Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Back from Florida

Barbie and I flew south for a few days and had a wonderful time in the sunshine.  It was not our usual quilt tour, instead it was a get-away to visit a good friend, Jan, who lives in Cape Coral, Florida.   I want to share a couple of adventures that we enjoyed.

Sanibel Island

On Saturday, we drove out to Sanibel Island which is about a half hour from Jan's house.  For more information about the island, CLICK HERE.  The day was full of sunshine but a little cool by Florida standards, only 70 degrees.  For the winter weary from Ohio, it was perfect.  How fun to get my toes in the sand and walk through the waves on Bowmans Beach.  The island is famous for sea shell hunting.  


What a gorgeous day!

  

 CROW

After Bowmans Beach, we went to visit CROW which stands for "Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife."  -  "For more than four decades, CROW has provided compassionate care to animals at all stages of illness and injury. Whether providing for an orphaned baby rabbit or rehabilitating an injured raccoon and releasing it back into the wild, our staff and volunteers are making a difference and our 4,800-square-foot wildlife hospital is where it all takes place."  
CLICK HERE for more information about CROW.  They are helping nature whenever possible and it's a worthy cause for sure!  We enjoyed visiting their center and learning more about the program.




A big thanks to our friend Jan who took time to drive us all around and explore the island.  What would we do without friends?
"I cannot even imagine where I would be today if it were not for that handful of friends who have given me a heart full of joy.  Let's face it, Friends make life a lot more fun." 
~ Charles R. Swindoll

Monday, March 23, 2015

Celebrating Quilting Day

"The Late Wisconsin Spring" by John Koethe

"Snow melts into the earth and a gentle breeze   
Loosens the damp gum wrappers, the stale leaves   
Left over from autumn, and the dead brown grass.   
The sky shakes itself out. And the invisible birds   
Winter put away somewhere return, the air relaxes,   
People start to circulate again in twos and threes.

Finally!  The weather opened up its closed fist and we were able to drive south on Saturday - National Quilters Day - for a QBee quilting day with Miss Carol of Sweet Peas and Possum.  Michelle, Earlene, Barbie and I joined Miss Carol in her snowball Nine-patch "9 Snows in a Row" class.  We started out with show and tell and below is Barbies "Floral Tumbler Quilt." The lively colors make you dream of spring!  What a fun Grape border!



Below:  Earlene's very first snowball block!  She is getting hooked on quilting.



Hey!  Where did all the quilters go?  I think there was a karaoke party in the back room.  Our guard dog, Gus, is keeping an eye on the fabric.  You can see the sample class quilt on the board behind the tables.


Michelle had a plan for her colors.  It is looking good!

Mama Barb's snowball blocks

First sign of spring

 Mama Barb's scrap box!  How fun!

Earlene's 9-patch.  Check out her corners!  Miss Carol is the best teacher ever!

We continued quilting at home where Toria completed her first small project.  A little string mug rug.  She did a great job sewing and quilting it.


Happy Spring Quilting!