Family and Shopping

Hello my friends! How have you been? It seems like my posts are becoming a weekly thing. I think once the school year begins I'll get back into blogging more often. It's just been quite busy! My sister Kathleen and her daughter came for 4 days last week...we had such a great time! The kids loved having their cousin and Auntie here. We spent one day at the lake, one rainy day shopping, and lots of time playing and hanging out.

Kathleen brought me these cute little gifties...that cinnamon bun candle smells soooo good! And it's in a real mini cast-iron skillet. The Welcome Friends figure fits in perfectly with my house....she knows me very well!

One of the things on our to-do list was to go to Christmas Tree Shops. Kathleen had seen this post and got a hankering to do some shopping. I got some cute autumn items...

And some farmstyle metal baskets...

I love this sign, I hung it up in my kitchen...

This next one wasn't a CTS purchase, but I have to show it to you anyway...Cath Kidston stickers and labels! Squeal! Oh they are so cute. If you're interested, I got it on Amazon.

Annabelle and Mason started swimming lessons again this week, so we have that in the mornings, but besides that we are taking it easy. Playdates and stuff but at a slow pace. Aaah! It's nice!

♥ Jen

My day's list

I'm just going to make a list of what I did today, because it felt like a lot so I want to see if it really was. Ready? Go!

Up at 6 with Mason, made coffee, fed the cats, checked emails, made breakfasts, showered, made beds, cleaned breakfast dishes, emptied dishwasher, started three loads of laundry, took kids food shopping, unloaded/put away groceries, supervised playdate, made lunches, took kids to library, got wine and gas (for the car!), came home, cleaned three bathrooms, dusted, polished, vacuumed all carpeting, cleaned all wood floors, cleaned upstairs windows, put away laundry, straightened up kids' rooms, playroom, and sewing/dining room...heated up dinner, cleaned up, cleaned top of stove, spent time with kids, put kids to bed.

OK, I think I have my answer! G'night!

♥ Jen

Nearly bit off more than I could chew

Boy, I've been gone awhile, haven't I? I apologize. Summers are tough for blogging (not that I would really know; this is my first summer with a blog)...so far I haven't had a whole lot of time for myself. But that's okay, I've been enjoying a change in the routine. Today we went to a beach on a nearby lake. We packed a pinic, brought sand toys, etc. Now I'm home all showered with dry clothes. And moisturizer. Love that feeling!

Anyway, I had seen this purse in the summer issue of Quilts and More and thought it would be fun to make. See it there on the upper right?

That's actually the back of the bag. The front is appliqued, which was definitely the most fun part. I have never machine appliqued before. It was really cool and easy. Much quicker than hand applique. I used mostly Fig Tree Whimsy fabrics. A jelly roll is really handy for the patchwork part. Here's mine all finished...

And here's a better look at the applique....

Note to self: read through pattern before deciding whether to make something or not! There was a LOT involved, more than I expected. It took me several days to make. It's a pretty good size tote bag, so some of the pieces were large, larger than my cutting mat. Then there were a few "specialty" items I had to buy...cotton webbing for the handles, heavyweight fusible interfacing, and eyelets. Plus it took a lot of fabric.  Here are some detail shots. First, the button closure...

The pockets...

The side eyelets and ties...

And the back...

Those eyelets were kind of cool to put in. You have to hammer them in on concrete, really hard...my kids thought I was nuts!

Now that that's done I can move onto my next project! Hmmm, what will it be??

♥ Jen

Recent retailing

Hi everyone! Thanks for listening to me complain in my last post. Things are looking up...it's still hot but not humid (until tomorrow anyway), so I feel like I can BREATHE. Swimming and softball are over so there won't be much rushing around this week. Yaay!

I've done a little retail therapy lately. Yesterday I went out (by myself!) to Hobby Lobby and Christmas Tree Shops. I got a few goodies at my first stop.

I love that piece of homespun, and it was less than a buck. Nice jumbo rick rack too! I've never seen flowered rick rack before, have you? I had to get some. I also got this adorable fall pumpkin. I know, it's early for fall but decorations were 50% off. And believe it or not, Christmas decor is coming out! So buying one piece for fall didn't seem that bad. :-)

Matches the table runner!

Then at Christmas Tree Shops I got some great stuff. This basket for Annabelle's room...

And a couple of these placemats too ($1.29 each)...

Aren't these glass jars adorable? A buck!

I love these little wooden apple bowl fillers...three dollars for two bags. I'm telling you, the prices at this store are incredible.

This pillow is for the guest room...isn't the cross-stitching so pretty? $9.99!

I got my wonderful order from Miss Sharon yesterday. Have you checked out her website yet, Daisy Cottage Quilting? Great, great stuff. I got the CUTEST fabric from her...I love these two lines, Early Bird and Flower Sugar. Also a really pretty book and stork-shaped embroidery scissors.

These little toasters kill me! ♥

We're going to bbq some chicken tonight and enjoy the last day of somewhat decent temperatures before it gets hot again this week. I hope everyone is having a great day!

♥ Jen

Trying to keep cool

This heat is awful. I cannot tolerate it one little bit. It's been 95+ for the whole week and humid to boot. Thank goodness for air conditioning, but there are times one has to be outside. A and M both have swimming lessons at the high school pool, then she has softball camp in the afternoons. In the brutal p.m. I'm grumpy, lethargic and unmotiviated. Hmmph! Man I hope it cools off soon.

I did make June's block for my coffee cup quilt. A little backwards, but now I'm all caught up. It looks crooked in the picture, but it's actually not.

I like how the striped fabric is a little unexpected...it kind of blends into the background but I like that every now and then. I like the summertime-ness of this block. A not-too-hot, pleasant summertime. Not that I know what that feels like.

Ok, you don't want to hear me whine anymore (I don't even want to hear it), so I'll go for now. Stay cool all!

♥ Jen

Happy Independence Day

I hope you're enjoying the holiday weekend if you're in the U.S. Another tummy trouble day for me so I made the July block for my coffee cup quilt.

I love red, white and blue for a color palette. It seemed like an obvious choice for this month. I have the fabrics cut for June, just going a bit backwards here!

Here's a pic of one of our Annabelle hydrangeas that are in full bloom on this hot summer day!

♥ Jen

With much love

My tummy was bothering me today, so I took the opportunity to stay in and finish Annabelle's quilt. Yep, it's done! The binding's down, the label's on, and it's washed, dried, and awesomely puckery. Annabelle really likes it. I spread it out on her bed for pictures, although it wasn't made to be a bed-size quilt. She's got a full and it doesn't quite make it. But it'll be fine for snuggling! I still have to make a pillow or two.

New bookcase in the background...yet unfilled

I'm so glad it's completed!! Now I can work on my coffee quilt BOM that is two months behind. Enjoy your 4th of July! We're going to the Fairgrounds tomorrow night, where the Syracuse Symphony plays and then a fireworks show follows. It's great free fun...we bring a picnic, drinks, and enjoy the sounds/sights. Anyway have fun whatever you do too!

♥ Jen

One stitch at a time

Stillllllllll hand-stitching the binding down...but making progress! In-between pedicures and drinking coffee, of course.

Happy 4th of July weekend! I'm hoping to get this durned quilt done (label too)!

♥ Jen