular pit stop from now on!

A Thanksgiving Thought

How do Thanksgiving cacti know it's Thanksgiving?  I mean some of them are Christmas cacti...some are Thanksgiving.  How do they know when to bloom?

My husband and I will celebrate Thanksgiving this year with both laughter and tears.  The laughter of children and the company of family makes all the cleaning and cooking and planning and shopping for groceries well worth the effort.  But we will miss those who aren't able to be with us and shed tears for those who have gone before us.  However, we will gave thanks for the sure knowledge that we will day join them at the banquet table of the Lord.  We will praise the one who makes this bounty possible, who comforts us when we cry, and takes joy in our laughter.  We will pray for those who are hungry and cold, for the leaders of our churches and our nation, and for each other.  And then we will feast on the following:

Roast Turkey with Maple/Orange Glaze
Southern Cornbread Dressing
Giblet Gravy
Cranberry Sauce
Green Beans with bacon and brown sugar
White Shoepeg Corn with cream cheese
Broccoli and Rice Casserole
Cranberry/Cherry/Pineapple Congealed Salad
Rusty's Pink Salad
Rolls
Orange/Pineapple Cake
Coca Cola Cake
Pumpkin Pie
Mincemeat Pie

I'm wishing you all a joy filled Thanksgiving with people you love.  blessings, marlene

Have You Tried These?

Seriously good.  And that's all I'm gonna' say about that.  Except for just this one tiny thing.  Is there anything that wouldn't be good if covered with fudge?  I'm just sayin'.


If you haven't read Grandmama Jane's post about Thanksgiving you really should.  I think she's right on target and I loved this post.  She talks about not letting Christmas rush us through Thanksgiving...savoring not just the food, but the moment.  Wise woman is Grandmama Jane.

I'm still quilting on the stocking quilt.  And I learned something else about free motion quilting.  I have a really nice handwriting when I try, but writing on a quilt...not the same thing.  :(    Oh and I learned another thing.  Some creatures who live in the forest must have deformed feet based on the stockings quilted down there in the blocks on the bottom.  Good thing I used green thread on the green blocks.