Leaves, Leaves and More Leaves

Last Saturday morning it was not raining!  Does that surprise anyone who lives in the Northwest?  When I looked outside and noticed this I knew I had a decision to make.  Ignore the fact that my husband was already busy working outside and go hide in my sewing room or get on my gardening clothes and head out to tackle our neglected leaf covered back yard.  I made the choice to take advantage of the weather and the fact that I had a little energy and headed outside.

Before pictures

Nothing had been put away or cut back or raked etc.

The swimming pool was used at church for Fall Festival so  there is an excuse for its presence in the back yard and not being safely tucked away in the garage.

We have a grove of 5 maple trees just behind the fence so we get plenty of leaf cover.

The piles are much thicker behind the fence where our back driveway is but that was saved for another day.

Now for the After pictures

We still have a few things to put away but I really enjoy the view from the back porch when the garden is cleaned up and ready for winter. 

I would say that I made the right choice to spend the morning in the garden and I still had time for a couple of hours in my sewing room.  I do have a few aches and pains and sore muscles I did not have before Saturday.  I will have to say that it is just a little harder than it used to be.

It was a good day!

Block of the Month November Finishes

I have been keeping up with my block of the month blocks so here I am sharing them again.

12 of Hearts November block

Birdie Stitches November block

Bloggers Block of the Month

Fat Quarter Stars Quilt Along

I have a link to each of these Block of the Month on my sidebar, some are near the end and some have just begun.

A Special Time in South Carolina

I had the privilege to fly to South Carolina a couple of weeks ago.  The purpose of my visit was to spend some time with my oldest son Nathan, his wife Kacy and their daughters Adria and Hannah.  An added blessing to this trip was the opportunity to see Adria as Gretl in The Sound of Music. 

My trip out involved flying first to Denver, then to Atlanta and then to Savannah, which is close to where Nathan and his family lives.  I had a simpler flight back, Savannah to Atlanta, Atlanta to Seattle.

Nathan knew that I would love this road leading in to a neighborhood near his home.

The weather had been dreary and gray here in the Northwest so I just had do take a picture looking outside the bedroom window my first morning there.

I was able to attend three of the four performances of The Sound of Music presented by the Hilton Head Preparatory School. 

The pictures below were taken by Janet Kelly.

We could not take flash pictures during the performance so with Janet's pictures I am able to share a little of the beautiful sets and costumes and of course I wanted to share pictures of Adria. 

Janet took this picture of us after one of the shows.

Now for the pictures I took.

I took this picture of Hannah and her friend waiting for the show to start.

Nathan and Kacy

The family after the last performance.

"Maria" and "Gretl"

Mr Wolfe, the director with Adria

Dinner together after the last show.

My trip was short and busy but I had a wonderful time and was so happy to be able to be there.

New Quilt Block Finishes

I have not had much time for keeping up with my blogging but have done a little sewing. 

These are the last three blocks I have completed.

 

Block 3 Fat Quarter Stars Quilt Along

Block 4  Fat Quarter Stars Quilt Along

Block 2  Bloggers Block of the Month Quilt Along

Family Fun

Our daughter Amy found this great kit for making a Mr Potato Head pumpkin.  Our grandson, Amy's nephew Noah loves Mr Potato Head and he was very excited about this gift.  He had a hard time waiting for the pumpkin for putting this together.   When the pumpkin arrived he and Amy got right to it.

Noah is very focused on the progress.

Noah appears to be pleased with the almost finished pumpkin.

Landon was busy putting his pumpkin together with the help of his dad and he had to pause to give me a cheesy grin.

Here they are with their Cowboy Pumpkin Heads.

Caleb joining in on the fun!

Little Matthew is eating his dinner while keeping an eye on his very busy cousins.

Joshua enjoying his pizza at the table with Matthew.

A kind of grainy picture of our two youngest (they also have the shortest hair) acting silly as usual.

Matt with his belated birthday cheesecake.

The girls relaxing.

Matthew likes his walking toy.

Uncle Matt and Uncle David playing with the little boys.

It is rarely quiet when we get together but we do enjoy it. 

I always think about the rest of our family living in other parts of the country and how much we miss them. 

Cottage Banner

I found this design in the April 2011 edition of  Create & Decorate Magazine.  This pattern was designed by Cathie Richardson.  When I started to think about a gift for one of my sisters this came to mind so I traced the design on a piece of linen and did the embroidery.   

I thought about what kind of fabric I wanted to use to put it together and decided that my Sewing Room Social fabrics by Jacquelynne Steves were perfect.  Visit Jacquelynne Steves' blog The Noble Wife and see her new fabric lines and patterns.

My picture makes my banner look a little crooked but it is really much straighter than it appears. 

It is fun to make little projects that are easy to complete, I enjoyed putting this together. 

I hope the person I am sending it to enjoys it too.