Baby Madison's Quilt

Amy at Park CityGirl is hosting a virtual quilt show. She has asked us to post about our favorite quilt and the story behind it. Since I have only completed 3 quilts it was easy to pick a favorite. This baby quilt was my first attempt at free motion quilting. I was so scared but I am happy with how it turned out. Below is the original post about this quilt. Thanks for stopping by!

I finished my first baby quilt - and just in time! Little Madison was born yesterday. I'm waiting to get her weight and length before I give it to her so I can embroider it on the back. I'm very happy with how it turned out - this was my first attempt at free motion quilting. I followed this tutorial with a few changes in the size.

Here is close-up of the quilting. I hope Madison's mommy loves this as much as I do!!

The Big 4-0

Well. It happened. I turned 40 yesterday. I admit, this has been a tough one for me. 40. It sounds so old.

It seems like such a short time ago that I was in high school, then college, then a single mom of 2 small girls.. Where did all the time go? I try to think back on those years and so many of them are a blur. I think about the dreams I had as a child. So many left unrealized, as is the case with most childhood dreams.

My life path has not always been easy, but it is these challenges I have overcome that have made me who I am today. I like who I am today. I have a great husband, two fantastic daughters, a comfortable home, and a family and friends who love me.

I am 40. I wonder what my next 40 years will bring?

Fantastic mail day!

Here at my house we have either "good mail days" (no bills) or "bad mail days" (bills). Today was a FANTASTIC mail day!! No bills and my order from Etsy seller Mimis arrived! I got a bundle of 6 half yard cuts from Amy Butler and Joel Dewberry. Aren't the colors delicious! They remind me of rainbow sherbet. Now I have to work up the courage to cut into them! eeeek!

100 Things...

So, this is going around some blogs I read....here's my version. You too can play along....cut and paste into your own post. BOLD the items you've done!

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland or Disney World
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood or platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle-with someone else
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Totally copied a post from someone else's blog to your own

Blog Swap

Time for another Swap-Bot update! Today's swap is a Blog link swap. I sent the link to my blog to 5 people and in return I will receive links to 5 other blogs. Here are the links I have received so far:

http://fibrejunky.blogspot.com/
This is a great blog about stamping and paper crafting. She does lovely work!

http://a1nnie.blogspot.com/
A blog about day-to-day life. A fun read - I like her "101 things in 101 days" list.

http://joanoh2.blogspot.com
This is a very fun Blog - the grandma got run over by a flying saucer is a must read!

Swappy Goodness!

I love Swap-bot. It's a fun site where you sign up for swaps and you send and receive fun packages in the mail. Who doesn't love getting fun mail? This is what was waiting for me when I got home from work today:

The swap was a sewing supplies scavenger hunt. We were to send our partner something red, something black & white, something with polka-dots, something sharp and something in spring colors. As you can see - my partner did very well! She also added some cute snowman and penguin buttons, just for the heck of it. Here's what I sent to my partner:

I also added a little zippered coin purse I made with a couple strands of beads inside, just for fun.

I still need to send out my friendship quilt squares, my 10 random things and a handbag made from thrifted clothing. I'll post more pictures when they are ready to go.

25 things...

I was tagged on Facebook to write 25 random things about me. I decided to post it here too,


1. I sometimes feel like the only person from high school who is still in Cortland
2. I wish Amy and Ellen lived closer so we could get together more often
3. My Seester is my best friend
4. The death of my Dad in 2004 impacted me more than I let on
5. I hate to cry and it is very rare that I allow myself to
6. I miss my girls being small, but I love the young ladies they have grown up to be
7. I love to travel but don't get to do it often
8. I have a lead foot and I tend to tailgate people who aren't going fast enough for me
9. I worry about my Mom and wish she could find happiness
10. I could live on bread and pasta
11. I love animals and have 2 rescued dogs, 4 cats and a rabbit
12. I am a sucker for my daughter Taylor's big, blue eyes (see the rabbit in #11)
13. I am terrible at handling money and never balance the checking account
14. I pay way too many overdraft fees (see #13)
15. I want to live near the ocean someday - but not too far south. I still want all 4 seasons, I just don't want winter to last for 7 months! Cape Cod, maybe?
16. I went through a lot of losers before meeting my hubby. He is the sweetest man I know and he has been a great dad to my girls.
17. I hate housework and if I ever win the lottery the first thing I'll do is hire a full-time housekeeper
18. I want to go back to school, but I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up
19. I wish I could get up north to visit my family more often
20. I believe in ghosts
21. When I drive through wealthy neighborhoods I get jealous. Not that I'm destitute, I just want a 4000sf house (see #17) and a Lexus...
22. I spend way too much time online
23. I have the attention span of a gerbil and am easily distracted
24. I have a voracious sweet tooth. Why wasn't I born with a vegetable tooth??
25. I am very happy that so many people are on FB! Makes me think back to high school and all the great times I had.