Catching Up

I've been remiss in posting on my blog, for what I thought was a month, but now realize was almost all summer. I went on vacation for the month of July and didn't get back to it. We've had some family events that lead me to be a bit more stressed than normal. I am rarely stressed, so the past few months have tested me.

In July I took almost 3 full weeks off of work and in the midst of my time off Jennifer and Colleen, blogging friends from Indianapolis, IN and Omaha, NE both visited the Black Hills with their families on their vacations. Our families were able to get together in the Badlands on the hottest day of the year, but we had an incredible time meeting. I had met each of them, but not their families and they hadn't met, so it was an incredibly fun bloggers reunion. We've been friends for about 11 years. 

Our kids had fun climbing and playing while we had a picnic.

In August my husband's grandpa passed away in KS, so we made a trip to KS/MO to visit.

We purchased a new camper, furnace/central air, a shed, and my husband has a new truck coming, so lots of changes in our home life too. Cleaning out the old camper and setting up the new one has been fun. We have a lot more storage. We've been moving stuff around in the garage and out to the shed to make room for my MIL's new car as well. My husband finished his mom's bathroom just in the nick of time for her hip surgery in September and she's currently recovering from it. I've been playing chauffeur and personal assistant to her for the past couple weeks and have a good month left before she's back to work.
What's in store for me? A work trip to Detroit in 2 weeks with the added perk of seeing Regina, one of my best and oldest blogging friends. I'm so looking forward to her being able to see me while I'm at a work conference for UPCEA.
I've got a few finishes to share, but if you'd like to follow my current progress like my Instagram page or friend me on Facebook. I'm much more current on both of those social media sites.

Stash Report May 2016

This month got away from me and I knew it would! I traveled to Omaha, NE for a Regional NACADA conference for work. I was so lucky that Colleen could meet me for supper and visiting one night while I was there. We had an awesome time catching up and it was like spending time with an old friend, although it was the first time we met in person. We've been blogging friends for over 10 years.



I put the blocks together for my mini granny square quilt and was able to get it quilted and bound and ready to go into the quilt show this weekend.

Mathew and I went to the quilt shop one day and he "needed" this fabric, so I made him a small bag to take to grandpa and grandma's house. I used the Buzz & Woody fabric on the inside, so it is reversible.

While I was traveling I was able to sew a few more blocks for my Goodnight Irene quilt (which started out as Briar Rose). It's been a leader/ender quilt for years, but I've started working on it while I travel so I can get it closer to completion.

These are the blocks I made when I was in Brookings later in the month for a work retreat.

I'm slowly, but surely getting closer to having enough blocks. I've been making a few at a time, so it's moving forward.

I was able to finish up my gingham block for the FGV quilt along I am doing, but I got 2 blocks behind at the end of the month. Time to get caught back up.

We spent Memorial Day weekend in MO visiting my husband's family and went to Bass Pro Shops.




Needless to say... I didn't get much sewing done and only 2 finishes, so not much to show for it. I did get to a few quilt shops, but kept my fabric purchases at bay, so I did pretty good.

Fabric bought this month: 5.75 yards
Fabric bought this year: 48.75 yards
Fabric used this month: 3.75 yards
Fabric used this year: 139 yards
Net Fabric used this year: 90.25 yards!

Friendship Blocks

I received a couple more blocks in the mail and just had to show them off!
Colleen sent this beautiful block. She also sent the cutest shirt for Mikaela! I'll have to show it off soon, but it's been too hot to put it on her yet.

Jen Vogel sent this block, so now I'm only waiting on one more to arrive. I'm so excited to get them all together and lay them out. I'll probably end up making more to go with them, but so far I love them!

Changing Pad Cover

Saturday night I decided to try the pattern Colleen had used and my measurements were a lot more accurate in making the changing pad cover. I still didn't follow the pattern completely because I used the serger, but it turned out great. It was really quick and easy with the serger. This is my 17th finish for the year! Woohoo! I've done a lot of small projects and it feels great to have gotten so much accomplished already. I've used up more of my stash than I've bought too, so I'm doing great this year.

Virtual Baby Shower

Yesterday some of my online buddies held an online virtual baby shower for me. Having never done this before, I wasn't sure what to expect, but it turned out to be a ton of fun. Thurs, Fri, & Sat. boxes arrived on my doorstep from Target & the USPS. I kept them all closed up until the shower, so even I didn't know who had sent gifts. Colleen organized the shower on Google Wave and Jen B., Linda, Cindy, & I were able to chat away. We chatted for an hour or so and played a game using my name and coming up with crazy baby names. I got to open gifts and I promised to take pictures so everyone could see what I received.
Colleen sent two pink changing pad covers (changing pad is being sent), a ribbon blankie, a book
Are you my mother? (which I loved as a child), and 2 infant gowns.

Cindy sent baby monitors which I love and can't wait to try out.

Linda sent the Slumber Buddy which plays sounds and has a night light to calm the baby to sleep. Paul was already playing with it last night. He's getting excited to be a daddy.

Trish sent the Musical Mobile, hat & booties, and 3 sleepers.

Jen had previously sent the pack and play and it's already set up, collecting quilts and blankets for the new baby. She made me promise to open it as soon as it was received, so I happily obliged. We can't wait to have our new baby in it. It should be here in less than a month and a half!
It was so much fun opening the gifts and talking about them, but I promised I'd share, so they could all see what I received. Thanks girls for such a fun shower and taking the time to chat. It was wonderful!
For pictures, all the gifts were placed on the backing of the quilt I finished this weekend, so stay tuned for pictures of my hospital quilt. I figure it's always cold in those places, so I made myself a quilt to put in the hospital bag to keep warm. I absolutely love the backing fabric and have been saving it for over 2 years to use on a special quilt for me.

Colleen's 100th Post Prize

Colleen, an awesome blogging buddy from Nebraska, had her 100th post a while back and drew my name for her giveaway. She made me this amazing wall hanging with stitching, applique, and the coolest buttons on it. The snowflake stitches are super cute. I absolutely love it! I found a hanger in my sewing room and decided to hang it in my office until we decorate at home for Christmas. Thank you so much Colleen, for such an incredible gift.





100 Blocks 100 Days ~ 221 Blocks/ Day 88