Santa Baby

A few weeks ago, we rode the rails on the Santa Train. Ginger was so excited.

When Santa arrived, however, Ginger was no longer excited but completely terrified. She wouldn't look up until Santa went in another car. And Patch was pretty nervous, too. He had to sit on my lap and wouldn't talk directly to Mr. Claus. Mini-me, on the other hand, chattered away about her desire for presents previously unmentioned.

Every year, Curly's work does a breakfast with Santa. The past couple of years, he has gotten to put on the suit. Again, Ginger would not go anywhere near him. When I took this picture, she had wrapped herself around my legs and would not let go until Santa left the area.

Let's hope he overlooks her rudeness and brings her some presents. After all, of the four kids, she's been the nicest.

I'm Delighted to Inform You

Today I'm a Course Instructor over on the Riley Blake Cutting Corners blog. Go here to check it out!

Not to toot my own horn too loudly, but it's a great tutorial for those irresistible 5" and 10" stackers and a little yardage. Let me know what you think!

And on a completely unrelated note, here is a hilarious picture of Flower:

Her show choir had a Christmas performance at the mall over the weekend. Apparently she's very focused. I took a couple of other pictures, and they all have this face! Funny focused Flower aside, her show choir is very talented. They sang a White Christmas medley that had my toes tapping, and they even dance a little. She loves being a part of it.

Someone's 2!

Ginger turned two this past Friday. She loved her birthday. She had donuts for breakfast, chicken nuggets and ice cream for lunch, and a cupcake for dinner.

 She only got a few presents (because she's only two, people). Flower was so sweet and gave Ginger a couple of her previously loved toys. Grandpatty gave her an Elmo, and the rest of us gave her Minnie's Bowtique. She has lots of eager helpers for play time.

Where the heck did 2 years go? It's just nuts!

One Short Week

Folks, may I have your attention for a moment? One week from today, all the stress will be over. All the preparation will be done. But getting to that point? Holy moley, it's going to be nuts! I have a lot to still finish. Am I alone in this? I doubt it. So instead of doing a post on all the things I have yet to do, I thought I would post about the things I finished last week.

First up is this adorable baby quilt, made from Ruby. It's also a Thimble Blossoms pattern called Wild Thing. It was my last customer order of the season.

 For the back I used some Nicey Jane. I love this stuff.

 Then, my friend Lauren and I decided to make a quilt for our blogless friend. It was made from leftover blocks from a quilt found here.

We delivered it this week, so she would have a chance to enjoy it. I think she liked it.

 Lauren is a genius, and turned the two leftover blocks into pillows. Look how happy Colleen looks:

Proving yet again that handmade is well worth the stress.

The Results

This is what I would have worked on last night, had I had batting that was the right size. But since I didn't, I worked on it today. The binding is on, so tonight I will finish it while watching White Christmas. I even have a cannoli for the occasion. So, when is bedtime?

Happy Christmas!

It's officially Christmas. How did that happen? We have been busy lighting the lights, trimming the tree, and decking the halls. So far, the season is full of joy. What it isn't full of is sewing. I've been busy with a few projects, but I am having a hard time finding my motivation. I think also that I have so many things to work on, that it's hard to focus. Am I alone here? Perhaps not.

I signed up for the Friday Night Sew In for tonight. I was hoping to get a baby quilt finished, but my batting is the wrong size. Ugh! I'll remedy that tomorrow and get it done and mailed out to my customer. I have a few more things I'm working on. I'll take pictures tomorrow when it's light.

So what are you working on? Are you ready for Christmas? I went shopping at Target last night, and practically skipped out thinking I had just finished. Then, I remembered I had nothing for Flower. Literally nothing. And then I started to feel stressed. She's with her mom this year, so I can shop for her after Christmas without too much of a problem. I would love some book recommendations for a tween, if you have any. She loves the Fablehaven series and would like books with a similar feel. She is not interested in Harry Potter, and she is way too young for Twilight. Any help?

Barely Alive

Wow. That title was a tad on the dramatic side, was it not? But seriously, folks, we're dropping like flies around here. Flower, Mini-me, and Patch are over the flu (yes, flu!), but Curly seems to have caught it. And today, Ginger is extra clingy, which does not bode well. I am trying to stay strong, but as chief nose wiper I may not have much of a chance. I also have a special order I'm working on. My days are full.

So I'm going to go on a blogging vacation for, let's say, a week. Then I'll be back and full of energy and things to say.

Gobble Gobble!

My favorite holiday of the year is finally here! I love Thanksgiving. I love that for a day, we just come together and are grateful. Oh, and we eat. Seriously, it's the best. This year we were supposed to celebrate with Curly's family, but unfortunately we have sick kids. So we're staying here. I love staying here. We'll get up, watch the parade, be lazy, watch football, eat, be lazy some more, have pie, go to bed. Doesn't that sound great?

I put the turkey in the brine this morning. I've made one pie (chocolate cream). Over the weekend I did the stuffing and the sweet potato casserole. This afternoon I'll make the pumpkin pie and then tomorrow I'll do the rolls and mashed potatoes. I also have two crafts ready for the kids. It's going to be a great day, colds and all.

I am thankful for so much this year. My kids, my husband, my hobby, just to name a few. But I'm also thankful for each one of you who comes and reads my blog. It makes my day that you come here and spend time with me. I wish each of you, whether in the US or not, a very happy Thanksgiving.

Sickies

Patch was home sick from school yesterday with a nasty cough. This morning he seemed better, but then took a turn for the worse. At school. I got a call at 1:30 to go pick him up. One of the saddest things I have ever seen is Patch laying on the bed in the nurse's office. It just about broke my heart. We went ahead and picked up Mini-me as well, and have been cozy at home watching movies for the past few hours.

I love Christmas movies. They really help me get into the spirit of the holiday. So far I have watched Holiday Inn and White Christmas. We've also seen some kids movies, like The Christmas Toy, and Mickey's House of Mouse. While I was getting ready for the craft show, I played my Christmas music with wild abandon. My favorite? Barenaked Ladies. Their Christmas album has some wonderful songs, including my favorite "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen/We Three Kings."

So tomorrow I'll be home again, nursing sick kids. Luckily we still have tons of Christmas movies to watch, like Elf, Rudolf, Santa Claus is Coming To Town, etc etc etc.

2 Things

First, my friend Joan is a fabulous graphic designer. She is offering an early bird special on holiday cards. It ends today (sorry for the late notice!), so head on over to her website and shop!

Second, The Quilted Fish e-mag is here!! Amanda did a great job with it. Go here to take a look. I love the projects I did for this magazine. We did the photo shoot at the Up house, which is a house that was built to look like Carl and Ellie's house from the movie Up. It was amazing and I just love the kitchen.

Today I am home with a sick Patch. He has the coughs. Ginger has been coughing, too. And here I was all excited to get back to working out this week. Oh well. At least my sink is clean.

Oh, What A Show!

Thank you everyone for your well-wishes for my show on Saturday. To sum up the day: I killed it. I have listed everything that didn't sell in my etsy shop. It's a whopping 8 items. I know, right? So exciting! The crayon folios were a huge hit. I sold all of the big ones, and only have 2 small ones left.

 They are so very cute! Here's the inside shot of one of them:

I do also have some pencil rolls and a couple of table runners left. Go the etsy shop and check them out!

I know they would make someone very happy this holiday season.

The Final Countdown

The craft fair is tomorrow. I am very nervous. I had a dream last night that I sold one thing. It made me sad. Yesterday, I had two custom orders to deliver. First was this t-shirt quilt. It's ginormous, but so soft.

 Then this cute tote bag. I just love these fabrics!

 For the craft show, I've been working hard. I don't have the variety that I have had in years past, but I think that's okay. I have a couple of table runners:

 A lot of crayon folios:

I have a few other things that I forgot to take a picture of. Back to work and wish me luck!

Last Week

My craft show is this Saturday. This is my last week to sew myself into a stupor. I'll post some photos tomorrow of what I'm doing. I'm just too dang tired to get the camera now.

Speaking of tired, the kids are all a little tired thanks to the time change. That means I can start my sewing earlier. It's a win-win.

While you wait for my awesome photos, go say "Hi" to Julie and Jackie. They are both having a fun giveaway. If you win, will you share with me?

Spookiest Night of the Year

We had a very spooky night of Halloween revelry. Mini-me was Maleficent (from Sleeping Beauty), Patch was Luigi, and Ginger was a witch.

 Ginger has a mind of her own, as we all know. So when I told her she was a witch, she was very upset. She said, "I no witch. Ina pincess." She refused to put on the costume until I called it a "princess dress." So, she was a Halloween princess instead. She discovered how delicious hot dogs are for dinner and M&Ms are for dessert.

 Patch changed his mind around 47 times. Finally, this week, he settled on Luigi from Super Mario Brothers. Someone said to him, "Oh, wow, are you Luigi?" His answer: "No. I'm Patch. This is just a costume." He helped me hand out candy after we were done trick-or-treating. I noticed that he would give the pretty girls an extra piece (or two) of candy. There was one particularly attractive teen who came, and Patch said "I like the girls." Yeah he does.

 Mini-me found my costume in her closet and claimed it as her own. She was so excited to wear it, but wanted me to understand that she was a good Maleficent, not an evil one. She had to leave early, because she and Curly had rehearsal. Their show, Seussical: The Musical, opens on Friday. Curly is Horton and Mini-me is Cindy Lou Who.

The best part was that I didn't have to make a single costume and the only thing I bought was Patch's shirt. It was $5, and he can wear it to school. I love when Halloween works out that way!

Curly's brother brings his family every year. We love living close to cousins. Ginger in particular was so excited when they got here. In fact, Ginger was excited to see everyone. I'm not sure if it was the promise of sugar or something else, but she was happy to sit on laps or go talk to everyone in the room. For anyone who's ever been treated to one of Ginger's special chin-in-her-chest looks, you know how monumental this is!

So there you go. Another Halloween come and gone. Flower asked to stay at her mom's house this year and trick-or-treat with friends. It's only the second or third Halloween she hasn't been at our house, and the first time Curly hasn't gone trick-or-treating with her. Kids grow up, I suppose. Sometimes I wish they could stay little forever. But then I remember how great it is when they can get their own breakfast on a Saturday morning, and I'm okay with them growing up a little.

Bloggers Quilt Festival Entry

I love perusing all the entries on Amy's blog this time of year. There are so many talented quilters on these here internets!

I thought I would share my favorite quilt I made this year. Sadly, I gave it away. Well, the people I gave it to weren't sad. They were very happy.

 Curly's brother got married this summer. He was the only family member who had not received a Jana quilt, and when he told me he'd be getting married, he not-so-subtly hinted he'd like one.

They liked all sorts of colors, like red and maroon and green and blue, so when I found this fabric by Momo, I knew I had a winner.

 I free motioned quilted it using a double circle swirl-ish design. It gave it great texture.

It really wasn't easy to give this one up. I told the happy couple that this quilt was meant to be used. If it wasn't, then I would come back to San Diego and collect it from them. I hope they know how serious I was!

Head on over to see the other entries, if you haven't already! Thanks for looking at mine ;)

Popping In

Just popping in to say there is snow forecast for tomorrow. We may get between 1-3 inches. My stomach churns a little at the thought. I definitely have enough bread and milk, but not toilet paper. Wouldn't it be something if the trunk-or-treat at church was cancelled due to snow? That would actually be fine because, ahem, Patch doesn't have a costume yet. I'm such a bad mom! Here's a picture of my favorite costume he has worn:

It was in 2009. He went as Padraig Harrington.

That is all. Carry on.

Best Week Ever

Last week really was the best week ever. I took advice from "What About Bob?" and went on a vacation from my problems. I left my stresses on the ground when the plane took off and didn't worry for a moment while I was in Utah. Well, maybe a moment. When the school called on Tuesday afternoon, I had a minute of stress. But just a minute.

Amanda made me dance for my supper. Okay, okay. It's time for some honesty: I was a willing participant. We danced our way around town, and even made a stop at the Riley Blake corporate office. Before we convinced Cindy and Jina to dance on camera, they took us into what I refer to as "The Room of Awesomeness." I wish I had taken a picture, but if you click on the above link, you can see me dancing in it. The room had all of Riley Blake's fabrics in it: past, present, and future. Cindy graciously gave me a Rolie Polie (2.5" strip bundle) of choice:

 What did I choose? Daisy Cottage by Lori Holt.

I love the pink, yellow, and trendy gray in this line. I'm almost done with my quilt top. It is way cute. I'll share in the next couple of days. Candice got one, too. Check out her blog for her project, which will hopefully be soon. (Feeling the pressure, bestie?) Okay, it may not be soon. She gets to go to Market at the end of the week. Maybe Amanda can convince her to dance this time.

I really had the best week last week. I came home relaxed, albeit exhausted from the lack of sleep. I really can't thank Amanda enough to asking me to "help" with her fabric launch party. She rocks.

Home Again

I flew in late last night. The kids didn't seem to care that I'm on Utah time and were up at 7:15. Ginger has not left my side. It's good to be home, but I miss my friends.

They are too fun.

What Can I Say?

I meant to blog yesterday. No, really. I did. But between making a million tiny grilled cheese sandwiches and crafting the cutest dress form out of Delighted!, I just didn't have the time.

The dress form is to the right. I taught a mini-class on making a pincushion in a bottle cap. It was as cute as you imagine it to be.

There was delicious food and a crowd of fabric loving folks. Jennifer over at All Things Belle has a great write up. There are no pictures of me, but we'll forgive her for that. She was no doubt intimidated by my beauty. Either that, or every picture featured me talking. I did that non stop for several hours. Surprised?

My mom's cousin MK and her daughter Jenn came to play. I love family!

I was rockin' the backwards braid. It was great to have my hair out of my face and I felt very current. 

Also at my table were the owners of Riley Blake. After I confessed what a huge stalker I was of theirs, they invited me to come visit them at their corporate office. I didn't have to be invited twice! Amanda took us there today and let me tell you, that is one fun office. I'd like to move here and work for them. I'm not sure what Curly would have to say about that, but I'm sure it would go something like, "No."

Anyway, I walked away with some goodies. I'll tell you about them later. I'll show them to you now:

Gah! I'm off to sew. You do the same!!! 

PS -- I have a few things to give away. I'll do it next week when I'm back in my homeland. Can you guess what it is?

Reading Recommendations

I am leaving tonight. Actually, I leave in about 3.5 hours when I pick up the kids from school. I haven't even packed yet. I'm not too stressed about that part -- I mean, it's not like I'm packing all 6 of us up. No, what stresses me out is that my in-laws lose a kid. It kept me up until 2:45 in the morning. They never have lost a kid, so it's not like my fears are founded in reality.

Anyway, I have 6 hours of travelling. All. By. My. Self. YAY! I love flying alone. I can sleep or read or watch the movie. And no one asks to share my snack. It's heavenly. I'm taking my Nook, but I'm almost done with my book (Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet). What should I read next? What have you read recently? What do you like to read on a plane? Please share! It can be slightly trashy, don't be ashamed! I love a good Jennifer Crusie every once in a while ;) Thanks!

I'm taking my laptop with me, so expect updates from The Quilted Fish headquarters!

I Am So Smart!

Growing up, we were avid fans of The Simpsons. My favorite moment of the franchise is where Homer sings this little ditty: "I am so smart! S - M - R - T! I mean, s-m-a-r-t." I sing it to myself on almost a weekly basis.

Why am I so smart this time? I went into my LQS for batting today. While I was there and waiting for Patch to be done in the bathroom, I was thinking about how I want to be better at quilting. Now, I know most of you are now thinking that I am already a rock star at quilting. And it's true. I am. But I'm also pretty sure there are areas where even I can improve.

How am I going to do this? Starting in January, I'm going to quilt my way through this book:

I know I've already made several quilts from this book. But, I gave those all away. I want to keep some. Each month I'll make a different quilt, and then use a different style of quilting on it to boost my free motion skills.

I know this isn't an original idea. Kristyne at Pretty By Hand already did this. Her results were spectacular, which I find spectacular.

Anyone care to join me? It would be so fun to do it together!

Party Time!

And you're invited! Amanda had the genius idea to have a fabric launch party for her new line, Delighted. 

It is a guarantee that a fun time will be had by all! If you're in SLC area, clear your schedule and come to the party of the year. In case you're worried you won't recognize me, I'll be the beautiful one telling a joke while wearing a handmade apron.

Shameless Self Promotion Post

I have updated my etsy shop again. This time, 4 crayon folios. And, right now I'm offering free shipping. Say what? That's right. Fa-ree. Just use the code OCT10FREE. I thank you.

Oh, Canada

Today my sister in Canada is celebrating Thanksgiving. It seems a little early to those of us in the Lower 48. One has to wonder: Do Canadians start their Christmas shopping on the day after Thanksgiving like we do? If so, they are pretty smart. I'd like to have my shopping done by Halloween. It never happens, but a girl can dream. But, I digress. Back to my sister.

I would definitely call her "the pretty one." Also "the athletic one." (I'm "the smart one.") She has two handsome little fellas. They are also Canadian. So is her husband. Canada is very far from Maryland, which means I haven't seen my sister in over a year. Nonetheless, I am thankful for her. I hope she has a wonderful day today and enjoys her Jello Salad (sorry, Melly, I just gagged a little writing that. Jello Salad is so gross).

My sister served her mission amongst the Spanish speaking Arizonians. In her honor, tonight we are having fajitas with homemade tortillas. Enjoy your Jello.

A Week!

An entire school week has gone by without me posting. Oh dear. I haven't had much to say. Nothing has flooded. In fact, the rain stopped and the sun came out. I had almost forgotten the sky was blue. I think I burned my retinas. It's been a good week!

It's also been a busy week. This week I completed 3 projects for Amanda. Here is the back of one of the things. Not only is the fabric fabulous, but I'm pretty pleased with the quilting:

 Then, yesterday I used a new pattern:

 It's a crayon folio. So cute, right? This is actually the second one I made. The first one had some errors.

I learned some very important lessons when making this. For example, did you know that velcro can melt? Well, it can. And it smells bad. Now that I have learned all my lessons, I'll be making a ton for the November craft show. I think they'll sell, don't you?

Free Stuff

Do you like free stuff? Of course, we all do! (Remember that old Sally Struthers commercial?) If you haven't heard, Amanda is having a great giveaway on her blog. There are two criteria to enter. First, go here and leave a comment. Then, go to Facebook and "like" Xyron.  What does this machine do? It cuts stuff. Like fabric. It's awesome. So go enter and good luck!

'Tis the Season

It's here! Halloween Season has arrived! I know that's not a "real" thing, but it sort of feels like it, doesn't it? The stores are decked out in Halloween splendor. There are TV specials popping up. There's a nip in the air and it definitely feels like fall. I love it.

In honor of this most wonderful time of year, I've marked down my Halloween decorations in my etsy shop. I only have two banners left, so hurry on over!

Happy Haunting!