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Due to working full time and caring for my sick honey, I will admit that those "ta da" days are few and far between; but they are ever so grand no matter how long they take to get here :) I have always had mixed feelings about finishing a project tho ... I'm obviously very excited! You know, the "jump up and down" kind of excited; but then again, I get a bit melancholy at the same time, especially when the finished something will be leaving Davie. My friend, Jan, and I were talking about this just the other day; and she feels the same, so I'm thinking there might be other Quilter's out there who experience similar feelings.Anyway, without any further debut, here it is ... the Chenille Daisy.
I'm now wishing that I had set that daisy just a bit higher. I wasn't taking the borders in to consideration when it got placed; but all in all, I'm satisfied. I also wish the picture was a bit brighter, but I'm afraid it's been raining buckets down here in Davie for what seems to be weeks now, so not much sunshine flowing into the sewing room these days.Here's a close up of the "queeelting." It's been washed, cuz I love that "worn" look, so it doesn't show up too well. I did plain stippling in the borders and swirly q's in the strips.
It hasn't left Davie just yet cuz it still needs a label, so I get to remain in the "excitement mode" for a bit longer :)"Be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the LORD gave you: to love the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to obey his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and all your soul." (Joshua 22:5)
......... of "Signed, Sealed and Delivered with Love!" Remember the 31 wonderful ladies who made the gorgeous sampler for me in memory of our Daughter, Micki??? Well, those same ladies made this beauty in memory of Micki for Mr. Gene; and they named it "Tennessee Hugs."
He simply could not believe that they had made him his very own quilt; and he sat there for quite some time studying every square inch of it. Actually, I didn't think he was ever gonna stop looking at it ... ya see, I was ready for him to put it down and start looking at mine (LOL). They chose the "Tennessee Block" cuz the great State of Tennessee, a/k/a "God's Country" is where we are originally from and is where Micki was buried just below her Papaw Bud in a beautiful Cemetery in Powell, TN. 
I just adore the way that dark blue thread looks on that gorgeous yellow fabric and I am in love with the way they did the binding. It's all pulled towards the back, which gives it a really nice, clean, crisp edge :) All the girls really wanted Gene to use the quilt, but he would much rather sit back and admire it! He's a big guy and he's always been hard on vehicles, shoes, recliners and quilts; and there's no way 'jose that he would do anything to mess up this work of art that was made and delivered with so much love :) I like to think that Micki was able to peak down from Heaven and has seen this beautiful creation that was made for her Daddy in her memory :)
We will remain eternally grateful for all the love and sympathy that went into these quilts :) Oh and there's one more to show you, so I'll be back soon :)
"He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty." (Psalm 91:1)
"Quilters" commemorate all the joyful occasions in life with quilts ... it's just what we do! You've got the birth of a new bundle of joy, the joining of two people in holy matrimony, the successes of a graduate and the blessings of a landmark Anniversary or Birthday ... the list goes on and on and on; and we all hope that the quilt becomes a treasured possession to our loved ones.There's also the solemn occasions in life ... the death of a loved one ... their memory living on in bits and pieces of fabric sewn together with love and with sympathy, which is exactly what Gene and I received 3 months after our Daughter, Michelle (Micki) passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on April 28th, 2007, at precisely 4:45 p.m. Micki bravely battled Crohn's Disease for 23 long years, the last 10 being the worse; and she handled it all with an amazing amount of grace, dignity and an abundance of faith. When she died that Saturday afternoon just a little over 28 months ago, we were devastated, shocked and heart broken. She was terribly ill at the time, but we had no idea that she would be leaving us so soon; and were in total disbelief when a blood clot went to her lungs. The three months following her death are still somewhat of a total blur, during which time 31 of the most amazing women you'd ever want to meet ... 31 woman who reside all throughout this glorious Country we live in were busy putting together 3 absolutely gorgeous quilts in loving memory of our Daughter. These quilts touched our hearts more than they could possibly ever know ... as strange as it sounds, it represented a turning point in our grief ... we still grieve today and always will; however, when we received the beautiful work of these special ladies, our hearts softened and we were able to see more clearly ... to see that God's timing for Micki was perfect. He knew she had had enough and that it was time to bring her Home. We finally knew in our hearts that she was where she was supposed to be ... in Heaven, where sickness and suffering is not allowed ... where only happy times and happy thoughts exist. We finally realized the abundance of the blessing that God chose to give her; and although the pain is still significant today, our hearts are at peace; and her memory will live on always ... in the very depth of our souls, in the members of our family and yes ... in all the bits and pieces of fabric in this beautiful quilt.
Today I share with you the first of the 3 quilts that these wonderful ladies presented us with, which is the one they made for me ... an absolutely gorgeous "Sampler."
If you enlarge the photo above, you'll see that this adorable block is embroidered with "Sweet Memories of Micki." The rest of the photos are close up shots of all the gorgeous blocks ... aren't they awesome!!!!!!!!
Gene and I will be forever grateful to the love that was given us in this quilt and it will warm our hearts all the days of our lives. God Bless all 31 of the wonderful women who played such a loving part in the creation of this masterpiece :)"I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living." (Psalm 27:13)
Sooooooooo many quilts and soooooooooo little time!!! The patterns and possibilities in today's world are truly endless and so many of them continue to speak to me daily. The most recent culprits???Well, the first would be this little "Happy Jack" from the Fons and Porter magazine. This little guy makes me smile; and OMG on that little stand! Isn't it adorable :) I'm envisioning an itsy bitsy quilt for every month of the year :) 
Then there's this gorgeous quilt!!!!! OMG, my eyes haven't been able to leave the page of this "American Patchwork and Quilting" issue. When I close my eyes, I can see it all done up in appliqué ... wouldn't that be gorgeous!
Last night, after appliqueing for a bit, I decided I wanted to go browse through some of my books, when I ran across this one. I am soooooooo in love with the little quilt on the cover. It spoke to me instantly when I saw it on the stand a few years ago. What a wonderful creative way to use those cute little hexagons!
And last, but certainly not least, there's this cute, cute, cute as a button jumper and these adorable corduroy cherries. I haven't made any apparel in years, but what can I say ... this just hollers "make me;" and I've got a sweet, sweet little girl in mind :)
I'm off to push some paper now, but I'm sure I'll spend a lot of that time "day dreaming :)" It's what keeps me sane through these hard economic times that our business and so many other businesses are facing."Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." (Phillipians4:6)
That's what this one reminds me of ... a "rainbow!"
My DSIL, Betsy, asked if I'd make her Dear Sis, Kristina, a "quilty something" for her Birthday; and Kristina ended up choosing all the fabric for the tote in MO and sending it down to FL :)
It's the first time I ever used one of those little "magnetic thingies," and I love it! I'll definitely be using them more in the future :)
Sure hope she likes it!"And God said, "This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: 13 I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14 Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 15 I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. 16 Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth." (Genesis 0:12-16)
Or how 'bout just plain 'ole raw!!!!!!!!!
Ya see, I went and got a brilliant idea yesterday ... OK, perhaps it wasn't quite so brilliant; but because it 's been so daggone hot down here in SFL, I was just about 100% convinced I could fry an egg on the pavement!!!!!! When I say "hot," I mean the kind of heat that makes a body that doesn't normally curse, curse!!! I was quite disappointed when after 30 minutes my egg was still raw as raw can be; and that's when I decided I really need to get a life (LOL). Right about that time, a neighbor came by and informed me that cooler weather was on it's way! Fortunately, he did not see my raw egg :)When I told Mr. Gene about my little experiment, he of course called me a "Big Nut;" but then he added, I bet it would work on the hood of the car!!!!!! I quickly responded ... "not on the hood of my car!!!!!!!" He graciously gave me permission to try it out on his, which I might just do here in the near future :) Leaving you with a bit of the sky that's been delivering us such treacherous heat. May this week be abundantly kind to you all :) 
"For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. " (Psalm 32:4)
I am sooooooo happy we are the "guardians" of this old quilt top!
It's one of those "true treasures" in life :)
Gene's "Granny" gave it to us many years ago. She told us that she was the maker; but her Son, Uncle Jack, laughed when he heard that cuz he said he doesn't remember his Mother ever making it!!! He said it was Granny's Mother, Muddy, who made it. Now if you had known Granny, that would have made you LOL big time cuz that gal was something else ... another of life's "true treasures :)"
If you look closely, you'll see oodles of "feed sack" fabrics .......
........ and it was pieced by hand.
IMHO, it beckons to be hand quilted, which I hope to do someday; and when I do, I know memories of Granny will be me with :)
Wasn't she gorgeous!!!!!!!! She was 84 when this picture was taken and she floated peacefully up in to Heaven 6 years later at the wonderful age of 90 :)"Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever." (Psalm 23:6)
......... on the "Puzzle Quilt."
I actually finished the appliqué several weeks ago and have been auditioning border fabrics ever since. I think I've finally settled on the yellow for a small inside border and the red for the larger outside border. Of course, I am a woman, so it's quite possible that I will change my mind once again!!! Suggestions will be welcomed.
I'm hoping that when it's finished the Autism folks will want to take it and raffle it off ... but first, the key word is "finished!" Hopefully soon :)"The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them." (Psalm 145:18-19)
When you're least expecting something, it makes for the nicest kinda surprise, don'tcha think; and that's exactly what happened on Saturday :) My honey bought me a necklace a YEAR AND A HALF ago, hid it so I wouldn't find it and then went and forgot totally about it!!!!! The big nut! (LOL) He then spotted a red bag in his closet ... the same red bag that I've moved several times but never looked in; and he got to wondering what was in it, so he opened it up and waaaaaa laaaaaaa, this is what he found .....
..... the "missing necklace!" Isn't it pretty! Needless to say, his Bride was a happy camper :)Didn't get much sewing done this weekend ... had chores galore and then our air conditioner decided to die. Not a good thing in this SFL heat, that's for sure, soooooooo DBIL, whose in the AC business, got a repair guy for us on Monday. Talk about happy to see someone!!!!!!!
Would you look at that gorgeous SFL sky above that wonderful repair man's truck! Even after 30 years, it never ceases to take my breath away :)With no AC in the bathroom, I couldn't bare to "flat iron" my unruly curls, so this is what I looked like all day Sunday and Monday ......... today too cuz I was too tired last night to deal with it!!!!!!!!!
OMG! I can't believe I'm sharing this "mop" with you all; but I decided everyone needed a good laugh on a Monday morning, including yours truly :) Hope it's a good day for everyone :)"When God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work -- this is a gift of God." (Ecclesiastes 5:19)
I would have put that song on my Juke Box this morning, but I'm afraid it's one of those songs that really gets on my nerves! It being Friday, the nerves are fairly close to being shot as it is cuz it's been a long, hectic, stressful week; and the best way I know how to deal with it all is to "day dream quilts!" Working on them is, of course, absolutely wonderful; but sometimes, just thinking about them is wonderful therapy in itself :)As with life in general, I've got myself running in every direction possible in the quilting arena as well ... projects in every phase imaginable ... from "just started" to "almost finished," and here's one that's been sitting in the "just started" position for a while now ...
... "my tulips :)" I've been "day dreaming" about these tulips for several years ... finally started them at the first of this year; and although it might actually take quite a while longer to finish them, I do love "thinking" about that fact that they are there waiting on me when life allows me to delve back into them :)But until tomorrow, I must try to make my mind focus on the tasks at hand. I'm sure some "quilty thoughts" will find there way in at some point; and here's hoping that you get to enjoy some nice "quilty thoughts" yourself :)"The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself." (Galatians 5:14)
Ohhhhhhhh I do enjoy it so ... "hand quilting," that is. It's a slow process, that's for sure; but it is so good for the soul :) I inevitably loose track of how long I work on one, so I haven't a clue how long this one took, but I know I adored the process :) 
It was a wedding gift for our Niece, Kelly and her Hubby, Jordan. I hate to admit that it was about 3 years late in getting to them, but I can blame that on the "hand quilting ," which always takes waaaaayyyy longer than I think it's gonna take.
I can easily picture myself back in the olden days sitting around the fire and hand quilting by candlelight. Of course, I would greatly miss Blogging, and E-mailing, and surfing the web, and the dishwasher, and air conditioning, and vacuum cleaners, and refrigerators, and freezers, and automatic ice makers, and washing machines, and dryers, and drive through windows, and sewing machines, and my coffee coolattas from Dunkin Donuts, and, and, and sooooooooo much more!!!!!!!!!! Perhaps this time period isn't so bad after all :)Now I just need to finish up something that begs to be "hand quilted," so I can enjoy that lovely past time once again :)
Before I head back to work, I want to send out great big Happy Birthday wishes to my DBIL, Paul, who will always, always, always be 2 months and 10 days older than me :) Hope the day treats you with kindness Paul! We love you :)
"He said: "Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you: 'Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God's. ... You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.'" (2 Chronicles 20:15,17)
My current love for "daisies" could quite possibly be construed as an obsession! I can't help myself ... I'm just in love with them and can't get enough of 'em! They were Micki's all time favorite and they plain and simply make this Little Mommy smile :) I just wish I had a "green thumb," so I could grow the real thing; but I'm afraid my gardening capabilities lack an awful lot to be desired!!! I can stitch one up tho, and here's the start of, yes, "another new project!!!"
It kinda reminds me of "He loves me, he loves me not;" and I am just loving these colors together. Such a wonderful "couch potato" project; and goodness only knows that me and our couch have quite a relationship!!!I also finally settled on the center for the chenille daisy :) I don't know why it took me so long to choose the "yo-yo," cuz I love to use 'em when ever I can :) 
I
should have fired up the HQ16 over the weekend and quilted one of the 3 tops sitting there patiently; but by the time I finished all the "must haves," I just wanted to appliqué :) But now I must work, so happy day wishes to you all :)"Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord." (Romans 12:11)
We've got lot's of 'em in Davie, and I see 'em all along my ride to work. My first site is of these little guys in our front yard ...........
My honey will be soooooooo thrilled to see these "critters" on my Blog! Have I mentioned that he adores the ducks??? OMG, does he ever adore them!!! When I find them drinking water out of one of my good Tupperware bowls, I've wondered if they could be considered grounds for divorce (LOL). I will have to admit that the little ones are pretty darn cute. I just couldn't believe my eyes when one of our latest batches included 4 "yellow ones!" That's a first and we're now wondering just "who or what" this Mama got hooked up with!!!This next little "critter" is one of Mr. Gene's favorites. He's one of our medium sized ducks and has a look and personality all of his own. As much as I curse the ducks, I will have to say that he's a funny little guy :)
Time to move on out of the neighborhood now and away from the ducks, which takes us from "itsy bitsy and ohhhhhhhhh so cute" to this beast!!! Whenever I see him, I just think "OMG, he's huge!!!" He's kinda skinny tho, don'tcha think??? Either way, I wouldn't wanna jump that fence wearing red!
Then we've got our "horses galore" in Davie ... known to many as "South Florida's Horse Country."
After the horses comes the great big "ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!" I do love animals, but I'm afraid guys like this give me the heebie jeebies!!! And I pass thousands of 'em every morning! Well, that's a big of an exaggeration; but I did try to count them one morning and got to 75 before giving up. I finally got brave and got out and took a picture :) I wasn't out there long tho (LOL).
We've got quite a few of these spots in Davie and they are surrounded w/oodles of critters like that monstrous lizard above! Folks still sit and eat and read and fish tho, so they obviously aren't near as squeamish about 'em as I am!!!
Well, that brings me to my office and all this paperwork isn't gonna push itself, so I'll see ya next time :) Until then, good wishes for you and yours :)"Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food”; and it was so." (Genesis1:30)
Pretty sorry subject line I know, but it's all I could come up with today (LOL). I wanted to Blog though, cuz it's good for my soul :) Wonder who came up with the word "Blog???" I need to google that, as I'm sure it stands for something! I'll sneak out from under my rock and look it up. It's hard to remember "life before computers," don'tcha think! "Cell phones" too!!!Anyway, I decided to "chenille" the strips of the "Chenille Daisy Quilt," and I'm glad I did.
I highly recommend trying the "chenille by the inch!" It's fun stuff.I also finally got around to labeling these Christmas Tree Skirts. I'm sending 'em off today in honor of two recent weddings :) I think that "First Christmas together as Husband and Wife" is pretty special, so I thought it'd be nice to mark that celebration with a little something under their first tree :)
The first one is going to Gene's Cousin's Daughter, Jessica and her new hubby, Wes. This is the 7th one I've made thru the years like this, and can you believe that Gene and I still use a tablecloth under our tree!!!!! Kinda like the "shoe repair man," who has "holes in his shoes." I must remedy that one of these days.
This second one is heading off to the children of two of Gene's oldest friends from his School Days ... yes, the Daughter of one fell in love with the son of the other. Isn't that cool!!!!!! This one was a lot of fun to make ... especially where "picking out all the fabric from my stash" was concerned. I made the pattern quite a bit bigger than it called for, so I'm hoping it doesn't swallow their living room whole!
I'm not sure what I'll be back with next ... but I'm sure I'll find something :) Until then, blessings to us one and all :)
"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." (John 13:34-35)
It hasn't left Davie just yet cuz it still needs a label, so I get to remain in the "excitement mode" for a bit longer :)
