On The Road Again

Happy Friday to you all. The week has flown by, as usual; today we head out to Southern California.  We will be stopping in Zion National Park and also Arches National Park while driving through Utah-two places we've always want to see.  Our entire crew will be joining us for a week at Oceanside.  We'll be playing in the water,  taking family photos and having a great time!

One day all 17 of us will be heading to this magical place.  It's been at least 15 years since we were there, back when we only had one or two grands.  It should be so much fun!

Hubby and I will also spend a day exploring Old Town Temecula.  Some friends love a winery there, so that's on hubby's list and antique stores as well as a quilt store are on my list.  I am hoping it works out for me to meet a friend there for coffee; we are playing that by ear.
Our Hunter will be at home with a good friend who is dogsitting for us; she loves him and he will be happy to stay here.
I'll be checking in next week and posting pictures, so have a wonderful Labor Day weekend, count your blessings and enjoy life!
Blessings~
Noreen

Another Goal Finished

This is a wall hanging I've been working on for a few months-on and off as other projects got in the way.  I loved this Pattern by Jill Shaulis and Vicki Olsen from their book Simple Blessings in Patchwork.  It sums up my life perfectly; I hung it temporarily just to get an idea of where I wanted it. When we get back from our trip, I will find it's perfect place.
Out to lunch today and then continuing to pack.  Hope you have a blessed day!
Noreen

Big Sur beauty

Happy Tuesday to you all.  Well, we are counting down our hours and days until we hit the road; the only big disappointment is that my brother and sister of my heart won't be joining us in Southern California.  However, I saw this photo while I was cleaning out my IPhone photos and had to share; it was on the drive to Big Sur.  One of our favorite places in Ca. is the Carmel area and of course our lifelong friends who live above Carmel Valley.  We love visiting them and enjoying the beauty of the coast.
Have a great Tuesday!
Hugs,
Noreen

The Beauty of Autumn

Good Morning to you. Here in Northern Colorado, it's beginning to look a lot like fall. These photos were taken on our trip last October to New England with our friends. I have Mums in bloom and hope to get some pics later today, but for now I'm going walking, to the gym and running a few errands.

This Friday we leave for Southern California with the entire family, so my week is booked up with preparations. I hope you have a great day!
Noreen

A True American Hero

REST IN PEACE  SENATOR MCCAIN.  You served your country with your life and we all owe you a debt of gratitude.

Happy Wednesday to you!  I hope your week is going well and that you are thankful for each new day.  Yesterday I walked with my neighbors, then drove down to Longmont and had lunch with a good friend~she was the first blogger I ever met.  Although she no longer blogs we still see each other, generally twice a year.  At first it was every four months, but as time has gone on and we both have very full lives it has dwindled down, something I hope to rectify.  She is a very wonderful gal, a strong woman of faith and a published author.  Whenever we  are together, we just pick up where we left off.  Today I'm heading to the gym with hubby, then heading to one daughter's house to watch kiddos while one has a doctors appointment.  This afternoon I will see our other daughter so she can borrow a car for an appointment.  I love having our girls and their families close; simply can't imagine life any other way.  I am blessed.
I hope you have a great day, filled with smiles and blue skies.
Joy to you!
Noreen

Cheyenne Heritage Quilters Show

Happy Monday to you; I hope you had a fantastic weekend! We did for sure~Friday night our three grandsons, ages 17,15 and 5, spent the night and what a fun time we all had. Saturday after they went home, hubby and I drove up to Cheyenne, Wyoming for a Heritage Quilt Show and it was so nice. Here are just a few of the many quilts they had displayed; they are ones that drew my eye for one reason or another.  The first one we loved because the Rockies were covered in an American Flag, plus the appliqué and quilting were fabulous.

Love the intricate appliqué on this one.

This tiny wall hanging was beautiful.

Absolutely loved this Autumn wall hanging.  I thought I was finished with Autumn projects, but if I could find this pattern and fabric, I would make it in a heart beat.

Loved this too and the panel was great, the addition of the appliquéd leaves on the top right made it pop.

A bit modern for me, but loved the colors.

Loved the colors on this one.

This looks easy despite the many squares set on point, but the focal pieces were just one fabric.

Thought this would be a cute wall hanging for Valentine's Day.

The rest of the day was spent on various chores as well as going to a neighbors for appetizers.
Sunday was spent at church and then digging holes for more Iris bulbs a close friend gifted me.
We have adobe soil, so digging holes for them is not the easiest, we have to add sand and bone meal....however, I love Iris's and can't wait until next spring.  Today one granddaughter will be coming over to help me with the garden; I need to dead head some roses and cut back our fading Echinacea plants.  We've already planted two large mums and I could definitely add more, but probably won't.
Hope you have a great day!
Noreen

Happy Friday to you! I hope you've had a great week and have fun plans for the weekend. On Tuesday evening, hubby and I headed to a local high end restaurant in our town; it's a place we've never gone to, but our kiddos gave us a gift certificate for our 40th Anniversary. I had heard, from Carrie, that the Palisade Peach Salad was so good and it was delicious. Of course, I love our Colorado peaches and this salad didn't disappoint.

I ordered the Salmon with roasted tomatoes, pole beans and fingerling potatoes-yum.

Hubby ordered the Bison Steak with Mashed Potatoes~he loved it and we often cook with ground Bison(which I love), but I found the steak a bit chewy and also gamey.

We had a lovely time and it was fun to try a new place.
Today I'm walking and then hitting the gym prior to our three grandsons coming for a sleepover.   They are so easy and it's always fun to see the latest movie they bring.
Joy to you!
Noreen

SkyDiving Part II

Happy Thursday to you all. Last Sunday hubby took the flight and dive of his life-he went skydiving. My camera was having some issues and our sil's mom took these. Thank you Kathy.

The Dive Master actually let hubby take control and he had a ball making them go in circles; I probably would have been sick!

Thankfully hubby wore a bright green shirt, which helped us identify him as he was coming down.

The landing was a bit rough, but he had such a good time that he's volunteered to go again next year when our oldest grandson turns 18.

What fun!
Have a fantastic Thursday.
Noreen

Skydiving Part II

 Happy Outdoor Wednesday!  On Sunday morning, we once again drove down to Longmont so that hubby, son of my heart and his dad could try skydiving again.  The last time they went their jump was cancelled due to bad weather, but Sunday was the perfect day for a jump.  Here is my man, all geared up and ready to go.

 Hubby and son of my heart-can you see how excited they are.

 Yes, I'd say there is danger in skydiving, but not more than driving a car.  Hubby did say it was so weird getting ready to jump out of a perfectly good plane.

 Here are the three; I should have gotten our oldest grandson in the photo too-for his 18th birthday next year, he plans on jumping.

 Here is hubby after the jump-he said it was incredible, but over so fast.

 That smile can't get any bigger.

 They had so  much fun.
Have a blast today!
Noreen

Lyons Outdoor Quilt Show

Hello friends, As I mentioned yesterday hubby and I attended an outdoor quilt show in Lyons on Saturday. It was such a good show and so many wonderful quilts to look at. Here are the rest of them, though there were many more, but we choose the ones we liked the best.  Loved the pastels on this quilt.

This was the center to the next quilt and it was so vibrant and cheerful.

Loved this quilt, it actually won a ribbon-either first of second place.  It just screamed Colorado.  I loved the laser cut appliqués.  Quilting was so good.

Hubby really loved the colors on this quilt-may have to make him one with similar colors/fabrics.

It was the perfect day for this outdoor show; we overheard one gal saying that last  year it was raining.  Lyons Quilt Store is one of my all time favorite stores, just wish it was a bit closer-however I can always find an excuse to go up there.
Yesterday was a busy day~I walked with Hunter, went to the gym and pushed it a bit too hard(as I was sore the rest of the day), did some gardening with hubby prior to his going to play golf and did some sewing.  Today will be another full day as I'm walking with the neighbors and then our oldest granddaughter is coming over to help garden.  I'm sure I'll do some sewing this afternoon; tonight we are going to a very upscale restaurant in town, our family gave us a gc to it for our 40th.  Can't wait.
I hope your week has started out well and you are enjoying life.
Blessings~
Noreen

Outdoor Quilt Show

Good morning to you! I hope you had a great weekend enjoying the last month of summer. On Saturday hubby and I headed up to the mountains, where on of my favorite stores~Lyon's Quilt Store was having a wonderful outdoor show. It did not disappoint and continued inside as well. I couldn't let the opportunity pass me by to purchase a little something~no fabric but a pattern for a large tote. It looks very challenging for me, but with the online tutorial I may be successful. If I struggle I have some good friends that I can seek out for help. Hubby only took photos of the quilts I really liked, so here are a few and tomorrow I'll post a few as well. Enjoy. The first one had lots of embroidery on it and it was so sweet.

It reminded me of the song-Over the hill and through the Woods, to grandmother's house we go.

A square in a square, easy but so pretty.

I love batiks, so what's not to love about this one.

Loved the colors on this one as well as the quilting.

Too cute.

Loved the colors on this one.

Now to the quilted wall hanging pattern I bought last fall in Maine~I call it Autumn in New England. I've hung it in our hall way near the staircase and it fits perfectly.  Needless to say that it is up a bit early, but considering we already feel fall in the air, I'm happy having it done.

Hope you have a great Monday.
Joy to you!
Noreen

During the summer, each week our town puts on a concert with different groups. It's a wonderful way to spend a summer evening and last night's group was country, with some old country and some new country sprinkled in.  It was a beautiful evening and so relaxing; we packed sandwiches and enjoyed ourselves.  Only a few more left, hope to get to all of them.
This morning I attended our mini quilt group and had a great breakfast at a close friends and then learned some new things and shared our projects.  I will be sharing my Autumn in New England quilt soon; it feels so good to have it ready to hang.
Have a fantastic weekend.
Hugs,
Noreen

Happy Thursday to you dear ones,  I hope you've had a great week so far enjoying the last bit of summer.  Here in Colorado, our days have definitely shown we are at the end of the season~my flowers and garden are looking tired and the evenings are definitely cooling off.  Today Hunter and I walked with my gal pal Kam and her pup first thing, then hubby and I went to the gym to work out and finally I met our girls and grands at the pool.  One family starts school next Monday and I'm not sure how often they'll be able to head there.  This afternoon I have to finish the binding on my quilt in order to take it to my mini group tomorrow and share it.  Then I'll put a label on it and hang it up.
It is the pattern I got last fall in Maine and I'm calling it Autumn in New England.  I love it and the only part I've done by hand is the binding.  Tomorrow I have my mini group in the morning, then running to a nursery in the afternoon to get a neighbor a present for her birthday next week and finally tomorrow night we will have the 8 granddaughters for a sleepover.  Saturday, after they all depart, hubby and I will head to an outdoor show in Lyons and finish with a quick trip up to Estes.
Tomorrow night the entire family are meeting at the drive-in to see Christopher Robin.
On Sunday hubby is scheduled to do his sky diving trip; I'm not sure whether I'm going or not.
I hope you are all doing well and that  you have a great weekend.
Hugs,
Noreen

Pelicans

Happy Tuesday to you; each day feels a bit more like fall, which is exciting on one hand because it's my favorite season.  The other side is that we can have a long fall and I'd love that, but I don't want an early winter.  This morning at 7:00 a.m. four neighbors and myself went to our local lake to walk.  I used to walk this all the time with my gal pal Kam, but haven't this summer until today.  It's just about 3 miles and such a lovely walk.  The Pelicans were roosting on logs and it was a quite a sight.
I got him errand ran to the fabric store and now plan on making binding for my harvest  wall hanging.
I have my annual this afternoon and then hubby and I will go to our county store to look at the quilts.
Hope you have a fantastic day!
Noreen

A First Quilt

Happy Thursday to you all.  You all know that one of my passions is quilting and several granddaughters have decided to make their own quilts-which delights me no end.
This summer Carrie's 2nd daughter, Miss O, made the decision and I was so pleased.  She was one of the four granddaughters that I taught basic sewing to a number of years ago.  At the time, she was still pretty young, but cooking is her passion and I totally understood her not wanting to continue sewing-after all she was still pretty young.  We have gotten together several times, to get her started and do the first number of steps; I'd send her home and tell her she could finish up on her machine.  Monday afternoon she came over and we began sewing the snowballs together and she went home with three rows done.  I just got this a little bit ago....I'm so excited for her.  I love the colors and the fact that she arranged the blocks how she wanted them.  Next will come sandwiching them together and then machine quilting them.  All of the girls love my machine, do it the ease of threading and cutting.  Next year maybe she and her older sister will enter the quilts in our County Fair.  It's o.k. if they don't, I'm just pleased that they are wanting to make their own.
Joy to  you!
Noreen