Peek a Boo

It's been a nice week here - and I hope it has been for you too.  Monday and Tuesday I was with the wonderful Knot-y Embroidery Ladies.  We do have a good time and they take turns bringing the most delicious desserts and treats to share.  It is exciting to see what they have been working on during the month and to hear about where they have been since we last met.  It is even exciting to teach them new stitches ...  but some of them are very Knot-y and you know how that goes.


Here is a little peek at what I have been working on this week as a shop sample.

Bareroots - Halloween wraps and candle mats.

They were fun to do and got me into the Halloween spirit.  Well, going on a pumpkin adventure with Kim on Wednesday at lunch time really got me in the Halloween spirit.  Here is a link to her blog about our adventure - I left my camera at home ... Kim's Blog Post


It was a great day at the shop today.  So many new things kept coming in, students excited about their classes, and wonderful customers.  Joe the UPS man is a hoot and we make sure he walks out with a plate of treats.  I am looking forward to my Time for Tea and Embroidery tomorrow.  If you are wanting to join in, please do.  I will save you a spot - a spot tea that is.


Grey's Anatomy's season opener just came on - Tootles!

One For The Squirrel

Yesterday morning while checking into blogland and having my morning cup of tea, what should I see out side my kitchen window - 

I grabbed my camera.

Is he smiling?

I did not bother him one bit.

See how he pushes the top down, eh!?

After the "Photo Shoot" and he was through eating ... I checked out the feeder   He had eaten right through the top of the bird feeder by pushing down the top   (It was supposed to be squirrel proof and slide down and cover the holes where the birds eat if one should try to eat the seed.  Everything has worked just fine all this time - who knew that this little guy this year would chew away the top of the feeder on one side and around the corner.  His weight does move the outer cage down and sits there happily reaching into the top of the feeder.)

All these years the squirrels have "respected" the routine - the birds always dropped enough sunflower seeds for them ...

Now, we have two, well maybe three choices.  

1. Get a new and "improved" anti squirrel, bird feeder.

2.  Fill the feeder only half full - well below his reach. Wait and watch when the "fat, full and roundly packed tummy squirrel sits on top of the feeder and the bottom falls off.  

(I have visions of him being catapulted into the tree ... )

3.  Find the big plastic dome somewhere in the garage ...  we bought it a long time ago to deter squirrels ...  it did not then.  I could dream it might work to keep this guy out of the bird seed.

What should I do?

What would you do?

Giveaway - not mine ... But Shelley has Good Stuff!

Shelley is celebrating her 100th post and it is a celebration worth checking out.      Shelley's Red Quilts Blog    Congratulations Shelley!

I Have Not Tried This Either and DS's Don't You Even Think About It ...

GOOOOOD MORRRRRRNING!

While reading Carrie Nelson's blog this morning she had something so interesting to share I checked it out. 

Carrie Nelson as in the Schnibble Queen  

She writes that she has not tried it ...  

I am mostly thinking of my dear sons for this post, 

yet, trust me you will find it pretty amazing to watch.  

Carrie suggested that we turn up the volume on our sound and enlarge the picture to full view before viewing.  I have to admit that I did not follow her instructions the first time because I was so intrigued by what she thought was so cool (impatient I know ... ) 

but then I went back and replayed the video three times after following her instructions before 

I felt like I saw it all ... 

Thank you Carrie!

What do you think of the video?

Some Days Are Just Better Then Other Days

Yup, some days are just better then other days.

While I was away in Colorado a surprise package and a card came for me.  DH tucked it away and I found it yesterday morning while I was unpacking my suitcases - and it was like Christmas.  

Dawn at Quilting By Dawn on Pins and Needles...

She had a secret giveaway and I was her secret winner!

  She wrote, "The idea for the secret giveaway was from Heidi at All My Scattering Moments, where I was a secret winner!  Both the needle case and pin cushion were made from my recently finished quilt scraps.  

Can't seem to throw away even the smallest of scraps."

Thank you Dawn.  

You will never know how much your thoughtful

 surprise gift has lifted me.  It made me laugh out loud and snap out of being so down about the trip to Colorado.

Life is good and now that I am back home I celebrate my many blessings 

and feel like your secret gift was a sign of how blessed I am.

Tootles 

Growing Pains

Learning the Judith Baker Montano Crazy Quilting method has been a blood, sweat and tears experience.

The learning curve has been so outside of my box I have had to stretch and pull from places in me that I did not know existed, just to be able to place my first piece of fabric down.

I only show this tiny snippet because I have not had time to blog in and I wanted you to see I really was learning crazy quilting and not just on holiday.....

I have lots to share - 

we were hand dying lace today - loved it.

Well, off to bed we are going on a photo shoot very early 

tomorrow morning.

Thinking of you. 

Our First Full Day of Class

It was fun, full of sunshine and learning.

What was a big surprise to me and the others -

this is not just in the studio workshop.  

We are out and about as you will see.

And we have many other field trips and events

that we will be attending.  

We might get around to crazy quilting!

Create a free slideshow Please forgive that there are not captions.   I am happy that I had time this evening to make up a slideshow of todays events, well most of them. We are having a ball. Tootles

The Inn at Spanish Peaks

Looking at the back of the Inn.

Breakfast being served by Frank - Inn Keeper.

He is a hoot and very nice.

Tracy making final touches to the breakfast. She is a bright, kind and charming lady.  

She and Frank have been Inn-Keepers here for 13 years.

I am going to get this recipe!  It was delicious.

I needed a nap this afternoon and what should I see out in the back yard - an apple tree.  Yup, you guessed it!

I sitting there in the afternoon sun studying for my class and heard the tree calling - "Nap Time, it's Nap Time!"

Grabbed a couple of pillows off my bed and a spare sheet, gathered my books and a timer.  It was a heavenly time.  Quiet, not much reading happened and I don't remember any apples dropping on me.  You can see them in the grass.

The gang is all here.  Two Australians, two from New Hampshire and two from California.  We had a great introduction with Judith and then she was off to an appointment and we all went out to dinner to really get acquainted.  Lots of good times are going to be had 

by this lovely bunch of coconuts!)

It was a great beginning!

I am Flying in an Jet Plane

Top of the Mornin' to yaw!

Heading out to Colorado to have fun with Judith Baker Montano.  I am going to spend 5 full days with her and 5 other ladies who, like me, have waited a long time to study with her.  What is the class you ask?  It is basic crazy quilting.  

You should see the huge bag I have with her supply list needs.  I thought that I wrote through supply lists, well she wins.  At lunch yesterday with Kim, I was showing her some of the lists and she then of course had to tease me about my lists....  that Kim.

Yup, I needed a Kim fix before I left town and she suggested that we meet at the corner.....

No, we did not sit in the bar, we were in the respectable restaurant part and we laughed when we ordered the same thing.  It was a great sandwich and girl talk!

Speaking of Kim, she looks wonderful, still has her gorgeous new hair do and I think that her gentle life style change to eat healthy is starting to show in her face with a little weight loss.  Yea, Kim.  We of course had too short a time to be together before it was time to get her back to work.  Speaking of her work, she works in a very luxurious, large ground floor sprawling, high ceilings, nature type office.  What a wonderful environment to have to work in.  And I have heard that they are VERY happy to have her back.

On the way down to La Veta from Denver, I enjoyed shopping at the outlets in Castle Rock and a quilt shop in Colorado Springs called Ruth's Stitchery.

They boast a 7000 bolt of fabric shop and I thought hm-m-m I have to check it out.  Well, it was worth the stop (escaped with only spending $67.00) and managed to cause only a "mild" fiasco...

This is Beth, who works a Ruth's, and who just happens to have known Lindy for years and her mother lives near Marconi and Eastern in my city.  She and her mother know Bear Paws well and love it too.

So what is she doing on the floor with all those buttons?

Read on -

See up in the left hand corner of the picture... There was a little plastic case with tiny pull our plastic drawers.  No, I did not drop the case, but, I found the most precious brass acorn button and was thinking of Lindy and her love for all things acorn.  I turned the button over to check out the back and I dropped it.  It happened so fast (officer) I heard it drop into a bucket of buttons on the floor.  You know the sound of a button hitting other buttons from a distance.  (Come on - I know I am not the only one who plays with buttons and I know you know the sound...) Phew, I thought that was a close call, it has got to be right there in the bucket....

I looked immediately, didn't touch a thing, and could not see it.  Groan!  Well, Beth happened to come by and asked if I need help.  Hm-m-m that would be a yes (visualize me staring into the bucket, caboose in the air and not moving, not breathing either.

So, Beth comes up with lets just scoop some of the buttons in the bucket out onto the floor and look for the button that way.  By then I knew I was not going to find it by staring.  We went through the whole bucket that way and nada.  Other customers and staff happened by and offer to search (play) with the buttons, and pretty soon we had a bunch of women on the floor "looking" for the brass acorn button.  

We did however, find many very interesting buttons and even ones that "were not supposed to be in the buckets" because they were something or others and more expensive then the buttons in the buckets."  See there is a silver lining to my little adventure - I guess.

Needless to say they have my name and number it they should ever find the acorn button and I promised to stop there on my way back to Denver, just in case they find it.  I have never seen so many happy people wanting to "help", even to the point of taking off their shoes, and stretching out on the floor making themselves comfortable for the "job" at hand...

Button, Button who has the Acorn Button, eh!?

Tootles from La Veta 

Yes, I have been "chatty Kathy" because I am so ready to go meet the group and Judith and thought this sharing  I would settle my nerves a bit.  And it did  - thanks for listening.

And the Book Winners Are.....

My book giveaway deadline is over and yesterday evening my selection team got to pick the winners.  (Selection team you ask?  They are DH, Son#2 and our neighbour who is a police officer.)  (To tell you the truth they would be hurt if I did not ask them to do the honours, however, I think the cookies I make as their reward is more to the point....)

         A big thank you to my blogette friends/followers who entered!  I loved reading about your favourite place to read and what you munched on, if anything, while you read.  Thank you!!!

Book - A Single Thread - Marie Bostwick

Winner - Paulette at Sweet P Quilting and Creations

Book - A Thread Of Truth - Marie Bostwisk

The winner is - Jen at Punkie Pie

Congratulations!

Please email me with your mailing address, and thank you for entering!

Charming Girls - Christmas in August Sewing Party

This is the post I will up date on Charming Girls! 

I will be back about noon pst. 
WooHoo - It's a Sewing Party!!!


It's a Finish - started late and ending late :o)

She is done! My angel..... 

And I always add a little something or other to the another end of the tea towels - Peace!

Starting on him tonight.  He is as goofy looking as my angel was - they "maka" me laugh.


Interestingly enough, lots of family life was lived and enjoyed while working on this Christmas project, yet the most fun was the back and forth kibitzing that we "Charming Girls" engaged in, 
not to mention all the snacking we did "together".
Thank you Carol and Kelly for setting this up for us!


Tootles


Update 8:30 am Sunday

Sorry Carol and Kelly - That is as far as I got before I fell asleep watching the end of MI-5.  I will pick up where I left off today.  I will post a finished photo then.
Thank you for the fun, and especially Carol and Kelly  - you two are a hoot.
Tootles
Thank you


Update - 5:30 pm

Six towels are traced! 

 Someone mentioned I had a lot of towels out on the line - yes, you know me, I have to multi-task and washed the Autumn/Halloween towels in the same load and prepped them for tracing in a couple of days.

Going to clean up my mess now, get my embroidery thread ready, put my feet up and drift off into Embroidery Heaven. 

I love MI-5 on PBS and it is on this evening!  I have no idea what else is on TV tonight but I will be checking it out.  (Our DVD is dead...)  

I will check back in later this evening and show you how far I have gotten with the embroidery.

Tootles

Update - 4 pm


Got the towels wash, dried, ironed and hanging outside for the final drying in the afternoon breeze.

I also made some nachos while the washing and drying were going on.  I made an extra plate for you.  We girls needs our strength....

While out in the "back 40" I sneaked up on my DH (My Gentleman Farmer) and took a picture of him painting one end of the bauchie ball court he has been making this summer.

OK I'll be back later I have some tracing to do.

Tootles

Previous Update earlier in afternoon...

This is what I am working on.  
I am sorry that I will not be working on my sewing machine - yet, my reasoning is I have to get these 6 Christmas Tea Towels done for shop samples and our Open House on September 12th, and today is a good day to start them.  They are in the wash machine right now, there I used a machine....  When they are washed and damped dry I will iron them dry to take out any wrinkles.  I will take a picture after they are ironed and before I trace them.
Sorry, I am getting a late start, had a class this morning (Le Jardin) and we are on block #7.  It is so neat and I love the fabric!!!
Thanks for stopping by.  
Oh, an when you pop over I have some of my favourites for you to enjoy, Bridge Mix and Red Twizzlers.
Tootles

Yesterdays Correction

So, yesterday I shared an email funny with you - and with the usual operator error it did not cut and paste correctly.....  You have to remember the learning curve is still happenin' here.... I am sorry that the picture and the caption did not link up to the rightful author.  So, without aude I have typed up the little ditty and given credit where credit is due.  As for the picture, you will have to imagine a little girl in the arms of her grandad.

A little girl ran to her grandfather,

jumped into his arms and gave him a great big hug.

Then she ran her fingers along his balding head and

down the side of his wrinkled face.

"Did God make you Grandad?" she asked.

"Yes, honey He made me."

She felt her own cheek and then asked,

"Did God make me too?"

"Yes, honey He made you too."

"Well", she shrugged,

 "Don't you think,

He' doing a better job then He used too?"

Sandi V.

www.wackywits.com

Best picture I could grab with Tinkerbell and her Grandad.

Got to run - there are blots of fabric to cut and fat quarters to fold and some of the nicest people in the world to help - quilters .....

Tootles

PS - Don't forget my book giveaway for my followers 

on the Aug. 24th post.

Out of the Mouths of Babes

A friend sent this to me - I just had to share..... 
(Sorry, this is as large as I can make it - you might have to click on the picture to make it larger.  I have heard the first thing to go is the eyes.....)

Just when you are excited that they can talk and express themselves...


Thinking of you - and if you are one of my followers check out yesterdays blog post.  


Tootles

Books and Books and More Books - Giveaway

Written August 11th - never posted - what can I say - running behind myself......


It is that time of year when I want to sit and read outdoors.  Hot August nights are upon us here and I just want to put my embroidery down and read, read, read.  A while back Kim and I went to a fantastic used book store.  Well, come to think of it, it was the day of her surgery and she wanted to get out of the house for a bit.  You know me, well "OK" and we were off.

There were rooms and rooms like this.

The reason I am going on about this is I was thinking of taking my "used" books there and then I got to thinking, hey, what about having a give away to my follower/blogette friends.  So, I am - having a giveaway!

All you have to do to enter is be a follower of mine and leave a comment on this post by midnight, Saturday, August 28th, (PST) telling me your favorite place to read AND your favourite thing to munch on while you are reading.  Please don't advertise my giveaway - it is just for my blogette friends.  If you have been a "peep" until now, become a follower and enter, why not, I would love to hear from you, and I know you are there peeping....  (I know because I used to be a "peep" too.)

There will be two drawings = two winners.  Let me know your choice if your name is drawn.

A Thread of Truth by Marie Bostwick

and

A Single Thread by Marie Bostwick

I thoroughly enjoyed each of these books, you will too.  I will post the winners on Sunday, August 29th.

Tootles

Update on Cowgirl

Cowgirl needs our help -

 if you can help, I know it would be appreciated.  

You can catch up on the latest at the following links:

Cowgirl's Moms Blog....

Cowgirl's moms best friends blog...

Kelly Anns Blog...

The Stinky Feet Gang Have Left

Missing the Stinky Feet Gang!

Those of you who do not have sons or daughters and their chicklets near know the feeling.  Over the next bit of time I will "entertain" you with slide shows, etc. with the "odd"  comment.  We had a wonderful time and my hat is off to my sweet daughter-in-heart!  Wait until I tell you about her new "I Once Was A Shirt" Apron design and about the classes she taught at my quilt shop Bearpaws and Hollyhocks!

Personalize your own free scrapbook

Got the toys and art supplies all packed away until their next visit.  The dawg has been sleeping for the past two days.  He was going the whole time with Peter Pan and Tinker Bell....

Catching up with my blogette friends and all the exciting things that have been happening in the past weeks.  I have missed you and am having fun reading all about your thoughts and comings and goings and quilting heaven visitations and accomplishments.  Please accept my apology for not responding to your enjoyed comments.  I was getting better at returning a thank you and a little chat after your comments.  I will do better.  Fresh start here.

Tootles

The Stinky Feet Beat

Peter Pan and Tinker Bell are here - have been for a week - we are loving every minute!  I thought that I would come up for air and share a bit of our goings on.  This is hot of the press and the very first issue featuring the 

Stinky Feet Beat

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