Greetings

Just have a minute and thought I would check in and say "yassas" which in Greek means hello! We are on the island of Mykonos in the middle of our vacation. The scenery is spectacular, the people friendly and relaxed, and the food outstanding. I am thoroughly enjoying my family and not thinking of quilting or much else! Watching the Germany v. Italy semifinal in the Eurocup and rooting for Germany ... They're down 2 zip at the moment. Off to a different island tomorrow ... If you ever get the chance you should really see Greece!

Graduation

I now have a college graduate and a high school graduate ... wow!  My heart is just bursting with pride and I am trying to absorb this new spot in my life!  My family has been here for a week and I have had a great time visiting and running around like crazy.  We're off on a trip for two weeks, so I will not be posting.  I have quilt pictures to share of quilts I did in the last week before the grad, and of course more grad pictures!!!  Hope you all are enjoying your summer ... I'll be back soon, friends!

The Kings Won!

Huge hockey fans live in my house and they are so excited ... The LA Kings won the Stanley Cup last night ... First time ever! It is fun to see your husband, son and daughter so happy ... They're acting just like little kids! My husband has been a hockey fan for years and years ... odd to find in San Diego as most people don't follow hockey here, even though the Kings are so close to us ... LA is only about 2 1/2 hours north of SD.  He passed his love for hockey onto both our kids, and the three of them have been rooting for the Kings for years.  They've gone to see them at the Staple Center in Los Angeles many times, and even managed to drag me on oaccasion.  Here is my hubby and son celebrating the victory last night with their own makeshift "Stanley Cup."  Our daughter had gone to bed already, so she didn't get in on their celebration.

Yes, they know they're cheesy, but they didn't care!

Amidst all this excitement around the hockey playoffs (which is what our family's life has been revolving around intensely the last two weeks), I have managed to get more quilting done.  I am finally feeling like I'm getting caught up with my work, and I feel so much better ... I don't feel like I'm carrying the weight of the world anymore!  I hate being behind ... I always pride myself on getting things done in a timely fashion and I considerable myself reliable ... it is one of my worst fears to NOT be considered that and to cross over to the other side!!!

This is a quilt I did last week for a friend ... it's a beautiful log cabin that she started years ago.  I love log cabin quilts ... I love their simplicity and the subtle or not-so-subtle designs they can make.

Look at all those fabrics ... some of them might be awful on their own or in larger pieces, but when you throw them together into a scrappy quilt ...

... you get perfection!  Look at that awesome design ... I've never made a log cabin quite this striking.  I just love it!  Karen likes a simple design, so I thought it best to just stipple the quilt.  I used a 30 wt. cotton on top (I'm not sure what brand it was ... maybe Permacore), and Glide in the bobbin.  All free motion!

And there it is in it's full glory ... I love it!  It makes me want to go grab all my scraps and sew up a log cabin .. I think I will!!!  Have a great day!

A new day (June 6)

Today is a very special day ... It is my son's 22nd birthday! The best part of my life has been our kids ... I never wanted kids when I was younger. When I grew up and decided to get married to my darling husband, I was anxious to start a family. It has been the most wonderful and fulfilling and frustrating experience ... The best time of my life!

Okay here's the latest quilt I've been working on ...

This quilt is such a fun representation of my client ... she likes a little bit of everything!

I did a big loopy swirl ... I just wanted the quilting to blend into the background and anchor the quilt. I think the quilting really makes th piecing stand out.

I used a gold Isacord thread in the top and the bobbin. This thread is probably my favorite thread of everything I have tried. It has a nice weight to it, and is a poly ... similar to Glide, but the thread looks suberb in every single stitch ... top and back. Try this thread ... you'll love the way it looks and runs in your machine ... I believe it was originally made for the purposes of embroidery ... but it's strong and performs really well in my Innova.

Life is a ball!

Oh my gosh .... I am still looking for that blasted cord to my camera ... can you believe it?  I don't know what little gremlins walked off with the cord, but I have looked under cushions, behind furniture, in drawers, in pockets ... no cord to be found ... our little furry friend, Sophie, could have taken it somewhere, but she is not talking!
So much is happened in the past few days ... we now have our son and his girlfriend here!  Girlfriend is staying on vacation for a couple of weeks, then going home and returning next month with all her things. She will be attending medical school, and we have offered her a room in our house so she can work and save her money before starting school in the spring.  Darling son has been having a great time at home enjoying his new freedom as a college graduate.  Has been lining up job options, and doing a little relaxing before the real life as a worker bee begins!  I have been a busy little quilter ... I did three or four quilts last week (of which I think 2 or 3 are on my camera!). Here's the last quilt I did ... yesterday ... it's a stunner and may look a little familiar.  This quilt is for my friend, and it's about the third one of her's like this that she's done ... you may recognize the quilt pattern and fabric!

I had another couple pictures but I am having troubles getting them to load here, so we'll just have to be happy with these couple!  I needed a new cell phone because my daughter took mine, and gave me her old one (don't ask, a moment of parental weakness!) ... so I took son and girlfriend to the AT&T store with me the other day to help ... I wound up with an iPhone.  I don't need an iPhone, I really can't justify having that much of a phone, nor the expense of a separate data plan, but ... well, it seemed like a good idea at the time!  I'm still trying to figure it out and getting my pictures over from the camera to my blog is proving challenging ... not for most people probably, but for me ... ugh!  Anyway, I am happy to be back here with you all ... I've missed my blog friends ... keep your fingers crossed that I get this phone thing figured out ... there must be a faster way to load the photos than what  I'm doing ... still working that out!