Dear Anne,

Can I say how much I enjoyed finally meeting you and spending time with your lovely family?!

I have been excited about your visit for several months now....just ask my friends and family who heard me talk about it constantly.

You were so gracious allowing me to interrupt your family vacation time, and I apologize if I overstayed my welcome...I just couldn't help it....I felt like I was seeing an old friend - for the first time ;-)

It was such a joy holding your precious granddaughter!  Roo is such a cutie pie and a blessing to your family!  Thank you for giving me the opportunity to meet her.  I loved seeing the three generations together and wish I had taken a picture of all of you.

Thank you for making me one of your Japanese knot bags!  I absolutely love it!

You can bet I will put the fabric goodies inside to good use!

I know I am not the only one who has missed your creative and thought provoking blog posts, but I am thankful for your continued support and encouragement.  You have helped me more than you'll ever know.

You didn't get a chance to visit my sewing lab, so you didn't see I have the Hello Friend card you made me to go with the needle case hanging with other gifts from friends.

Pixie Dust quilt coordinated by Bumble Beans and donated to Craft Hope for Haiti

I didn't get a chance to show you the Pixie Dust quilt all finished or ask you to show me the block you made.  (However, I did a little research and believe I found it.)

I also didn't get a chance to ask your opinion about several projects I have in the works, show you my Featherweight and ask if you got yours for the RV, or introduce you to my family.

Anne, we'll just have to do all that (and more) next time!

I have said this before, but if you ever get the chance to meet a {blog} friend in person, take it!  Don't let anyone tell you the bonds and friendships formed through blogging are any less real than those formed in the "typical" manner.  I am fortunate in that I have met several of my {blog} friends in person, and hope to meet many more before I am done! 

Happy Monday to all!

Play Days

Over the weekend, I spent some time working on smaller projects, trying a tutorial that I found on Pinterest, and learning a new technique.

For our guild's February Priority: Alzheimer's Quilt crayon challenge, I pulled out my mango and lemon fabrics and started piecing a mini crazy quilt.  I am excited about playing around with decorative stitches and different threads.

It's been forever since I have attended a baby shower, but when I saw these burp cloths on Pinterest I knew I wanted to make some for an upcoming baby shower.  I have only made this one so far from Aneela Hoey's Little Apples, but I plan to make several more.

 The biggest play day of all was spending an entire Saturday with my guild friends learning needle turn appliqué from Mary Sorenson!  This has been on my list of techniques to learn for a very long time. Mary's work is incredible, and she is a fabulous teacher!  I bought her DVD since I know once I get home I tend to forget what I learned in class ;-)

I was too busy learning to take many pictures, but I did snap this one of Leslie's handwork.  Michele has pictures on her blog.  Go see how pretty her flowers are!

Happy stitching!

Spring to Finish...finished

You are probably getting tired of hearing that I am still in the middle of moving, because I am definitely getting tired of saying it!!!  The movers messed up our moving date which means a couple of extra days living among boxes....packed boxes with no access to personal items ;-(

I have no new pictures or completions to share (because I can't find my camera cord!), but it is time to report on Jacquie's Spring to Finish Challenge.

I set seven goals for myself, and finished 3 and 1/2.  It's not 100%, but, considering the last few weeks, I'll take it.  I kept up with the Pinwheel Sampler Quilt Along which meant finishing it; quilt and bound my "Charity 100" quilt, labeled registered and mailed my AAQI Feeling Groovy; and kept up with the hexagon quilt along (this is my 1/2).

In addition to listing our goals, we were to say how we would reward ourselves.  My reward is attending a quilt retreat in Minnesota which will also allow me to cross three things off my Bucket List...attending a quilt retreat, meeting bloggy friends in person and attending a quilt show!!!

Have an amazing day!!