Forgot One

After dinner I realized I forgot to post one of the little quilts I made last year.

Christmas Wreath 12/3/11

I need to get all the credit I can get!

This evening I finished 4 more star centers for Mr. B.'s quilt.  All the star points are made, now to finish those last 3 stars! 

Happy Stitiching!!

Review of Quilt Goals for 2011

I had big dreams at the beginning of 2011 and they were not accomplished.  It was a busy year and work was very busy.  SO I feel I did the best I could and I am happy with what I accomplished.  I am really pleased with Kierra's quilt and glad it is finished.

This was my list for 2011
Sea Breeze (PIG)
Dear Jane Scrappy Happy (WIP)
Dear Jane Nurses’ Swap (WHIMM)
Mystery Quilt 2010 (WIP)
Quilt of Valor (PIG)
Yellow Brick Road (PIG) Started
Caribbean Sea (WIP)
Washington Medallion the top only (WIP) just needs borders added
Farmer's Wife Sampler (WIP) Make more blocks did make some
2 Charity Quilts (Use Stash)
Kierra's Quilt Done
Richard's Quilt Started

The ones in italic are the ones I worked on. In Bold is what I finished. 
My life just took a different path.  But just so you don't feel bad for me let me show you the pictures of the things I did finish.

Fall Table Topper 1/1/11

Moon Santa 1/22/11

Flag Wall Hanging 4/4/11

Jelly Star 6/20/11

Fresh Picked Flowers

Flying Geese

Double Irish Chain

I am not making a list for 2012!  I am going to be surprised.  I'll peek at last year's list for inspiration.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to all my blogging friends! 

I have decided not to make any quilting goals this year, mainly because I still plan to focus a lot on Genealogy.  I do have some plans like finish a couple of projects I have in the works and to make a quilt for Kierra and her husband and to make Mr. B a new one.  He did request a new quilt.  I didn't finish all I had planed for 2010 but I am good with that.  What I was working on was more important.  Plus that stocking took a lot of time, but it was appreciated and that is all that matters.



Fall Table Topper

Today after taking the tree down, doing the grocery shopping and having dinner with Mr. B.  I was able to sit down and finish the binding on the Fall Table Topper I started it in October or November.  I really like the pattern and I would like to make it again. 
I just remembered I do have one goal to make my give away quilt sooner!

Happy Stitching!

Week Five Personal Goals

I was so tired last night that I didn't post. I did remember to weigh in yesterday morning but remembered just in a nick of time. I have to admit I was very glad the scale was the same as last week, no gain no lost. I had been sick most of the week and stayed home two days from work. So I was lazy all week, I did not journal, I did not count my steps, I did not climb any stairs but I did not eat like a crazy woman. I ate different because I wasn't feeling well, lots of comfort food, grilled cheese sandwiches and chicken noodle soup, New England Clam chowder, lots of juice and such. I ate until full only, I didn't eat until stuffed, so that is good.
Today is a new day and a new start. So here is to a better week. Depending on how much I'm coughing will depend on how much walking and stairs I do. When ever I have a cold it goes to my chest and I can cough for weeks. Hopefully it won't be a lot of weeks.

Hopefully you are all doing well with your personal goals.

While home I did a lot of work on my Genealogy blog, go check it out.

Week Four Personal Goal

Well it has been a good week, eating has been in control even with a very stressful day at work. I didn't meet my step goal every day but went over a couple of days so it all evens out in the end. I journaled my food every day. I lost another one pound this week for a total of 7.2 pounds. Since this is the four week mark I averaged out my weight lost which is 1.8/week. That is pretty darn good. I checked my measurements no change in my arm, no surprise their I haven't been doing my arm exercises. Waist is down an inch, this I could tell this week as my belt felt loose. Hips down .25 inch, not a lot but a start. I'm still doing my walking up and down the stairs at work. I going to the gym tomorrow and do all over strengthening exercise. I need to start working on those arms. I'm not worried about getting my steps in tomorrow I'm going to a Quilt, Sew & Craft Expo.

Here is to Health!!

Week Three Personal Goal

It has been a hard week. It has been stressful at work and I'm a stress eater. Not a good combination. Even with that I only went 200 to 250 calories over my calories allotment most days, not every day. But those extra calories add up. I did journal every day what I ate so I knew what I was doing. Now to get control of that bad habit. I did keep up with my core exercises and my stair climbing. I made close to 6,000 or over 6,000 steps every day. Well a couple of days my pocket pedometer reset to 0000000 so I'm not sure on the exact of steps I took. I'm going to put it in a plastic sleeve to prevent it from reset it. I just came up with that idea. I did lose 1 pound.


I have spent all day at the Arizona Family History Expo, boy did I learned a lot and now I need to do the things I learned. I have to go look and decide what classes I will attend tomorrow. I stayed for the Banquet dinner and we had a live Genealogy Gem Podcast. It was really fun to be envolved with the first live podcast. It was very informative and fun.

No Man Cave update tomorrow, it has been raining all week and we even had tornado warnings last night. Northern AZ had 12 feet of snow. Out backyard is flooded and more rain is coming. I sure hope this rain fills up all our lakes. It sure feels like winter here this week.

Week Two Personal Goal

Well I'm happy to report I have had another good week.
I ate no candy at work for 5 days in a row, that is a big accomplishment. Believe me I know where all the candy bowls are in the hospital.
I purchased a pedometer and set a goal to walk 5,000 steps every day and I made 5,000 plus every day. I hope to work up to 10,000 steps per day.
I climbed steps everyday.
I only went over my calories one day this week.
I have been doing my core strengthening exercises everyday.
I wasn't as good as I could have been about going to bed on time.
I happily lost another 2.5 lbs for a total of 5.2.
My little money fund is getting bigger!! I'm feeling a little skip in my step again. I feel good.

Week One Personal Goal

Well I had a good first week. I lost 2.8 lbs which is nice and part of my goal but the other part is I only went over my calories 3 days during the week. I went over by less than 200 calories. I even had two days when I didn't have chocolate at work. That is a big weakness of mine. I wrote my food journal every day. I'm using Spark People for my calorie counter and my exercise journal. I'm not doing my old routine of 5 days at the gym. In Nov of 08 I suffered a server plantar fasciitis attach and have had foot pain for over a year. It has been acting up again. But in spite of the pain I have been more active at work. I'm using the stairs both up and down. Usually I just do down. The other day I took a break and went up and down half a flight of stairs 4 times. I'm also doing some core strengthening exercises. Today I did two flights up at once and one flight up and down three different times. I need to work up to that previous exercise routine. I also turned my nose up at lots of candy at work, french fries and other junk food. I have increased my veggies and keep my fruit in take the same.

There was one afternoon that I was really ready to just munch on some candy. I wrote in my note book my word for the year HEALTHY. The desire to eat candy went away. I really only wanted to eat it because I was bored. It was a boring meeting.
I have used my word a few times this week. I think it helped.

So today I paid myself $6 for my weight lost and $5 my weekly fee. I'm putting my money in a pretty little tin for it to build up. I undecided if I want buy a new camera or a Wii fit with my winnings.

I know not every week will be good, but a lot of good weeks run together will lead to good results of better health.

Word for the Year

Every year we make goals, last year I wanted to lose weight but I didn’t make it a goals just a wish and because of that I actually gained weight. So now that my foot pain is worst and it might get better if I got the extra pounds off and my clothes are too tight and other things I have noticed that I don’t like. I’m really making this a goal this year. I even have a plan to make it more interesting such as paying myself instead of the Biggest Loser group my office is doing. I also want to make it more of a life style change than just a number to reach on the scale. I had been thinking about this for a couple of days and thinking I wanted really to be healthier. Yesterday while blog surfing I saw a post about a word for the year, here & here. So guess what my word of the year is, you guessed it. Here is my outline of how that feels to me.

Word of the year Healthy
This word will help me to
• Eat Healthy
Right choices
Right amounts
Right times
• Move Healthy
Stretch More
Exercise More
Be More Active
• Think Healthy
About food
About people
About my life
• Act Healthy
Go to bed early
Get up early
• Listen to my Body
• Be Balanced with work, play, spirituality and learning
• Be Happy
• Be Grateful
• Lose weight
Pay myself $5 a week
Pay myself $2 for every pound lost
Weight in on Friday
Build back up to previous exercise routine
Buy a special something with my winnings
Keep a food journal
Write weekly on the blog about my progress
• Think Win – Win
• Be Neater

My quotes to help me.
Although difficulties and poor choices may surround me, I have a clear vision of what to do and how to get it done. I am not distracted.

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.
~Melody Beattie~

This will be a hard goal for me; I do love food and enjoy eating. I’m not one of those people who eat to live, I live to eat but I need to change that paradigm. I know I can do it, that why I’m bearing my soul to all about this I don’t want to leave me any loop holes.
I weighed in this morning and Friday will be my weigh in day and blog entry day. My tracker is on the side bar, down a little by my quilt goals. I didn’t want it right at the top.

A great New Year to you and good luck with your goals.

Quilting Goals 2010

Happy New Year to all my Blogging Friends
I sure hope everyone will have a good year and will be blessed with Health & Friendship and the Important Things in Life.

I have of course have been reflecting on the last year and the year to come. First for my quilting goals for the New Year. My list is longer than I thought it would be but as I went through by PIGs (Projects in Grocery bags) and WIP (Works in Progress) I kept finding more fun things I want to do. I had to rein myself in or there would be no room for surprises. I'm really want to resist all surprises this year. Some surprises are OK like quilting a quilt for a friend. Plus one of my friends wants to pay me to make a quilt, so I have to leave some room.
In addition to these quilts to start or finish I have some other quilting goals like learn to follow a pantograph on my frame. Increase my library of designs that I can quilt. And practice more, even if it is just yardage of fabric. Maybe between quilts I should just have yardage up and quilt a little every day, even if it is one pass. Now that I thought of that, that is a very good idea!!
The other parts of my goals are to use up my stash and not to buy fabric unless it is for a project, none just because it is pretty or I like it. I have too much as it is, so why add to it. Plus I want to use up the stuff I have. The not buying is going to be hard but the reality is I have lots of wonderful stuff already and I want to use and make, more than a life time probably.

My list of quilts is on my said bar but here are the pictures.

Quilt Goals 2009 Update

When I sat last New Year’s Day and planned the quilts I would work on I didn’t figure on a couple of things. I didn’t think about quilts I would quilt for clients, which took time away from my own quilting. I didn’t figure on getting involved in other projects with friends or just other projects I might get the idea to do. So I made a very long list of quilts. With that said I still accomplished a lot not all that I had planned but a lot and those unplanned things were important. Also before you turn green with envy, know that most of those quilts were small, they were not bed size.

So here are my 2009 quilt goals in review:

Planned Quilts 2009
Winter Wonderland 9 Patch Pizzazz DONE
Festive Santa DONE
Dear Jane Boo Swap DONE
Dear Jane Christmas Swap DONE
One Block Wonder DONE
One Block Wonder for French Doors DONE
Horse for Krystal DONE
Mystery Quilt DONE
SW Frog DONE
Valentine’s Mini DONE
Easter Mini DONE
May Mini DONE
July Mini DONE
Aug Mini DONE
Sept Mini DONE
Dec Mini DONE
Sassy Cat Mini DONE
Sea Breeze
Blue Moon
SW Batik Stars
Mystical Horse my own Design
Dear Jane Scrappy Happy
Dear Jane Nurses’ Swap

Unplanned Completed Quilts
Square Falling Hearts
Uncle Sam Calendar Block
Kierra's Front Room Quilt
Kierra's Bath Room Quilt
Blog Give Away Quilt

Unplanned Started Quilts
Caribbean Sea
Washington Medallion
Square N Square Blocks to learn a new technique
Mystery Quilt 2010
Sail Boats Paper Piecing Class Sample

Other Completed Projects
Fall Valences & Curtains
Charm Bag tote
Zoe's Baby Blanket
Linda's Cross Stitch Gift
James Baby Blanket

Quilts Quilted for Clients
Julie's Scrub Top Squares Quilt
Julie's Mesa High T-Shirt Quilt
Adele's Baby Quilt

I did good!! Here all the pictures.

One More Mini Quilt Done!!

This is what I made yesterday. I only had to do six whiskers today. Isn't she just a Sassy Cat??? That is the name of the pattern by Patch Abilities.

Sunday Quilting Upate

Look what I finished!!! I'm so happy with how it turned out!! I'm also happy it is done. These blocks were from a swap in 2001, I designed it in EQ5 in 2002 and purchased the fabric. It has been a PIG for a long time but no longer. PIG is Project in a Grocery Bag. Right now it is hanging in my living room between two other Christmas quilts and it looks a little dumb, wall to wall quilts but it will work for this year, next year I'll find a better place for it to hang.



I did free motion feathers in the alternating blocks, they aren't perfect but the over all effect is pleasing.



There are graduating loops in the side triangles and loops in the green border.
The out side border has loop de loop meandering with red, green and cream variegated thread.



One more quilt done from my list of quilts to finish this year!! I have one more I have to finish this year, I hope this week. Then I have to make a class sample for a class I'm teaching in Jan. Yeah I know I'm a little late with that. Oh well.

The year is half over!

I just thought I would mention that because everyone always rushes around at the end of the year wondering where the year went. So I thought I will let you know that the year is half over. Actually it was a couple of days ago and I was going to post on July 1st but somehow I was busy. I wonder how that happens? So I was taking a mental inventory of the quilts I have finished and what I still have on my to do list. I'm thinking I have to do a little adjustment to my to do list. Of course there is always next year.



So is my list I started with:
Winter Wonderland 9 Patch Pizzazz DONE
Festive Santa DONE
Dear Jane Boo Swap
Dear Jane Christmas Swap
Dear Jane Scrappy Happy
Dear Jane Nurses’ Swap
Horse for Krystal
Mystery Quilt DONE
SW Frog DONE
Valentine’s Mini DONE
Other Minis: Easter, May, July, Aug, Dec & Sassy Cat
Sea Breeze
Blue Moon
SW Batik Stars
Mystical Horse my own Design
One Block Wonder DONE
One Block Wonder for French Doors (adding borders today & plan to load on my frame today.)

I also added on the Washington Medallion and the Caribbean Sea Blocks of the Months to work on but not finish. Even thought it isn't on my list I have a Quilt of Valor I want to make and donate this year. Like the staying goes, "So many quilts and so little time!"

The way I see it today, I defiantly want to finish these quilts this year:
1. the One Block Wonder for the French Doors,
2. DJ Boo Swap,
3. DJ Christmas Swap
4. Mystical Horse
5. Sand Castle mini (Aug Mini)
6. Quilt of Valor
any of the orthers will be a bonus! Of course I am women and reserve the right to change my mind!

Have a great 4th of July! Freedom is a wonderful thing.

Another Project Done!

I was going to wait until tomorrow night to report on my weeks progress. But it always a good feeling to get something done! I finished my May Flowers Mini wall hanging. YES!! It's not a big thing but it is a done thing!
I also have been working on a Mystery Project, I'm trying to do a cross stitch picture for my friend. I purchased the lime green fabric I needed with out checking out the size of the thread count. I'm suppose to use two threads but it looked to heavy, so I took it out and tried one strand. It looks OK but I had such problems seeing the threads I had to cross I gave up. That's even with my light and the magnifying glass and new glasses. So today I ran to Hobby Lobby and found some Aida cloth in a slightly different shade of lime green but it is 14 count. I hope it works easier, it won't look as nice as the linen but it will be done. I won't post pictures until it has been delivered, only because I don't want to spoil the surprise. She know she is getting something because I'm going to see her for her Birthday in May. She lives in Miami FL. After 17 years of marriage I'm finally taking my husband back to my old stomping grounds. Last year when she was in town for my birthday we made plans for me to be in town for her Birthday this year. I'm counting the days until I'm on vacation and out of here!

Project # 2 done!

OK I'm on a roll!! I just finished another project on my list for 2009! So I only had five inches of binding to finish and sew on 12 buttons. It's still done!

It Was A Mega Hit!

I presented Glenda with her gift. Her face just lit up so when I gave her the bag. I was trying to get a picture her face when she first saw the quilt. But I didn't get it, Rob our other co-worker was going on about look at the label. I'm kicking him to be quiet, so she can just enjoy. Then someone from another department comes in and gets in the way. But I will remember the look on her face it was priceless. She was so happy. Here we are with her wall hanging. I'm the tall one, she is short stuff!

Here is Glenda with her little quilt in it's new home. Later in the day I did change that bright white clip to an aqua one. It looks much better. She even named him Hymie. I'm glad she decided to leave him at work, so I can enjoy him also.

I made the label, I use special Christmas label for Christmas gifts so why not a Hanukkah label for a Hanukkah gift.

It was so fun watching her open her gift, that it really made me feel good to give her the gift because she appreciated. Goes to prove you should only make gifts for people who love them!!

Sunday Quilting Upate

Well my first project I wanted to finish in 2009 is done!!! It is a late Hanukkah gift, better late than never. I'll take it to work tomorrow to give it to Glenda.
I haven't worked any more on the Mystery Quilt since New Year's Day. Too busy get re-organized after the Holidays and finishing my SW Frog. Jane Wilson is the original designer, but I did make some changes. Don't we always make changes in a pattern.


My husband finish organizing the food storage, boy talk about an improvement in that room. He did a awesome job! Thanks Honey!!! I finished taking down the tree and all the festive Christmas decorations are away for another year. It is time to get back into a normal routine, which is OK with me.

Goals Others Completed

Both Richard & Kierra finished some goals. They are starting off the new year with a bang! Kierra & Will finished painting their kitchen in their new house. Here is a picture of Kierra & Kinsen and her painted walls.

Richard reorganized the garage. He was able to move all his tools out of the center of the garage. He had all his tools in the middle of the garage to build the new room on our house. I mean big tools like saw tables and I don't know what, that is all guy stuff. With the tools out of the way, guess what I get to do? You got it park my car in the garage.

Quilt Goals 2009

Quilts Goals for 2009
Winter Wonderland 9 Patch Pizzazz (Binding only)
Festive Santa (Embellishments only left)
Dear Jane Boo Swap
Dear Jane Christmas Swap
Dear Jane Quilt
Dear Jane Nurses’ Swap
Horse for Krystal
Mystery Quilt
SW Frog
Valentine’s Mini
Other Minis
Sea Breeze
Blue Moon
SW Batik Stars
Mystical Horse my own Design
On Block Wonder
The Dear Jane Swaps I want to finish so I'll be ready to quilt my big Dear Jane Quilt. It is something I always wanted to do but didn't want to do under my little machine. The feather technique I learned today will work well in those plain triangles on the border. Here is the link to the original Dear Jane Quilt http://dearjane.com/ You can see more pictures of my Dear Jane Blocks at my webshots link on the right side bar.