The Last Day of the Year!!!

And now it is time to make resolutions...I love making resolutions..or maybe just making lists of things I want to accomplish.  The best part of making lists of things "to do" is crossing them off as they are finished.  I have a few I carry over into each list...for one, my mom loved to embroider and she made the most lovely set of blocks of every state bird!  They are true works of art...and one of my goals each year is to take them and put them into a quilt!  I am very determined that this is the year!!!

My family is mostly in Illinois, and some of them get down here every once in awhile.  Just last month, my brother and sister-in-law were here.  We took them  to the newly opened Fort Worth Museum of Science and History...a wonderful addition to the Cultural District of Fort Worth.  Here they are checking out one of the displays.

We also went to the Pate Museum not too far from our house.  We had never been there and read that is closing down as of, well, right now!!  I had no idea how many vintage cars they have there!  We really enjoyed seeing them.  The car on the left is the taxi cab that Lee Harvey Oswald jumped into after he shot JFK.  And there were many more with varied historys!

And our big third snow storm of the year...on the 28th, was all melted by the next morning!  That is what we like about Texas snows!  Very pretty, but they don't last long....usually!

It Has Been Awhile!

With the month (and the year) about to end, I thought I would do a little catching up on my blog.

This picture was taken 46 years ago!!  Today is our anniversary...we are going to spend a very quiet day at home..the weather outside is awful...we are in the midst of our third snow storm this year...and although it is beautiful, we think we can enjoy the day staying home just fine, thank you very much!!

Christmas activities galore...first, a Christmas party with my Guild.  Each year the board decorates tables for everyone at our meeting place; everyone brings goodies...a real feast!  And we don't have a guest speaker; we just have a massive show of all the quilts, etc that everyone has been working on all year!

This is my table...we also have "favors" for the ones who sit at our table...usually a fat quarter and whatever else.  I found these cute Christmas mugs and added a hot chocolate packet and candy with my fat quarter.

This is the quilt I had ready for show and tell.  I made it for a friend of mine who is Hispnanic so I named it "Salsa Snail".  She had admired another quilt of mine which I didn't want to make again so this is a somewhat lookalike to that one.  I gave it to her yesterday and she seemed really pleased.

And we had EIGHT deer on our side lawn this morning...to help us celebrate our anniversary...I think they are from Santa, on vacation...resting up from their journey last week!

Winter Time...and Christmas

With company coming tomorrow (the poker bunch!) and my brother and sister-in-law coming Sunday, I decided we had better get started on the decorations!  Dick has put up the wreaths outside...this picture is really from a couple of years ago, but the wreaths and house look the same, just no snow now.  And I am working on my wall hangings, Santas, tree inside, etc.  Today started out cold and wet but ended up sunny and warmer...perfect for outdoor decorating....unlike our usual choice of days...really wintery!

I have a lot of Christmas shopping to do for everyone, but did get my gifts for my Illinois people (where my family is from) so my brother can take it all back with him when he goes home.  My sister-in-law is originally from Texas, so they are spending time with lots of family while in the state.

Fall Swap

This is my Fall Swap that I am mailing out.  My trade person lives in Italy.  I am hoping to get a swap from an overseas country.   The cost of mailing is a little more, but fun to get things from "far away places"!

This mini quilt is about 20" square.  The center was an extra Oak Leaf from a table runner I had made, then I just added the darker borders and set it on point.

We are supposed to maybe get more snow tomorrow.  Dick and I are going to the Kimbell, out to lunch, to the eye doc for a checkup, and then to the Y on our way home, so I am hoping the weather isn't too bad.

Looking Kind of Wintery!

 This is what we woke up to this morning!  What a surprise!  Very pretty, big flakes of snow fell for about three hours, then the sun came out briefly and it all went away...that is the kind of snowstorm we like!  It is forcast to snow more later on in the week; this is kind of early for Texas!

And I shot a deer from my kitchen window yesterday!  (with my camera). This is probably the culprit who has been eating my flowers!  and she was having such a good time, she forgot that day time had come!!  Usually we don't see deer much after dawn..this was about 9:00 AM.

Thanksgiving week is over and all the company and  most of the food is gone...we had such a great time with all.  My daughter Andrea is also a quilter so she went with me to my StudioQ meeting Monday.  Our "recipe" ingredient this time was "Time".  I made an hour glass out of fabric and clear plastic, filling it with rice,  to go with my blocks on games...I may even complete a quilt of that nature with all of them sometime!

Another fun thing we did this past weekend was to go to Blue Mesa with all the family for their brunch.  I still had not used my birthday coupon from them so it was a good time to go.  Surprisingly, they were not just swamped...at least not at 10:00 when we went.  Usually there are long lines...I guess everyone was still full from Thanksgiving.  If you live in the Ft Worth area, you can go to the restaurant website http://www.bluemesa.com/  and sign up for their Chilihead Club.  They will send you a coupon on your birthday for a free brunch, and you will get monthly coupons for various items on their menu.  Blue Mesa is our favorite Mexican restaurant!!!  The cuisine is more New Mexico rather than Tex-mex.

Thanksgiving...Still Celebrating!

Autumn is finally here!  The leaves are turning and helping us celebrate Thanksgiving!  What a great week we have had!  Still eating leftovers, turkey and all....now it is not just the turkey who was stuffed!  Andrea and I have been sewing like fury....she (at 11:00 PM ) is still in my studio sewing away.  She is working on a really cute Christmas pattern.


My turkey wall hanging is one I made several years ago from fabric I bought at Keepsake Quilters' in New Hampshire.  That was on the first big trip Dick and I ever took...East for the Fall colors.

Andrea posted this picture of me from 1965 on her blog, so I thought for those of you that don't see hers, I should put it on mine.  I was 25 and that was probably my first (maybe second) turkey.  We were living in Alaska on a shoe string, so having a big ol' bird like that was a real  treat.  He was baked in an oven that would barely hold him...a small apartment stove.  The sink in the back ground was an ugly double sink with the removable wooden cover for one side.  I remember that I didn't know the giblets were in the turkey, so they got baked inside...in the little paper sack!  Those were the days...this looks like a perfect "Betty Crocker" moment!

A Mystery Solved!.....and......

A couple of days ago, Dick went out to get the paper and noticed that something had been nibbling on my begonias.  They have been just gorgeous 'way past their usual decline time.  The next day, he came in with the paper and stated that the mystery was solved!  Not only did we discover that DEER like begonias, but that they also love pansies!  So while we lay sleeping, those beautiful creatures that I love to watch, were chowing down on my flower garden!!  Apparently they don't care for geraniums or kale so I will know next year what to plant more of and what not to plant at all!!

And....what a nice weekend we had...our kids took us out to lunch on Saturday.  We all met Andrea halfway in Arlington and had a great time together.  We made our plans for Thanksgiving...really looking forward to having everyone here.  Andrea is going to spend nearly a week with us....she and I are going to have a "sew-a-thon" all weekend, then go with me to my studioQ meeting on Monday.

I purchased my turkey today...the ol' boy is in the fridge as we speak just thawing out!  Actually, it is a "young turkey"...and I also will have a ham and all the other stuff!!  I plan to cook tomorrow, Wednesday, and Thursday, then  I will not have to cook again for at least a week!!!

Happy Thanksgiving to All if I don't get back on here before then.!!

I Have a New Interest!

Just what I need....a new passion!  I really enjoyed the workshop and hearing our guild speaker today and yesterday.  The artist is Larkin Van Horn and I love her work!  She really goes beyond "beading"; I am very interested in trying some of her techniques to embellish my works.  The workshop yesterday was great...I learned so much...and had a terrific time with all my fellow guild members who were there.  Then today at the guild meeting, Larkin lectured and showed slides of even more of her work and the beaded art of others who have learned from her.  She lives on Whidby Island, WA. We visited there about four years ago...beautiful spot.  I could go back there for a visit!

Larkin asked that we not post any of her works on blogs, etc., pictures taken were just for our own private interest. She has a lot of her art on her website www.larkinarts.com if anyone would like to look her up.  We are hoping to have her back sometime to do maybe a two day workshop, because yesterday, we just had time to get many of the basics down. 

Tomorrow, lunch with all the kids to celebrate my and Dick's birthdays.  We were heading for Alaska when Dick had his birthday, and mine was in the middle of the week...and all these kids and grands have jobs and school.  Looking forward to seeing all of them.

Great Day!!

I am ready for bed but wanted to comment on what a great day I have had!!  The weather is perfect...I have been with my best friends including Dick,  playing poker and eating...and I acutally came out ahead!  I have either talked to  or heard from my girls and grands!  I am going to  a guild workshop tomorrow to learn more about embellishing quilts/beading.  And I am celebrating my birthday, so today is the first day of the rest of my life, which I plan to live to the fullest for a long time to come!!

And one more thing...

I did forget to mention that while we were at the Kemper Art Museum in Kansas City, we were very excited to see an exhibit titled "Three Generations".... an exhibit of the three Wyeths...N.C., Andrew, and James.  These are a few of  my most favorite artists.  Most of the painting there were by Andrew...his work is so realistic.  Because it was a traveling exhibit, I wasn't able to take any pictures of it. 

There had been a three generation collection in Dallas many years ago, but not any of the same pictures.  The Dallas one focused on N.C. Wyeth's illustrations for books....Treasure Island, Kidnapped, etc.  The originals were enormous...larger than life. Our first big trip after retirement was East and the Wyeth home/studio at Chadd's Ford, PA was one of our stops.  Such a thrill to actually stand where the masters stood and lived!

Tomorrow a Guild Board meeting then lunch with an old friend.

Visit to Missouri

This past week, Dick and I went to Missouri to attend the funeral of an elderly aunt and to visit with family.  We made better time driving than we thought we would so we had time to stop by an art museum in Kansas City on our way through.  The Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art was new to us as it was built after we were in the area....a lovely gallery...located right across the street from the Art Insitute of KC and next door to their ceramic building....all a very pretty area with lots of older buildings as well as some ultra modern ones...a good mix!
 
Wouldn't this painting make an interesting quilt?

This is a wall sculpture at the Kemper.  The attendents were setting up for a wedding reception to be held there.  I was impressed with the nearly mirror like floors!

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The Kemper is very proud of their giant spider outside the entrance and on the right is a sculpture on the inside entrance.

The Crying Giant is also a very favorite of the Kemper, outside also on the grounds.

On the right is the Nelson-Atkins Art Gallery of Kansas City.  When I lived there, the new, modern buildings were not there.  They have been added, to much controversy I am sure!  We didn't have time to visit there, too, so will have to plan to do that another visit.

On the left is the entrance to the Art Institute and the ceramic department building at the Institute on the right.



We had wonderful fall weather as you can tell.  Kansas City is a beautiful city....very classy!  A wonderful mix of old and new.  I think in my next life, I will attend the Art Institute there...wish I had known about it fifty years ago!

We also came home with a bushel and a half of Jonathon apples which we can not get in Texas so I am busy peeling and freezing...making pies and apple butter!

One Very Lucky Lady!

   My studioQ group met last Monday...had a great time...and great inspiration from all.  I am lucky to be with such a talented group of ladies.  Our recipe word for the month was "Magical"; I thought about doing an optical illusion (also suggested by my quilter daughter) but couldn't find a simple one, so I chose to do a take off of Carol Bryer Fallert's Flying Geese, something I have been wanting to try anyway.

      

I also have a couple of other reasons to fee lucky...on the trip to Houston, our bus guide held several drawings to keep us entertained.  One of my two buddies and I both won the drawing for a $25.00 gift certificate from a local Fort Worth quilt shop, Berry Patch.

And my last "lucky" occurence...at the show I had put my name and "blog" about the show in a drawing at the Quilting Arts booth.  I wasn't there for the drawing on Saturday night and as I hadn't heard anything from them, I just assumed someone else had won so thought no more about it.  Then when I got home from my studioQ meeting Monday, I had an email congratulating me on the fact that my name had been drawn!  Was I ever excited!  Yesterday this big box from Cloth, Paper, Scissors came UPS...and inside were so many marvelous things!  There was for starts a large "craft" bag with many pockets, etc.  Inside were: two calendars from the perspective magazines, misty fuse, steam a seam, warm and natural batting, three magazines, and a package of fat quarters from Moda fabrics!  Forty-four fat quarters in all!!

I am still on cloud nine!!!  Now, I really have a reason to get busy and use all these wonderful gifts!!

My Latest and Last Pics of Houston!

And now for the last Houston pics that I am going to post. I am going to burn a CD for all my studioQ buddies and my daughter who also quilts. It was really difficult to pick out just a few to post!!

This is yardage of Indigo fabric at the "Indigoes of China" exhibit. Just beautiful!

And this is one of the many displays of the "Indigoes of China" that were in the exhibit.

I don't remember the name of this small quilt but I found it to be fascinating.

This exhibit was "Festival Gallery of Quilt Art: Fabric Forest". It was organized by Groebenzellar Quiltersgruppe. I am not sure what group that is but it kind of sounds German. And I was as the INTERNATIONAL Quilt Festival...many things from many places!

I love this quilt "Forces of Nature". It was not only beautifully made, it reminded me of the new Native American Museum in Washington, DC., a new museum dedicated to the American Indians...beautiful and impressive...inside and out.

This small quilt showed the versatility of all the quilts...and I love the thought it presents

And last....not a quilt...but I titled this picture "The Hunks of Houston"! As our bus was taking us to the Convention Center, we were stopped at a red light when one of the gals saw this building under construction and commented on the guys, lined up on each floor as though posing for a calendar. I, of course, had my handy camera ready and leaned over to take a pic through the window!!

More Houston Pics

We have just had the greatest rain fall!! We had about 3 1/2 in the gauge and now this morning it is cool and sunny...great fall day. Had a few friends who are interested in our trip to the great North over for dinner Tuesday and gave them our information about the ferry, etc.. Then tonight we are getting together with our poker buddies for dinner and games! Tomorrow, we are picking up the grands from school as their parents need to attend a funeral.

And come the weekend, we are staying home, not going to see anyone!!! We need a little "alone" time..I plan to get some sewing done...I had signed up to do a swap of "Inchies" of Christmas ornaments so need to get them done...I have done one set...not too crazy about the project but will get them out by the first of the week.

Now for some more International Show pics!!

This is a wonderful little quilt..I overheard a lady looking at the quilts make the comment, this is just like being in an art museum! And I agree! This is a technique I would like to try.

This Quilt was in a series called "West Coast Wonders II"; a group of several quilts from California.

This is a closeup of the above quilts...fascinating how it was put together...very dimensional looking.

And this quilt was in the Series on"Tactile Architecture"; another fabulous set of quilts from all over! Again..I am inspired!

This little guy who stands about three feet, was made by Hasbro to emphasize the fabric by Mary Fisher who is very involved in an orphanage in Africa...she had many quilts on display of photographs of several of the kids and adults she works with.

And now I am going to take a walk while the sun is shining!!

More Pics of the Quilt Festival in Houston

I am just going to add pictures for my next few blogs as I "told it all" in my blog of yesterday. I have over 700 pictures of the show, but will pick out just a few of my very favorites!! This quilt won the grand prize..it is by Caryl Bryer Fallert: "On the Wings of a Dream". She is so-o-o-o talented!!!

Also a Caryl B. Fallert..."Feather Study: #23".

A quilt by Alex Anderson: "A Wedding Quilt", made for some friends of hers...again a very talented lady!! Totally different style, but I still admire her work.

And another Caryl B. Fallert..."Feather Study #1"...a smaller quilt than the first one and much smaller than the "Best of Show" quilt.

Houston Was Great!

This is a close up of the drop of water on the following picture.

Water tap ....wonderful appliqued fabric and thread painting.

This reminds me of an Andrew Wyeth painting...the quilt were hung on black curtains so it is hard to see where the framed edges are.

This quilt was done by one of my favorite quilt artists, Katie Pasquini Maopust, "Adante"

I really enjoyed the 2009 International Quilt Festival in Houston. The whole experience is pretty awesome...Our bus left Ft. Worth about 8:30; had a box lunch on the way down to Houston. We got there about 1:00..were left off directly at the door of the Convention Center. We decided to just look it all over on our first day, Thursday. The quilts are so fabulous, we wanted to savor the moment....so we hit the vendors first...and that in itself is an experience. There are vendors from all over the world (hence "international")...very interesting stuff...demos, etc. I had told myself I would not be swayed to get any "gadgets" as they never work nearly as well as the demos! And I kept to it...I got only fabric and books! We were on the bus at 6:00, to the hotel to "detox" from being overstimulated and to get our rooms. Out to eat with my great roomies, then to the room and bed...after laying out our plan for the next day.

Friday, got to the convention center at 10:00.....terrible lines but finally got in. We proceeded with our strategy...found where we had "left off" the day before. We finished looking...by then it was noon so we had lunch, decided after to split up to do our shopping as we had specific but different interests. So we met at the bus at 3:00 which was making its first run back to the motel with those who were ready. We had planned to leave our stuff on the bus and go look at quilts, but when we got together, we decided that five hours was enough for the day so went back to the motel with most of the others. Friday night, our tour trip included a buffet style meal all together in one of the ballrooms...excellent meal...excellent company. We drew to see where we sat and most people were not with the ones they came with, including me and my two buds. A good way to meet more people....after the meal, we had a "show and tell"...everyone got up and showed something they got from the show...a fun way to see even more vendors stuff!!

Saturday morning, we had to be packed up and ready to go before we could go to the show. We ate, checked out and then were at the show a few minutes after 10:00....not nearly as crowded at the entrance. As we had until 3:00, we decided to split up and do whatever we wanted...getting together only for a little snack and rest about 12:30. I headed for the quilts and spent all my time there, looking and taking pictures...the only pictures I could not take were of the Russian display which was breathtaking, the SAQA (Studio Art Quilts Association) display and a couple of other private collections by professional quilters. I was a woman with a mission as I buzzed around taking as many pics as I could in the time frame while still absorbing all I could of the fantastic display before my eyes!! I had told myself I was not going to buy anything else, but I couldn't resist getting the SAQA book of quilts on display and picked up another book they had at their table. I am going to join the organization next month...it is something I have been thinking about for a long time and after seeing the quilts yesterday, I have decided for sure that is what I want to do!!

I wish I had room to download all my pics but that would be impossible so I will just do a few at a time.

Going to Houston!!!

I've been a little negligent of my poor blog! Have gotten several little projects either finished or on the way to being. I haven't been able to download pics of what I have done, but will have them next writing. And my big news right now is that I am going to Houston for the International Quilt Festival....I plan to "be seen on the Quilt Scene"!! (This is a phrase I needed to put in my blog, print off and drop in a box at the Quilting Arts booth...#1244...for a drawing of all kinds of stuff!) I have never been before so am excited to see what it's all about. Two of my studio Q buds and I are rooming together...going on a bus from Fort Worth Thursday and will be home late Saturday. Woohoo!!! Will have much to write about then, I hope!!

And here are a few more pics of our wonderful Northern trip!! After we left Alaska, we planned to do a repeat drive down the Alcan Highway...very much like what we had seen 45 years ago, but much better road, and more populated areas. We also wanted to visit the Canadian Rockies, Banff and Jasper Parks....very beautiful and we had great weather. I think the Canadian Rockies look even more rugged than the USA Rockies.

Dick standing at the edge of Lake Louise in Banff Park.

Lake Louise from a distance; we took a tram ride overlooking the valley.

One of the many reflecting lakes in Jasper Park. We liked Jasper even better than Banff because it doesn't seem to be as well known, therefore, not as crowded or "touristy".