O Canada

So last week, my family and I traveled up to Calgary Alberta for a special week of fun and celebration!!!   My Mother lived in Calgary from the time she was a little girl until she was married.  Most of her family still lives in Calgary and we used to visit Calgary when I was young every summer.  Sadly, it has been 11 years since a visit so it was high time ;)  Along with my family, my little sister, my older sister, and their families as well as my parents were able to make it for the week.   And my oh my, did we have a good time!!!!

We spent our first day at Banff and hiked Johnston Canyon.  This is not a hike for the faint of heart.   Not that the hike is hard, the kids all did it, but the heights can get to you ;)  We were constantly walking along these catwalks that were just sticking out the side of the cliff with this gorgeous river running below it.   Of course it didn't phase the kids at all, but I got a wee nervous a few times, and my poor sister who is afraid of heights . . . well, this was a huge accomplishment for her!!

The scenery in Banff was absolutely gorgeous.  I lost track of how many waterfalls we went by.  Just breathtaking!!!

And here is my little troop of hikers ;)  I was so proud of them, even the little ones hiked 5 miles that day.   And they sang Disney songs the whole way at the top of their lungs.  Ya, we got a few strange looks but we sure had fun ;)

The next day we spent at the Calgary Zoo.  The kids especially loved the dinosaur park and luckily, we went there first, because my camera battery died about 15 minutes into the zoo.  Way to go mom ;)  The following day we spent at the Calgary Wave Pool, but I didn't want to take the camera there, so no pics.  (that, and I avoid pictures in my swimsuit, tee hee hee ;)

And finally, we get to the purpose of our trip.  My Grandmother is turning 85 this month and all of her posterity got together to celebrate her!!!!   My grandmother is the one in the center in the fun hot pink blazer.   She is amazing and still such a firecracker at 85!!!

We held a wonderful reception for all of my Grandmother's family and friends.  My mom had these old snapshots blown up of my Grandparents from their earlier years.  Yup, My Grandma and Grandpa were quite the cute couple!!!

During the reception we had a little program and I was able to present my Grandmother with a little gift.  Remember that All In A Row Quilt that I made for a Moda Bake Shop Tutorial a few months ago, well, this was the purpose of it.   My Grandmother grew up in England so Ambleside was the perfect fabric for it.  She absolutely loved it ;)

And ya, I might have gotten a little emotional.   I love my Grandmother so much and I am so very grateful that I can use this fabulous love of quilting to share that love with her.

After dinner and the program, we ended up the night with a dance.   And boy, did we get down.  Oh so much fun, and the kids so got into it.  It was an evening full of love and laughter.

And when it was all said and done, we were all tuckered out but oh so incredibly happy!!

I am so grateful we were able to make this trip and spend so much wonderful time together as a family!!!  Thank Canada!!!

Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!!!

It's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day . . . let's have some fun :)

First, we need to announce the winner from last weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway!!   The winner of the 3 I'ts Sew Emma Book Trio  from  Fat Quarter Shop is . . .   Number #466 . . . Congrats Deb!!!   I have emailed you :) 

    

     

    

And on to today's

Today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is being sponsored by Rustic Rooster Quilt Shop!!   Along with hosting the giveaway, Trina is having a super duper sale for all Happy Quilting Readers!!!  20% off your entire cart with the coupon code SP15!!!!!  That is going to be some fun shopping :)

And I know you are all going to be super excited for this Terrific Tuesday Giveaway because it is for a highly anticipated, oh so adorable,  Hello Darling Layer Cake designed by Bonnie and Camille for Moda.  EEEkk, I just love this line!!!!!!

You have two entry chances, the second being optional, and please leave a separate comment for each.  All Entries are welcome, including International Entries.  Please just be sure to leave an email address if you are a no-reply blogger ;)  

ENTRY 1 - Simply leave a comment telling me how you say Hello??  Are you a Hi, Hey, Hello, ect. kind of person.

 ENTRY 2 - Show your Rustic Rooster Quilt Shop love. You can follow them on  Facebook.   You can Sign up for the Rustic Rooster Quilt Shop Newsletter (top right hand corner)  or you can visit the Shop and then share a favorite item ;)   Just be sure to leave a comment of how you showed your Rustic Rooster Quilt Shop Love!!!

And that's it ;)  The giveaway will be open until next Tuesday, August 17th when I will announce a winner at the beginning of next weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Post :)

Good Luck and Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!

Log Cabin Layout

Last week, my family and I were in Canada to spend time with extended family and to celebrate my Grandmother's 85th birthday.  (more on this coming soon)   We got home late last night, and even though I was exhausted from traveling all day and just wanted to go to sleep, a squishy package had to be opened first!!  Oh ya, my blocks from the Log Cabin Swap had arrived while I was out of town!!!!  So excited!!!  

So, even though I should be unpacking this morning and maybe starting the mountain of laundry from the week away, and oh ya, there is that school shopping that I really should get done . . .  And yes, I decided all that could wait because I had some log cabin layout playing to do!!   And oh it was so fun, but now my problem is, I can't decide which layout to go with.  There are so many awesome options and I love them all!!!!!  Here is what I am trying to decide between . . .

1 - Traditional Log Cabin Layout - Always a Classic

2 - Zig-Zag Layout - Lots of fun with lots of movement.

3 - Two Bits Layout.   I am sure there is an actual name for this, but when I was laying it out I kept repeating, Two Bits In, Two Bits Out, referring to the layout of the square and the name stuck.

4 - Stacked Squares - This one has a super fun 3D effect to it.

5 - Quarter Rows - A slightly more modern look - neat and tidy.

6 - Alternating Quarter Rows - Just a slight variation to the last but adds a lot of movement.

7 - Random - Sometimes it is just fun to plop them down and see what you get.

So ya, I keep going through these images, and I really do love them all for different reasons.  I have no idea how I am going to choose.  

So do you think you could help a girl out??  Which one is your favorite and why???

And thank you in advance ;)

Hot, Hot, Hot Chocolate Table Runner

I was so excited when the fabulous gals at the Fat Quarter Shop asked me to participate in the Winter Wonderland Sew Along.  And my block turned into this so fun  Hot, Hot, Hot Chocolate Table Runner!!!  Love it ;)

The Winter Wonderland Sew Along is the Sleigh Bell Sampler.  Each week you make two of these adorable blocks!!!   Aren't they just so cute!!!

And yes, I started with one block, and it was just so cute, I couldn't stop.   So before you knew it, I had one for each member of the family ;)  

And if everyone has a mug in the Hot, Hot, Hot, Chocolate Table Runner then they need to have a name right.  I am not a fantastic hand stitcher by any means, but I got some good practice stitching everyones little names and some steam from each cup, and I think it is just the cutest finishing touch ;)

To quilt it, I stitched in the ditch around the mugs so that they would be cute and puffy and stand out and then did pebbling all over in the background.  I love how they look like little snowballs ;)

I used Kate Spain's new Christmas Line Jingle for this table runner and I was so excited to use the fun herringbone print on the binding.  It totally looks likes striped candy canes, so fun!!!

I have to tell ya, these little monkeys are so excited!!!  They are the main reason I choose the Mug Block. As soon as the snow flies, you will find these little guys all turned into giant marshmallows wrapped up in all their snow gear and they will play and play!!!  And they know, when they are ready to come inside . . .

 There will be a mug of Hot, Hot, Hot Chocolate waiting for them.   I can't wait to try it out this winter ;)   So fun!!!

You can find more details about the Winter Wonderland Sew Along here.  I had so much fun with these mug blocks, I think I might just need to make a mitten and snowflake runner next, they are just so fun to make and oh so cute!!!!

I hope you are having a very Merry Weekend, and who knows, maybe where you are, you just might want to make up a cup of Hot, Hot, Hot Chocolate :)   

 Happy Quilting!!!

The Sister's Retreat

No, I am not talking about the city of Sisters in Oregon, I am talking about the Willis Sister's aka, Barbara's fabulous Sisters and Sister's-In-Law.  Two weeks ago, they came together  in little Cedar City from across Utah, California, Oregon, and even Washington D.C. to have a Sister's Quilting Retreat and my oh my, did we have a great time!!!!

Most of these sister's are beginners when it comes to quilting so Barbara and I decided it would be just perfect for everyone to make a little project from the Farm Girl Vintage collection by Lori Holt.   Our main goal was for everyone to take a completed project home ;)  So, before everyone arrived, we made adorable little "block kits" that they could choose from to make their project.

 We spent the first day piecing the blocks together. (which I totally forgot to take pictures of.)   It was so fun to watch this click with everyone and see how excited they got as their block came together.   The next day, we moved on to making their block into a project.   Wall Hangings, Trivets and Table Centers, here we come!!!   For many of these sister's this was the first time they had played with a quilt sandwich and they did awesome!!!!   Aunt Judy even tried her hand at some Free Motion Quilting!!!!

We sewed and laughed and sewed and laughed and I was so blessed to be a little part of this amazing sister relationship!!

I have to say, I was so impressed with Barbara's Sisters and Sister-In-Laws!!!  They really stepped outside their comfort zones to make these.  They all quilted and even did the binding on their projects!!!  They were all fabulous students and just soaked up Barbara and I's teachings so quickly.

And before you knew it, the day came to a close and we had filled up the wall with adorable Vintage Farm Girl finishes!!!!   Aren't the just so adorable!!!!

And here is everyone with their individual finishes!!!   Several of the ladies took another Block Kit home to make an second project so I think it is safe to say that the retreat was a fabulous success and that we made a few more quilters in the world ;)  Yippee!!!!

I just feel so blessed to be able to share this passion I have for quilting with loved ones around me.

I think this is something that we will have to for sure do again!!!