Road to California 3

Greetings to you this Wednesday! I hope your week is going well; Hunter is finally starting to act like himself, though I can tell he's a little sore yet. Today hubby and I hit the gym and then this afternoon I had two granddaughters who came over to help Nana organize her fabric. One of the interesting questions they asked was if I was OCD about organization like there mom-No I am not. Wish I was more of that, but often in the middle of a project I just toss all the left overs in my closet and say I'll organize them later. I do, just not as quickly as I should. Just being honest here. So periodically I hire one or two of the girls to help refold my fabric and put it in the proper bin.
 So this quilt I fell in love with and it was a barn outside of Missouri Star Quilt town. It reminds me of Tennessee and all the sights I love, as well as a place I hope to get to in the next year.

This quilt was so incredible and looks more like a painting.

So many talented quilters out there, just amazing-yes I said it twice.  So much talent, at a time when many quilt stores are closing due to lack of sales.  We have a saying in our mini group that we all need to shop locally to keep those small stores going.
So before I left on my trip, hubby and I ordered Super Bowl t-shirts for our second favorite team.  If you've followed me for any length of time, you should be able to figure it out.  I'll give you a hint-the color is red-LOL.
We will be going to a neighbors for a Super Bowl party and it should be great fun.  I have seen some of the commercials  already, not overly impressed but hoping that Budweiser has their horses in one with a dog.
Have a great day!
Hugs,
Noreen

Road To California 2

Happy Tuesday to you all. One thing that was interesting for all of us at the quilt show was the quilts that won First Place vs the Second and Third place winners. We all understand the different classes, but like most quilt shows we've attended, it seemed to be personal preference. Enjoy.
Again, I love the eyes on the animal portraits.

Traditional, but vibrant blue colors~love them.

Love the colors in this quilt, and I can imagine making it on a bigger scale.

The floral quilts were beautiful.

Love this guy.

Notice how the quilting really highlights the scene.

It's fun going back through the photos; it was such an amazing trip that I'd do again.  Of course, the gals are all talking about Houston next year and Barbara and I are talking about Missouri Star Quilt Town.
The sun is out today and feels so good.  Hunter won't be able to take a walk, due to his harness, for another week or so.
Hope you have a joy filled day!
Hugs,
Noreen

Road To California 1

Happy Monday to you! I had such fun at Road To California quilt show; friends, fabric and food all made for a wonderful time. The days were exhausting with being at the show from 9-5 each day; lots of items were purchased by each of us. If you are a quilter, you'll enjoy all the photos; if not scroll through quickly.  On many of the quilts, the quilting really pops.

Not my style, but appreciated the quilting.

I especially loved the animal portraits; I have a friend who does dog portraits and has been wanting me to try~I love them, but have to many other quilts to make.

This otter was so cute.

The Gazelle has false eyelashes-so pretty.

The eyes on some of the animals were so life like.

After we arrived Wednesday afternoon, we had a quick bite to eat and then headed over to the show for the preview.  It was so fun to get a taste of what was there; we knew we'd be shopping at the vendors booths most of the next day.  The weather was nice, but the food just marginal.  About the only really good meal I had was at In-N-Out on Thursday evening.  I have spent my wad on this trip and so will have to budget myself for the remainder of the year.  It's a self imposed budget, due to the many projects I have going on.  Right now we are waiting to pick up our Hunter from the vets clinic-he had 8 teeth removed today and a lipoma as well-he'll be happy to be home, but I'm sure he'll have a couple of painful days.
Hope you have a fantastic day; I'll be back with more photos.
Hugs,
Noreen

Hello friends, I have been setting goals for my quilting and last night checked the first one off my list for this year. It was brought to my attention that one granddaughter only had her baby quilt and not a second one like her sisters....so what's a nana to do but make one for her. I delivered it and she was so surprised~made my heart sing.

Tomorrow I fly to southern California for the Road to California Quilt show; I'm meeting my best friend there and several gals I knew from Santa Rosa.  It will be such a fun time; it's paradise for us quilters-friends, fabrics and quilts plus lots of products to look at.  Nice warm weather won't hurt either.  I'll be back Saturday night and will probably be exhausted.
Enjoy your week.
Hugs,
Noreen

A Winter's Sky

Hello Friends,  We have had a good couple of days!  I joined a quilting club that meets monthly to make wall hangings; it's a good way to continue to grow in the skill of quilting and appliqué.  I took the class last Saturday and am partially done with January's project, a cute Snowman.  I'm trying to finish getting things accomplished before I head to Southern California for a quilt convention.  Our weather has still been so cold in the mornings, but today we got up into the high 30's during the day.  Look at this gorgeous sunset-hubby was able to take it tonight.  Nothing more beautiful that a winter sky.
Hope you had a great weekend and that your week will be productive.
Hugs,
Noreen

Hello friends, After our full day out in the cold and snowy terrain, the family gathered for games all Saturday afternoon and followed them with our version of Charcuterie boards. Mind you that with 17 of us, that's a lot of food. One of the best games we learned was Empires which is a fun game for a large group.  Hubby brought our beautiful board that the boys made for us last Christmas.  We filled it with cheese, salami, summer sausage, grapes, pickles and crackers.  Believe it or not, no one went hungry.

Hard to believe that the kitchen held so many of us; however when you are preparing food for our family, everyone chips in.

Our day was productive; I took Hunter out this morning to walk with Kim and Riley. It was cold, but felt good to be together again-seems like forever since we've been able to walk with the pups. Afterwards, we took my car to the carwash and then I came home and started sewing. I got things ready for the class on Saturday and finally finished the last border for a quilt I'd put aside and pieced the back. What to do when you don't have enough fabric for a single panel; in my world, you piece the remaining fabric from the front, for the back. Tomorrow, aside from a dental cleaning, I plan to get the quilt sandwiched and ready to quilt. I'd love to have it quilted by the weekend, but time will tell.
With concern I'm watching the news on Iran.  Prayers going up for our soldiers.
Blessings,
Noreen

The Rockies Were Calling

Happy Monday to you dear friends, I hope you had a wonderful weekend! For Christmas this year we gave both daughters families a weekend up in Estes Park; we have done this on a regular basis until we gave them a week in Southern California two years ago. Everyone was so excited to get this gift and it meant lots of fun times for all of us. Friday hubby and I left shortly after lunch so we could drive into Rocky Mountain National Park to see how deep the snow was. The conditions were cold, blue sky, snowing and so very windy. Part of the road in was closed due to heavy snow and gale force winds. He joked that we should get out and hike around one of our favorite trails, but  I quickly said "I don't think so".

This photo was taken yesterday after walking around Sprague Lake; it was much more compacted and an easy walk.  Her is our oldest Carrie with her hubby.

All of us at Bear Lake; what a workout it was.  The snow was about 2' deep and the wind was bitterly cold.

We spent Saturday afternoon, after a Starbucks visit, playing games before have a wonderful dinner together.  I also found a new store and bought a sign that reads Blessed Beyond Measure.
Yesterday we headed home mid morning, stopped at Costco and hubby and I went out to lunch.  The afternoon was spent doing laundry and just catching up with unpacking etc.  This week will be somewhat busy-back to the gym and an errand in the afternoon.  I've got to see my dentist for a cleaning on Wednesday and then on Friday we have our quilt mini group gathering. Saturday a close friend and I are taking a class at a store that is a year long club and each month we will make a new wall hanging.  Life is good and we are indeed blessed!
Hugs to you.
Noreen

So the journey into the new year begins; I wonder if everyone else just slipped back into their normal routine.  We got up early and took Hunter to his grooming appointment, then went to the gym to work out, after that ran to the bank, Michaels and Walmart to look for a 4.5-5' artificial tree for our basement.  Walmart had two, but they were very cheesy looking so we will look at garage sales for next year.  It was so fun to host a party here for Christmas that I told hubby we'd have to do it again.
We don't want a tall tree, but it made our  basement so much more festive.
It's a beautiful afternoon here in Northern Colorado, the sun is out and temp is 49 degrees with snow melting.  I just finished placing an order on Chewy and plan to head downstairs to sew; we will be in the mountains for the weekend and I've just got to get back into the swing of things.
I hope you had a wonderful new years and that this coming year will be filled with blessings.
Noreen

From our home to yours, we wish you a New Year filled with love, peace, joy, happiness and grace.

I'll be away until next week, but wish you the best for this New Year.
Noreen