*spring, are you on the way?

Spring, are you on your way? We love the winter season but feel like it has stayed past it's welcome.  We have looked around and put all of the winter decor away, replacing the snowy runner with a new vibrant springy one. The welcome mat is out, get on your way!

You remember these fabrics from one of my recent post, right? I have been sewing quite a bit lately.  I picked up these 5 fat quarters from our local quilt shop specifically for a front hall table runner. I pulled these out on Thursday and whipped this together over the weekend.  Such small projects take little time and are quite rewarding!  

*fudge -blue ridge parkway foundation store delivers!

 

  

Chocolate. YUM. Fudge delivered. To order yours visit the online store: Just click HERE. The link will take you to the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation Store.  Some memories are linked to food and while I do not really need raspberry chocolate fudge, the sweet little taste brings back a treasure of memories. If  I ration it correctly I may have some left in a few weeks to share with my BFF when she arrives! 

  

Grandfather Mountain September 2009 

(Henry, Sarah, Me, Franziska and Mary)

  

Fudge at the fudge shop at Grand Father Mountain.

  

  

  

  

 

We, as you can see, always have a great time when we are together.   Soon the girls will head our way, we are super excited and are counting the days until they pull up in the driveway.

*come along, I'll show you..

 Yesterday I changed my sewing room around a bit. I really need to paint the room, the ceiling and get some flooring put in.. but instead I just changed it up a bit. Come along.. I will show you..

 

I bought this old sled a few years ago from someone who posted on craigslist here in the area. I think I paid under ten dollars for it.  It is unlikely that we will ever use it for the purpose in which it was intended for. It is a three tiered shelf in my sewing room, and it is happy there. 

  

 We have this great old solid oak entertainment center that we no longer needed in the living room. I once tried to give it away on a local home school list, but I had no takers.  Boy am I glad!  This has become the perfect organizational helper!  The rocker is also a craigslist find!  It is an antique goose neck rocker -- it is wrapped in a throw not because it is cold, but because the lovely felines we live with like to scratch it. ARGH!  One of these days it will have to go in for a make over, the chair that is.

  

Don't you just love those tables that you can easily find at Sams, the ones where the height adjust? They are great for a quilter, because you can adjust it in the highest setting which makes it a perfect cutting table.

  

 I love old. I just do. This old printer typeset tray makes me happy. 

  

On some days I can use all the comfort I can get...

  

The threads are all nested in an old (yep..I said it again) singer sewing machine drawer. I have purchased about 6 of them from different antique or junk stores over the years. I also have a couple of drawers from old tables or such that make great storage containers for my sewing notions.

  

Oh... Ah....

 

  

My baby sister gave this to me a few years ago.. it is sweet. 

 It could be hanging on various different things in my sewing room. When I see it I think of how sweet our relationship is, how blessed I am to have two sisters. Two of the most different sisters one could have, both with a heart of gold!

  

Living water.. who can live, I mean truly live without it? I have other favorites around and about too. 

  

simple beauty

 

These have been laid out for the next project - a spring runner for the front hall table!  I have several quilt tops calling for my attention, but I think I will get side tracked and start creating this sweet little spring beauty!  

*all but one

Tonight when Eric and I got back in from dinner the cats were ALL in the living room lounging. It was as if one of them sent out a notice of a mandatory meeting that was being held while we were out.   All but one was present and accounted for.  Precious (check), Timon (check), Zeke (check), Bently (check), Munchkin (check), Julia...... Julia.....?    Poor Julia either wasn't invited or she declined to show. It is more likely the latter.  We found her in her favorite spot, behind the towel in the bathroom!  She prefers to be just as she was found.... alone. 

  

*almost a quarter of a century

Eric and Lynne sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G.. First comes love, then come marriage, then comes baby in a baby carriage. You remember this childhood song don't you? It is the one we used to poke fun at our friends in lower elementary school, right?

Eric and I grew up in the same county, attended the same high school but lived our lives apart from really knowing each other up until our senior year. So I guess you could say we were high school sweet hearts. Eric and I had our first date at a Baptist Church in St. Marys, a youth event of some kind. We had a mutual friend, Kelly D. who sort of introduced us to each other and invited us to come to the youth event. Quite some time later on February 22, 1986 we were joined in marriage and as the saying goes.. the rest is history.

I imagine our marriage has been much like yours; full of joy, gladness, great memories and times of trials.  There were even some very difficult times created much by my own doing that caused me to want to throw in the towel.  God saw us through!  I don't say that lightly, I know there may be others reading this at some point who may have  had some difficult times that didn't make it through. I don't know why some make it through and why some don't.

The most rewarding times in our marriage have been these past 5 years or so.  It just keeps getting better and better.   Neither Eric nor I are perfect, but our love for each other is being perfected more day by day.   He is my beloved and I am his. 

In keeping with this theme (marriage) take a moment and go check out our home church's teachings on Marriage. You can find the series entitled "Lets Talk About Marriage" present by Michael and Laura Fletcher. We are still working on some of these concepts and teachings but working towards oneness more and more each day!

*happy birthday Joel

       Happy 16th Birthday to our nephew, Joel!

Joel is an outstanding young man.  He has had to deal with some tragedy's of sorts in his young life.   Well, they are what I consider to be a tragedy. Due to life's circumstances in his world he came to live with my sweet mother and father-in-love about four or so years ago. I say that Joel is outstanding because he is. I know full well this is because of God's great love for him. Happy Birthday Joel.  Jeremiah 29:11

  

  

  

  

 

*achy heart

It seems like December 25th was 365 days ago. It was not though, and you know that as well as I do.  Why can't my heart get it? It aches to see our oldest son. Now I know how my mom and dad felt when we moved away from Southeast Georgia twenty-three years ago. 

I long to see him. We all do. The fact that I carry around a hand written note in my purse that was written about me by him doesn't help my achy heart.  The "note" was really an English assignment years ago, but it always touched my heart and I have opened it and closed it so many times that pieces of the paper have worn away.

I am so grateful that God chose to give us two boys as part of our heritage.

My youngest who is sitting near me eating before we run out the door just says to me, "I can't wait until I move out." (Me in my best alarmed voice)- "WHY?"  (Henry)- "So your heart can ache to see me too!"  Needless to say, tears ran down my face. He was only kidding of course, but a momma can only take so much!

Enjoy your kids!

*cinnamon girl finally!

 

It all started with Cinnamon Girl by Robyn Pandoloph, a 3 yard cut of fabric that was given to me on my birthday several years ago by my dear friend Nicole. Yes, Nicole, I am FINALLY using this beautiful fabric!  Though I have said I do not like floral prints.. look how beautiful this has finished up (well almost finished.. still have borders to add)

  

 Quilting class began in first of January!  One of the quilts our teacher presented to us to make is this one called Round the Twist in Broome, by Carol Lewis.  I think I may make another one.. it really was easy piecing, though I do not particularly like setting on point.

  

 Round the Twist in Broome

  

There is ALWAYS a cat in the mix, even when uninvited or shooed away.  You can see the right part has all been pieced together.. the lower strips were pieced and laid out to be added on.

  All together now.  I still have some work to do on this top. I will be adding some borders and I think I am going to construct the flying geese using Deb Tuckers special ruler, for the outer borders. This should create some interest.

 

This one is finally finished up with borders. I had the hardest time trying to find fabric to match that I thought was perfect.  When first learning to make this pattern in class last spring, I simply picked some fabric from my stash... not thinking on borders etc. I simply wanted to learn the technique. YIKES. I used all of the two fabrics I had making what you see here as the center part of the quilt.  Praise God! After visiting many quilt shops and literally searching tirelessly for months for  a matching fabric I found more of the orange at Mary Jo's in Gastonia, NC. You can imagine my excitement. I was able to add the large outer orange border once I found this fabric. To finish up this quilt I need to do a Celtic braid on the orange border. Not sure how long that will take.