Pretty in Pink but not Pretty Weather!

This one might be for a summer baby. We don't know the gender so I made two quilts.The baby boy quilt was shared the other day here. The quilt not used will be donated. 

I used a Moda Jelly Roll called First Romance by Kristyne Czepuryk of Pretty by Hand. I was shopping with a friend a while back and she found it while we were at The Quilt Peddler in Fennimore, WI. It is very feminine and seemed perfect for a baby girl quilt. I decided the name Pretty in Pink was fitting.

The quilt is 45" by 48" and I used Dream Cotton batting. I quilted this with straight lines and a walking foot using 50-wt light pink #2423 Aurifil thread. 

The back is pale pink Minkee and oh, so soft!

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While I was exercising this morning, I was watching the news out of the Quad Cities which is south of us. The weatherman said we would have it all today almost - rain, sleet, snow, wind, thunder, and lightning but we would not have hail. So far we've had everything he predicted and it looks like we'll keep this going until late this evening. It's not pretty!

You can find me quilting - specifically, I'm working on my homework for the Free-motion Challenge Quilting Along. The challenge is almost over - it's time to finish the quilt. I have lots of background quilting and border quilting to do. Then I'll bind it and show it to you.

Fall? and a Little Backtracking...

We took a little tour a couple of days ago. We wanted to visit  some of the small towns 'near' us so we traveled north and west.

Shortly after leaving home, we saw a flock of geese heading south! It does seem early, doesn't it?

Taken out of side window of moving car

 We saw this Amish fellow. It was a gorgeous fall-like day.

One stop was at an Amish produce stand. The pumpkins are already ready!

The corn stalks are drying out at the bottom; the soybeans are changing color; some of the leaves on the trees are changing. Can you see the red in the bushes?

Taken out of side window of moving car

We still have a few weeks of summer but it feels like fall and I'm loving our weather. The weatherman says summer is returning midweek however - the 80s and 90s are coming back.

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I finished quilting another quilt. I had a lot of trouble with the last quarter which was disappointing because I thought I was getting back in the groove of free motion quilting. I sewed the binding on and then I went to hand stitch the binding down on the back and ugh! Can you see the tension issues?

The bad news is that I had to tear out 1/4 of the quilting and need to redo it. It was easy to remove! The good news is that I knew the machine didn't feel right when I was quilting. Of course I thought it was me. Next time I'll do what I should have done - stop and look at the back of the quilt. Maybe I really am getting back in the groove...

More Snow and A New Lid

We are in Champaign, Illinois where Ray has a meeting twice a year. We came AFTER the storm that went through northern Illinois on Saturday night. More snow - ugh! Now we have a ANOTHER storm going through the same area! Thankfully we have reservations to stay here until tomorrow. So far today in Champaign, we've had heavy snow, sleet, ice, and now more snow.

This year I brought along knitting. I planned to do some shopping today - the important kind - fabric and yarn, but the weather intervened. Ray and I planned to shop when his meeting was over but it looks like we'll just kick back, watch more of the Olympics, and I'll knit.

I had some alpaca left from the vest I made last fall. On Friday, I decided that I should make Ray an alpaca hat.

I was knitting on the way to Champaign and Ray wanted to know if he'd be able to wear the hat home. The answer is yes! 

  
I finished it just a few minutes after Ray came in from his meeting. They ended a little early due to weather. Lots of people are trying to go home and a few, like us, are just staying here.

  

When we leave for home tomorrow, Ray has a super soft, warm new hat to wear. I have plenty of alpaca left - maybe I need a hat too!

We have weather!

One of our 'local' weathermen nearest TV station is 65 miles away said our weather this week is the craziest he has seen in his 14 years in our area!  

Sunday - we had freezing temperatures and ice.

Monday - our schools were closed due to ice. By Monday afternoon we had sunny skies and temps in the 50s! Then we had thunderstorms all night.

Tuesday - we woke up to more thunderstorms. The temperature rose to 62 degrees but dropped rapidly when more rain arrived in the afternoon.

Today, Wednesday - we woke up to a dusting of snow. It is now noon and we have more than 5" of heavy wet snow. The schools are out. 

We are not done! It is still snowing and the temperature is dropping lower and lower - single digits or below zero temps by tomorrow and even colder by Friday.

A great day to quilt or knit! So glad I can just stay inside.

A snowflake or more!

We have snow - lots and lots of snow! Yes, we are in the blizzard area today and we've had over 10" already! Our neighbor has plowed our drive twice with difficulty - he tries to keep up especially when the snow is heavy like this. Ray (pneumonia man) and I just went out and cleared in front of the garage doors, the front walk and the front steps to our house. I said I'd do it but he insisted so we both did it. That snow is HEAVY! But it is beautiful!

It is still snowing hard and the wind is blowing. The house seems to be getting socked in - the wind is coating all of the windows/screens. 

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I had this Snowflake TIP (Totally Inclusive Project) in my pile of projects. Not sure where I bought it - probably somewhere in Iowa since it is from B'Caprice, LLC, in Polk City, Iowa.

The 12" quilt square project went together in no time - the pieces were already cut!  After the top was pieced, I sandwiched the front, batting, and back. Then I added the organza square to the top and quilted through all layers.

The organza has sparklies in it.

I machine quilted this with the motif Matrix from Leah Day at the Free Motion Quilting Project.

Now it is hung on a small hanger and looks shimmering just like our new snow outside!

A beautiful winter day

This time the storm did not miss us! We got heavy, wet snow last night. The temperature is right around 30 degrees and the sun peeks out every so often.The perfect day for a snow day which all the kids around here are enjoying!

I took a few photos out the window. It is beautiful. Of course, I don't have to shovel or go outside for any reason!

Now the wind is blowing and it looks like it is snowing again as the snow falls from the trees and power lines.

It is a perfect day for quilting!

Ready for a winter picnic

It looked like picnic tables in a winter wonderland.

On the way to Mom's last Sunday, we saw these "ice tables". We were able to get pictures on our way home.

A Blizzard!

Yesterday at 2 PM, the National Weather Service changed our Winter Storm Warning to a Blizzard Warning. I was in the car on my way home but still an hour away. I made it home fine and we don't plan to go anywhere for a day or so. This morning I took pictures. This shows the first twelve inches. We've had 2 or 3 more inches since then.

I love the trees with the snow on them.

This picture is looking across the street.

Here is Ray cleaning up the sidewalk.

Our neighbor plows our driveway. It took a long time this morning with the deep snow. He just finished clearing it a second time. I think the snow is over. Now we have wind and the temperature is falling.